Teams:
Berkeley Prep
Lakeland Christian
Tampa Catholic

Old friends, new look…
Minus the departure of Fort Meade and Frostproof, this district contains the same core of teams with the Bucs, the Vikings and the Crusaders. Berkeley Prep and Lakeland Christian must replace their starting quarterbacks but will have the benefit of strong running games to help the signal-callers come around. Berkeley also has one of the best tight ends in the country in Jacob Mathis to get the ball in space or to open up holes with his blocking. Lakeland Christian has one of the most explosive running backs in Ben Sirmons though and he should see a monster season while Tyler Wilkerson gets his confidence under center. Tampa Catholic gets Nate Craig-Myers back into the fold and will have not one, but two QB’s to make things happen now that Austin Sessums has transferred in from Wiregrass Ranch joining five-star hoops prospect Kevin Knox. Sessums also provides a great option with his feet.

Playmakers everywhere, but it’s about the lines…
None of these teams make it very far this season and will render their stars unserviceable if they cannot get the play the need in the trenches. All three have the capability to control the clock on offense while TC will have chunk-play capabilities at any given moment. All three teams need their lines to give their QB’s time to throw or the defenses will be worn out from so many three-and-outs.

So, what about Tampa Catholic?
It was an interesting offseason to say the least as the Crusaders saw their starting TE Tre’ McKitty depart for IMG, but if there was a position group that TC is absolutely stacked at, it’s the wide receivers. Obviously there’s Craig-Myers, but Noah Carlson and Darius Corbett along with ATH Devan Barrett provide all sorts of options on offense. If not for their big-play capability on offense in the River Ridge game in the spring, things might have looked a little different since the Royal Knights simply lined-up and ran north-south on TC all night. The absence of McKitty could impact the most on the line, but the Crusaders should find a way to have a very successful nonetheless.