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The Florida High School Football State Championship Preview

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Marcus Benjamin @BenjaminReport

We now have the sweet sixteen in high school football in the great state of Florida.  One of the biggest goals of the season is achieved with the trip to the O-Town for a chance at a state title.  Seven teams return to the beautiful city of Orlando, Florida and five champions are looking to go back to back. We also have two rematches of 2017 championship games with last years winner aiming to repeat history and last years loser looking to avenge a loss that has stained for an entire year.  

 

THE SEQUELS

Living up the original often falls short, but there are some exceptions.  The Dark Knight, Terminator 2 and Winter Soldier are some examples of Part 2s outperforming Part 1s. In the case of classes 6A and 4A, part two being better than part one will be put to the test this week.  

 

6A State Championship

Armwood (Seffner) Hawks (13-1)

Vs.

Miami Northwestern Bulls (8-5)

Saturday 3:00 PM

Welcome back Bulls.  Chatarius “Tutu” Atwell was the difference in last year’s championship game versus Armwood.  Atwell made the play of the game spinning off of a defender and sprinting 51 yards down the sideline for a touchdown.  The Bulls defense made the critical fourth down stop to seal the 21-16 victory over the then undefeated Hawks. Armwood is nearly undefeated this year as their only loss came in the season opener to Tampa Bay Tech 20-12.  The Hawks been as dominant as any team this season. They recorded four shutouts and beat playoff teams Tampa Plant, Plant City, Jefferson (Tampa) and Crestview along the way. Their most impressive win, a 31-6 playoff romp over top seeded Vanguard (Ocala).  Sophomore quarterback Cam’ron Ransom and Eric Wilson will need to have strong performances if they are looking to defeat the Bulls. Armwood won back to back state championships in 2003 and 2004.

Miami Northwestern replaced Tutu with North Miami transfer Isaiah Velez. Velez has proven to be worthy of leading the Bulls to back to back championships.  The senior is accurate, poised and gets the ball to his playmakers like Dwight Jackson, Romello Brinson, Nathan Noel and Sean Delaughter.  For the second straight year the Bulls dismantled Naples in route to Orlando last week 40-7.  Northwestern claims six state championships and are looking to claim a seventh.

4A State Championship

Cocoa Tigers (10-3)

Vs.

Raines (Jacksonville) Vikings (12-1)

Thursday 7:00 PM

Last year, Cocoa came into Orlando steamrolling opponents.  After losing to rival Rockledge in 2017 in overtime, the Tigers outscored their playoff opponents 174-29. Cocoa defeated University School (Davie) 49-14 that year and many considered Cocoa the favorite going into Orlando. This year a different kind of story. The Tigers lost to their rival Rockledge 42-10 in the season finale and were able to easily take out their first two playoff opponents Astronaut (Titusville) and Bishop Verot (Fort Myers) by a total of 73-14.  Last week in the state semifinal the Cocoa found themselves down to University 31-17 in the third quarter. The Tigers roared back led by sophomore quarterback D.J. Arroyo and the defense that would score a critical safety that would prove to be the difference. Arroyo scored on a 29-yard touchdown run to trim the lead 31-24, then Willie Gaines tackled the Shark quarterback in the endzone for the two-point score. Now with 3:24 to play on 3rd and goal, Arroyo found Jamari Williams for an 18-yard touchdown to take the lead 32-31.  Cocoa is in their third straight state championship game winning the first 31-17 over Bolles (Jacksonville). Cocoa has won four state titles in its school’s history.

It’s definitely feels like deja vu for the Raines Vikings.  Last year, the Vikes lost their opening game to Lee (Jacksonville) and conquered the rest of their opponents to claim their second state championship in school history.  This year, another opening loss to Lee, and without losing another game, are right back in the state championship against Cocoa. Raines shut out their last two playoff opponents including a 48-0 shellacking of Dunnellon to clinch their second straight trip to Orlando.  The 4A championship game was a defensive battle as Raines countered a Gaines one yard touchdown with an Ivory Durham IV eight yard touchdown pass to Kamaree Noble with 5:41 to play to give the Vikings a 13-10 win. Durham is the all-time leading passer for Raines and is now at Valdosta State.  New quarterback Jacorey Rivers led the Vikings to a dominating 48-0 win in the state semifinal. Senior running back Brandon Marshall amassed 171 yards rushing in two touchdowns in the game last week and is the all-time leading rusher in school history with over 4,000 yards.

 

BACK TO BACK FOR THE FIRST TIME

 

3A State Championship

Chaminade-Madonna (Hollywood) Lions (11-2)

Vs.

King’s Academy (West Palm Beach) Lions (12-1)

Saturday 10:00 AM

Chaminade reaching the state finals for a third consecutive year has been a foregone conclusion for many at the beginning of the season.  Their last hurdle, a 16-0 shutout of Clearwater Central Catholic that figured to be their greatest challenge during these playoffs. They shut out the Marauders for the first time since 2012.  The Lions have stout defenders like Miami commits Keontra Smith, Te’Cory Couch and Cam Williams. Senior running back Willie Davis ran for 221 yards on 31 carries and scored on a 33-yarder.  Their two losses were to playoff teams Deerfield Beach and American Heritage (Plantation), but their best wins were against playoff teams Muscle Shoals (AL), Miami Booker T. Washington, American Heritage (Delray) and best of all might have been the 35-0 annihilation of 4A state semi finalist University School (Davie).  The Lions won a thriller against Oxbridge Academy (West Palm Beach) last year on the final drive executed by current starting senior quarterback Daelen Menard.

King’s Academy has seemingly replaced the now shut down Oxbridge program from the same county.  Their spot in the 3A state final was anything but a foregone conclusion. Their last two wins were thrilling one point playoff victories to make your heart stop.  Down by six with 23 seconds left, King’s got a 66-yard Hail Mary from senior quarterback Justin Wake to senior receiver Cory Croteau to prevail in the regional final over The First Academy (Orlando).  Wake accounted for six touchdowns in a come from behind 49-48 win over FSU High (Tallahassee) in the state semifinal. The TKA Lions were down 35-14 in the third quarter before Wake started the rally. Wake went 22-32 for 404 yards and connected with Croteau, Jayvon Wynn, Drew Luchey and for touchdowns.  Wake scored the game winner with seven minutes remaining on a 12-yard rush. The is King’s Academy’s first appearance in the state final in school history.

 

2A State Championship

Champagnat Catholic (Hialeah) Lions (9-5)

Vs.

North Florida Christian (Tallahassee) Eagles (8-4)

Friday 10:00 AM

Champagnat earned their way to the 2018 state final powered by a fast tempo offense. The Lions from Dade County started as a 5th seed and traveled to  Moore Haven (just west of Lake Okeechobee), Neuman (Naples) and Admiral Farragut (St. Petersburg) and now find themselves in Orlando defending their state title.  Champagnat are battle tested playing a tough schedule and suffering losses to defending 7A state champion Venice and 4A state semifinalist University School. Donovan and Duke Jones carried the Lions over Admiral Farragut as two 70-plus yard runs by the two running backs proved to be the difference.  Duke scored with 1:49 left to seal their travel plans for Orlando.

NFC were in the confines of their own home for these playoffs, but did overcome its toughest playoff battle over Victory Christian (Lakeland) last week in the state semifinals.  The Eagle’s defensive backfield made big time plays in big time games. In the last three playoff weeks, DeAngelo Mitchell had a 109 interception return for a touchdown, DeAndrae McCray had a 98 yard pick six and Von Hayes returned a kick 80 yards for a touchdown against Victory Christian.  NFC is seeking their eighth state championship and first since 2011.

1A State Championship

Baker Gators (13-0)

Vs.

Madison County Cowboys (12-1)

Thursday 1:00 PM

How bout’ dem Cowboys! Madison shut down the Hawthorne offense to zero points in the state semifinal after the Hornets were averaging 51 points per game.  It was the first time Hawthorne was shut out since 2013. Marcus Ghent’s 52-yard run and Robert Hiers’ three yard touchdown rush proved to be enough to get the 24-0 win and send the defending champions back to Camping World Stadium.  Last year the Cowboys rallied back from a three point halftime deficit to Blountstown to win 35-20 and complete their first ever undefeated season. Madison’s only loss this season was to 7A Columbia (Lake City), but defeated larger playoff schools like 5A Wakulla (27-3) and Suwanee (50-12), 4A Dunnellon (42-0), 3A FSU High (33-17) and 2A University Christian (Jacksonville) (19-17).  

Baker will be no slouch.  The Gators posted 41 points in the first half of their state semifinal versus Port St. Joe.  PSJ did not allow more than 20 points all season. The dynamic running back Junior McLaughlin had another big night rushing for 241 yards and four touchdowns on 24 carries.  McLaughlin runs the offense from mostly the wildcat formation and also threw a touchdown pass to sophomore receiver Eric McQueen. Baker lost to PSJ in the state semifinals in 2015, to Pahokee in the state championship in 2016 and lost to Blountstown in the state semis last year.

 

NEW FACES IN NEW PLACES

 

8A State Championship

Columbus (Miami) Explorers (14-0)

Vs.

Mandarin (Jacksonville) Mustangs (10-4)

None of the members of the current roster for Columbus were in the state championship game in 2014.  This is a new breed of explorers led by playmakers Henry Parrish, Jr., Kalani Norris and Xzavier Henderson.  The trio made the big plays in the state semifinals versus Deerfield Beach to advance Columbus to state finals. Henderson made an acrobatic interception to set the tone for the game, Norris scored on both offense and defense and Parrish gashed the Bucks for 162 yards on 25 carries including a 49-yard run that put the nail in the coffin for a 49-21 win.  The Explorers are looking to complete an undefeated state championship season for the first time in school history.

Get used to the name Carson Beck.  The junior quarterback and Alabama commit slinged it around the yard for 478 yards and three touchdowns over Riverview Sarasota in the state semis.  For the first time in 29 years, Mandarin made it passed the second round and won only two games last year. Darian Oxendine and Kas Absolu not only intercepted the Riverview quarterback but also were the recipient of several Beck passes in route to a 45-31 victory.  Terrell Jennings had his second 100-yard game of these playoffs as the Mustangs galloped for touchdowns. Mandarin’s losses were all to playoff teams including the overtime season finale to Fletcher (Jacksonville) 27-20. The state took notice with a surprising wins over Winter Park 41-8 and 8A favorite Wekiva (Apopka) (19-7).

 

5A State Championship

Cardinal Gibbons (Fort Lauderdale) Chiefs (12-2)

Vs.

North Marion (Citra) Colts (12-2)

In 2017, Gibbons played in one of the best high school football games ever witnessed, a 58-57 loss to eventual state champion American Heritage (Plantation) in the regional final.  The Chiefs walked off that field believing that they were better than Heritage and focused on 2018 to right their wrongs. Gibbons snapped an eleven game losing streak to Heritage, lost their three year record setting starting quarterback and somehow defeated their rival Heritage again in the playoffs with a backup quarterback named Brody.  Linebacker Trevis Robinson set the single record for sacks with 5 ½ in a 14-3 win over Tampa Jesuit. The senior also had seven tackles for loss and ten total tackles. Sophomore receiver Troy Stellato was electric with three catches for 131 yards and two scores. Brody Palhegyi stepped into the starting quarterback job and helped advance the Chiefs to their first state final since 1990.  

Sophomore Quarterback Brody Palhegyi

Not many expected North Marion to be in the state championship game but here come the Colts.  The Colts pulled off the unthinkable defeating undefeated Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville) 29-22.  Corey Wilsher completed 18 of 29 passes and three touchdowns in the win. Wilsher found Brenden Shipp for the game winning touchdown with 24 seconds left to advance the Colts to their first championship final in school history.   

 

CLASH OF TITANS

 

7A State Championship

Lakeland Dreadnaughts (14-0)

Vs.

St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale) Raiders (13-1)

Friday 8:00 PM

Lakeland and Aquinas are two of the most storied programs in the state of Florida.  Lakeland claims six state championships while St. Thomas Aquinas claims 10 state titles. The two teams meet for the first time since 2008 when Aquinas defeated Lakeland 56-7.  Lakeland last won a state title in 2006 with a 45-42 OT win over St. Thomas. Lakeland won three straight championships from 04’ to 06’ and since that time St. Thomas has not allowed a two year gap without a state title.  Lakeland can repeat history with a win on a the last official Friday night of the season.

Lakeland has barely been challenged this season and in the playoffs.  Manatee (Bradenton) (36-14), Apopka (37-20), Tampa Plant 49-30 and Edgewater (Orlando) (56-21) stand as the Dreadnaughts strongest victories.  Demarkus Bowman is the workhorse for the Naughts and as he had 158 yards and three touchdowns against Edgewater in the state semis. Lakeland does it in all phases as they have eight blocked punts and nine defensive touchdowns.

St. Thomas Aquinas is executing in all phases as well this season. Pittsburgh commit Daniel Carter rushed for close to 200 yards and accounted for three touchdowns in the 38-18 win over Venice last week.

Senior Running Back Daniel Carter

 Senior quarterback and Harvard commit Curt Casteel leads the offense and the Raiders have a stout defense once again with All-American defenders Jordan Battle, Jaden Davis and Anthony Solomon. St. Thomas’s only blemish this season was a 43-27 loss to Miami Central as there closest margin of victory was the 20-point win over Venice.

 

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Marcus Benjamin works as the senior writer and editor for FootballHotbed.com. He attended Florida A&M and Florida Memorial University completing a bachelors degree in communications in 2010. He's covered high school football in the South Florida area since 2010 for the Miami Herald, Miami Sports Tribune and ShawSports.net. He is married and lives in Fort, Lauderdale, FL.

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