Lely Looking for Big Things in 2025

When Ben Hammer accepted the football coaching job at Lely High School two years ago, he was impressed with his new team's athleticism and potential. When he sat down with Principal Jennifer Bledsoe, he presented a five-year plan. Now, as he wraps up the first week of spring practice, he sees that plan coming to fruition.

“As far as pace, when Miss Bledsoe interviewed me before we came here, we did have a five-year plan,” Hammer said. “Our coaching staff and our kids, I think we have at the very least, met those expectations on the field, in the classroom, in the community. We’re as strong as we've been since we've been here. We’re talented. We're pretty experienced.”

Hammer said others are noticing what’s happening at Lely.

"People understand,” he said. "People know. We've had people drop us from the schedule because of what our expectations are, and they're high. We coach them that way and push them that way. And we expect to have a successful year.”

Hammer’s second squad at Lely (7-5) made it to the second round of the playoffs before meeting state - and national - power, Miami Northwestern. It was an eye-opener for a Lely team that for most of the season, featured an offense that put up video game-type numbers on the scoreboard. The Trojans were humbled by Northwestern, 64-12. Northwestern went on to win the 3A state championship, 41-0, over another traditional state power, Jacksonville Raines.

“Playing Northwestern,” Hammer said, "the biggest thing we got out of that is yes, we were better. Yes, we were competitive. Yes, we were proud of our team and our kids. But we saw how far we have to go. Our program goals are to compete and beat those types of teams, not just the teams in Southwest Florida. We want to continue to reach and scratch and claw and get to the top of the mountain in the state of Florida and the country. It's really an eye-opener to our kids about the work we need to do in the off-season. And how much time we have to put in to continue to keep getting better so that next time a game like that rolls around, like the Coconut Bowl (against Naples High), some of our more competitive games in the area, that we're ready to go. Our kids have done a great job. We’re stronger. We're bigger. We're excited for this team's potential. But like everybody says, potential means you just haven't done it yet. So, we're going to continue to work.”

Hammer identifies five leaders he’s counting on to lead the Trojans: Jeremiah Dieudonne, Trevon Charelus, Nino Joseph, Zephaniah Diamond, and Noah Brown.

“They are the best we have,” Hammer said. “They're all bright, bright young men. The lowest GPA among them is a 3.33. They're leaders in the school, leaders in the community. We just finished a fundraiser selling discount cards, and one of them sold the most on the whole team. And the rest of them earned all the prizes, did everything they were expected to do. And they worked hard in the weight room.”

Rising junior defensive lineman Jeremiah Dieudonne is looking forward to making an impact in the fall.

"We have really good competition,” Dieudonne said, "and all of my teammates are developing very well, and we're going to be great. My goal for this season is to become one of the most well-known defensive linemen in the county. And not only the county, but Florida.”

Lely coaches are stressing discipline and the need to eliminate costly penalties.

“I've definitely got to work on that myself,” Dieudonne said, "I'm gonna try to be a leader on the team to make sure we get no penalties this season, so we can play to the best of our abilities. I feel like we learned a lot from playing a really good team in the playoffs. And I feel like that's going to translate to this season.”

Another key player on the defensive side of the ball is Noah Brown, who will be a senior in the fall.

"I'm gonna be disciplined,” Brown said, "and for sure show out on game day. The intensity is high, the competition is great. You know, we've just got to get better every day. It's been intense the whole week."

Trevon Charelus, a rising junior, was part of an inexperienced secondary last season. He’s eager to show how that unit has improved.

"I'm just really working on my craft over this off season,” Charelus said, "lifting, putting in work. We were really young last year, but I feel like over the off-season we all put in work, put in countless hours and yeah, we're ready."

Zephaniah Diamond returns for his senior season at wide receiver. In addition to team goals, he has some lofty goals for himself.

"I love the culture here at Lely,” Diamond said. “A lot of energy. We just work every day. Spring's going great. The competition, energy, and positivity around practice and my teammates are amazing from the locker room, film study and on the field. It's just great energy everywhere. I want to be over 1,000 yards in receptions. I want to get over ten touchdowns receiving. And I want to go farther in the playoffs this year."

Running back Nino Joseph, fully recovered from a broken collarbone suffered in the Coconut Bowl against Naples, is ready to lead his team as a junior next season. Before his injury, Joseph was on pace to become the leading rusher in the history of SW Florida. But the 5’7, 170-pound speedster is focused on leading his team, not his personal stat line.

“I broke my left collarbone,” Joseph said. "It's doing amazing. The Lord blessed me to recover, get back to full speed, get back on this field, and get back to playing the game I love. My goal is to make sure everybody on the team has good chemistry. Brotherhood. To go far. I don't think about my personal statistics because I like to focus on what's happening right now. I don't want to think about what's happening in the future, and I just don't want to focus on that stuff. The team comes first for me. I feel like we're going to do really great things. The defense is stepping it up. We're going to get stops this year. The offense, we'll still do what we do, scoring points. We're going to be good. We're going to be amazing."

Hammer said Lely’s growth is the result of a community-wide effort.

“It's not me,” Hammer said. “Over the three years, people have come and people have gone. We've been fortunate enough to surround the kids with unbelievable coaches with great knowledge, that care about kids, that are really hard workers. Our kids have bought in. We have a fantastic administration that on the field, off the field, in the classroom, in the community, is incredibly supportive of our young men. Same with our teaching staff. Same with our custodial staff. The support that our program gets from our community is really unbelievable. We don't need for anything. We're getting to the point where when we're raising money, it's not for stuff that we need anymore. It's for stuff to provide an unbelievable experience, to start looking to play out-of-state games, and having alternate helmets and things like that. So, it's a fun thing to be a part of right now. Are we perfect by any means? Absolutely not. But football is an organization. I'm very proud to be the head coach. The support that we receive from everybody is awesome. We just try to make our program as attractive to everyone who wants to be a part of it as possible. We want to provide a great player experience. We want to win a lot of games. Then most importantly, we want to set the kids up for success after they leave here. People ask all the time, ‘How are you guys going to be this year? You return a bunch of starters.' And the real answer to what kind of job we’re doing comes when all these guys come back in ten years, it's not right now. They're playing a kid's game in front of a great community and great fans. What’s important is how they respond to that adversity when life gets tough, when they're married and have a kid, or bills are due and things like that.”

Hammer is looking to add two more coaches for the fall.

"Position does not matter,” he said. “You've got to work hard. You've got to love kids, and you've got to be willing to be a part of something special. We do it because we love it and we care about the kids and care about the community.”

Lely will wrap up its spring schedule with a scrimmage against Riverdale on May 22.