DarterBlue2

Your analysis sounds correct. Maybe they even make 6th seed.

You probably won't get Mainland first as both Dillard and Mainland are in weak districts and will probably be district champions. It would be best for you if you drew another team not named: Miami Northwestern, Central or Carol City. That is possible. Norland may squeak in. Or maybe some team from 6a between Palm Beach County and Volusia county (Martin or Breverd counties). If you did get Mainland, it would be a good, interesting game, is my best guess based on where we are in the season. And I would give you a solid chance to win, especially if at Dillard. But it would not be a done deal. They are still pretty good.

That's like around five years. Have you played them every year over that time?

Good win for Dillard. Go win out from here. I feel your pain being in the same Region with: CC, MNW and Central, as well as Daytona Beach Mainland in the North. But till playoffs you should have it going from here.

The anticipation and tension is real. Let the game begin!

It is unfortunate. I am pretty sure there is still a lot of talent in that town. The right staff could engineer a turnaround there.

I am not saying Lakeland is not a very good team. It is. But let's examine the facts: 1. Kickoff return for a touchdown. Yes, Lakeland gets some credit. But relatively poor coverage by Apopka and a kicker that lacks range is also a big part of that score. 2. Blocked punt by Lakeland. Again Lakeland gets credit, but if Apopka had a more agile punter, it never happens. We have a punter with leg, but as an offensive lineman, he lacks quickness. Castle must have seen this on film. He took advantage of it. 3. Lakeland stops Apopka late in the game on fourth down, deep in Lakeland territory. Again give Lakeland credit. They made the stop. But had Apopka converted they would probably have scored. Those three situations account for 21 points off the bat. Lakeland won the game by 17. On a different night, the result could easily have been very different. Credit, Lakeland, though. Their wily, experienced coach took advantage of what he saw on film and what he was given. You are in 7A, Apopka is in 8A. So we won't meet again this year. I, too, would like Lakeland to win out. It puts Apopka in a better points situation. We will see!

Yes, they make up for a weak district (it rivals some of the Southwest Dade County districts) with good out of district competition to keep them sharp for their playoff runs.

Yes, it makes one wonder. When I first moved to Florida, Bartow was considered an elite program.

There is one left. He is of middle school age right now.

WTF, Columbia melted down toward the end. What happened?

The final score in this game was Apopka 38 Dr. Phillips 7. It could have been worse. Dr. Phillips has talent, of that there is no doubt. But the team is relatively young and is currently playing uninspiring football. Apopka did not play mistake free football turning the ball over, I believe twice, as well as recovering a couple fumbles. The team also had its fair share of penalties several of which were uncalled for. However, with that said, the Darters played well enough to have the game well in hand by the middle of the third quarter and pulled away to win very comfortably. For the second week in a row, Apopka also had success passing the ball as Jackson Darlington had three touchdown passes, two of them to Fred Young, who is an athletic, reliable target. I was also impressed with the fact that Jackson in the space of the few short months since spring, has gone from an intermediate passer to a QB that now has a legitimate deep ball. He is not the athlete that his brother Zack was; however, he is a decent runner in his own right and is less injury prone. Observation: If this Apopka team could put a complete game together and does not suffer anymore devastating injuries, even with Davis-Hamilton done for the season, this team would beat all but a handful of teams in the state and would hold its own against many a national power. As I said last week, Lakeland did not beat Apopka in so much as Apopka beat itself. The entire Wekiva team was in attendance, as well as at least some of its coaching staff. That game in October may well be a prelude to the team that represents the North Bracket in the state title game. But there are many weeks of the regular season left, so we will see how it plays out. Next week Apopka takes on Boone at Boone. In the spring, I was impressed by the way Boone handled Olympia. But my confidence in them may have been unwarranted due to the fact that Olympia is proving to be a really bad team. Still Boone did have a blowout win against University tonight so beating them is not a certainty.

And the good news is you are too far away for carpetbaggers to come take what's yours!

If that is so, that sucks for him. At least he is already committed assuming the offer is not yanked.

Ah!

?

That's probably right. And the games may not even be that close. Times have changed ...

Good Lord! They almost lost to Samford? Florida college football does not look at all good this year.

Personally I think IMG exists because it can make money doing what it does. How you may ask? Simple. There are enough wealthy folks out there willing to fork out obscene amounts of money so their child can pursue his/her dream no matter how elusive and unrealistic it may be. The money from these individuals and from friends in the state legislature (and for that matter whatever deals they may be able to strike with those associated with college sports), enables IMG to actually recruit some of the best athletes nationwide. It's not the kind of model I endorse nor would I send a child of mine to such an institution. With that said, it's no skin off my back that it exists and to some it may be beneficial. If I coached high school football I would probably never schedule them for a variety of reasons. But I don't condemn the schools that do.

The running back is fine. But to me, I preferred their offense from last year. I liked Bartram Trails back (no 22) better. Personal preference for a shifty back with some power over a power runner.

bump

Funny thing is, just stickily off its location, Krop should be decent. It's not that far away from Norland and Carol City and Hallandale, and Miramar, and North Miami Beach, and ... . A good staff at Krop and it could easily attract talent.

I just checked and if MaxPreps is accurate, they are not. That would be an intriguing game.

They would probably beat IMG. Do they play them this year?

I think this DB team has as good a chance as they have ever had of making it to Orlando. But then again, as you and I have observed, DB has a tendency to meltdown at critical moments. So, if based just on talent they should probably represent the South. But it would not surprise me if they got upset.