October 18, 2024
Cousins Unite on the Gridiron: Umatilla High Football’s Family Connection
By Kyle Coppola
Cousins Unite on the Gridiron: Umatilla High Football’s Family Connection
UMATILLA, Fla. — Family ties are fueling Umatilla High School’s football season as four cousins — Ray Jenkins, Zion Reed, Bryce Norflee, and Taurence Lee — are making their mark on the field together. This unique family connection has brought both a competitive edge and a close-knit bond to the Bulldogs’ roster, energizing the team’s 2024 campaign.
Ray Jenkins, the team’s junior wide receiver and cornerback has become a leader on and off the field, making some spectacular catches this year. His cousin, freshman Zion Reed is a 6’0 freshman with plenty to build upon.
From left to right: Ray Jenkins, Zion Reed, Bryce Norflee and Taurence Lee.)
Sophomore wide receiver Bryce Norflee, brings athleticism and intensity to the field, following in the footsteps of his father, Brian Norflee who played college football at Valdosta State and was a State Champion with Eustis High School. Norflee has 685 yards receiving and 9 touchdowns. Meanwhile, Taurence Lee, is an offensive lineman.
It’s great to see these cousins getting the opportunity to share the same field together. It’s something to play with one or two cousins but to play with four on a team is something special.
With playoff hopes on the horizon, Umatilla has improved vastly this season. The team has a 500. record at 4-4 headed into their final regular season game this Friday night against Taylor. Umatilla High is going to be a team to watch as the Sunshine State Athletic Conference Playoffs approach.
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
