August 23, 2024
Tavares High’s Ari Bentley Emerges As Breakout Defensive Star With 4.0 GPA
By Kyle Coppola
Tavares High’s Ari Bentley Emerges As Breakout Defensive Star With 4.0 GPA
TAVARES, Fla. — Tavares High School’s defense is making waves across Lake County and Central Florida, with one standout player poised for a breakout season: sophomore linebacker Ari Bentley. A key component of the Bulldogs’ defense, Bentley recorded 46 tackles as a freshman, with 32 of those being solo efforts. Standing 5’11” 200lbs, he comes into 2024 looking fierce. If you thought last year was a breakout year, Bentley will be primed for big things.
Bentley is not only a force on the field but also in the classroom, boasting a perfect 4.0 GPA. His dedication to both academics and athletics has set him apart as a rising star at Tavares High. “God gave me my talents and always gets the glory first!” says Ari. In fact Ari actually has a twin brother on Tavares High Jelani Bentley who is also a linebacker. Jelani wears #26 and also played last season making 18 total tackles and 12 solo. Both twins are set for massive years.
The Bulldogs’ defense, already one of the top units in the region, is anchored by a talented roster that includes Izayia Williams, who recently received an offer from Georgia and includes over 20 NCAA Division I offers. Alongside Williams, standout defenders like Jamarcus Pugh, Kylan Doster, and Artavius Riley Jr. make Tavares a team to watch this season. They looked so dominant in the 48-0 win over Forest in their preseason game.
With Bentley leading the charge and the support of a strong defensive core, Tavares is primed for a successful campaign. It’s been since 2019 that we have seen a Tavares High team with this much hype coming into a season. After years of harship, the program has been turned around by head coach Gavin Jones and his staff which includes Trey Grant who wears a ton of hats for Tavares including co-athletic director, football coach and head baseball coach.
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.
