Ray Icaza

Glad you believe that.....do you think the single 15 day window in January adopted for 2026 will help at all? At least it indicates they are aware of the problem so maybe they will continue to address it going forward. It's so tough on these HS kids including many that are clearly D1 prospects as many have fallen thru the cracks over the years and this has certainly made it much worse.

With the transfer portal opening again on Jan. 2nd and the Florida HS football playoffs in its final weeks, I thought this topic was again relevant especially to those of us that worried a few years ago about the long-term effects. Some knowledgeable folks on this forum thought it might just be a temporary blip due to Covid, but this article seems to indicate the opposite. Some call it progress ......... an "OLD TIMER" like myself, not so much. How the Transfer Portal Is Quietly Crushing High School Recruiting

As I previously stated, just because I didn't see the hold doesn't mean it didn't occur just found the timing of the flag being thrown peculiar as well. The emphasis was on the effort by AJ, a small slot receiver filling in at RB giving it his all to help his team and creating a definite highlight reel.

Not the exact spot, but it was closer to the LOS as opposed to down by the goal line after the score. Definitely a costly penalty.

Agree, it wasn't my intent to critique the officiating for the game as much as to highlight that particular run which showed unbelievable effort and skill. This diminutive player has been entertaining us with plays like that since his freshman year.

It was a game that could have gone either way for sure, however listening to Coach Pinellas leading up to the game he certainly felt this is how it would play out and never underestimated your squad. Instead, I continually pointed out on this board that I felt if anything folks were over ranking us due to last year's results and we weren't that team yet most on this same site picked us to win. I do believe the seeding system is flawed and felt for our Region we deserved the #2 seed but didn't do enough at seasons end to get it. Not questioning the officiating, but you gotta admit the most electrifying play of the game was with under 2 minutes with you holding on to a 19-13 lead, the 35 yard run made by Alijah "Flash" Jenkins for a TD that was called back. It was an unbelievable run starting as a jet sweep to the right sidelines before juking a couple of would-be tacklers, then cutting completely across the field spinning out of a couple more tacklers then headed towards the left endzone pilon. Normally, you would see the flag thrown as he started the run to get the edge but it never came out until he had pretty much done everything I described and was clearly gonna score when the official back at the LOS threw it just before he broke the goal line. That would have tied the game late and hung in the balance of the PAT for the win. I didn't see the hold and have no instant replay to confirm at the same time saying it could very well have been the case. I do agree with you that Armwood is on a different level than either of us.

Again, an offense hard to watch as they had 3 possessions deep into Eagle territory in the second half and managed to come up empty every single time. Props to South Lake defense, but it was mostly self-inflicted a bug we have suffered from all year long. Credit to them making the plays they needed to make as reflected in their one long drive during the second half when they needed to convert a 4th and short on 2 or 3 occasions and managed to make the plays every single time. Even going for it in their own territory, rolling the dice and making the play. Their QB was the difference as he made great throws most of the night and picked up those crucial 4th down conversions running the ball himself. They also managed to run the ball better than I expected they would against our defense despite having to fight for every yard with extra effort. Congrats to Coach Lord and his entire staff especially Coach Beek who I was able to see during the pregame, exchange some kind words and a hug or two. Good luck to your squad next week as they played like champions and deserved the victory. Heartbreak for our kids, especially those on the defensive side of the ball that played their buts off making plays, forcing fumbles and muffed punts all in a losing effort. Till next year.

We should all want competitiveness as well as fairness and no question those 2 metrics were better achieved with the Suburban/Metro formula and yes, I was in favor of that system as were many around the state. Some folks wanted to smear the achievement of teams in the Suburban part as not being real champions, but most of us weren't fazed by that characterization. In time, the necessary tweaks could have been made to make it even better but the Metro schools that clearly have the competitive advantage due to surrounding populations didn't want to limit the championships they could collect if they had to beat each other to do it. Sad that the solution from those loud voices returned us to the mess we are trying to make better. Dr. D, you might hold the view of the little guy in this universe but not the minority.

Wrong, we are the #3 SEED in our Region while South Lake is the #2 SEED. Seeding by the FHSAA is extremely flawed as almost everyone on this forum agrees. That determines home field advantage and your earlier point of a lousy team hosting if you alternate every year is moot if you followed Perspectives view which I agree with is that for the opening round games the DISTRICT CHAMP should host. That will make that possibility minimal. Yes, I would like transparency, but in the end if I could see how they arrived at their mistakes it wouldn't make me feel any better.

I respect your opinion, but my experience with seeding with regards to our team has been an issue for years and I believe it was also this year. Take out my biased opinion and look at any ranking service (MaxPrep, LAZ, etc.) and we are ranked ahead of South Lake again intending no criticism of them. Yet, the FHSAA seeding has us flipped. One could make the argument it was that way last year not so much with Armwood as I believe as it should have been with Buchholz, two teams we beat on the way to the championship. It was clearly obvious in 2022 when they had Vero ranked ahead of us forcing us to travel to only dominate them at their place 31-7 and the score could have been much worse. Even in 2021 having to travel to Tampa to play Newsome where again we won. It you were in my seat you would start wondering why regardless of transparency as it seems to be a pattern making me suspicious.

Regarding home field advantage, I always like the old system of alternating that benefit every other year. Top of the bracket gets it on odd numbered years while bottom of the bracket has it on even numbered years. Removes all conspiracy speculation as that protocol is laid out up front.

Congrats on your win and glad you are happy coaching there. Would love to give you a hug prior to kickoff, so will see how early we arrive to be able to make that happen. Again, perspective is everything and when I said WEAK, I clearly was talking about the entire Region with the exception of Armwood. 6A R1 for example is stacked with several teams that have a chance to go deep in the playoffs, though not necessarily winning it all. Some folks were riding the Evans bandwagon after beating Jones and I advised caution as they are inconsistent as proven last night with an early exit. Exhibit #2 in our Region is a #7 seed taking a #2 seed into triple OT before losing an away game after a 2 hour bus ride. Lastly, my team struggled with what should have been a 2 to 3 score game before escaping against an inferior team. So, next Friday will be a crap shoot as to who emerges with that victory which will be their final hurrah before the Regional final. What I can predict is you won't get 200 yards rushing against us, so best prepare to throw a lot just like other teams have to move the football as that is no secret. Good luck to you and your Eagles team and GO KOWBOYS!!

LAZ obviously wasn't impressed by a 10-0 record against one of the weakest schedules in the entire state. The outcome was predictable and I feel for our Dillard friend who had such high expectations while ignoring the obvious. Think I've seen this movie before.

Props to them, especially their QB who managed to make throws continually under duress to move the chains thru the air mostly on short completions. No question we had the better team, just not executing at the level we are capable of for a variety of reasons so if we would have lost it would have been hard for us to swallow as well. We have run out of time to correct those mistakes but still have a good shot of winning the semifinal matchup with South Lake as the region is weak outside of Armwood. Not disrespect intended for South Lake or other playoff teams in this region, just an old timer's view.

Have to be honest about it, this is a pretty weak region outside of Armwood as I do believe they are in the driver's seat. Our results haven't been great, but at least we have played a pretty challenging schedule as LAZ clearly showed we are ranked #1 in SOS among the 8 playoff teams in our region. No benefit playing a super weak schedule as clearly Dillard after tonight is the poster child for that as I hoped I was wrong but warned him about over hype on wins against nobody's, ending up 10-0 and exiting with a whimper in the first round.