DarterBlue2

This year's Apopka's offense should look more like the 2012 offense. Expect that they will throw the ball a lot more than they did in 2013/2014//2015. Also expect that only about 50% of the snaps (perhaps less) will be out of a single wing formation. For strategic and other reasons, I expect Apopka to adopt a more wide open offense. If Apopka makes a deep run, I expect that the defense will have as much to do with it as the offense. They have their best secondary in years and are always effective up front against the run.

Apopka threw the ball 10 times, 8 of which were caught. They did not throw often, but their passing game was effective. Manatee's mistake was to believe they could run on Apopka, which they could not. In the second half when they threw the ball some, they had much better success. But it was too little, too late. In truth, Apopka was the better team that year. With Ivey blocking and Cox taking the ball straight down the middle and also blocking effectively for Massey and Burch, Manatee was in for a long night.

Lake Gibson has several D1 caliber players including a pair with offers. They also met "the eye test" in the spring jamboree with Osceola and Apopka. Against Osceola, they acquitted themselves well and won 13-0 (they deserved the win). Against Apopka they were outclassed and had a lot of trouble with our offense which, I suspect, they don't see often. They have a new head coach, and I would expect them to be the type of team that improves as the season progresses and would not be surprised to see them in the playoffs. I am not sure how deep they would progress if they make it and Armwood would be a big obstacle.

Booker T. Washington proves too physical for AHP. BTW by 7.

In the Orlando area both Lake Brantley football and Apopka football are broadcast on the internet. Apopka games are on 1520 wbzw. The following is a link to the Apopka game site: http://www.myhometownfl.com/news/2015-apopka-blue-darters-high-school-football-is-here There is probably a link from the Brantley website to their game broadcasts during the season: http://www.lakebrantley.com/ Eight years ago, there was a very good game of the week broadcast covering Orlando area teams at AM 660. This used to be done by Austin Lyon and Charles King. Unfortunately, life happened for both these guys and they migrated to more regular, stable jobs at Brighthouse and The Orlando Sentinel. That was a pity as their broadcast was super professional and they had a post game show that lasted an hour after the game of the week where callers could weigh in on area football in general. They also ran a fine, Central Florida sports website with a cankerous message board. Those were good times ...

Last I heard, Ashley is now in Washington DC, and will play for one of its best teams. That kid is nuts! He has been to 4 or 5 high schools in his career. Regarding Chance Bush, he started at Corner for Dp last year as a soph, announced a transfer to TFA in January, but enrolled at Apopka last semester instead. However, it is my understanding he will be at TFA in the fall. This is a loss for Apopka, but not catastrophic as the secondary is relatively deep. To answer your question, yes, Dp. has taken its greatest lumps in over a decade. Something has got to be going on there, as usually you have transfers in not out. I think Apopka beats both West Orange (District) and Dp. this year. If we beat Orange City University, I expect we will be in the State Title game representing the North bracket. But OC University has a very good team, so it is not a done deal. I believe Pipe Dreams/Mid knows more than he is saying. Normally, coach Rodney Wells, a Dp. alum, is very popular with his kids. But that many transfers really leaves me wondering.

Most people squeal like pigs when they feel they are being disadvantaged but keep quiet when the advantage it on their side. It is the way people are. With these two transfers, Bishop Moore will potentially be as good this year as they were last. I still regard American Heritage as favorite to win 5a South, but if Bishop Moore were able to get by them, which is far from an impossibility, they will likely repeat as state champions. As I have said previously, after years of relative dormancy, Bishop Moore seems to be committed to being a football power. They have the resources and coaching staff in place; so if they are willing to hand out the scholarships, they could be a force to recon with for many years. Recruiting takes place statewide. Some programs actively recruit, others don't. Under Darlington, Apopka has not actively recruited. Don't get me wrong, we have had transfers over the years, including a handful of very good ones. But philosophically, I think Darlington prefers to work with what he gets from 9th grade on up; it is essential to his "team work" concept. Fortunately, Apopka has a very good youth program, and being in the Northwest corner of Orange County, tends to keep most of them home. Having a very successful program helps in this regard.

Excellent preview on Bishop Moore. They will certainly be one of the best teams in the Orlando area. American Heritage must be the favorite in 5a South, but I expect Bishop Moore to be a worthy opponent. I would not put much stock in the loss to Dp. The game was even and Dp., despite the loss of a couple of its players to TFA, is still a very solid team.

Great preview on St. Cloud. They should battle for the district. Although Boone beat them 21-0 in one half of play, they have talent and should secure a playoff spot. One correction: East Ridge is * as a district game, but in fact isn't. East Ridge is in 7a-4 with a bunch of other Orlando area schools and West Port from Ocala.

I would move Fleming Island and First Coast up a notch and put Fletcher somewhere in the mix. Mandarin, despite their good season last year, may be rated too high.

Last year, First Coast was down due to: a lot of the kids transferred, some to TCA; and, one of their better defensive players was murdered. Having seen them two years in a row in the playoffs against Apopka, I can honestly say they were very talented, but probably lacked coaching. We beat them twice not so much because we had better athletes, but because we had a better game plan that was executed well.

I would take Hagerty/East Ridge. Lake Minneola could make it interesting. West Port should have been 8a and would have been in a 5 team district with Apopka and West Orange. They objected based on travel grounds, but ended up in a 7 team district with 6 Orlando area teams.

Link on Agape. Former head coach Victor Floyd was quite a baller in his day. His son VJ who played for Bishop Moore when to Southern Miss the same time that that Easterling from the 2006 Miami Northwestern team that got into trouble with the girl did. Neither did well there although for different reasons. http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/highschool/os-agape-christian-football-20160706-story.html

In the interest of full disclosure, Chance Bush who played for Dp last year, and who is a decent, if undersized defensive back, did suit up for the Blue team in the Apopka Blue and White game this spring and did attend Apopka during the final semester of the year. I see with interest he is now listed as going to The First Academy. While he would have added depth at the corner back position at Apopka, I don't think it matters greatly if he is not with us come fall.

First Academy, to a lesser extent, but like Bishop Moore, has always had the financial resources to build a strong program. It is affiliated with the largest Baptist Church in the Orlando area, and a few years ago had a really strong team that was ousted by Madison County? in the third round of the playoffs. It seems that like Bishop Moore they have finally decided to put some resources into making a run. Coach Kinnard and his staff are well respected and pretty strong. So, they have the framework to make it happen. They just have a bad classification to contend with as Trinity Christian is not going anywhere. I was a bit surprised by the number of Dp. transfers there as I am unaware of any turmoil at Phillips. But from a distance perspective it is only a few miles east of Dp, so that does not create a commuting hardship for the transfers. It should be interesting to see how this affects the respective fortunes of the two schools. Pipe Dreams, a Dp. alum and former player, probably has the juicy details.

Glad to see Apopka's Trey Hendrickson on the list. Was underrated and under recruited out of high school. I personally liked him as a receiver. However, at FAU he has starred on the other side of the ball. He had a solid game in the 2012 state championship hauling a couple big receptions, sacking the Cypress Bay QB and running a sweep for 20+ yards on Apopka's final scoring drive. Hope he has a strong senior season and gets a shot at the NFL.

This is an all around sad situation. I will leave it at that.

All I can say is ouch. It seems the school has much bigger worries than football. Sorry for the community. It is usually not fun for a rising senior to have a forced exit from school.

A top 25, all classifications: 1. St Thomas Aquinas 2. Miami Central 3. Booker T. Washington Miami 4. American Heritage Plantation 5. Apopka 6. Mainland 7. Trinity Christian 8. Orange City University 9. Flanagan 10. Fort Pierce Central 11. Dr. Phillips 12. Escambia 13. Miami Southridge 14. Carol City 15. Cocoa 16. Bishop Moore 17. Armwood 18. Dwyer 19. Heritage Palm Bay 20. Boca Raton 21. Deerfield Beach 22. Winter Park 23. Manatee 24. Bolles 25. Columbia Others to consider: Oak Ridge, South Dade, Columbus, West Orange, Niceville, St. Augustine, Boyd Anderson, Braden River, Plant, Naples, Miramar, Lakeland, Osceola, Vero Beach, The First Academy.

100% correct. All the talent in the world will get you only so far even if you get it to stay home. Before Darlington, Apopka's best year was a semi-final loss to Manatee who went on to get crushed by South Ridge in the state title game. Since Darlington, we have been to the State title game 4 times winning 3. We have also lost in the semis twice. I don't think Apopka's talent level has changed much over the past thirty years. Warren Sapp, Sammy Smith, Jeremy Rudolph, etc. were great ball players. But till we had an excellent staff in place, we just could not get over the hump.

Given his very limited resources, the best he can do is: 1. Look at results of most teams and try to correlate them through very limited data to national activity (this works better for a Central or an Aquinas since they play nationally strong teams on a regular basis). 2. Evaluate the opinions of some of his more trusted posters. Unlike the College game, there is not much inter-connectivity nationally in High School football. Objectively evaluating high schools at the national level is very hard and takes a lot of resources that are not there.

Apopka has utilized this camp a lot over the years. Great place to pick up technique and line up against good talent.

East Ridge is okay. But not in Central's class. Before Lake Mineola opened East Ridge was very solid. But that was then and this is now. I respect their coach's chutzpah in scheduling Central. But this game could get ugly by early second quarter.

You heard right on University. I expect them to be Apopka's main competition for the North berth. FPC got lucky with their HC hire. If they get past Vero, then the South end of the North bracket should be them and Dp.