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TAMPA BAY TECH 18 ARMWOOD 17

You know it’s a big game when there is a heavy traffic jam to get into the parking lot. Tampa Bay Tech Titan fans almost equally numbered the Armwood Hawks fans.

This was a beat down dog fight. Hard hits were celebrated as much as positive plays. In some ways this was a boring defensive game until the 4th quarter provided fireworks. The Titans led 10-7 at half.

Both teams ran a lot between the tackles fighting for every yard they could get. Many times the tackle was like running into a brick wall with the runner unable to gain another inch. The outlet pass to the wide receivers was the other popular play.

Related to that pass play and Patrick Mahones, both QB’s sometimes threw the ball sidearm as if they were playing 2nd base. Both were pretty accurate with decent velocity. The slightly looping path of the ball could result in picks.

At the start of the 4th quarter Armwood was leading 10-9. Tech then kicked a FG to go up by 2. With 7 minutes left, Armwood’s 6’4” 235 lb. QB threw a beautiful pass to a wide open receiver for a 60 yard TD making it 17-12. After the extra point you could tell the Hawks’ players and fans were feeling the victory was in reach.

The Titans then methodically drove down the field until it was 4th down around Armwood’s 15 yd line. With a 1:09 left Tech completed a pass to their tallest receiver in the very back of the end zone. The two near referees converged to the spot of the catch. A conversation ensued trying to determine whether it was in bounds. It appeared neither ref was sure. After about 10 seconds of discussion one of the refs signaled it was a touchdown.

The Armwood Head Coach ran onto the field in a rage. The total crew of referees gathered to further discuss the play. Eventually the head ref turned and signaled a second TD signal. The Titans’ 2 point failed making the score 18-17.

How did Armwood respond? They raced down the field resulting in a 30 yard FG attempt for the last play of the game. The kick slid to the right and the Tech players celebrated all over the field.

Tampa Bay Tech should be a playoff team again this year. Their lack of an effective passing game will probably prevent their return to the state finals.
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LAKELAND 44 CLEARWATER ACADEMY INTERNATIONAL 6

Beautiful night at Bryant Stadium in Lakeland last Friday night for the CAI Knights @ Lakeland Dreadnaughts. It was obviously a dreadful night(see what I did there?) for CAI. They constantly shot themselves in the foot. Costly penalities, turnovers almost on the next play after causing a turnover, giving up a big play after putting Lakeland behind the sticks, etc. The worst mistake was multiple penalties called against a young CAI assistant who got so incensed at a Lakeland player who had committed a personal foul. The Dreadnaught hit a CAI player twice after the CAI player was on the ground. The coach started to run onto the field with the intention of confronting the Lakeland player who just happened to be Cormani McClain. The CAI coaches fortunately stopped the assistant. If they didn’t you would have seen a report on your 11 o’clock news..

Lakeland was clearly the superior team. I know, a bold statement considering the score. They have the usual speedy backs that find the crease then take off like streaks. The defense was smothering. After a few stops, a Lakeland fan was yelling that the Dreadnaughts “have the best DB’s in the world!”. I may give him the state of Florida for high school. He did not yell as much after CAI finally completed a 65 yard pass for their only TD of the night.

Lakeland does have the #1 DB in state who is also considered the #1 player in Florida, the before mentioned Cormani McClain. He is going to commit Thursday. The Gators are the heavy favorite to snag him. He is a very talented player who plays and runs his mouth with arrogance. McClain actually plays a little too casual for me. He was beat deep 3 times. Two were overthrown and one was under thrown. Of course he knocked the under thrown ball away.

It must be said. I wore some FSU clothing to the game so I was playfully harassed by some Gator fans as soon as I walked in. They stated they were concerned about CAI’s QB. Their concern was not warranted. His first pass was a wounded duck thrown directly to an appreciative Lakeland player. The CAI QB missed open receivers most of the game.

I left before the game was over for the second week in a row. I got burned by that last week but there was no concern this week.
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Clearwater Central Catholic 16 Sebring 10

The Sebring Blue Streaks visited the CCC Marauders Friday night. Last year the Blue Streaks lost a 5A state semifinal on a FG as the clock ran out. Their defense and kicking game are good enough to make another run this year. IMO, what could hold them back is a lack of offensive creativity.

CCC scored on the first drive led by their sophomore QB Jershaun Newton. The Marauders have some slippery skill players. I texted this site’s moderator since he is from the Clearwater area asking what he knew about Newton. He texted back that he is the last of 5 brothers that all played college football. That made sense.

Sebring played tough to keep the game close. The Blue Streaks dropped 2 passes on big situations that could have led to scores. The last one was on 4th down in the red zone in the final minutes.

CCC earned the win by making very few mistakes and a tough defense. Newton is a talent to watch for. He is very fluid, an elusive runner and an accurate passer.

DURANT COUGARS 34 NEWSOME WOLVES 33

We live in Valrico which is the Durant district. I chose this game because it would require very little driving since I was driving to Tallahassee Saturday & back to Valrico Sunday.

Newsome and Durant are physically located about 5 miles from each other but there is a nature preserve separating them. The drive from one school to the next is 11 miles.

The game was very competitive. Durant threw the ball all over the yard. Their QB had a rubber arm with good accuracy. He isn’t a running QB but he rolled out well, had good pocket presence and kept his eyes downfield. Newsome fought back with a running game in a Wing-T style offense that got stronger as the game went on.

Here is my version of what happened at the end of the game. Newsome stopped Durant at around Durant’s 20 yard line with 1:50 left. Newsome was up 20-19. Durant had burned all their timeouts. I figured that Newsome would do what it took to run the clock out, game over and a Newsome victory. I get up and began walking toward the exit.. I stopped near the opposite end zone to watch the next play that confirmed to me I had made the right decision to head to the car. The Wolves ran the ball up the middle for a 1st down to around the 10. Perfect time to start lining up in the victory formation. I continued my walk and stopped to make sure Newsome would run out the clock. To my amazement they ran the ball resulting in a TD. The score was now 27-19 with a minute left. Should I turn around or should I confidently continue my walk to the car? I decided to continue to my car and just as I opened my car door Durant fans reacted like they had made a good play but certainly not a TD. I decided to get into my car and drove away headed for home.

Halfway home I was stopped at a red light. I decided to check the final score on my phone only to find out Durant had tied the score with a TD & 2-point conversion. The game is going to OT. Good move Mark! I arrived home, went inside and sat on the couch. I checked the score update and saw that Durant had won 34-33.

I’m sure Newsome’s coaches will be grinding over this one for a long time. Not sure what they were thinking.

Fla Varsity Recruiting Updates

Find out what colleges are recruiting Hunter Rose, EJ Archield Jr., AJ Hairston, Juan Gainous, and Brogan McNab now!


......................................................................................................


Q&A with Stoneman Douglas quarterback Hunter Rose​


Do you want to play sports in college? If so, which one?
“Yes, I would love to have the opportunity to play football at the college level.”

What colleges have been recruiting you?
“I have had contact with several coaches from various programs but have yet to receive a formal offer. While communication is a part of the recruiting process, I feel a formal offer is needed to consider them to be actively recruiting me. Hopefully, that happens soon.”

What school is recruiting you the hardest?
“Right now, I couldn’t say that one school is trying harder than the other.”

Have you made any college trips yet?
“No visits yet, I hope to change that by this time next year.”

What camps did you attend this summer? How did the camps go overall?
“I went to a few University of Miami camps, including their Legends Camp and 7v7 Team Camp. I attended FIU’s and STU’s Individual Camps and FAU’s 7v7 Team Camp. I am always looking to compete and feel all the camps were productive experiences.”

Did you have a favorite college growing up?
“My favorite college growing up was the University of Miami. My family and I have had season tickets for the last 15 years so, I have spent all of my life watching the Canes.”


......................................................................................................


Q&A with Robinson quarterback EJ Archield Jr.​


Do you want to play sports in college? If so, which one?
“Yes I would like to continue my football career in college.”

What colleges have been recruiting you?
“Currently no colleges have recruited me.”

What school is recruiting you the hardest?
“N/A.”

Have you made any college trips yet?
“I camped this summer at USF, Georgia State, UCF, and Florida. I attended the FSU and FIU 7v7 with my high school but no visits.”

Do you have plans for game day trips?
“I am planning on attending a UCF game day.”

Did you have a favorite college growing up?
“Growing up my favorite college was University of Miami.”


......................................................................................................


Q&A with Monarch quarterback AJ Hairston​


Do you want to play sports in college? If so, which one?
“Yes I want to play football in college.”

What colleges have been recruiting you?
“As of right now I’m talking to FSU.”

What school is recruiting you the hardest?
“N/A.”

Have you made any college trips yet?
“No, I currently haven’t made any college visits yet.”

Do you have plans for game day trips?
“Yes I have planned to go to the FSU vs Florida game on November 25th.”

Did you have a favorite college growing up?
“Yes growing up I was born into a Miami Hurricanes family, so I am a big fan of the Miami Hurricanes.”


......................................................................................................


Q&A with Olympia quarterback Juan Gainous​


Do you want to play sports in college? If so, which one?
“I definitely want to continue playing football in college.”

What colleges have been recruiting you?
“A few schools have reached out, but many are waiting to see my performance against our big-name rivals and my full year stats.”

What school is recruiting you the hardest?
“No school has stood out with their recruiting yet, but I have enjoyed getting out and seeing the campuses and athletic facilities.”

Have you made any college trips yet?
“I have visited FSU, FAMU, UCF, UF and USF.”

Do you have plans for game day trips?
“The team and I are planning for a game day at UCF soon.”

Did you have a favorite college growing up?
“I have close ties to FSU. My dad is from Tallahassee and took classes at FSU and graduated from FAMU. My mom graduated from FSU and my grandad worked there his whole career. I am definitely a Seminole fan.”


......................................................................................................


Q&A with Holy Trinity quarterback Brogan McNab​


Do you want to play sports in college? If so, which one?
“I would love to play football in college. I want to play at the highest level possible. I'm just going to keep working for that.”

What colleges have been recruiting you?
“N/A.”

What school is recruiting you the hardest?
“N/A.”

Have you made any college trips yet?
“I have gone to Florida, Georgia Tech, Miami, and USF.”

Do you have plans for game day trips?
“I think I will go to another Miami game later this season. I'd like to go on some more. Learning about the different programs and watching the players in action has been really cool.”

Did you have a favorite college growing up?
“My favorite team is Florida State.”


......................................................................................................

Fla Varsity High School Football Talk

Find out what some of the top players in the state are saying about football and sports now!


......................................................................................................


Q&A with Stoneman Douglas quarterback Hunter Rose
What have you and your team been doing as of late to get ready for the fall?
“My team and I [worked on] conditioning and building our bodies in preparation for the season. And we have been consistently running through our plays to perfect them.”

What do you feel you have improved on the most since football ended?
“I feel I have improved the most on my mechanics and arm strength. And I have added a good 15 lbs of lean muscle to help get me through the year.”

How do you feel your team will do this football season?
“My team will have a successful and healthy season. And we will continue to build on the momentum we ended with last year.”

What team do you feel will be the toughest competition on your schedule?
“I think Monarch will be the toughest team on the schedule.”

Who is the toughest individual player your team will face off against?
“Josh Pena (Monarch High School) will probably be the toughest individual player we will play against. His talent is good enough to be an X factor on any team.”

......................................................................................................
Q&A with Robinson quarterback EJ Archield Jr.
How has everything with the football season been going so far?
“This year has been going pretty well, currently [we’re] 4-2 and heading into district play.”

Have you been pleased with how you have played this season?
“I will say I am ok with the way I have played but not pleased. That does not mean I am not doing good, but I hold myself to high standards to keep myself hungry.”

How do you feel your team has played?
“My team overall has played well but we have yet to play great, we have so much more potential than what we are showing and we have yet to play our best game.”

What do you feel your team can improve on?
“One thing my team can improve on is staying on top of the little things and locking in on the small details.”

What are the keys for your team being successful going forward?
“We need to stay together as a unit and play our game. If we do that we will be in a good position to succeed.”

......................................................................................................
Q&A with Monarch quarterback AJ Hairston
How has everything with the football season been going so far?
“Everything is going pretty well right now, sitting at 6-1 on our bye week.”

Have you been pleased with how you have played this season?
“I believe I could’ve done better some games to help my team be more productive in the game.”

How do you feel your team has played?
“I feel like we are having a better season than what we had last year finishing 4-4, [we’re] now 6-1 with 3 games left, number 1 in our district attempting to make a run deep in the playoffs.”

What do you feel your team can improve on?
“What I feel like me and my team need to improve on is our discipline in games.”

What are the keys for your team being successful going forward?
“I believe what me and my team can do moving forward to be successful is keep working together to build a brotherhood and a family and work together to win these next games moving on.”

......................................................................................................
Q&A with Olympia quarterback Juan Gainous
How has everything with the football season been going so far?
“The season has had its ups and downs, but we are definitely looking towards a great second half of the season.”

Have you been pleased with how you have played this season?
“I am happy with my season so far, but I feel like there is always something to be worked on.”

How do you feel your team has played?
“Olympia has played well so far this season. Like my individual performance, the team as a whole has areas we can get better at. We take every week as a lesson and work on getting better.”

What do you feel your team can improve on?
“I think continuing to improve on the small things during practice makes a big difference in our game play on Friday nights.”

What are the keys for your team being successful going forward?
“We are a close-knit team. We have a good time together, but we also hold each other accountable. I think that is what helps us get better and is important in being successful.”

......................................................................................................
Q&A with Holy Trinity quarterback Brogan McNab
How has everything with the football season been going so far?
“It has been a great start. The team is getting used to the new coaching [staff] and each other. We've only been able to play 4 games. Weather and the hurricane have impacted our play. We've had a great start and I just want to play some more football. We've got talent.”

Have you been pleased with how you have played this season?
“I have been pretty happy with how I am playing this season and am definitely getting more comfortable at QB.”

How do you feel your team has played?
“Our team has played well so far. Our goal is to win the district and I think we can definitely do that. We're young and we get better every week.”

What do you feel your team can improve on?
“We can improve on our run game and all-around offense. We could work on staying calm when things don’t go right.”

What are the keys for your team being successful going forward?
“We are going to be successful going forward because we are all on the same page and know our jobs. Our coaches get us better. Coach Hurlie Brown is our head coach. He's a good guy with a great football mind. Coach Garrett is our offensive coordinator and his play calls have made us better. The more we all work together, the better everything will be.”

......................................................................................................

Q&A with Holy Trinity quarterback Brogan McNab

How has everything with the football season been going so far?
“It has been a great start. The team is getting used to the new coaching [staff] and each other. We've only been able to play 4 games. Weather and the hurricane have impacted our play. We've had a great start and I just want to play some more football. We've got talent.”

Have you been pleased with how you have played this season?
“I have been pretty happy with how I am playing this season and am definitely getting more comfortable at QB.”

How do you feel your team has played?
“Our team has played well so far. Our goal is to win the district and I think we can definitely do that. We're young and we get better every week.”

What do you feel your team can improve on?
“We can improve on our run game and all-around offense. We could work on staying calm when things don’t go right.”

What are the keys for your team being successful going forward?
“We are going to be successful going forward because we are all on the same page and know our jobs. Our coaches get us better. Coach Hurlie Brown is our head coach. He's a good guy with a great football mind. Coach Garrett is our offensive coordinator and his play calls have made us better. The more we all work together, the better everything will be.”

Do you want to play sports in college? If so, which one?
“I would love to play football in college. I want to play at the highest level possible. I'm just going to keep working for that.”

What colleges have been recruiting you?
“N/A.”

What school is recruiting you the hardest?
“N/A.”

Have you made any college trips yet?
“I have gone to Florida, Georgia Tech, Miami, and USF.”

Do you have plans for game day trips?
“I think I will go to another Miami game later this season. I'd like to go on some more. Learning about the different programs and watching the players in action has been really cool.”

Did you have a favorite college growing up?
“My favorite team is Florida State.”

Q&A with Olympia quarterback Juan Gainous

How has everything with the football season been going so far?
“The season has had its ups and downs, but we are definitely looking towards a great second half of the season.”

Have you been pleased with how you have played this season?
“I am happy with my season so far, but I feel like there is always something to be worked on.”

How do you feel your team has played?
“Olympia has played well so far this season. Like my individual performance, the team as a whole has areas we can get better at. We take every week as a lesson and work on getting better.”

What do you feel your team can improve on?
“I think continuing to improve on the small things during practice makes a big difference in our game play on Friday nights.”

What are the keys for your team being successful going forward?
“We are a close-knit team. We have a good time together, but we also hold each other accountable. I think that is what helps us get better and is important in being successful.”

Do you want to play sports in college? If so, which one?
“I definitely want to continue playing football in college.”

What colleges have been recruiting you?
“A few schools have reached out, but many are waiting to see my performance against our big-name rivals and my full year stats.”

What school is recruiting you the hardest?
“No school has stood out with their recruiting yet, but I have enjoyed getting out and seeing the campuses and athletic facilities.”

Have you made any college trips yet?
“I have visited FSU, FAMU, UCF, UF and USF.”

Do you have plans for game day trips?
“The team and I are planning for a game day at UCF soon.”

Did you have a favorite college growing up?
“I have close ties to FSU. My dad is from Tallahassee and took classes at FSU and graduated from FAMU. My mom graduated from FSU and my grandad worked there his whole career. I am definitely a Seminole fan.”

Q&A with Monarch quarterback AJ Hairston

How has everything with the football season been going so far?
“Everything is going pretty well right now, sitting at 6-1 on our bye week.”

Have you been pleased with how you have played this season?
“I believe I could’ve done better some games to help my team be more productive in the game.”

How do you feel your team has played?
“I feel like we are having a better season than what we had last year finishing 4-4, [we’re] now 6-1 with 3 games left, number 1 in our district attempting to make a run deep in the playoffs.”

What do you feel your team can improve on?
“What I feel like me and my team need to improve on is our discipline in games.”

What are the keys for your team being successful going forward?
“I believe what me and my team can do moving forward to be successful is keep working together to build a brotherhood and a family and work together to win these next games moving on.”

Do you want to play sports in college? If so, which one?
“Yes I want to play football in college.”

What colleges have been recruiting you?
“As of right now I’m talking to FSU.”

What school is recruiting you the hardest?
“N/A.”

Have you made any college trips yet?
“No, I currently haven’t made any college visits yet.”

Do you have plans for game day trips?
“Yes I have planned to go to the FSU vs Florida game on November 25th.”

Did you have a favorite college growing up?
“Yes growing up I was born into a Miami Hurricanes family, so I am a big fan of the Miami Hurricanes.”

Q&A with Robinson quarterback EJ Archield Jr.

How has everything with the football season been going so far?
“This year has been going pretty well, currently [we’re] 4-2 and heading into district play.”

Have you been pleased with how you have played this season?
“I will say I am ok with the way I have played but not pleased. That does not mean I am not doing good, but I hold myself to high standards to keep myself hungry.”

How do you feel your team has played?
“My team overall has played well but we have yet to play great, we have so much more potential than what we are showing and we have yet to play our best game.”

What do you feel your team can improve on?
“One thing my team can improve on is staying on top of the little things and locking in on the small details.”

What are the keys for your team being successful going forward?
“We need to stay together as a unit and play our game. If we do that we will be in a good position to succeed.”

Do you want to play sports in college? If so, which one?
“Yes I would like to continue my football career in college.”

What colleges have been recruiting you?
“Currently no colleges have recruited me.”

What school is recruiting you the hardest?
“N/A.”

Have you made any college trips yet?
“I camped this summer at USF, Georgia State, UCF, and Florida. I attended the FSU and FIU 7v7 with my high school but no visits.”

Do you have plans for game day trips?
“I am planning on attending a UCF game day.”

Did you have a favorite college growing up?
“Growing up my favorite college was University of Miami.”

Q&A with Stoneman Douglas quarterback Hunter Rose

What have you and your team been doing as of late to get ready for the fall?
“My team and I [worked on] conditioning and building our bodies in preparation for the season. And we have been consistently running through our plays to perfect them.”

What do you feel you have improved on the most since football ended?
“I feel I have improved the most on my mechanics and arm strength. And I have added a good 15 lbs of lean muscle to help get me through the year.”

How do you feel your team will do this football season?
“My team will have a successful and healthy season. And we will continue to build on the momentum we ended with last year.”

What team do you feel will be the toughest competition on your schedule?
“I think Monarch will be the toughest team on the schedule.”

Who is the toughest individual player your team will face off against?
“Josh Pena (Monarch High School) will probably be the toughest individual player we will play against. His talent is good enough to be an X factor on any team.”

Do you want to play sports in college? If so, which one?
“Yes, I would love to have the opportunity to play football at the college level.”

What colleges have been recruiting you?
“I have had contact with several coaches from various programs but have yet to receive a formal offer. While communication is a part of the recruiting process, I feel a formal offer is needed to consider them to be actively recruiting me. Hopefully, that happens soon.”

What school is recruiting you the hardest?
“Right now, I couldn’t say that one school is trying harder than the other.”

Have you made any college trips yet?
“No visits yet, I hope to change that by this time next year.”

What camps did you attend this summer? How did the camps go overall?
“I went to a few University of Miami camps, including their Legends Camp and 7v7 Team Camp. I attended FIU’s and STU’s Individual Camps and FAU’s 7v7 Team Camp. I am always looking to compete and feel all the camps were productive experiences.”

Did you have a favorite college growing up?
“My favorite college growing up was the University of Miami. My family and I have had season tickets for the last 15 years so, I have spent all of my life watching the Canes.”

VOLLEYBALL COVERAGE

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Note to Readers: Our overall goal with running this site is to help promote the hard working athletes throughout the state. If we missed an athlete, please reply to this post and we will work on adding them to the lists.


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LACROSSE COVERAGE

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BASKETBALL COVERAGE

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Note to Readers: Our overall goal with running this site is to help promote the hard working athletes throughout the state. If we missed an athlete, please reply to this post and we will work on adding them to the lists.


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FHSAA considering changing the postseason format...

BY GEORGE RICHARDS
grichards@miamiherald.com

High school football in Florida, at least when it comes to the postseason, may be changing soon.

The Florida High School Activities Association, the governing body for prep football in the state, is proposing changes to decide which teams advance into the postseason.

As it stands now and will for the coming season, individual schools are placed into districts in one of eight classifications. Each district champion and second place team move on to the regional playoffs.

Under the FHSAA’s new proposal, district play will be eliminated and teams will be free to schedule any 10 games it desires.

The catch is, teams will be given points based on their strength of schedule. The top eight teams in each region throughout the eight classifications will be seeded based on the amount of points they have accrued and averaged based on a minimum eight game schedule.

The better teams one plays, the more points one acquires. The current proposal awards 50 points for a victory over a team with eight victories or more or 35 points for losing to a team with at least eight wins.

Playing a team with fewer victories earns fewer points. Bonus points will be awarded for playing up in classification.

At the end of the 11-week season – teams would schedule a maximum of 10 games with one week off – the points would be calculated and the playoff teams and regional seedings announced, the FHSAA hopes, in a made-for-TV special broadcast statewide.

“We think this would be very exciting,” FHSAA football administrator Frank Beasley said. “We would make every week count. There would be no more having districts wrapped up by the seventh or eighth week.”

The FHSAA is currently searching out opinions from coaches and athletic directors throughout the state and hope to present it to its board of directors in June before going before its athletic directors’ advisory board later in the fall.

The new format – which the FHSAA admits needs tweaking – could be approved for 2017 as soon as this football season.

“We’ve had a lot of positive feedback in regards to some of the changes, but as I’ve shared with everyone, this is still in its infant stages,’’ Frank Beasley said.

“The particulars haven’t been finalized. There’s a lot more vetting to do, more input to get from our board of director and AD advisory board. I’ve heard a lot of positives and one of the biggest is fitting your schedule to what fits your program best.”

Coaches and administrators throughout South Florida have their concerns with the proposal although all seem to be interested in seeing the final result.

Although big schools in Miami-Dade and Broward counties may not be affected much as their scheduling would mostly be taken care of either by the Greater Miami Athletic Conference or the Broward County Athletic Association, smaller, private schools worry about building a 10-game schedule without the benefit of having built-in district games.

Chaminade-Madonna coach Jason Milgrom says under the current proposal, schools from larger classifications wouldn’t have much incentive to play his Class 3A team because it wouldn’t offer them bonus points for doing so.

“I like how some teams which didn’t get in under our current format would get in under this new one,’’ Milgrom said. “That’s a definite plus. There are powerhouse districts and weaker ones, so some teams get left out. But for us, as a 3A school, we can play with a lot of 8A schools.

“What does it matter if you’re playing up [in class] or down? I think that needs to be tweaked. I’m pretty sure, in 3A, there are five or six teams who can play with anyone in the state.’’

Cheryl Golden, the outgoing director of the GMAC, says the same problem would exist for Dade powerhouse Booker T. Washington. Although the Tornadoes have won four consecutive state championships, as a 4A school, they would get bonus points for playing a higher-classification team yet, say a Class 8A team, wouldn’t receive any points for scheduling the Tornadoes.

WE THINK THIS WOULD BE VERY EXCITING. WE WOULD MAKE EVERY WEEK COUNT. THERE WOULD BE NO MORE HAVING DISTRICTS WRAPPED UP BY THE SEVENTH OR EIGHTH WEEK.
Frank Beasley, FHSAA football administrator

Golden contends teams should get extra points to give them incentive to play teams such as Booker T. and Chaminade.

“One negative I see is some schools will never play outside of their neighborhood,’’ Golden said. “Other schools will have to play all over the place just to get games.”

The FHSAA realizes changes will be made to its proposal before it would go into effect. The underlying reason for change, Beasley said, is to ensure the top teams in Florida make it to the playoffs. Under the current setup, that may not be the case as not all districts have the same amount of schools competing for the same number of playoff berths.

Class 7A brought an example of that last year.

In 14-7A, just three teams – state power St. Thomas Aquinas, Blanche Ely and Fort Lauderdale -- were in the running for two spots.

Ely, for instance, could have made the playoffs by going 1-9 as long as its one win was over Fort Lauderdale (3-6). The Tigers did indeed beat the Flying L’s and roared into the postseason sporting a 2-8 record.

Other local districts in the very same classificiation had much more competition.

District 15-7A featured six teams (McArthur went 7-3 but finished third and didn’t make it) while Miami-Dade’s 16-7A had nine teams gunning for two spots.

Ronald Reagan and Miami Springs, despite having winning records, weren’t playoff teams because Miami Sunset won the district with Mater taking the runner-up position.

Under the new format, all of those teams would be lumped together with the top eight teams in the region – regardless of previous district assignment – having a chance at the playoffs.

“We’re definitely open minded if this is in the best interest of all the schools affiliated with the FHSAA,” said Aquinas coach Roger Harriott, whose team won the Class 7A state title in his first year at the helm.

“This is a new structure that definitely needs some modifying. We want to make sure all the kids have the best possible opportunities to compete. For the most part, humans are creatures of habit and all we’ve known is districts. This is a new option. It has pros and cons and I’m a little reluctant to support it until things are revised and is more thought out because it’s going to affect schools long-term.”

How teams make the playoffs will require some mathematics. It appears the state will remain at eight classificiations due to all the defections of private schools to independent conferences.

Within those eight classificiations will be four regions.

District play would be eliminated and tougher scheduling would be rewarded through a point system.

For example, if a team -- lets say McArthur -- plays a team, say South Broward, which ended its season 8-2. If McArthur won that game, it would get 50 points. It would receive 35 points for losing, regardless of the final score.

If McArthur beat a team that finished 3-7, it would be credited just 35 points for that victory. If the Mustangs lost to a 3-7 team, it would only receive 20 points.

Teams will also receive bonus points for playing above their classification. So, if a Class 3A team plays a team from 6A, it would receive three extra points regardless of the outcome. There is no bonus nor penalty for playing a school from a lower classification.

At the end of the 11-week season, each team's point total would be calculated and the regional playoffs would be seeded from first to eighth within each region within each classification.

The team in each region with the most points would be the top seed and play host to regional playoff games throughout regional play.

“We’ve received some great ideas and we’re going to continue to poke and prod at this,” Beasley said.

“We’re trying to make this as foolproof as we can. Not everything is perfect. We know that. Until we go out there and do this, you don’t know what the pitfalls will be.’’
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