JDHoss

Can't wait to see this one. I saw Cocoa against Vero, Treasure Coast and Rockledge. They have athletes, but also play with a lot of heart and don't get rattled. Their tandem of Wynder and Ross is impressive. I haven't seen Gibbons play in three years, but they have a lot of talent as well. Should be the best game of the weekend.

I'm not sure how you got that out of what I said. I've known who Glades Central is probably longer than you've been alive. I didn't know much about this particular Glades Central team. When I was watching them in the pregame, they were physically impressive and I thought they would hang with Vero better than what they did, and yes, Vero is a good program.

They had size (especially those massive bookend tackles) and speed (the Demps kid was electric when they got him the football) but seemed disorganized and not mentally ready to play. Vero Beach had a nice team, but looking at Glades in the pregame but not knowing a lot about them, I thought it would be a way tighter game.

I saw them against Vero Beach this year. I have to say the size and speed they had didn't translate to the product they put on the field.

That's ok. I'm not a big reaction type of guy. We retired to Fort Pierce three years ago, and while we love getting out and going to the games, I have no emotional ties to any of the schools. We just want to see some good football games, and on a Friday night, we may be found anywhere from Fort Lauderdale to Cocoa.

Seriously? Cocoa played a great schedule with mostly larger classification opponents that had a combined record of 77-36. Their only loss was by 1 point to Venice, who is probably the favorite in 8A. They have a really nice QB in Davin Wynder, a dynamic playmaker in OJ Ross and a couple of other good WR as well as being well coached. Athletically speaking, The Villages Charter wasn't in the same universe as Cocoa. It really wasn't a shock that they thumped them.

Would love to go home and watch the TC v Apopka game, but we're visiting family for the holidays. I saw TC play 3 times this fall, and several times last year. They won't wow you with their athleticism, although Eden James is a really nice high school back who is shifty and has balance. What they are is big and physical and can really grind you down three and four yards at a time with James having big play ability. The key (IMO) is to make them play behind the chains on 2nd down if you can, or at the very least put them in a 2nd and 8 or so. If you're giving up 3+ yards on 1st down, it's tough to get off the field against them. I saw Cocoa beat them in an amazing double OT game. TC raced out to a 28-7 lead before Cocoa found their offensive footing and TC had a couple of possessions where they had penalties that put them in 1st and 20 situations that they couldn't overcome. Cocoa was able to get within a score and took the 2nd half kickoff and drove (IIRC) for a score to tie it. After that, it was just back and forth trading touchdowns.

Gotta feel bad for Westwood. Four of their starters were at Vero Beach this year, and 4 star safety Kamari Wilson went to IMG his junior and senior years. When I watched them play Vero late in the season, they only had 26 guys dressed out and multiple guys in street clothes. Central runs into the same problems with keeping coaching staffs and players going elsewhere.

Like other states (such as VA and TN, where I'm from) I'd guess Florida rankings are made by people who have no way of actually watching everyone play, and they have to rely heavily on score comparison and strength of schedule.

We've only lived in Florida for 3 years now after retirement, but spent an average of 4 weeks a year for three decades in the Volusia Co area on vacation. We've seen the Bucs play multiple times over the years, and in fact were there for John Maranto's last game. Good program.