Riverview High football wants to build on successful foundation

The Riverview High football team can run, and will run. 

It is something the team proved over and over in 2023. The Rams had the area's leading rusher in running back DJ Johnson, who finished with 1,660 yards and 23 touchdowns. When Johnson came out of the game, Isaiah Belt came in, and Belt was also successful, rushing for 1,094 yards and 14 touchdowns. The duo, along with the team's physical offensive line, paved the way for the Rams to win eight games and reach the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 4S regional finals before falling 49-23 to Venice High. 

In 2024, both the senior Johnson and the junior Belt are back, ready to top their 2023 marks. They will be joined by a talented quarterback and new faces at receiver. If the defense can find players to fill holes left by graduated and transferred players, the Rams could be in for another playoff run — though thanks to the FHSAA scrapping its Metro/Suburban/Rural classification system, the are back in Class 7A, where tough foes including rival Venice High await. 

Photo by Ryan Kohn

While the team's running backs are known commodities, its quarterback is not. Junior Anthony Miller will take over the position from Braxton Thomas, who is now at North Carolina A&T University. Last season, after transferring from Venice, Miller played wide receiver for the Rams, with the expectation that he would get a shot at the quarterback job in 2024. The transition to receiver was made possible by Miller's elite speed. He ended 2023 with 26 catches for 321 yards and three touchdowns. But he will indeed be going back to his natural position this season, where a strong arm and his aforementioned speed make him a big play waiting to happen. 

Thanks to a minor injury, Miller did not play in the Rams' preseason game against Port Charlotte High on Aug. 16, but he completed six of seven passes for 129 yards and two touchdowns in Riverview's spring game against Columbus High in May. 

Photo by Ryan Kohn

Miller will get to throw passes to one of the top all-around offensive threats in the area in Yahshua Edwards, a senior who comes to the Rams from Braden River High. Edwards was used as both a running back and a receiver by Braden River, racking up 967 rushing yards, 443 receiving yards and 19 total touchdowns. Expect Riverview offensive coordinator Brody Wiseman to get creative in how he uses Edwards this season. 

Outside of Edwards, expect senior receiver Jaden Wheeler and senior tight end Jaden Key to have increased roles in 2024. Wheeler caught eight passes for 128 yards and three touchdowns in 2023, while Key had three catches for 61 yards. Both Wheeler and Key caught touchdown passes in the preseason game against Port Charlotte. 

On defense, the Rams saw leading tackler Landon Marsters transfer to Venice High, and its next three leading tacklers graduate. A new crop of Rams will get the chance to fill those cleats, starting with junior Andon Clough, a safety who had 35 tackles and an interception in 2023. Another breakout player could be sophomore defensive lineman Miles Przekwas, who started in the team's spring game. Freshman defensive back Pinot Parks could also make a name for himself. Parks, who is 5-foot-11 and also plays wide receiver, is the only freshman on the team's varsity roster, a sign that Head Coach Josh Smithers and his staff believe in his ability to help the team right away. 

The Rams also have a special teams weapon in kicker/punter Nick Delfau. Delfau, a senior, is rated as a 4.5-star punter and ranked as the No. 53 punter in the national class of 2025 by Kohl's Kicking as of Aug. 20. Delfau is also rated a 3.5-star kicker by the service. 

Under Smithers, the Rams typically like to open their schedules with difficult games as a type of baptism by fire. This year is no different. Riverview will open the regular season on the road with a game against Naples High (10-3 in 2023) on Aug. 23. Games against Hillsborough Riverview High (7-4), Palmetto High (5-5) and defending Class 2M champion Berkeley Prep (13-2) will follow, as will annual matchups with Venice (12-3) and Cardinal Mooney High (12-2). 

It is no easy road, but the Rams have the firepower to run it.