Here is a recap of how the Florida Top 25 fared after Week 1’s opening week games.
No. 1 St. Thomas Aquinas 9, St. John Bosco, Calif. 3
What was not the best performance for either team didn’t matter as St. Thomas Aquinas (1-0) knocked off national powerhouse St. John Bosco from California in overtime. According to the Miami Herald, the win could put the Raiders in content for their third national title in program history after starting off the season ranked in the Top Five national along with St. John Bosco.
No. 2 American Heritage (Plantation) 14, Bishop Sullivan, Va. 7
Visiting American Heritage (1-0) took care of business on the road in Virginia Beach, knocking off national powerhouse Bishop Sullivan in the final 1:20 of the game to escape with a 14-7 win. According to the Virginia Beach (Va.) Virginian-Pilot, the Patriots used a Miles Jones 10-yard touchdown run to squeak out the victory after Jared Elstein kicked two field goals earlier in the game.
No. 4 Miami Northwestern 47, American 0
Visiting Miami Northwestern (1-0) ran over American (0-1) to open the season. Last year the Bulls ran over the Patriots by the same score to open the season.
No. 5 Cocoa 24, No. 6 Trinity Christian (Jacksonville) 21
In the same fashion, as it played out last year, Trinity Christian was on the receiving end of a bitter loss to defending Class 4A state champion Cocoa. According to the Florida Times-Union, Javian Hawkins led the visiting Tigers with 185 yards rushing and two scores to take the win back home to Brevard County.
No. 7 Miami Central 48, No. 15 Chaminade-Madonna 28
Rockets ran over the visiting Lions at Traz Powell Stadium to open the season. Five running backs along with James Cook combined for 295 yards rushing and six touchdowns to give Miami Central (1-0) the victory over Chaminade-Madonna (0-1), according to the Miami Herald.
No. 9 Dr. Phillips 24, University (Orange City) 21
University (0-1) was up 14-0 over Dr. Phillips (1-0) at the half before the Panthers forced three turnovers against visiting Titans QB Cody Braden in the second half to help lead the comeback. Devodnye Alford, scored the winning touchdown for the host Panthers, according to the Orlando Sentinel. Alford rushed 16 times for 123 yards in the game with two rushing touchdowns.
No. 10 Deerfield Beach 6, No. 3 Miami Carol City 2
Defense was the story of the game for the visiting Bucks and the host Chiefs as neither would allow the other to gain an edge offensively, Deerfield Beach (1-0) had two field goals by Liden Rivera in the second quarter that proved to be the difference maker against Carol City (0-1), according to the Miami Herald. Carol City’s two points was a result of an intentional safety.
No. 11 Booker T. Washington 25, Dillard 8
The visiting Tornadoes took care of business against Fort Lauderdale Dillard, according to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Offensively Booker T. Washington (1-0) collected over 320 yards along with three touchdowns in the first half and limited the Dillard (0-1) offense to only 21 total yards.
No. 12 Plant 9, Hillsborough 7
One of the oldest rivalries in Hillsborough County got things started a day later after thunderstorms pushed the game back to a Saturday night contest. According to the Tampa Bay Times, Plant (1-0) struggled offensively but found a way to win over Hillsborough (0-1). The Panthers accounted for just 74 yards rushing while passing for only 126 more.
No. 13 Mainland 24, DeLand 0
Mainland (1-0) opened the Jake Novello era at quarterback with a 24-0 win over visiting DeLand (0-1). Novello, according to the Daytona Beach News-Journal, threw for 204 yards and ran for a touchdown to the lead the offense for the Buccaneers.
No. 14 Venice 35, Camden County, Ga. 3
Bryce Carpenter was the lead man for Venice (1-0) as they took the long trip up to Kingsland, Ga. knocking off Camden County which had beaten Oakleaf, 19-6 the previous week. According to the Brunswick (Ga.) News, Carpenter finished the game 11 of 16 for 141 yards and one touchdown while rushing for 150 yards on 31 carries and scoring three touchdowns.
No. 18 Armwood at Tampa Bay Tech
The game is scheduled for a Wednesday night makeup after heavy thunderstorms forced a postponement of Friday’s game and Monday night’s scheduled makeup.
No. 20 Navarre 56, Pensacola Catholic 35
In a wild barn burner shootout, both Navarre (1-0) and Pensacola Catholic (0-1) combined for nearly 870 yards, according to the Northwest Florida Daily News. Navarre’s trio of Omari Green, Chris Williams, and Dante Wright combined for 351 yards and eight touchdowns to lead the way for the Raiders.
No. 19 Robert E. Lee 20, Raines 16
No falling grill saved Raines (0-1) in this game this year, according to the Florida Times-Union. Instead, Robert E. Lee (1-0) stopped the slide against the visiting Vikings as Derrick Jones’ chain moving plays were enough to help the Generals escape with the victory.
No. 23 Cardinal Gibbons 27, No. 8 Miami Southridge 6
In what might be the biggest upset of the opening weekend, Cardinal Gibbons (1-0) flexed a muscle against the defending Class 8A state champion, Miami Southridge (0-1) to open the season. According to the Miami Herald, junior quarterback Nik Scalzo, was the leader of the game for the visiting Chiefs, throwing for 227 yards on the night on 13 of 24 pass attempts with three touchdown passes.
No. 24 Vanguard 38, Kathleen 0
A staunch defensive effort, plus four touchdown passes from quarterback Marquez Glover sealed the win for Vanguard (1-0) over visiting Kathleen (0-1), according to the Ocala Star-Banner. Glover three for 239 yards and accounted for all five touchdowns for the Knights.
No. 25 Madison County 28, Wakulla 27
The Cowboys came from behind to snatch the victory away from the host War Eagles in a 28-27 game in Crawfordville. Madison County (1-0) scored 22 unanswered points in the final nine minutes of the game, according to the Tallahassee Democrat to secure the win.
St. John’s College, D.C. 49, No. 16 Jones 30
The visiting Jones Tigers (0-1) couldn’t keep up defensively in a game that saw the host Cadets run right through them en route to an opening week loss. According to the Orlando Sentinel, Jones will look to improve defensively after the setback they had defending the nationally ranked team in the nation’s capital.
South Dade 26, No. 17 Coral Gables 18
It was not a good Week 1 opener for the No. 17 team in Coral Gables (0-1), falling to South Dade (1-0) 26-18 to open the season, according to the Miami Herald. South Dade’s Jamal Anderson had two interceptions in the game that helped play a role in the victory over the Cavaliers.
Fleming Island 27, No. 21 Clay 6
Visiting Fleming Island (1-0) knocked off host Clay (0-1) being led by sophomore running back Dewayne McBride who scored long touchdown runs on consecutive carries in the fourth quarter, according to the Florida Times-Union. The Golden Eagles held Clay to 123 yards rushing in the game.
Cartersville, Ga. 52, No. 22 Bartram Trail 45
A sluggish start for the Bears with an impressive second half comeback was not enough for Bartram Trail (0-1) falling to Cartersville on national television. According to the St. Augustine Record in a game that was delayed for nearly two-hours, the Bears were close to tying the game with seconds left. The team was lead by Joey Gatewood in the loss with 326 yards of total offense and three touchdowns.
