Is it Friday yet? Hillsborough and Pinellas yet again take center stage in the dramatic theater known as the FHSAA Playoffs, but there’s also something brewing just outside our borders. There may be five rematches from the regular season that may very well bring us same suspense we saw the first go around. There’s Admiral Farragut (10-1) at Canterbury (10-1) that was decided by 2 points. There’s Gaither at Tampa Bay Tech which was decided by a last second FG 17-14. What about Palm Harbor University at East Lake decided by a missed XP 21-20? Not to mention you’ve got two of the most spirited rematches between Robinson at Jesuit and Hillsborough at Armwood and it feels like Christmas. A Pisgkin Christmas. Ahhh.
Throw in the fact you’ve got the 6A Runners-up (Dr. Phillips) playing at the 5A Runners-up (Plant) which is sure to attract the attention of the entire State of Florida. I am about to give you three games that should you feel like slipping across the border into the counties of Polk or Manatee you will not regret the time, the gas, and the ability to see quality football. The six teams below share a combined record of 61-5. The driving distances from Downtown Tampa are no different than what you spend going through the dysfunction junction everyday. One of the games features the opponents of either TBT or Gaither in Round 4 so there’s most definitely relevance. Let’s get into it…shall we?
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Hardee (9-2) at Palmetto (10-1)
Coming off a hard fought 18-13 on the road at Lake Wales last week, the Wildcats of Hardee High School are on the prowl and looking to avenge a 3-point loss to Palmetto in this 5A Region 3 Semifinal. Their only losses are to the Tigers on October 21st in which Palmetto kicked a 49-yd FG with the clock running out, and on the road to 7A Regional Semifinalist Ft. Pierce Central the final week of the season. Hardee gets it done on the ground better than UPS or FedEx with better diversity than the United Nations. Six rushers have totaled over 200 yards a piece within that system and have accounted for 25 TD’s on the season. The Tigers boast Louisville Commit Da’Qual Randall who happens to be the Nephew of Manatee High School, Nebraska, and Green Bay Packers Fame Tyrone Williams.
Palmetto comes into this game averaging 170 yards passing, while gaining 167 yards on the ground per game. Talk about balance. The Tigers were without Cory Crawford and Josh Hicks for their blowout of Auburndale in the 1st Round. They will need Hicks since he’s getting about 7 yards per carry and will likely need to match that output to keep Palmetto’s season alive. Palmetto is also trying to reverse the karma from last year’s premature exit courtesy of Cape Coral who is playing in the other Region 3 Semifinal against Immokalee. If Palmetto wins, they will host the winner of Immokalee-Cape Coral and eventually get a shot at either Norland or Glades Central at home should things progress that far. Same applies for Hardee. Cape Coral has already lost to Immokalee 66-27 this season.
Prediction: I get gun-shy at assuming just because Team A beat Team B meas they’ll do it again unless it was a boat race. This was not the case in October when it finished 16-13 in favor of Palmetto as time ran out. This time is no different. Neither is the result.
Palmetto 23 Hardee 21
Mainland (10-1) at Winter Haven (11-0)
If the success of your season was determined solely on paper, both of these teams would be clubhouse leaders for best in the state. Not that this is a newsflash either, but the Blue Devils of Winter Haven and the Mainland Buccaneers are two equally dangerous teams for two entirely different reasons. First, the visitors of Volusia County waltz into Denison Stadium having allowed only 72 points the entire season. After starting the year with a 14-0 loss on the road to DeLand, the Bucs have taken teams like Jones (pre-injuries) and Olympia to the woodshed, and shutout Region 4 Semifinalists Palm Bay. They are paced by their Quarterback Shelton Willis who was an efficient 7-14 for 119 yards and 2TD’S in victory against a scrappy Lake Gibson squad 31-14 last week. The Blue Devils buried an explosive Seabreeze Offense by a score of 37-15 on their home field in Round 1. Winter Haven’s QB Levi Borders knows a few things about playing when the lights come on too. His Father is Pat Borders who played in Major League Baseball and was MVP of the 1992 World Series for the Toronto Blue Jays. (The elder Borders is a Lake Wales Graduate.)
Winter Haven will need these clutch genetics again, and will need guys like Walter Bridges and Fred Rhone to step up in a major way or else this could be the end of perfection for the Blue Devils. In fact, I think highly enough of either of these teams to say that I’ll take the winner of this game to go on the road the following week and do some more damage. First things first though. Mainland may be the beneficiary of a late transfer though when Ormond Beach Calvary Christian WR Cameron Hadley likely receives his clearance to play adding yet another weapon to Willis’ arsenal. The winner of this game will travel to take on the winner of Fort Myers-Naples in the Region 3 Finals.
Prediction: I may be accused of being a lot of things (just ask my wife), but a staunch Mainland I’ve never been confused with. They’re my Alma Mater’s arch rival and they’ve gone back-and-forth in “resource acquisition” battles with the Bulldogs for ages. If you separate the business from the personal, the Buc-Boys from the Eastside really are the better team. Think of them as a poor man’s Armwood. Offense is slightly less potent, but the defense is as good as anywhere in the State of Florida.
Mainland 20 Winter Haven 14
Kissimmee Osceola (10-1) at Lakeland (11-0)
You know how certain songs describe emotions? What if I told you the first thing that pops into my head when I think of this Lakeland team isnot a song, but more of a sound effect? What if I told you this same effect could also describe the feeling I get when I start to break this game down on paper and some of their key players on film? There’s only one sound. Cue the “Price Is Right” trombone then. Yep. Never in all my days have I seen a more maligned 11-0 team in the State of Florida. You would think that this Dreadnaughts team is actually 0-11 listening (and reading) to what their fans have to say. Tell that to Coach Castle though. He ain’t listening. In fact, he’ll probably point you to the spot where you can take your trombone and…What?! Of course I meant stand by the cannon, or train horn, or 50,000 sq ft jumbotron that would make Jerry Jones green with envy.
The Kowboys are not, I repeat NOT impressed, nor intimidated, and quite frankly will feel like they’ve emancipated the entire state of the stress that is watching “Naughts Fans hem and haw over their squad like it’s an Alabama, Auburn, and Florida rolled into one. Osceola’s only loss of the season came at the hands of 6A Regional Semifinalists Palm Bay 10-0. They have played Lakeland often and stopped their 53-game streak back in 2007 in Lakeland as well. The Dreadnaughts are literally winning games in a fashion that indicates that no one short of MacGyver himself is keeping the engine together with duct tape, paper clips, and a blow pop. How else would you describe a 6 point win over Hialeah, a 5 point win over St. Cloud (who they beat by 4 TD’s at the beginning of the season) and needing 4 quarters to beat a down Kathleen squad by 10? I’ve also noticed that Lakeland is not playing a “typical” Lakeland schedule either. No Lake Wales, no Winter Haven. Just Lake Region, Flanagan, and Tenoroc. Hmmmm. Winner of this game gets to host either Tampa Bay Tech or Gaither.
Prediction: It’s not the 4th Round, so it’s not yet time for Lakeland to lose. Then again, if you read between the lines and read the predictions from around the state, there’s a distinct smell of upset in the air. Judging by the resume of each team, I’d say that’s a smell that’s not upsetting at all. It’s actually a smell that’s quite familiar to these teams. They both average 34 points a game, and they’re both with 7 points in total points scored and given up on the year. You can’t get much more even then that, so no upset here.
Osceola 27 Lakeland 24
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So there’s your games just outside our borders that will give you all of the entertainment you desire should you not choose to go to Canterbury, East Lake, TBT, Jesuit, Armwood, or Plant. Once again, the Bay Area proves that it’s quality is not lacking and now if can match the quality with quantity. Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Happy Postseason. See you at the games!
