When alum Harold “Gator” Hoskins took over the Eastside football program in 2022, the Rams were struggling.
Eastside won a combined five games over a three-year period from 2019-2021, and they hadn’t beaten rival GHS since 2008.
That changed quickly with an 8-3 record in Hoskins’ first season, the school’s first district title in 10 years, and a 36-0 win against the Hurricanes.
He followed that up with another district title in 2023 and a third straight FHSAA playoff appearance last year.
Although the Rams were denied their third straight district title with a 21-7 loss at South Sumter (Bushnell), they won six straight games, including an upset of Dunnellon in the district opener, and a 33-0 win against rival GHS for their third straight shutout in the series.
“I think we did pretty good,” Hoskins said. “We had a lot of young guys, only five seniors that really played football for us, and we’ve got a lot of guys coming back. Hopefully, with that experience, we can really do something special this year.”
With six starters returning on offense and seven on the defensive side, Eastside will be in the mix for another league title and postseason berth.
“The guys have got that winning mentality,” Hoskins said. “I think before we got there, it wasn’t a losing mentality, but it wasn’t that ‘we’re going to win’ mentality. Now we’ve kind of built that culture over there. They know that we’re going to compete every single day and we’re going to go hard and hey, if you want it, go out there and get it.”
Plus, they have plenty of experience.
Andrew “Cade” Sutherland was thrown into the fire as a freshman when starting quarterback Adrian Curtis announced late in the summer that he was going to play his senior season at Hawthorne.
Sutherland, who finished his freshman campaign with 880 yards passing and 10 TDs, said he has made improvements from last year to his sophomore year.
“I think it’s mostly just maturity,” Sutherland said. “Thinking, getting more of the reads down.”
Gainesville High quarterback Nelson Tambling (6’5, 235), who threw for 1,295 yards and 11 TDs last year as a junior at GHS, transferred in after the spring to give the Rams a solid 1-2 punch under center.
“Cade did a great job, led us to the playoffs,” Hoskins said. “There’s going to be a quarterback battle and let the best man win.”
Rising sophomore Javaris Gardner will be counted on more after rushing for 354 yards as a freshman.
“Oh man, he’s a special kid,” Hoskins said. “He got big carries for us and did some great things on special teams for us. He’s going to be a key factor for the team again this year. He’s gotten bigger, he got faster, so we expect him to do some special things this year.”
Gardner, who will be joined in the backfield by senior Kamariyon Mack (170 yards on 28 carries, 3 TDs), averaged 6.3 yards per carry and scored five touchdowns.
Another key sophomore on offense is Jordan Johnson, who led the Rams with 281 yards receiving as a freshman.
Senior Deavion McBride and rising junior Ibrahem Shaer, a first team All Area selection in 2024, will anchor the offensive line.
Defensively, Eastside will be led by Chad Hall (6’1, 277), senior linebackers DeMarco Daniels (6’1, 210), Tramayne Montague (6’3, 190) and Mack (57 tackles, 3 fumble recoveries), and cornerback Malicah Williams (5’10, 145), among others.
Hall, who is a senior defensive tackle and will also play on special teams, finished third on the Rams with 10 tackles for a loss.
“We’ve got the best defense in North Florida, there ain’t no debate about it,” Hall said. “Everybody is running to the ball hard, hard hitters. We all want to play. We’re physical. The front four is amazing and we’ve got the best linebackers in the city.”
Daniels, who joined Montague (64 tackles, 14 TFL) and Williams (team high five interceptions as a freshman) on the All Area big school first team, led the Rams with 104 total tackles as a junior.
“Man, DeMarco is a special player,” Hoskins said. “He’s fast, he’s strong, he’s physical. He loves the game. He loves the process to get better. And again, the kid will be playing on Saturday, he’s committed to Delaware, so he’s a special kid.”
He’s also set the personal bar very high.
“I’m going for 200 tackles this year,” said DeMarco, who recorded 26 tackles in a game against South Sumter.
In addition to its 3A-District 5 schedule, which includes South Sumter, North Marion (Citra), and Dunnellon, the Rams will play 6A state semifinalist Buchholz, 1A regional quarterfinalist Trinity Catholic (Ocala), and 2A regional semifinalist Bradford (Starke) – all on the road in three consecutive weeks.
“I think it’s a tough schedule, but I think it’s preparing us to get ready for the playoffs,” Hoskins said. “That’s the goal to make it to the playoffs to get a chance to compete for a state title. Being battle-tested. We kind of put teams on the schedule that we hope will give us a real big battle this year.”
It’s also one last chance at redemption for the senior class.
“Bradford and Buchholz are the only two teams that we haven’t beaten since I’ve been here,” said Hall, who is working on a fourth straight playoff appearance. “We haven’t beaten Buchholz in I don’t know how long, and Bradford knocked us out of the playoffs twice, and they beat us during the regular season twice as well, so we’ve got to get our get back.”
Eastside, which has 23 wins under Hoskins in just three seasons, will open the regular season at home on Friday, Aug. 22, against Belleview.
Eastside Rams
2024 record: 7-4
2024 playoffs: Lost at Bishop Moore (Orlando), 35-6, in 3A-Region 2 Quarterfinals
Head coach: Harold “Gator” Hoskins
Years as head coach: 4th year
District assignment: Class 3A-District 5
Players to watch:
DeMarco Daniels (OLB/MLB, Sr.)
Chad Hall (DT, Sr.)
Malicah Williams (CB, So.)
Tramayne Montague (LB, Sr.)
Andrew “Cade” Sutherland (QB, So.)
Key games:
Aug. 28 vs. Rickards (Tallahassee)
Sept. 5 at Buchholz
Sept. 19 at Bradford (Starke)
Oct. 10 vs. South Sumter (Bushnell)
Oct. 31 vs. Gainesville