GREEN COVE SPRINGS - Clay High quarterbacks Landon Martin and Landon Chadwick starred in the Blue and White game, a controlled scrimmage won by 14-7 by Martin’s Blue team at Clay High on Saturday, Aug. 5.
Martin, a junior and the returning starter from last year's team, looked every bit ready to lead the Blue Devils into the upcoming season, completing all four passes he threw for 73 yards and running three times for 34 yards and a touchdown. In his only two possessions, Martin led touchdown drives of 75 and 70 yards, displaying an ability to do damage with both his arm and his feet. Martin opened the varsity portion of the scrimmage with two completed passes for first downs. Two plays later, sophomore running back Keedric Davis took a hand-off up the middle, bounced to his left and outran the White defense for 34 yards to the corner of the end zone.
Martin converted a fourth and five with a 10 yard scramble on his next possession, leading to a perfectly thrown seam route to slot receiver Parker Dykas for 35 yards. Martin then capped the drive with a 20 yard run, escaping the pocket and weaving his way to the goal line.
Chadwick, a senior who also plays at a wide receiver slot, completed four of six passes for 86 yards with an interception for the White team. Chadwick ended the scrimmage with a 50 yard scoring toss to Mikeise Battle, who had gotten behind the Blue defense.
“Landon Chadwick is going to be a solid back-up quarterback,” said Blue Devils head coach Jeff Gierke, who came to Clay last February. “You have to have a second guy in case anything happens.”
The efficient play of his quarterbacks and receivers was an encouraging sign for Gierke, who has spent the spring and summer teaching the Blue Devils a new offense that will feature more passing and a faster pace than fans in Green Cove Springs are accustomed to seeing.
“We are going to go as fast as the referees will allow,” he said.
Gierke has almost 20 years of coaching experience, including as an assistant at Spring Hill Summit in Tennessee and at Gulf Breeze High, where they averaged 31.8 points a game. The Blue Devils hope to surpass those that mark.

“This is the best personnel I have had running this offense,” he said, mentioning Daylen Brown, Battle, Dykas and Chadwick as quality receivers. “In Tennessee we could never find a really good running back. We have got a couple here. We are so deep at wide receiver. At Gulf Breeze I really threw the ball to two guys. Here, I can go seven or eight deep who can all run the right route and catch it.”
Gierke is less concerned with the ability of his skill position players to master the offense than he is with the adjustments his offensive line and defense will have to make to the physical demands it puts upon them.
“The hardest part is the offensive line conditioning,” said Gierke. “They were not at seven-on-sevens all summer. I can platoon wide receivers, but I cannot platoon an offensive line.”
Gierke explained that as a result of the increased pace, the Clay defense will have to play more than 60 snaps per game, making depth critical.
“We have to be two-deep everywhere,” said Gierke, who has 87 players at his disposal.
According to Gierke, the Blue Devils’ strength on defense will be their secondary and the interior linebacking duo of Nehemiah Bailey and Jay’Shawn McCloud. McCloud is a rising senior who just moved back to Clay County after a year in Indianapolis.
“We got a huge Christmas present in July with Jay’Shawn McCloud coming back,” Gierke said. “He is going to be as good a linebacker as there is around here. He is 6’3”, 240 pounds. Him and Nehemiah in the middle, I feel pretty comfortable.”
Gierke allowed the junior varsity players to run five possessions against each other, followed by four possessions matching varsity players against varsity players.
White JV quarterback Wyatt Rapoza’s 25 yard pass to fellow freshman Elias Hamilton on a fourth down accounted for the only touchdown in the junior varsity portion of the scrimmage. Sophomore Connor Beck bulled into the end zone for a two-point conversion.
Davis, just a rising sophomore, led all running backs with 80 yards on only four carries. Projected starting running back Bailey, who is being counted on to start at linebacker as well, did not play offense.
Kicker Andrew Riddling was perfect on three point-after-touchdown attempts.
The Blue Devils will play a difficult slate of District 3-4A opponents in Lake City Columbia, Ridgeview and 2024 state runner-up, St. Augustine. They will first travel to Pedro Menendez High for a preseason classic on August 15, then open the regular season at Fleming Island on August 22. Clay’s first home game is September 5 against Middleburg.
“We won’t be at warp speed against Fleming Island, but hopefully by the time we are three games in we are going to go as fast as anybody around,” said Gierke.

Preseason: Clay at Pedro Menendez
Friday, August 15 7 p.m.

Liscio's Look at Pedro Menendez High Football
By Mike Liscio

Menendez Falcons: 2023 Record 4-6 did not make playoffs

Head Coach: Anthony Rivers, Second season 4-6

Key Returners: QB Cash Downey RB Mason Lynch LB/RB Joseph Soto WR Nate Carr DE/TE Aiden Brubaker LB Maddox Lehman OL Ransom Rhodes OL Colby Barnes

Key Newcomers: WR Westin Spindle

Anthony Rivers was hired in the spring 2023 to bring stability to a Falcon program that had six coaching changes in the previous three seasons. The young Falcon team struggled early but matured and grew throughout the season finishing October with upset wins against Clay and 7-win playoff-bound Matanzas in October.The Falcons have a tough schedule, but if they can take care of the teams on the bottom half of their schedule, a wild card berth is a real possibility.
Quarterback Cash Downey won the starting job in summer as a freshman and threw for 1600 yards including 282 against 9-1 Beachside, 270 against Matanzas and 251 against Tocoi Creek. Downey will look to seniors Nate Carr and Aiden Brubaker to anchor the receiving corps joined by transfer Westin Spindle who returns after a season at border rival Matanzas. Sophomore Mason Lynch and senior Joseph Soto will handle the carries at running back a behind an experienced offensive line including C Colby Barnes and G Ransom Rhodes.
Rivers was a defensive coordinator at Ponte Vedra prior to arriving on State Road 206. The defense will be tough and physical. Joseph Soto is the quarterback of the defense. He can play both linebacker positions and even on the line, possessing one of the best football minds in the area. Juniors Luke Harmon and Gene Bryant are hard hitters and senior Liam Molloy has a nose for the ball. The defensive backfield will be rebuilt with the departure of CB Jason Watson.