Lecanto (Florida) quarterback JT Tipton sets school single-season TD record

The Panthers' junior signal caller breaks nine-year old school mark

Lecanto JT Tipton (10) looks to throw as Bradford takes on Lecanto at Bradford High School in Starke, FL on Friday, October 20, 2023. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun] / Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK

Lecanto High School's football team suffered a tough district loss to Vanguard on Saturday, Oct. 12, but the Panthers did have at least some small reason to celebrate.

With a 17-yard toss over the middle to Delonzo Washington in the fourth quarter, junior quarterback J.T. Tipton recorded his 21st touchdown pass of the season to set a new school record.

“It does mean a little bit to me but mainly I’ve got to thank my guys for that. Guys going up and getting it, my O-line protecting me,” Tipton said. “It’s nice to set records but definitely those guys up front are the ones that helped me get there.”

The previous mark was held by Travis McGee, who threw 20 touchdown passes in his senior year of 2015.

Against Vanguard, Tipton finished 17 of 30 for 167 yards and threw for two touchdowns in the game, also connecting with Tez Joseph on a nice 29-yard touchdown pass down the left sideline in the first quarter.

Lecanto fell 40-13, dropping to 5-2 overall and 1-1 in District 4A-5. The loss could potentially prevent the Panthers from capturing the district title, though they could still theoretically win the district via three-way tiebreaker if they defeat Leesburg and Gainesville beats Vanguard on Oct. 25.

However, district tiebreakers come down to MaxPreps rankings, where Vanguard is currently much higher.

Coming into that game, Lecanto had been averaging 39.5 points per game with Tipton leading a pass-heavy offense. Tipton admitted that having only one practice that week due to Hurricane Milton had an impact.

“We’ve got timing and everything changes weekly,” Tipton said. “It definitely sucked. We have to figure it out as a team. But it definitely got us out of the loop.”

Otherwise it has been a spectacular year for Tipton, his third since coming to Lecanto from Seven Rivers Christian. Through seven games he had completed 94 of 137 passes (68.6%) for 1,479 yards and has just one interception.

As a sophomore, he threw for 1,908 yards, with 18 touchdowns against only three interceptions.

“That’s huge,” Lecanto head coach Antoin Scriven said of Tipton breaking the record. “It just shows the growth in him and we’ve still got a ways to go. But I’m extremely proud of him. He definitely deserves it because he worked for it every day. He’s a great kid.”

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