2. Jacksonville Trinity Christian at Cocoa
When: Sunday, 2:00 p.m. ET
Where: Tiger Stadium, Cocoa
TV: ESPN2
Why: The Conquerors are looking to open up their season looking for a fourth consecutive state championship this season. Cocoa looks to make their first trip to Camping World Stadium in Orlando to play for a state championship since 2010. With this being the first match-up for both teams to start the season, the stakes couldn’t be higher as both teams are highly ranked in the state with Trinity Christian ranked No. 1 in Class 3A, while Cocoa is ranked No. 2 in Class 4A. Trinity Christian hosted Class 5A North Marion last Friday night in a preseason kickoff classic with the varsity portion of the game seeing the Conquerors shutout the Colts 20-0 in the three-quarters varsity played before the JV team came back to win for North Marion by a score of 22-20. For the Tigers of Cocoa, they hosted the Clearwater, where they quickly dispatched the Tornadoes 34-7. The Tigers were able to shut down Clearwater’s offense with the exception of a 57-yard touchdown run early in the game by the highly recruited Adarius Lemons. However, Cocoa’s coach, John Wilkinson, doesn’t want the team playing how they did last week on Sunday. “We’re playing a team that’s top 25 in the country and it’s going to be on national TV,” Wilkinson told Florida Today. “If we play like we did today we’re going to get embarrassed.” The anticipation is high in this game and with both programs featuring highly sought out athletes that have been difference makers, expect this match-up to have many twists and turns as it unfolds on national television in Cocoa.
Predictions
Josh’s Prediction: Trinity Christian 35, Cocoa 24
USA TODAY HSS Score Predictor: Trinity Christian 36, Cocoa 16
Joe Pinkos’ Forecast: Trinity Christian 14 over Cocoa
