For the West Boca Raton Bulls and new head football coach Dylan Potts, there has been nothing but excitement surrounding the South Florida program in recent months. With a 3-2 record entering Week 6 of the 2022 season, the Bulls have already recorded their highest win total since 2017.
The success did not happen overnight. In fact, the momentum has been gradually building since Potts took over earlier this year, just as he envisioned.
“The leadership and vision the administration has for the entire school is what intrigued me initially about West Boca Raton,” Potts said. “The school is a very high academic school with a lot of emphasis placed on that, which was another factor that made this job very appealing. When you couple the administration’s vision and leadership, the high level of performance academically, and a beautiful campus and facilities, you can really see why this is a special place out here at West Boca Raton.”
With wins over Leonard, Lake Worth, and Spanish River, the West Boca Raton Bulls are undefeated on their home field so far, and they have gotten stellar play from players on both sides of the ball. Take a look at some of their top playmakers and you’ll quickly notice that the Bulls have a lot of youth at key positions, with no two names bigger than the QB/RB duo of Mason Mallory and Javian Mallory.
Mason, a freshman, has passed for 615 yards with a 12:1 TD:INT ratio so far this season. His cousin Javian, also a freshman, has anchored the ground game for the West Boca Raton offense, rushing for 430 yards and 5 touchdowns and scoring three more times as a receiver.
“Mason and Javian are two of the hardest workers out there, day in and day out,” Potts said. “All the success they have had so far is a credit to the work they’ve put in all summer. Outside of performing well on the field, they both are extremely great and respectful kids who perform at a high level academically as well. The sky truly is the limit for those two and I am excited to watch the growth and development of them the next four years.”
The Bulls’ offensive success does not stop with those two, however. West Boca Raton has also received notable play from others including Tyler Cordero, Zach Walls, Elijah Gonzales, Ritch Dieujuste, and more. Defensively, the same can be said for key players such as Cruz Baeza, Aaron Ford, Maddox Haase, and Christopher Kelly.
“Through the first four games, the two things that have impressed me most about this team is the ability to win a close game and the ability to rebound after a loss,” Potts said. “I think with any team, let alone a young team like we have, you want to see how your kids perform in close game and how they come back after taking a tough loss. We have experienced both of those scenarios thus far, which I believe is invaluable for this young team.”
Looking ahead, West Boca Raton soon turns its attention to district play, where matchups against Deerfield Beach, Coconut Creek, and Blanche Ely await. The Bulls know exactly what to expect from those teams going forward.
“We knew we were in a very tough and competitive district this year, which is exactly what we wanted to prove ourselves as a team and program,” Potts said. “Coconut Creek, Deerfield Beach, and Ely are all very well coached football teams that are not only having success this season, but have had success now for a while. I think the opportunity to play some very good football teams in our district is going to benefit our program tremendously. We set our goals out from the beginning on wanting to win the district this year, so our team knows the importance of these upcoming games.”
