DarterBlue2

The Edgewater kids have been practicing diligently every morning this week. If they are physically able, and Lee is slacking they will win.

Talk about football being a game of inches!!

All fights can be won. It may just mean the current strategy is not working. That's why good coaching staffs study game film meticulously. And, backup can come from unexpected places. But you must seek it out. You know Lake City well because you have lived there all or at least most of your life. You know what makes the people there tick and where the centers of power are. Take an inventory of all of that. Think carefully about what you want for yourself out of life. It may lead you to believe you should stay, or it may confirm your current feelings that you should go. All I am suggesting is that you carefully think your situation through.

Again, I am not saying leaving is the wrong decision. However, I am saying some things are worth fighting for. I am also saying that the ultimate hero is one that can rebound from failure. You should take some time to read the story of Robert Bruce, of Scotland. Or in the words of a Jamaican Reggae song from my youth, "If you fall on your face, it's no disgrace, just pick yourself from off the ground ..."

1. Some things are worth fighting for. I am not saying you should stay, as opportunities are not that plentiful for a young person. But I am saying that you should appreciate the good that is there. 2. Lake City is not a bad place. I was actually pleasantly surprised over the 17 hours I spent up there. No where in the world's perfect and your home town is certainly included. But there are many much worse places than Lake City. I found almost all the folks I interacted with welcoming and decent enough.

So true. It is not easy in most classifications to get to the third round and beyond. Any team, except for a few "super programs," that can consistently get to the third round, has an awful lot to be proud of!

Very cerebral coach. It explains quite a bit of reason for Plant's success over the years.

It's messed up, though. I am happy for the Rockets if they host, but if two teams have identical points, maybe the best solution would be to just flip a coin!

Man that's harder than a Lagrangian problem. Einstein would have trouble figuring that one out!

Funny thing is, his dad is the pastor of a local African American church within walking distance of Camping World stadium. If they were to win this game and get to the championship game, the whole congregation may show up.

Too funny, Jessica. Frazier is the real deal and if he has a good night could turn back King's. This is probably one of the most competitive playoff games this weekend.

Mandarin has a state caliber offense. The QB is pro-style but has a very good arm and they have Columbia caliber wide receivers. Their defense against Apopka gave up yards but stiffened when it mattered. Clearly Mandarin has improved since the Apopka game. The team that beat Apopka would probably lose to Wekiva by around 14. Wekiva, state caliber defense, good offense, but average for a team making the title game. Wekiva was about the same both times they played Apopka. They would beat the Mandarin team that beat Apopka in good game. With the above said, Mandarin has clearly improved since the playoffs began. My guess is that this is a classic battle between a great defense versus a great offense. I could see either team winning this game to be honest. I will pick Wekiva by 3-7 points based solely on home field advantage, but would not at all be surprised if Mandarin won the game. I believe the winner of Region 1, will win fairly easily against the winner of Region 2 in the semifinals. So either Mandarin or Wekiva will have a shot at a state title for the first time ever.

Yes, that is true. The smaller private schools in particular, have difficulty sustaining the cost associated with remaining elite. Agree about Columbus, also. While good to very good, they have always met teams that gave them difficulty, if not dominated them, playing in Dade large class football. I find it interesting that unlike St. Thomas, they have had trouble upgrading their program a notch in the past. True, St. Thomas would have less hardware if they were in Dade, but they would still have won their fair share with some of the teams they have put together. The team that beat Lakeland by an obscene score in Orlando, in 2008 (56-7) would probably have won in any division in Florida that year.

I agree. But if you do in Florida, I would propose two categories: 1. One for the athletically, elite private schools, for example: St Thomas, American Heritage Plantation, Columbus, Trinity Christian, Cardinal Gibbons, Bishop Moore, etc. There could be some fluidity in this in that some of these have only recently been elite, so you could have promotion and demotion based on form. Also, if public's wanted to compete with these elite private schools, for example, Miami Central and the like, provide an acceptable mechanism for them to do so. 2. Another for all the remaining good to pedestrian private schools. In addition to the above, if an ordinary private schools was located very far away from other like private schools, and wanted to compete with the local public schools, there should be a mechanism to accommodate this.

Very true! The deck is kind of stacked.

Playing STA at STA, is a daunting task. It is the key reason a 7A title is harder to win than the 8A title.

Actually, Venice should win. You have more tradition and experience and have played a stronger schedule. However, if Venice takes this game as a gimme, I think Bloomingdale is capable of pulling a shocker. Regardless, it should be interesting.

I think the Bulls are going to gore the Indians! Bloomingdale by 3.

If all teams make the playoffs, why even bother to have a regular season? We can just start with the playoffs with seeding to be determined based on the prior year's form.

It is actually amazing that Carol City has gotten so small. They were once a legitimate large classification school in the Walt Frazier days. I know it is not a lack of kids in the zone, as I have relatives that live at the border of the CC and Norland zones, and the number of teenagers there has not declined with time. So, it must be something else, since no new relief, traditional Public High Schools have been built in the area since Dr. Krop, many years ago. Not sure if it's the prevalence of more Charter Schools or if kids are opting to go out of zone from the area.

Although the score does not reflect it, Apopka contained Wekiva's offense for the entire first half last evening before wearing down in the mid third quarter. Wekiva's sole touchdown in the first half was off a nearly busted fake punt when the punter managed to pitch the ball just as he was being brought down. The problem Apopka faced was that they could not move the ball either on the ground or through the air consistently against Wekiva's D. As a result, Apopka's defense got little time to rest and was often in bad field position. For the entire game, Apopka managed to break off one big play, and, aside from that, had one sustained drive that looked promising, as well as one razzle dazzle type play, and a pass that found Wright wide open for a touchdown. If a team can find a chink in the defense's armor, and can exploit it, they have a sold chance of winning as Wekiva probably won't put up basketball scores on very good defenses. The game against Mandarin the Friday after Thanksgiving should tell us a lot as Mandarin seems to be much improved in the playoffs over their regular season performances.

The problem is that now there are not enforceable zones anymore, as long as a school is not at or above capacity. Lake Brantley High, if they set their mind to it, could theoretically devastate both Apopka and Wekiva football.

And the state legislature did not do smaller towns and rural areas a favor when they basically opened up unlimited recruiting.

That's my point exactly. In the 1980s and 1990s when recruiting was less prevalent, the rural and small town schools did fine. However, not so much now. It is kind of difficult for Columbia high school to attract kids from Tallahassee and Gainesville or Jacksonville. It is not that difficult for an Apopka or Dr. Phillips or Plant to bring in kids from wider Hillsborough or Polk or Orange or Seminole counties if they decide to go that route.

Bad Bird, Columbiafan is a good young man. I feel for him. With Apopkas' loss I had planned to take in the Columbia vs Edgewater game. But now I am stuck with Wekiva vs Mandarin, as despite knowing a kid on the Edgewater roster, I am not a big enough fan of Edgewater football to make the trip to Jacksonville.