Why Expectations Are Growing at Wesley Chapel

It was one of the more explosive games around the area. Usually this time of year, offenses are still trying to find their rhythm. On Friday night, it felt like the defenses were the ones trying to catch up.

For Wesley Chapel, quarterback Levi Pavlikovic was at the center of it.

Pavlikovic made plays throughout the night, scrambling out of pressure, extending plays and finding receivers downfield when things broke down. Unofficially, he finished with around 350 passing yards and four total touchdowns, showing the kind of playmaking ability that could make Wesley Chapel difficult to defend this fall.

He had plenty of help around him.

Darian Borden, Bryce Flemming and Noah Daye all made plays in the passing game and gave Pavlikovic options on the outside. The Wildcats were able to attack downfield, create big plays and keep pressure on Mitchell throughout the night.

The final score wasn’t what Wesley Chapel wanted, but the bigger picture surrounding the program is hard to ignore.

Before head coach Bruce Patterson took over, the Wildcats were coming off back-to-back seasons of 0-10 and 1-9. In Patterson’s first two years, Wesley Chapel improved to 5-5 and then 6-5, with last season ending in a playoff berth.

The growth has not just shown up in the win column.

Wesley Chapel now has more than 100 players in the program after previously not having enough numbers to field a junior varsity team. That type of growth has changed the feel around the program and helped turn the Wildcats into one of Pasco County’s faster-rising teams.

Patterson has said this group feels different, and the preseason opener gave an early glimpse of what he has been talking about.

Pavlikovic now has experience under his belt and looked comfortable taking control of the offense. Borden, Flemming and Daye give him weapons to work with, and there is a confidence around this group that comes from the progress made over the past two seasons.

The Wildcats will compete in Class 5A, Region 2, District 7 alongside Cypress Creek, Wiregrass Ranch, Wharton, Sunlake and Land O’ Lakes. After reaching the playoffs last season, the next challenge is finding a way to make another push through a district that should be competitive throughout the fall.

There is still plenty for Wesley Chapel to prove, but the direction of the program is no longer in question.

The numbers are up. The wins have followed. A playoff appearance came last season, and the Wildcats now have a quarterback capable of making plays with a group around him that believes it can take another step.

Wesley Chapel may have fallen short in the preseason opener, but there is plenty of reason to believe the Wildcats could be in for their best season yet under Patterson.