Monday...3 days and counting down!

First, please scroll down to the bottom and cast your vote about the Florida Gator game on Saturday.

Counting down to the college football season. I failed to mention that in addition to Oregon @ Boise St on Thursday, there is also a nice SEC/ACC battle between South Carolina and NC State. This should be a very good football game! My sleep deprivation will get started soon, and be with me until January...but a man has to do what a man has to do!

Tomorrow I'll set up some contests on the games this week. I already have a gentleman's wager with Mr Domke. He took Virginia Tech and I took the Crimson Tide - straight up, no points :) Mr. Domke is a graduate of Southern ILL and his Saluki Dogs will invade the Marshall Thundering Herd on Saturday. This is the Marshall of "We are Marshall" fame, and the alma mater of bro in law Al.

Some good prep action coming up this weekend too. Baker will get roughed up by Crestview and wonder why the agreed to that game. The Daphne AL vs Pace game is this Friday, not last Friday like I had thought. Peachtree Ridge goes to Lowdnes County in a huge Georgia game, and Memphis University tangles with South Panola, Mississippi. Two Cincinnati powers tangle on Sunday on ESPN, as Elder and Colerain butt heads. Another good inter state game is Bingham Utah vs Trinit Euless from the Dallas area.

But, back to Florida. Apopka and Lake Brantley, and Edgewater vs Dr Phillips will be good ones. Eustis hosts Mt Dora, but the BIG one is supposed be the Miami Central and Daytona Bch Mainland contest. Lake Nona goes to Harmony, and up in the Panhandle, Rocky Bayou hosts a team from Mississippi. Blow the dang whistle already :)

Well, the powers that be have asked me to switch assignments on Friday night, so I'll be covering the Tampa Catholic @ South Lake game, instead of Mt Dora Bible.

Weekend Wrap and What is Coming

OK, great weekend for high school football, and building anticipation for college football! St Thomas Aquinas crushed the team from Ohio, and Byrnes SC, crushed their opponent in Georgia, so the big #1 vs #2 match up of those two teams is still in tact. Prattville, Al was upset by North Gwinett, Georgia, and there were some good shootouts in Texas.
The Sentinel has assigned me the MDB game this week, so I'll take that one in, email my report, and then shoot down to be a chaperone at the SonQuest youth rally.

Thanks to the generosity of Mick Tulley, come November I will get to experience college football at Notre Dame! I am not a fan of the Fighting Irish, but certainly appreciate their place in college football history and heritage. So, me and Roger will do a guys weekend in Chicago and South Bend, and I'll be happy to share the experience with ALL TWO of you who read this blog :)

Since the first weekend of real football is upon us, I'll preview the big games (like Georgia @ Oklahoma State, Virginia Tech vs Alabama in Atlanta, Oklahoma vs BYU in Dallas, Miami @ Florida State, etc. The weekend gets started on Thursday night, as Oregon and Boise State tangle on the infamous blue field. I can't wait!

All TWO of you are invited to provide comments and argue with my assertions.

FL Outlaw

FOOTBALL FRIDAY!

Well, Abilene Christian held on to win an ugly game against the #2 team in the nation, and the same team that eliminated them in the quarter finals last year. In the LLWS, California pulled out an 11-10 thriller over Warner Robbins, Ga.

But on to FOOTBALL FRIDAY. My high school beat Gulf Breeze in their KO Classic last night, so that and the ACU win has things starting out nicely. Tonight most of the rest of the Florida prep teams get in the practice game. Mt Dora Bible hosts Carrolwood Day school and I may go out to that one. OR, I may slide over to Apopka to catch their game against Oak Ridge. My free lance coverage for the Sentinel does not start until next week, so I can pick...:)

Up in Georgia, the top teams from Alabama and South Carolina are invading the Atlanta area for a special "double header". Prattville takes on North Gwinnett and then Byrnes, SC, plays Central Gwinnett.

On the tube, we have the match up of Oscar Smith, Virginia hosting the Venice, Fl Indians. Venice is a decent team, but probably in for a rough outing on ESPN.

Again, the more interesting KO Classics to me, are Jupiter Christian @ North Fla Christian, and FWB vs Niceville. Oh yeah, Pace tangles with 6A power Daphne from Alabama. Good stuff!

Later...

Football season has started!

Well, I drove down to watch the Lake Nona Lions play the Citrus Hurricanes in a Kickoff Classic, which was the Lions first ever football game. A 1st year school, they have no seniors. When I left at the half, Derrick Mountford and the Lions trailed 21-14, in a game that featured turnovers and the sort of play that you see in the preseason. It was exciting though, and the campus is beautiful

On the drive home, I was able to get score updates on the LLWS game, Georgia vs California. Now that I am home, I am switching between the LLWS and the Abilene Christian football game against SW Missouri State. I've been to that stadium :)

Life is good. Go Georgia and GO ACU!

LLWS

I know this is my football blog, but I can't help but say how much I enjoy the Little league World Series!

A point of correction. In an earlier posting I mentioned that Ole Miss would be letting a reality show film their summer/fall camp. Well they had a change of heart (smart move) and now Auburn is letting the cameras invade the Plains.

I also need to add that I have a personal interest in the Georgia Southern football program, as my nephew Nate is a student coach. It is highly unusual for an undergrad to have this much responsibility, but is speaks to Nate's work ethic and knowledge of the game.

Conference Previews - continued

The Atlantic Coast Conference
Well, they are the closest thing geographically to the SEC, and my favorite team is in the ACC, but it does not bring the same passion for football that the SEC does. A border clash between a team from Georgia or Florida versus a team from Boston, just doesn’t bring the natives out of the woodwork. The Championship games are poorly attended. That said, the caliber of play has improved, despite the fall by FSU and Miami. The other teams have good coaches now. Butch Davis, Paul Johnson, Jim Grobe, Beamer, etc. Perhaps a surprise power team could emerge from the ACC in 09, but I doubt it. Another fall with the champ game pitting a couple of 2-loss teams is likely. We shouldn’t have to wait long to get an idea of how it will go for the ACC, as Va Tech tackles Alabama opening weekend in Atlanta.

Coastal
The Ramblin Wreck made huge improvement last year running Johnson’s option. They get most of the kids back, and have another year in his system and he has experience in the league now. The Coastal is the stronger of the divisions, so Ga Tech will have their hands full with Va Tech, UNC and UM. It is hard to be even a little critical of Frank Beamer. He has his guys ready to play every year. They just don’t have elite caliber firepower. Their defense and special teams are excellent, but I don’t see Tyrod Taylor cruising them through their schedule. Butch Davis has made Carolina relevant again, but it is not quite as easy to build a football power in Chapel Hill, as it was in Coral Gables. As much as I have HATED the Canes, Randy Shannon seems like a man with integrity. So, I guess I hate them less. I may eat those words on Labor Day evening, as they invade Doak Campbell for the showdown with FSU. Miami could surprise the Coastal this year, but they are still so young, that I think 2010 will be the really break out season for them. I should have included David Cutcliffe in the list of good coaches. He has DUKE improving…Al Groh’s days are numbered in Charlottesville, as the league caught up and passed him. Even his best UVA teams were over rated (IMO).
The best coach in the ACC over the last 5 years has been Jim Grobe. This is Wake Forest people! Riley Skinner has been there for about 9 years and will be zippin it around again this season. It may be dumb, but I am picking FSU to finish ahead of the pack (I don’t know why I keep drinking the cool aid, they have been the worst coached team over the last 7 years). The poor coaching at FSU does not include Mickey Andrews, who has been one of the best D coordinators over the last 20 years. NC State is on the rise, and Clemson is always very talented. Maryland coach Ralph lost over 100 pounds this off season, but the Terps will not do much. Boston College stuck to their principals and fired a good coach. They will suffer now and fall down the list in the Atlantic (Who came up with Coastal and Atlantic anyway?).

COASTAL:

Georgia Tech
Virginia Tech
North Carolina
Miami
Duke I would love to see Duke finish higher...
Virginia

ATLANTIC:

Florida State
Wake Forest
NC State
Clemson Is there a harder team to predict? so much talent...
Maryland
Boston College

Lil 11 (OK the Big 10, but what is up with a college conference being “counting challenged”)
Nerdy Jim Tressel keeps building Ohio State into the dominant power in the region. The problem is that rest of the conference is down, and when OSU plays a real team, they get embarrassed. I should concede that their bowl game against Texas came down to a thrilling comeback by Colt, so that one really wasn’t bad. The thrashings by UF, LSU and USC the last 3 years really put the aforementioned perspective in place. Penn State is the next place power, but they also were manhandled in the Rose Bowl by USC (I have to say at this point that while I respect Joe Pa, I sure wish he would hang it up, so Bobby could hang it up!). Schedule wise, OSU only has USC out of conference. Penn State has NOBODY out of conference, so conventional wisdom has the 2 teams hanging around the top 10. Penn St is not that good, but could run the table and get into the BCS Champ game over a more deserving SEC or Big 12 team and that would suck. Michigan State has a real coach now and while they lost some key players, could really make some noise, as could Zooker’s Fightin Illini. The Hawkeye’s are getting some play as the spoiler, but again, they are a team that ALWAYS loses a game that they shouldn’t (see Clemson and LSU). The only other team worth mentioning is Northwestern, because I’m not convinced that Michigan will be much better. On the other hand, they can’t be much worse…

Ohio State
Penn State
Michigan State
Illinois
Iowa
Northwestern
Michigan
Wisconsin
Minnesota
Purdue
Indiana

One last comment on the “Lil 11”. Grow up and get a 12th team, have a conference championship game! You already have your own TV network, what’s the hold up? Good Grief!

BIG 12

The merger of the Southwest conference with the Big 8, has been a smart one. Clearly the power is down south, but it may not always be (right…). So, who ever prevails out of the south should not have a problem with the north champ. The winner will likely have a great shot at the “Marbles”. The question is who survives between Texas, OU, OK State and Texas Tech? I really don’t expect Tech to win out, but the could be a spoiler for one of the other 3 (like Arkansas). I’m going with Texas and Colt.

North
Mizzu has had a good run with Chase Daniel firing the ball around. With his departure, Kansas and Nebraska want to have something to say about supremacy in the North. Colorado may be improving, but slowly. KU has the veteran gunslinger QB this time in Todd Reising. That may be the slight difference in this race. Bo Pelini is building the Cornhuskers back up, but I’m still leaning toward KU. Mizzu is well coached now, so I don’t expect them to roll over. The Buffs do a nice job of playing real non-conference opponents, so I respect that. Like the SEC, one of the keys is which teams from the other division you have to play. If you draw say Baylor and Texas A&M, then there is much rejoicing. If however, the cadence calls for Texas and Oklahoma on your slate, then it can get ugly in the division standings in a hurry. Kansas State used to be the absolute worst football team in the country – every year. Then Bill Snyder started playing the sisters of the poor every week and slowly built the Cats into a good program. In fact, they were the class of the north for a couple of years. Bill retired and so did the momentum. He is as old as Paterno and Bowden, so bringing him back now simply will not result in the same old magic. Iowa State just doesn’t have it.

Kansas
Nebraska
Mizzu
Colorado
Kansas State
Iowa State

SOUTH
A shootout is appropriate for this geography. Two teams from Oklahoma and the rest from Texas, bring the best offenses this side of the Mountain West to college football. They do seem to ignore defense however…As I mentioned at the start, I like Texas and Colt McCoy. They will have their hands full with Gundy MAN’s Cowboys and the Sooners. OSU opens with Georgia, so we will get another look at a high power offense against a SEC defense. Can’t wait for that one. A lot of pundits have OU in the top 3, but even with Sam Bradford back, they lost most of the Oline. Texas should have been in both Championship games last season, but that is the way the “popularity contest” bounces. My teams have benefited from the madness in years past (Noles and Gators), so sans a playoff, it is often a reality. While Tech will not have the run they had last year, Taylor Potts (from Abilene High) will fling it around pretty well.

So, as I close out this section, I want to mention future schedules. The link below shows each team and the contracted non conference games for the next several years. Some teams are bold and others are chicken crap. Florida State (where my son is a senior this year) has a slate of BYU, OKLAHOMA and FLORIDA. Ouch! The Gators on the side of the coin, have FSU as the only team with a pulse. I know, the SEC schedule is a bear, but come on, give the fans a decent series with somebody out west or something like that!

http://www.nationalchamps.net/NCAA/future_schedules/

FL Outlaw

Outlaw's Top 20

Here are the rankings as I expect them to look at the END of the season:

Texas
Penn State
Florida
Oklahoma State
Notre Dame
Alabama
Southern Cal
Georgia Tech
Ole Miss
Ohio State
Boise State
Florida State
LSU
Virginia Tech
Oklahoma
Pitt
Oregon
TCU
Vanderbilt
Kansas

Here is the list of who I think the best teams are at the start of the season (before the politics and cupcake schedules take over):

Florida
Texas
Ole Miss
Alabama
Oklahoma State
Southern Cal
Georgia Tech
LSU
Ohio State
Florida State
Penn State
Oklahoma
Vanderbilt
Boise State
Georgia
Michigan St
Oregon
Pitt
BYU
Arkansas
Virginia Tech

It has to start with Florida. Not just because I love to watch the Gators, or because SEC football is the best, but because Florida will start the season as everybody’s #1 team. They return 2-deep on defense, and most of their offense. This from a squad that quieted almighty Oklahoma in last year’s national championship game. Mr. Tebow will be a senior this time around, and has speed and more speed around him. The Gators will score points, but they will not give up very many. If given some snaps, John Brantley will show that he has one of the best arms in the country and could turn out to be a better pro prospect than #15. Florida’s schedule is very favorable in 09. They don’t play Ole Miss or Alabama, unless one of those teams wins the West and makes it to Atlanta. At LSU (10/10) appears to be the toughest challenge, while Georgia will be good, and South Carolina and Vanderbilt will not roll over. Their only real non conference game is FSU, and not only are they better than the Noles, but they get them in the Swamp on Thanksgiving Saturday. I don’t know if the Gators can win their 3rd national championship in 4 years, but they certainly should be in the conversation, at least into December.

Texas is my pick at #2. Colt McCoy may win the Heisman this season and prevent Tebow or Sam Bradford from joining the ranks (Archie Griffin) of those with more than one statue on their mantle. Save for a miracle game by Texas Tech in Lubbock last year, it would have been the Longhorns facing the Gators for the BCS title. Oh well, I look for the Horns to make up for that oh so close miss last season. The challenge will be that the Big 12 South is probably the toughest real estate in the land this season (if not, the SEC West would wear that crown). Oklahoma State has all their firepower back, the Sooners are always tough under Stoops, and have the reigning Heisman calling signals, AND Texas Tech will again be a tough out (but not for the Longhorns this time).

I would love for Texas and Florida to play for the title. Colt McCoy is my pick to win the Heisman, although I would be proud for T2 to win his 2nd. Texas has the tougher regular season slate, but Florida would face a nastier foe in the SEC championship than UT would in the Big12 title game. Obviously either team could slip up in conference play and not even make it to their SEC/12 game, or could get upset in that game. The other teams I think may wind up in the BCS Championship game are: Southern Cal (big shocker huh?), Oklahoma or OK State (whoever wins the 12 South), the SEC West champ (Ala, Ark, LSU or Ole Miss), assuming they only have one loss. The winner of the Ohio State vs Penn State game could also make it to the BCS Championship, but most college football fans would hate to see that sort of travesty (Lil 11) happen again. The ACC is a conference I watch a lot, and had something like 10 bowl teams last year. None of the 10 good teams were elite. The days of the Noles dominating, or even the hated Canes seem like such a long time ago…Virginia Tech is getting a lot of love, but I just don’t see them in a serious Top 10 conversation and I really don’t think they will win the conference. More on that later.

The Southeastern Conference (SEC)
They are the top dogs. They have not always been, and may not always be, as these things tend to be cyclical. They are right now however, and with the TV money that will be pouring in over the next few years, the SEC teams will have all the advantages that cash and exposure can buy…There is a passion when the geographies collide down south, that I don’t think is matched anywhere else. Sure there are some great rivalries up north and out west, but the week to week emotion that the citizens/fan bases bring in the SEC is why I can’t get enough of it.

East:
Florida is the heavy favorite, and since they are my #1 pic nationally, enough already said about Urban Cryer’s bunch. Last year Georgia was projected to win it all, but had some early injuries and were certainly a little over rated (no matter who the skill position stars are, if you have freshman Oline do not put them #1). I love Mark Richt (my Noles have never been the same since he left), but his team is not near as deep as Florida. The Dawgs have one of the nastiest schedules in the nation this season (along with FSU and Miami), as they open AT Oklahoma State, host South Carolina, AT Arkansas, Arizona State and LSU to open the season! A gauntlet! They will compete, but I will not be shocked if they fall behind South Carolina, Kentucky or Vanderbilt for 2nd in the East. Notice I did not include Tennessee?  Lame Kiffin sure knows how to generate publicity. To his credit he has assembled a terrific staff, starting with his father Monte. The Vols don’t have the personnel to make a run at Florida, but hey, that’s why the play the games right? My whacky pick for #2 in the East is Vanderbilt. They won a bowl last year for the first time since I got married, and return 17 starters. Bobby Johnson can coach! Truth be told, I think there is a lot of parity after the Gators. A lot of it comes down to scheduling – which two teams do they play from the West? This logic kind of counters my like of Vandy, as they have Ole Miss and LSU from the west (ouch). Georgia has LSU and AT Arky, so not much easier (especially since Arkansas will be MUCH better this season). Tennessee has Auburn and Alabama, and again, like Arky, the war beagles will be dangerous this time. In fact, the West is much stronger than the East, with the exception of the Gators…but I digress. Kentucky has sure improved under Rich Brooks, but the SEC is just too harsh for the mediocre, which is what the Cats really are.
WEST:
Wow, what a wild wild west it should be. Ole Miss, Alabama and LSU get all the love from the experts, but I see Arkansas really having something to say as well. Ole Miss got white hot last year and has most of their key players back. The problem is that they will have the fall camp taped for a reality show (bad idea) and they will not sneak up on anybody this time. Jevan Snead is awesome, and they very well may win the West, especially if they beat the Tide on Oct 10th. LSU has as much talent as anybody, but I’m still not sold on Les Miles as the real deal. They ALWAYS lose games they shouldn’t. Alabama jumped back into the spotlight in 08, running the regular season table. They even had the momentum against Florida mid way in the 3rd, in the SEC game. But they folded and then laid an egg against Utah in the Sugar. Nick Saban will again have them coached up. Auburn dumped Tommy Tuberville for Gene Chizic. Expect the program to decline, but have some shootouts, as Gus brings his high power offense to the Plains. Mississippi State may improve under Dan Mullen, but they will just get crushed in the mighty West this year.

So, I think the 10/10 matchup in Oxford will determine the West winner. Arkansas will put up a lot of points and might spoil it for either of the remaining 3, but their schedule is just too daunting for them to pull it off. Personally, I’m rooting for Ole Miss to meet the Gators in Atlanta…

Florida
Vanderbilt
Georgia
Tennessee
Kentucky
South Carolina

Ole Miss
Alabama
Arkansas
LSU
Auburn
Miss State

The ACC is up next...

College Football is almost here!

I'll post my own version of what Athlon, Lindy's and all those other magazines do every summer, with a college football preview, complete with predictions. First, I want to break down my two teams, the Florida State Seminole AND the Florida Gators. 99.9% of fans in this state will have a hard time with that last sentence. Folks just don't like BOTH teams, it is one or the other. Not me. My dad has always been a Gator and the SEC is simply the best, most fun conference in the country. FSU is close to "home", and Bobby built a dominant power that was so much fun to be part of, especially the run from the late 80s thru the early 2000's.

Florida State has fallen into a state of mediocrity the last few years. It really started when Mark Richt left for Athens and Jeff Bowden was given the offense. The did win an ACC title to two since then, but have been nowhere near the program they were when Bobby was in the zone. That "zone" is in the rear view mirror, and the longer he stays on, the more he tarnishes his legacy. That said, this should be a pretty good year. Trickett has worked miracles with the offensive line, and Christian Ponder seems to have a clue. The schedule is tough, starting with the opener on Labor Day evening, against "The U". I really hate Miami, but Randy Shannon seems like such a good guy, that I guess I hate them a little less, but only a little :). Two weeks after the Canes, FSU travels out to the altitude of Provo, Utah. BYU will be waiting and Max Hall will be slinging the ball around. The next week, the Noles come home to host the USF Bulls. South Florida is dangerous in September, but lately fold in November. Another long trip, this time to Boston College is next, followed by Georgia Tech coming to Tallahassee. I think the Yellow Jackets will win the Coastal division of the ACC, so hopefully, this will be the first of TWO games against the Ramblin Wreck. A week off before a trip to lovely Chapel Hill to face Butch Davis' Tarheels. NC State comes to Doak Campbell the next week in a key Atlantic division game. Tom O'Brien is a very good coach and his Wolfpack will be much better this year. If FSU takes care of NC State, then the next two weeks will determine whether or not they win their division. They go to Clemson and to Wake Forest the first two Saturdays in November. At that point we will know what all the answers to the questions. A date with Maryland closes out the home schedule, and then the regular season finale is in the Swamp against the National Champion Gators...IF the Noles can beat Miami in game 1, I see them going 8-3, or maybe even 9-2 and winning the Atlantic division. That may even be a bit optimistic, but it will take some really poor coaching to waste all the talent they have. Since Trickett has the OLine performing, FSU can RUN the ball. If they can run, Ponder will have easy pickings through the air. Mickey Andrews deserves his own statue, as his defenses have been quality even when the offense went missing for a few seasons.


The Gators. What else can be said about a team that won it all last year, and has almost every player back. They are so deep it is sick. Sure Percy will be missed, but there is so much speed still in Gainesville, that things will be AOK. Tebow is going to take more snaps from under center, so he can prove to Mel Kiper and other draft pundits, that he can play in the NFL. This may sound crazy, but if Tebow was injured, the Gator's offense might even be better without him. A few season ago, me and my bud Pete went to a high school game in the Villages. Trinity Catholic from Ocala brought their show to town, with a QB named John Brantley. It was a drizzly night and the most memorable plan had Brantley rolling to his left (un natural side) at full speed. Just before he was hit, he flicked a pass ~60 - 65 yards down field to hit the receiver in stride. It was an amazing pass for a high school player, and given his sprinting, and the weather, it was one of the best passes I have seen. Mr Brantley is Tebow's backup. He is a purer passer and I expect him to light up the SEC when he gets his turn.
Urban Meyer has produced results for UF. It is unreal actually. Winning a national championship takes great players and a lot of luck. He has won two out of the last three, and is drooling over another! That said, he is a smug individual. Suppose he can be, but that stuff with Shane Mathews was uncalled for. Nobody is entitled to their opinion anymore. Kind of like when FSU fired Peter Tom Willis for telling the truth.... Anyway, Florida has a monster game AT LSU, and of course Georgia in Jax. Other than that, they SHOULD win all their games. Arkansas will be tricky, and I think Vanderbilt will be a tough out. Tennessee should call in "swine flu" instead of showing up in the Swamp on Sept 19. I think Lame gets taught a lesson and frankly, it can't get here soon enough.

Later this weekend, I'll break out my over all college preview.

FL Outlaw

Prep football #2

Well, here are some of the better Kickoff Classics that will take place in Florida next Friday night:

Jupiter Christian @ NFC
Tallahassee FSU High @ Madison
Cocoa @ Palm Bay
Pine Forest vs Pens Catholic might be better than you expect
Manatee @ Plant
FWB @ Niceville
Winter Park vs Olympia
And the TV game, Venice travels to Virginia to play Oscar Smith.

Before those games on Aug 28th, other states are already under way. Tomorrow (8/22) they have the Corky Kell Classic in the Georgia Dome.

Etowah takes on Starr's Mill (nephew Nate Baker's alma mater) in the first game
Brookwood vs McEachern
Camden County vs Grayson (this is the game of the weekend)
Norcross vs Walton

High School football 2009

This is my football blog for 2009. I will ramble on about college and high school football. It is not a commercial endeavor, merely for my own personal enjoyment. I was born in and currently reside in the sunshine state, so a greater emphasis will naturally be placed on football close to home. I do follow prep football nationally to certain extent. Having lived in Texas, Alabama, and Kansas, and having enjoyed games in Missouri, Georgia and Tennessee as well, I have experienced first hand, a lot of good high school football. In fact, I have watched 4 Heisman trophy winners play in person before they ever stepped on the college field. Ty Detmer played for his dad Sonny at Southwest high on the outskirts of San Antonio. The school was less than 2 miles from our house, so I watched a lot of his junior and senior season. Charlie Ward played for Thomas County Central, when I lived in Tallahassee and as the informed know, Thomasville is about 30 minutes up the road, across the state line. He was special early on. Danny Wuerffel played for Fort Walton Beach High, my wife’s high school. I saw him play 4 or 5 times for the Vikings, including the state championship (w/ bro in law John and son Dent) where they spanked STA, and Danny RAN for a 80 yard TD. And then there is Mr Tebow, who although he was home schooled, played his football for the Nease Panthers out of St Augustine. I only saw him in person once, but watched him on TV against Hoover, Ala and listened to the 4A Championship game, where he went in to the game at the end, at NOSEGUARD, to help seal the deal. He has made a pretty good showing in Gainesville so far…Growing up in Okaloosa County, and being a 2nd generation Crestview Bulldog, I understand the Friday Night Lights experience, where the whole town would be at the game and rally around their team. It is not that way everywhere, especially in larger cities, where several teams coexist and folks have a lot more to do on a Friday night. I guess that helps explain my love for high school football.

It is a sport that has evolved “nationally”, as more and more the stronger teams are playing inter state games, and are being broadcast on ESPN and other national networks. With the internet that Al Gore did not invent, it is easier than ever to keep up with team from any state you want, and with my satellite dish, I can watch games in Colorado, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and California. I should also mention that I do freelance coverage of prep football for a large central Florida newspaper. It doesn’t pay much, but I enjoy it most of the time.

So, the teams in Florida that I will follow this season, because of a personal interest are:
* Lake Nona Lions – a 1st year school which will have no seniors, but will include one Derrick Mountford, one of my favorite young men in our youth group at church.
* Apopka Blue Darters – always a force in Orlando and class 6A, their center is Ryan Moran, the first born of my pal Kevin at Convergys.
* Rocky Bayou Christian Knights – while it is hard for a Crestview guy to pull for a school in Niceville, one of the Knights leading players will be senior Shawn Josey. The oldest offspring of cousin Mark, Shawn has been a pleasure to watch grow up and I really mean GROW! At 6’0 300, he is almost twice what any of us skinny boys were at his age.
* Baker Gators – I had cousins who went to Baker, but none that played on their storied football teams. Cousin Mark’s son Dakota will be making his presence known just north of Milligan this season.
* Crestview – I will always be a Bulldog and listen to as many games as I can each season via the internet.
* Fort Walton Beach – I lived about a mile away from the FWB campus while the school was being built, but my real interest comes from marrying into a family of Vikings. Too bad that they are in the same district as Crestview…

OK, I’ll go with some tips and games to watch in Florida this season, and then move on to the national scene in a few days. Fort Lauderdale St Thomas Aquinas is the defending 5A champ, and was the “national champ” as well, depending on the poll. Speaking of polls, Rivals, Prep Nation, Max Preps and USA Today are some of the big boys. STA will play 2 out of state teams this year. They open with an Ohio team in the Kirk Herbie event, and then in early October host Byrnes out of South Carolina. Byrnes has been dominant the last few years, spanking quality teams from Georgia and Florida. With super RB Marcus Lattimore, the Rebels will come to Florida confident. Lakeland has been probably the top team in FLA over the last 10 years, until STA CRUSHED them in the title game in December. Hopefully they will rebound, and represent Florida well, when they go out to California to play Concorde De LaSalle. Lakeland was good enough last year to spank a top Pennsylvania power, but no match for STA in Orlando.

In 6A, Miami Northwestern has been the team for 3 or 4 years, but were upset at the end of the title game, but Sanford Seminole. The Bulls look to rebound this season, but will have some good competition from Miami Central and Daytona Beach Mainland, who just happen to face off in week one in Daytona (I think I’ll be at that one) In 4A, Tampa Plant beat Lincoln last year. Lincoln always manages to be in the mix, but this season Niceville and Pace will pose a threat from the central time zone part of the state. Orlando Edgewater, a “magnet” school of sorts in Orange County, was always a 6A factor, and now have gone down to 4A in the recent reclassification. In fact, it is hard to keep up with all the changes from the reclass.

I plan on a discourse regarding the Private vs Public school teams in a week or two, but for now let me mention the 3 top private powerhouses, other than STA. In Jacksonville, Bolles plays at the 2A level and every year Corky’s team plays at least in the final 4. In Tallahassee, North Florida Christian rules, as does emerging power Jupiter Christian from down south. Those 2 teams hook up in Tallahassee for their Kickoff Classic on August 28 . I’ll be calling my bud Roger that night for the full scoop.

Here a few of the top games which pit Florida teams against out of state powers:
>Venice Indians go to Virginia to face reigning 6A champs Oscar Smith on 8/28 a TV game
>I already noted the 2 games that STA will play, one in Ohio and the other against Byrnes, both TV games.
>The Pace Patriots and the Niceville Eagles will tangle with Mobile area 6A power Daphne this season.

In my next entry, I’ll list the top KO Classics games from around the state. Other states have already started regular season play, so I’ll hit those highlights too. As I close out the first entry of my new blog, I’ll provide a few of my top resources for information:
http://flavarsity.rivals.com/ www.flavarsity.rivals.com this site is rich in smack talk and information from a lot of coaches from around the state. Look for FLOutlaw on the forums <
http://highschool.rivals.com www.highschool.rivals.com the national version of the site above, from it you can go to many other state sites, if you are truly a sick puppy like I am.
http://www.maxpreps.com/national/national.htm">http://www.maxpreps.com a California outfit that has a lot of good coverage, but some pretty weak rankings sometimes.
http://www.prepnation.com/">http://www.prepnation.com another great site, with pretty solid rankings.

Of course the FHSAA.org site is good, as are many of the other state sites
The USA Today does a decent job. The Atlanta paper (AJC.com) covers the entire state of Georgia, and the Nashville paper does a pretty good job in Tennessee. Alabama coverage is weak by their papers, they really make a fella work hard for information. Texas, now there is a state that loves their football. There is never a shortage of coverage or information out there.

FLOutlaw