Top 10 Must Watch Spring Football Games

We look at 10 games that are worth watching in the month of May

With many spring football games scheduled over the next two weeks starting a week from today, many eyes will be on programs from all over the state on what things could look like for the 2024 season. In this article, we look at our Top 10 spring football games worth watching over this spring season, with a game being considered against just two opponents only as jamborees will consist of three or more teams, and we will feature our Top Five Jamborees for the Spring Football season in a future article on FloridaHSFootball.com.

10. Middleburg at Oak Hall (Gainesville)

When: Thu. May 23, 7 p.m.

Where: Oak Hall Field, Gainesville

Skinny: Hear me out on this one. I like this one for a few different reasons because usually, you don’t get a small private school like Oak Hall wanting to face off against a team from the state’s third highest classification, but that is what the Eagles will get when facing off with Middleburg. The visiting Broncos are coming off back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time since the 1989-1990 seasons and are looking to build off that momentum as Ryan Wolfe enters his fourth season as the head coach at Middleburg. The Broncos will have to find out who will fill several key roles, including starting quarterback, as Jayden “Jaybo” Jenkins will graduate.  Oak Hall is returning several key athletes, including quarterback Dakota Brower and defensive lineman Aidan Jerkins, just two of several key contributors to the Eagles’ successful seasons over the last couple of years, and this game should show us what each team will have entering the fall.

9. South Lake (Groveland) at Foundation Academy (Winter Garden)

When: Fri. May 24, 7 p.m.

Where: Lion Field, Winter Garden

Skinny: This one might be more about the players than it will be about the coaches when the pupil takes on the teacher in this spring game. The teacher is South Lake Head Coach Brad Lord, who previously spent over a decade at Foundation Academy, which included launching the program from scratch at the Winter Garden school. The pupil is Andre Walker, the coach Lord mentored for a few years who eventually succeeded Lord as head coach in 2021. With that said, Lord has sent over two dozen athletes to college, including several Division I athletes, so if anything is known here, Lord knows how to coach talent and bring the potential out in them. With South Lake seeing improvements on the gridiron last season, this game could help jump-start the 2024 season into greatness. As for Foundation Academy, missing the playoffs last season hurts, but with the new classification setup in Class 1A, the Lions could also use this game to help them work towards returning to the postseason again.

8. Bartram Trail (St. Johns) at Seminole (Sanford)

When: Fri. May 17, 7 p.m.

Where: Thomas E. Whigham Stadium, Sanford

Skinny: Two perennial playoff teams will challenge each other in this one, and this will give the second-year coaches of both teams a lot to look at going into the summer in preparation for the fall. For the visiting Bears, head coach Cory Johns, who guided Bartram Trail to the regional finals last season, will be looking to see what kind of improvements he can make after being close at times to giving it all to rival Buchholz (Gainesville) that got to them twice and who they will see once again for the next two years. That starts by playing a team that is tough in caliber, like Seminole. And speaking of Seminole, this will mark year two for head coach Karl Calhoun and his Fighting Seminoles, and they will face some tall tests this season with the schedule laid out and having to contend with Lake Mary again in the district. This game will give us many answers about what to expect in August.

7. Vanguard (Ocala) at Manatee (Bradenton)

When:  Thu. May 16, 7 p.m.

Where: Joe Kinnan Field at Hawkins Stadium, Bradenton

Skinny: When two teams that are well known in the high school football landscape in Florida matchup, it is always worth keeping an eye on, especially when it involves two teams that usually would not see each other ever. This is the case with Vanguard, where Edwin Farmer will take on Jacquez Green’s Manatee program. The two storied programs will test each other to see what they will have for the fall and what things they can work on to get ready in preparation for fall practices.  If there is one thing that is known about these two programs, it is that they usually are reloading with talent and sending talent off to the next level, but never having to go to the bottom to rebuild truly. And due to the connections between Coach Farmer and Coach Green, expect a ton of college coaches to be at this game scouting potential prospects in all positions.

6. Escambia (Pensacola) at Niceville

When: Mon. May 20, 6 p.m. CT

Where: Eagle Stadium, Niceville

Skinny: Two of the most recognizable names in Panhandle football will go at it for the spring season and give each team a chance to evaluate the improvements they can make after both teams suffered second-round exits from the playoffs despite having considerable talent. For the visiting Gators, Anthony Hall’s replacement will have to emerge in this game after the talented quarterback threw for over 2,800 yards and 23 touchdowns last season, which is one of the biggest questions to be addressed. Kane LaFortune will be back for the Eagles at quarterback, which means the Eagles can turn their attention to other holes to fill, including running back. With the Eagles being a much younger team last year, experience should only grow through this game.

5. Jones (Orlando) at Apopka

When: Thu. May 23, 7 p.m.

Where: Roger Williams Field, Apopka

Skinny: With these two not being able to put each other on the schedule in 2024 due to various scheduling considerations and new district alignments, these two will go at it here in spring, and this will be a game that college recruiters will not want to miss. With the visiting Tigers and host Blue Darters being two of the best teams from Central Florida over the last few years, talent has been aplenty across the board in both programs. Dereon Coleman should be able to show off his offseason improvements after throwing for 2,200 yards and 16 touchdowns as a sophomore, while one of the top receivers in the state in, Vernell Brown III, will show off what he is ready for entering his senior season. Apopka will have several holes to fill for the upcoming season, including finding their replacement to replace the hole left open by defensive end Lorenzo Payne IV, who was a pivotal contributor to the team the past few years.

4. Bolles (Jacksonville) at Mandarin (Jacksonville)

When: Thu. May 23, 6:30 p.m.

Where: The Corral, Jacksonville

Skinny: Bolles, which traditionally has played a tough schedule, is coming off another season with another deep playoff run that resulted in a trip to the state semifinals. They will use this opportunity to see what they will have to work with to improve and potentially reach the Class 2A state championship in 2024. This is coming against a Mandarin program that reached its second state championship game in program history last season and fell short in the Class 4M State Championship. One of the big questions surrounding the Bulldogs is having to replace DJ Moore at quarterback. Thus, we will see who emerges in this game as the potential starter for the fall, and Naeem Burroughs, who had over 1,000 yards receiving, will be a crucial weapon for the new quarterback. Mandarin has several of the Top 100 athletes in Florida, including quarterback Tramell Jones and wide receiver Jaime Ffrench Jr., who will show off some of their offseason improvements in this game in preparation for the fall. Expect many eyes on this game, including those from college football recruiters.

3. Mainland (Daytona Beach) at Spruce Creek (Port Orange)

When: Wed. May 22, 6 p.m.

Where: Pop Johnson Field, Port Orange

Skinny: With Mainland defending its first state championship in 20 years, they will do so with new head coach Jerrime Bell, who takes over from his first cousin Travis Roland, who departed from the Buccaneers for the lucrative Camden County job just over the state line in Georgia. Many people will be curious to see how the transition from Roland to Bell goes, both of whom are Mainland graduates themselves, as Bell helped orchestrate a turnaround at Atlantic (Port Orange) the last three years that was capped off with a district championship-winning season. Bell will have to address some questions right off the bat, including who the leading signal caller will be, and we should get some answers in this game as to who will replace DJ Murray, who graduates. Spruce Creek will also be breaking in a new quarterback and will have at least one weapon on offense with Tony Kinsler returning, who had over 1,000 yards receiving and 12 touchdowns. Given that each team usually generates quite a bit of talent with coaching that has a solid track record, college coaches will undoubtedly have these two programs on their map to check out.

2. Naples at Venice

When: Tue. May 21, 7:30 p.m.

Where: Powell-Davis Stadium, Venice

Skinny: We love it when these two teams match up, and that can happen almost anytime and anywhere you think of. Naples is coming off a 10-3 season and off an uncharacteristic season where the Golden Eagles were not district champions, losing that to Golden Gate (Naples). The Eagles will have Shawn Simeon back, who rushed for over 2,000 yards and 27 touchdowns in 2023 and likely will be the guy they lean on in 2024. Venice, coming off back-to-back state runner-up finishes the past two seasons, the Indians will have some new talent in the wings thanks to some transfers. One of those critical transfers is Jayce Nixon at quarterback, who spent the past couple of years at Gaither (Tampa). Nixon will most likely be the starter, replacing Jadyn Glasser, who is graduating. While the offense might have a new addition, several top senior defensive athletes will need replacing, but many underclassmen who got reps last season will be stepping up. We will see who steps up in this game, where college coaches will undoubtedly be scouting some potential blue-chip recruits from.

1.  Lakeland at Jesuit (Tampa)

When: Sat. May 18, 6 p.m.

Where: Corral Memorial Stadium, Tampa

Skinny: This spring game should draw many eyes between fans and college scouts with the talent that each team usually has year-in and year-out and is typically ranked towards the top of the rankings in what ever classification they are in most given years. With Will Griffin for the visiting Tigers after throwing for 3,404 yards and 34 touchdowns last season, Griffin will get a chance to find his top target in this game against the host Dreadnaughts, with Willy Suarez gone due to graduation. The Dreadnaughts will have Zander Smith back again for his senior year as the signal caller, and with back-to-back state championship appearances, Lakeland is looking at 2024 as a chance to join the 2004-2006 teams that won three straight state championships. They will have to do that in a crowded Class 5A with many quality teams. Overall, this game will give us a great view of what to expect from Jesuit and Lakeland this fall.

Other games worth watching that just missed the cut: West Boca Raton at Vero Beach – May 13; Lyman (Longwood) at West Orange (Winter Garden) – May 16; Olympia (Orlando) at Oviedo – May 16; Trinity Christian (Jacksonville) at Fletcher – May 16; Union County (Lake Butler) at University Christian (Jacksonville) – May 16; Wekiva (Apopka) at Bishop Moore (Orlando) – May 16; Columbia (Lake City) at Fort White – May 17; Freeport at South Walton (Santa Rosa Beach) – May 17; Gulliver Prep (Pinecrest) at Archbishop Carroll (Miami) – May 17; Madison County (Madison) at Oakleaf (Orange Park) – May 17; Orlando Christian Prep at Lakeland Christian – May 17; Winter Park at Dr. Phillips (Orlando) – May 17; Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) at St. Augustine, 6 – May 22; Auburndale at Fort Meade – May 23; Creekside (St. Johns) vs. Baker County (Glen St. Mary) at Memorial Stadium – May 23; Dunbar (Fort Myers) at Mariner (Cape Coral) – May 23; Monarch (Coconut Creek) at Dillard (Fort Lauderdale) – May 23; Ponte Vedra at Riverside (Jacksonville), 6:30 – May 23; South Sumter (Bushnell) at Springstead (Spring Hill) – May 23