6A
Looking at the Northern half of the bracket, six district champions moved on, the two non district champions to win were Orlando Boone and Apopka, both ranked as high as #1 in the state at some point. Dr. Phillips struggled with turnovers, but the defense was dominant in a win over Durant and junior WR Kenny Shaw had a big game. They remain the favorite. The Regional Semifinals are:
Seminole(9-2) at Spruce Creek(9-2)
Apopka(9-2) at East Ridge(10-1)
Boone(9-2) at Dr. Phillips(10-1)
Royal Palm Beach(10-1) at Vero Beach(9-2)
The Southern half saw five district champions advance and looks like a 'murderer's row' of quality teams in the Regional Semifinals. Miami Northwestern defeated previously unbeaten Christopher Columbus 21-6. Miami Palmetto's win over Southwest sets up a much anticipated showdown between two of the nation's top running backs: Lamar Miller and Jamaal Berry. The Regional Semifinals are:
Boyd Anderson(7-4) at Deerfield Beach(9-2) (game played at Coral Springs)
Miramar(9-2) at Cypress Bay(10-1)
Miami Northwestern(9-1) at Miami Central(8-3) (at Traz Powell Stadium)
Miami Palmetto(7-4) at Miami Killian(9-2) (at FIU)
5A
Six district champions advanced in the Northern half of 5A with Osceola and Niceville being the two teams with 'upsets'. Both will get shots at teams they lost to in the regular season. This bracket is loaded with teams who have state championship aspirations and Lakeland, Mainland, Pine Forest, and Chamberlain won by a combined score of 174-20. The Regional Semifinals are:
Niceville(9-1) at Pine Forest(10-0)
Orange Park(9-2) at Mainland(11-0) (at Municipal Stadium)
Tampa Wharton(9-2) at Tampa Chamberlain(10-1)
Osceola(8-3) at Lakeland(11-0)
Five district champions advanced in the Southern half with the two favorites, St. Thomas and Venice, cruising to victories. South Fork provided the first real upset of the playoffs by downing Palm Bay in a 21-20 thriller. Atlantic continued to quietly go about their business. The Regional Semifinals are:
St. Petersburg(9-2) at Largo(10-1)
Charlotte(10-1) at Venice(11-0)
South Fork(8-3) at Atlantic(11-0)
Dillard(9-2) at St. Thomas Aquinas(11-0)
4A
The Northern half of 4A saw some upsets, with three district champions losing. Daytona Beach Seabreeze beat Land O' Lakes, Nease downed Eastside, and Leon won a thriller with First Coast. This remains a wide open bracket and should have some hotly contested battles this weekend. Fort Walton Beach is the favorite, but Lincoln is playing their best football right now. The Regional Semifinals are:
Fort Walton Beach(9-1) at Pace(6-4)
Tallahassee Leon(8-3) at Tallahassee Lincoln(8-3) (at Cox Stadium)
Nease(7-3) at Ridgeview(7-4)
Seabreeze(6-5) at Merritt Island(7-4)
The Southern half saw six district champions advance. Tampa Bay Tech was not a district champion, but only have one loss to the states top ranked team, Armwood. Hallandale downed Barron Collier, but again that was not an upset as the two team were pretty even. Armwood and Dwyer appear on a collision course, however Plant and Booker T Washington are teams to keep an eye on. The Regional Semifinals are:
Tampa Plant(10-1) at Bradenton Southeast(9-2)
Tampa Bay Tech(10-1) at Armwood(11-0)
Dwyer(10-1) at Fort Pierce Westwood(10-1)
Hallandale(8-3) at Booker T. Washington(9-1) (at Curtis Park)
3A
All seven district champions advanced who actually played games in the Northern half of 3A. Yes, seven, as one district champion was 'vacated' allowing Williston to move on without playing. St. Augustine is the favorite, but they have a tough road ahead with Andrew Jackson, Arnold, Godby, Pasco, and Gulf all high quality teams who remain in the hunt. The Regional semifinals are:
Arnold(10-0) at Godby(9-2) (at Chiles)
Andrew Jackson(11-0) at St. Augustine(11-0)
Williston(6-4) at North Marion(8-3)
Gulf(10-1) at Pasco(10-1)
Seven of eight district champions advanced in the Southern half. Braden River beat Palmetto setting up a re-match with Desoto County. Glades Central is the favorite in 3A, but Cocoa, a state semifinalist last year, raised some eyebrows by dominating a quality Lake Wales team 41-7. One of the more interesting match-ups in the state will be an undersized Dunbar team against the large Naples squad. The Regional Semifinals are:
Cocoa(10-1) at Ridge Community(10-1)
Braden River(8-3) at Desoto County(8-3)
Dunbar(10-1) at Naples(10-1)
Glades Central(11-0) at Monsignor Pace(9-2)
2A
The lower classifications have 16 teams, so we are in the quarterfinal round. Pensacola Catholic dominated a very good Fort White team and Gulliver beat previously unbeaten North Broward Prep. Madison County is the team to beat. The quarterfinals are:
Madison County(10-) at Pensacola Catholic(8-2)
South Sumter(10-1) at Bolles(11-0)
Mulberry(8-4) at Tampa Catholic(8-3)
Gulliver(9-1) at Archbishop Carroll(8-2)
2B
Pahokee remains the favorite in 2B, but they are some chinks in the armor. This is looking like a very competitive class at this point with some tremendous contests this weekend. The quarterfinals are:
Florida High(10-1) at South Walton(9-2)
Newberry(9-2) at Ocala Trinity Catholic(10-1)
Frostproof(9-1) at Wildwood(10-1)
University School(11-0) at Pahokee(9-1)
1A
The big upset was Port St. Joe beating previously unbeaten Lafayette. All other district champions advanced. The quarterfinals are:
Port St. Joe(9-2) at West Gadsden(9-2)
North Florida Christian(7-2) at First Academy(10-1)
Fort Meade(10-1) at Glades Day(6-5)
Delray Beach American Heritage(8-2) at Dade Christian(8-3)
1B
Sheridan Hills was upset by Upperrom Christian and Pine Castle Christian beat Keswick Christian. Jupiter Christian, FAMU and Warner Christian appear to be the class of 1A. Here are the quarterfinal match-ups.
FAMU(8-3) at Eagle's View(7-4)
Warner Christian(10-1) at Orangewood Christian(7-3)
Pine Castle Christian(6-5) at Victory Christian(8-3)
Upperrom Christian(5-5) at Jupiter Christian(11-0)