2013 PREVIEW GUIDE: District 6A-8 Preview

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2013 PROJECTED FINISH

1. Armwood
2. Jefferson
3. Hillsborough
4. Robinson
5. King
6. Chamberlain
7. Lennard
8. Blake
9. Leto

HOW THEY FINISHED IN 2012

Armwood, 9-4
Blake, 3-7
Chamberlain, 4-6
Hillsborough, 9-2
King, 3-7
Jefferson, 6-4
Lennard, 0-10
Leto, 0-10
Robinson, 12-2

SCHOOL POPULATION (2012-2013)

Armwood – 1703
Blake – 1742
Chamberlain – 1806
Hillsborough – 1815
King – 1813
Jefferson – 1617
Lennard – 1779
Leto – 1703
Robinson – 1574

OFFENSIVE MVP

QB Deiondre Porter, Jefferson

DEFENSIVE MVP

DL Byron Cowart, Armwood

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DISTRICT OUTLOOK

Who’s In:

1. Armwood – The Hawks manage to get knocked off the district champions block when Hillsborough claimed the title in a 3-0 game last season, but the Hawks were in the midst of having to recover from FHSAA sanctions and talent not nearly as deep. Fast forward to now and the Hawks have a lot of talent rising up and should be right back where they should be.

Fighting It Out:

2. Jefferson  – Hard work and solid improvements made over last season has given the Dragons the ability to put a team together that should easily compete for a playoff spot. Senior talent is all over the field and they have the experience and a quarterback who threw over 2,200 yards last season alone. However, they still have to remember they have to compete against Armwood, Hillsborough and Robinson to make it into the postseason.

3. Hillsborough – The Terriers won the district last season after beating Armwood 3-0 in a series that has favored Armwood over the last decade or so. The biggest issue facing the team this year now is heavy graduation losses and this could be the deciding factor between making the postseason and sitting at home in late November. If there is a bright spot, having quarterback DeWayne Lawson back will help ease some of the pain.

4. Robinson – Another team hit hard by graduation losses and the loss of their former leader has Robinson looking at a position it is not usually one to be placed in. New head coach Shawn Taylor, a Knights alum, will be rebuilding, having to replace 16 starters from last season. The team will need to mature fast, especially on both lines in order for them to remain in postseason contention this season.

Got Work To Do:

5. King  – The Lions walked away from spring football with a win over Tampa Freedom, giving some hope about the upcoming season. However, when you are faced with 4 playoff caliber teams from the last few years all in one district, keeping up with them is going to be challenge when numbers have been low. A good senior amount of talent will be there in the fold, that will allow King to stay in the middle of the pack.

6. Chamberlain  – Things are in flux for the Chiefs as they are seeking a new head coach once again, this time with less than 30 days left before practices start. Chamberlain did pretty well in its former Class 7A district last season, but now being placed in the “district death” has raised questions as to whether things can continued to improve.

7. Lennard – The Longhorns went winless last season under new head coach Keith Chattin and depth and talent are issues that will need to be addressed during the season. However, if there is one shining spot to point out of all of this, is the fact that linebacker Terrance Bell showed some  skills last year that could grow even further for the Longhorns during the season.

8. Blake  – Despite several setbacks and three head coaches in less than six months last season, the Yellow Jackets did manage to win three games. Now the jump from Class 5A to Class 6A takes place and it will be tough for this team to improve. Talent is there, but improvements will be tough to see happen in a district as loaded as this one.

9. Leto – A break has yet to be caught for the Falcons and things don’t appear to be looking upward anytime soon. Numbers are not there like the top tier teams of this district and a huge spring game loss to district rival Jefferson, showed that things are nowhere close to being in the middle of the pack in the district and the first goal will be to win their first game since 2009 this upcoming season.

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