FHSAA announces Rural Classification state championships to be hosted at The Villages

MIDDLETON, Fla. – The Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) announced on Wednesday gave fans at a least a partial answer to where the FHSAA Football State Championships will be played at in 2024.

With that said The Villages Charter High School in Middleton will host the Rural Classification State Championships at H.G. Morse Stadium on the new campus that opened at the start of the 2023-2024 school year, the FHSAA announced in a press release that was posted on FHSAA.com.

H.G. Morse Stadium will see the Rural Classification State Championships be played on Friday, December 6 which can hold 6,000 fans currently. The stadium also features premium seating options, locker rooms, team meeting rooms, an athletic training room and six press box suites. The venue also features a video board measuring 40 feet by 20 feet and a state-of-the-art sound system.

“The FHSAA is excited about the upcoming Florida High School Rural Classification Football State Championships to be hosted at The Range at H.G. Morse Stadium in Middleton,” said FHSAA Executive Director, Craig Damon. “Creating opportunities for our student-athletes has been a top priority of ours and finding a facility large enough to safely host all who wish to attend, is a dream come true.  We could not be more grateful for The Villages Charter School’s efforts in making these championships a reality for the student-athletes of the State of Florida.”

This will be the first time The Villages High School will host a state championship in any sport and the school is excited about the opportunity.

“We know football is very popular in the state of Florida, and we’re centrally located here at The Villages,“ said Richard Pettus, The Villages High School Athletic Director. “I know our fans and residents of over 170,000 retirees which include retired coaches will be excited, as well as college coaches. We welcome everyone to come, and we’re excited to show off our facilities and see some great football on that day!”  

FHSAA also said in the press release that the dates, venue, and schedule for the Class 1A-7A FHSAA Football State Championships will be announced at a later date with the potential of FIU Stadium, now called Pitbull Stadium, in Miami being the potential leader to host the remainder of the FHSAA Football State Championships. This location was raised as a possibility in one of our storylines to follow for the 2024 season.