Polk County Fun fact

[Nulli Secundus]

Since 1963, Polk County has been represented in the state finals 42 times.  The most in any given year has been 3 teams 4 times (1996, 1999, 2004, & 2005) with Polk taking 2 of 3 in each of those years.  In contrast, Polk has sent 2 teams to the title game 6 times (1973, 1991, 1993, 2003, 2006 & 2008) and lost all but 2 games.  Two teams in the finals has not been kind to Polk County.  Will 2022 be different or does history repeat itself?

 

When 3 Polk schools play for the title - 67% win rate

1996:  Lakeland over STA, Bartow over Bolles, Union County over Frostproof
1999:  Lakeland over Rutherford, Frostproof over Trinity Chr., North Florida Chr. over Ft. Meade
2004:  Lakeland over STA, Ft. Meade over Blountstown, Armwood over Lake Gibson
2005:  Lakeland over STA, Evangel Chr. over Graceville, Port St. Joe over Ft. Meade
 

When 2 Polk Schools play for the title - 17% win rate

1973:  Haines City over Atlantic, Blountstown over Ft. Meade
1991:  Santa Fe over Haines City, Jefferson County over Frostproof
1993:  Bolles over Lake Wales, Baker County over Ft. Meade
2003:  Armwood over Lake Gibson, Trinity Chr. over Ft. Meade
2006:  Lakeland over STA, FAMU over Victory Chr.
2008:  STA over Lakeland, North Florida Chr over Ft. Meade

Lakeland and Lake Wales should be afraid, VERY afraid, lol. @VeniceIndiansFootball & @Dan in Daytona

[VeniceIndianFan]

1 hour ago, Nulli Secundus said:

Since 1963, Polk County has been represented in the state finals 42 times.  The most in any given year has been 3 teams 4 times (1996, 1999, 2004, & 2005) with Polk taking 2 of 3 in each of those years.  In contrast, Polk has sent 2 teams to the title game 6 times (1973, 1991, 1993, 2003, 2006 & 2008) and lost all but 2 games.  Two teams in the finals has not been kind to Polk County.  Will 2022 be different or does history repeat itself?

 

When 3 Polk schools play for the title - 67% win rate

1996:  Lakeland over STA, Bartow over Bolles, Union County over Frostproof
1999:  Lakeland over Rutherford, Frostproof over Trinity Chr., North Florida Chr. over Ft. Meade
2004:  Lakeland over STA, Ft. Meade over Blountstown, Armwood over Lake Gibson
2005:  Lakeland over STA, Evangel Chr. over Graceville, Port St. Joe over Ft. Meade
 

When 2 Polk Schools play for the title - 17% win rate

1973:  Haines City over Atlantic, Blountstown over Ft. Meade
1991:  Santa Fe over Haines City, Jefferson County over Frostproof
1993:  Bolles over Lake Wales, Baker County over Ft. Meade
2003:  Armwood over Lake Gibson, Trinity Chr. over Ft. Meade
2006:  Lakeland over STA, FAMU over Victory Chr.
2008:  STA over Lakeland, North Florida Chr over Ft. Meade

Lakeland and Lake Wales should be afraid, VERY afraid, lol. @VeniceIndiansFootball & @Dan in Daytona

Interesting tidbits, and thank you for sharing but history doesn't mean anything come playoff time. State championships are won on the field, not on message boards. Like I said on Scorestream, I think Venice's defensive line is going to be a headache for Lakeland to block all game. That doesn't mean the Naughts can't get the job done, but you're going to have to block at least 6 all game to slow down Damon like Buchholz did. He's a game-changer. If someone misses Damon on a block, the play is already over. I won't say anything else about what I think of personnel matchups on a public board. All I will say, is best of luck to your Naughts, and may the best team win!

[DarterBlue2]

I think Polk wins both games this year. 

[Dan in Daytona]

Nulli, lets see how delicate I can put this and not run afoul of Josh's heavy hand. It appears most of Polk's success is after Florida's integration of the races in 1970. Also lets give coach Bill Castle a shout out for laying the ground work and showing/teaching followers how it is done. If I'm not mistaken H.O.F. Coach Rick Darlington falls into this group. Much like Brevard's county's coach Gerald (Jerry) Odom and his followers/students/ball players. My wife has family in Plant City. I've been there, seen the strawberries, and seen a little of the mining operations. Throw in a few cows and horses and I've haven't seen much more "industry".  What "BROUGHT"  in the large group of African-Americans that to this day keeps rural Polk County with an endless supply of D-1 athletes. What's over there ?  It can't be the water, Pasco county and Zephyrhills got that.

[Dan in Daytona]

33 minutes ago, DarterBlue2 said:

I think Polk wins both games this year. 

Darter, you're to "logical and precise". We're talking "high school kids." It's not between the ears.  

[DarterBlue2]

1 hour ago, Dan in Daytona said:

Darter, you're to "logical and precise". We're talking "high school kids." It's not between the ears.  

Very true. Good luck to the Mainland Bucs in the state finals. Lake Wales is a big obstacle, but as you say, it's high school kids. 

[Floridaatlantic1]

Fun fact about PLOK county. Their state representative is what started this open enrollment crap that ruined hs sports with easy transfers. Another fun fact, they somehow got their county and lee put in the suburban when their population is bigger than other metro counties and pulled the old switcheroo between the first proposal and the one that actually passed to dodge st Thomas Aquinas and other metro teams. Screw them and I hope Venice beats them by thirty. 

[Floridaatlantic1]

One last fact. Lakeland was the biggest recruiters and cheaters and were busted which led to crazy state rep messing with the fhsaa and high schools. Just telling the truth here. Go Venice 

[Perspective]

9 hours ago, VeniceIndiansFootball said:

Interesting tidbits, and thank you for sharing but history doesn't mean anything come playoff time. State championships are won on the field, not on message boards. Like I said on Scorestream, I think Venice's defensive line is going to be a headache for Lakeland to block all game. That doesn't mean the Naughts can't get the job done, but you're going to have to block at least 6 all game to slow down Damon like Buchholz did. He's a game-changer. If someone misses Damon on a block, the play is already over. I won't say anything else about what I think of personnel matchups on a public board. All I will say, is best of luck to your Naughts, and may the best team win!

VIF, can you give me a quick recap of the Buchholz game?   I thought I saw an early score that made it look like the game was a blow-out in the making.  But the final score showed otherwise (7 point difference, I believe).   Did Buchholz claw their way back into or did Venice take its foot off the accelerator pedal?    Thanks in advance. 

[VeniceIndianFan]

3 hours ago, Perspective said:

VIF, can you give me a quick recap of the Buchholz game?   I thought I saw an early score that made it look like the game was a blow-out in the making.  But the final score showed otherwise (7 point difference, I believe).   Did Buchholz claw their way back into or did Venice take its foot off the accelerator pedal?    Thanks in advance. 

Venice was up 28-0 with about 4 minutes left in the first half, when Creed Whittemore rushed for a touchdown at the 5 yard-line to pull within 21. Venice got the ball to start the 3rd quarter, but had to punt at the 43 after picking up 2 first downs. That's when the Bobcats caught fire. Whittemore drove them down to our 40-yard line, and then launched a bomb over the head of Deylen Platt to his receiver to pull within 14. When Venice got the ball back, they drove the ball down to the Bucholz 12-yard line but threw an interception on 4th down, and the Bucholz crowd went insane. On the next play, Bucholz triple-teamed Damon Wilson and doubled Trenton Kintigh, and their running back burst through the hole for an 88-yard touchdown and Bucholz started to gain even more momentum. On the next drive, Venice picked up 1 first down but then had to punt, giving Bucholz the ball at their 38-yard line. This time, they drove the ball to our 48 before Whittemore threw a ball over Elliot Washington's head to his receiver to tie the ball game and Bucholz's crowd was screaming the loudest I've seen in a long time. On the next drive, Venice had a long run with Alvin Johnson that set up a touchdown pass to Keyon Sears. Bucholz then went 3 and out and Venice put the game away with their running game, making the score 42-28 before Bucholz scored one final time to make it 42-35. Crazy game. I feel sorry for the seniors on Bucholz as they put up a valiant fight but fell short in the end.

[Dan in Daytona]

6 hours ago, Floridaatlantic1 said:

One last fact. Lakeland was the biggest recruiters and cheaters and were busted which led to crazy state rep messing with the fhsaa and high schools. Just telling the truth here. Go Venice 

I remember it well.....

[Dan in Daytona]

6 hours ago, Floridaatlantic1 said:

One last fact. Lakeland was the biggest recruiters and cheaters and were busted which led to crazy state rep messing with the fhsaa and high schools. Just telling the truth here. Go Venice 

That's why Mainland High has the longest consecutive "Public School" playoff streak in the state of Florida. Mainland is currently at 29 years and it started in 1994. Lakeland High's streak started in 1993. Don't remember the year (2010's ?) when they were disqualified but that ended their streak. ( Shameless Homer Plug ).

[Perspective]

2 hours ago, VeniceIndiansFootball said:

Venice was up 28-0 with about 4 minutes left in the first half, when Creed Whittemore rushed for a touchdown at the 5 yard-line to pull within 21. Venice got the ball to start the 3rd quarter, but had to punt at the 43 after picking up 2 first downs. That's when the Bobcats caught fire. Whittemore drove them down to our 40-yard line, and then launched a bomb over the head of Deylen Platt to his receiver to pull within 14. When Venice got the ball back, they drove the ball down to the Bucholz 12-yard line but threw an interception on 4th down, and the Bucholz crowd went insane. On the next play, Bucholz triple-teamed Damon Wilson and doubled Trenton Kintigh, and their running back burst through the hole for an 88-yard touchdown and Bucholz started to gain even more momentum. On the next drive, Venice picked up 1 first down but then had to punt, giving Bucholz the ball at their 38-yard line. This time, they drove the ball to our 48 before Whittemore threw a ball over Elliot Washington's head to his receiver to tie the ball game and Bucholz's crowd was screaming the loudest I've seen in a long time. On the next drive, Venice had a long run with Alvin Johnson that set up a touchdown pass to Keyon Sears. Bucholz then went 3 and out and Venice put the game away with their running game, making the score 42-28 before Bucholz scored one final time to make it 42-35. Crazy game. I feel sorry for the seniors on Bucholz as they put up a valiant fight but fell short in the end.

Thanks!

This recap makes me think the title game between Lakeland and Venice will be a shootout.  I know both teams have offenses that can score points, but it sounds like the Venice defense might be a little more susceptible to giving up the big play.   Slight nod to Lakeland if I'm handicapping this game with an over/under in the 60's, if not 70's.   I'll vote this one "Most Likely to go into Overtime." 

[Nulli Secundus]

3 hours ago, Dan in Daytona said:

That's why Mainland High has the longest consecutive "Public School" playoff streak in the state of Florida. Mainland is currently at 29 years and it started in 1994. Lakeland High's streak started in 1993. Don't remember the year (2010's ?) when they were disqualified but that ended their streak. ( Shameless Homer Plug ).

Yes, it was 2010.  That's when players were found guilty of falsifying addresses to move several blocks east into Lakeland's schools zone.

[Nulli Secundus]

9 hours ago, Floridaatlantic1 said:

Fun fact about PLOK county. Their state representative is what started this open enrollment crap that ruined hs sports with easy transfers. Another fun fact, they somehow got their county and lee put in the suburban when their population is bigger than other metro counties and pulled the old switcheroo between the first proposal and the one that actually passed to dodge st Thomas Aquinas and other metro teams. Screw them and I hope Venice beats them by thirty. 

Fun fact about PLOK county.  Either you misspelled on purpose or it took you all day to come up with that little quip.  Either way it's pathetic.

Their state representative is what started this open enrollment crap that ruined hs sports with easy transfers.  This is America.  Contact your local representative and start the process to repeal it.  Then again since no one here knows what your school or county affiliation is, maybe your local rep doesn't have the pull to do so.  Isn't that what any good representative is supposed to do for their constituents?  Given the gravity of what actually happened and the subsequent fallout that affected Lakeland High School, I can't say I blame her even though Lakeland wasn't the catalyst, just the more popular choice.  People like you who don't have an ounce of a clue blindly perpetuate the lie that Lakeland went after and recruited the 5 (eventually downgraded to 3) athletes to come to Lakeland when the guardians were found guilty of falsifying addresses so they could enroll at LHS illegally is laughable at best.  Had Lakeland knowingly committed such an egregious act, none of the coaches including Castle, possibly the principle would've survived it. 

Another fun fact, they somehow got their county and lee put in the suburban when their population is bigger than other metro counties and pulled the old switcheroo between the first proposal and the one that actually passed to dodge st Thomas Aquinas and other metro teams. Screw them and I hope Venice beats them by thirty.  FHSAA board of directors.  As you can see, no one from Polk County is represented.  Try again.  Regarding STA, why the hell would Lakeland dodge a program that it has a winning 6-2 advantage over?  Maybe you're pissed because whatever your imaginary program is can't beat the Raiders.  

[Nulli Secundus]

13 hours ago, Dan in Daytona said:

Nulli, lets see how delicate I can put this and not run afoul of Josh's heavy hand. It appears most of Polk's success is after Florida's integration of the races in 1970. Also lets give coach Bill Castle a shout out for laying the ground work and showing/teaching followers how it is done. If I'm not mistaken H.O.F. Coach Rick Darlington falls into this group. Much like Brevard's county's coach Gerald (Jerry) Odom and his followers/students/ball players. My wife has family in Plant City. I've been there, seen the strawberries, and seen a little of the mining operations. Throw in a few cows and horses and I've haven't seen much more "industry".  What "BROUGHT"  in the large group of African-Americans that to this day keeps rural Polk County with an endless supply of D-1 athletes. What's over there ?  It can't be the water, Pasco county and Zephyrhills got that.

It could be the radiation in the water.  I'll give you the short version without cliff notes, lol.  Four things brought African Americans to Polk County:  Spanish-American war, Citrus, Phosphate and the railroads. 

You have to go all the way back the the start of the Spanish-American war when the 10th Calvary (1 of 4) all black Buffalo soldiers was stationed in Lakeland.  During that time, Lakeland and other outlying areas of Polk County amassed large numbers of soldiers that were awaiting deployment to Cuba.  They (and their families) were set up and eventually settled around Lake Wire near downtown in what is know known as the Lake Ridge community all the way north to the Washington Park area near the hospital.  This includes central city where Bryant stadium is now located all the way up to the old Tiger Town air force base on Lake Parker once stood.  Just to give you an idea what I mean when I say "central city", central city  Every town at the time had pockets of African-Americans that were associated with the war with the largest concentration in Lakeland & Bartow.

Citrus is another not thought of industry and back then, Polk County was the largest producer of Citrus in the state all the way until a few years ago.  Before other ethnicities came to be in Polk County, African-Americans were the top choice for menial back-breaking labor and picking trees all day in the Central Florida heat was about as rough as it got.  That further spread African-Americans all over the county especially those with endless groves (Winter Haven, Auburndale, Haines City, Lake Wales and Frostproof). 

Phosphate mining was another hot industry beginning in the late 1800's and is still prevalent today starting in South Polk (Ft. Meade) and eventually working its way north to Bartow, Mulberry and parts of South Lakeland now known as Lakeland-Highlands where George Jenkins HS resides.  More so than Citrus, phosphate mining was laborious work and was downright dangerous, both short and long term.  Again, trying to be politically correct but what group was favored to do what others didn't want to do?  

The railroad industry is big business in Polk now but it was really big back in the day.  When you take into account the man power to establish and maintain the rail infrastructure to move Citrus, cattle and phosphate to points north and to/from the port of Tampa, the railroad probably had the largest noticeable impact on Polk County.  Bone Valley (Mulberry and Ft. Meade) consists of an intricate rail network that crisscrosses Polk County before heading west to Tampa, north to Winston in Southwest Lakeland using either the Seaboard Air Line or Seaboard Coast line where they meet at Diamond Junction in Auburndale.  Polk County was one of the few places in the state where both companies were in direct competition with each other before deregulation and consolidation into what is now CSX.  A few miles northeast of Winston, there was a 180 acre rail repair and refurbishing yard on the edge of downtown Lakeland bordering Kathleen Rd.  That area is now home to the recently opened Bonnet Springs Park.  That area is also located in central city where large swaths of African-Americans still reside generations later.  Winter Haven, Lake Wales and Haines City also had burgeoning rail industries and a few have railroad museums that chronicle how the railroad impacted their communities.  The next time you're in Polk County and you happen to be in a town/city and you notice railroad tracks, there's a good chance there's some African-American history behind it and it probably shows.    

How that translates into what you deem as continued D-1 success, I can only contribute that to the grind and historically, it wasn't hard to do being surrounded by Hillsborough, Pinellas, Osceola and Orange.  No disrespect to anyone affiliated with a school in those counties.  However, those are the facts.  The first Lakeland school to capitalize on integration was Kathleen given their new location and proximity to the defunct all black Rochelle High School and the neighborhood in which it served.  Lakeland was better in basketball and Kathleen was the football King.  Fast forward a few decades and both schools have swapped roles.  However, Lakeland was a little more resistant to change as it was known as the more upscale of the two.  When I was in high school 91-94, a popular chant at games against Lakeland was "Sink the Snobs" as the school pulled from wealthier, more established South Lakeland neighborhoods including Lakeland Highlands until George Jenkins opened in 1993.  The rest of the county for a long time were one schools towns so there wasn't a massive tug on talent like it is in Lakeland.  After that, Winter Haven lost some personnel when Lake Ridge opened (1995).  They have always had a decent amount of athletes but Winter Haven bleeds into Auburndale.  The 2nd city to truly suffer was Haines City with the opening of Ridge (2005) and if you take a look at their records, you can see the shift when the Oak Hill community that once drove Haines City was split.  What also happened around the same time (2003) is the city of Lake Wales created it's own charter school system and although in Polk County, operated independently of Polk County school district.  That really made things difficult talent wise in East Polk as Lake Wales was able to take in students from anywhere but primarily up US27 into Haines City/Davenport and 540 into Winter Haven.  The Blue Devils are one program I do not envy in football as they are literally smack in the middle of most of the high schools in Polk County.

Winners
1973 Haines City
1974 Frostproof
1977 Bartow
1985 Bartow
1986 Lakeland
1992 Frostproof
1996 Lakeland
1996 Bartow
1999 Lakeland
1999 Frostproof
2004 Lakeland
2004 Ft. Meade
2005 Lakeland 
2005 Evangel Chr. (Lakeland)
2006 Lakeland
2014 Victory Chr. (Lakeland)
2018 Lakeland

Runner-ups
1967 Auburndale
1968 Kathleen
1971 Haines City
1972 Frostproof
1973 Ft. Meade
1981 Frostproof
1991 Haines City
1991 Frostproof
1993 Lake Wales
1993 Ft. Meade
1994 Lake Wales
1996 Frostproof
1999 Ft. Meade
2000 Ft. Meade
2001 Ft. Meade
2003 Lake Gibson
2003 Ft. Meade
2004 Lake Gibson
2005 Ft. Meade
2006 Victory Chr. (Lakeland)
2008 Lakeland
2008 Ft. Meade
2013 Victory Chr. (Lakeland)
2016 Lake Gibson
2019 Victory Chr. (Lakeland)

[VeniceIndianFan]

1 hour ago, Nulli Secundus said:

Fun fact about PLOK county.  Either you misspelled on purpose or it took you all day to come up with that little quip.  Either way it's pathetic.

Their state representative is what started this open enrollment crap that ruined hs sports with easy transfers.  This is America.  Contact your local representative and start the process to repeal it.  Then again since no one here knows what your school or county affiliation is, maybe your local rep doesn't have the pull to do so.  Isn't that what any good representative is supposed to do for their constituents?  Given the gravity of what actually happened and the subsequent fallout that affected Lakeland High School, I can't say I blame her even though Lakeland wasn't the catalyst, just the more popular choice.  People like you who don't have an ounce of a clue blindly perpetuate the lie that Lakeland went after and recruited the 5 (eventually downgraded to 3) athletes to come to Lakeland when the guardians were found guilty of falsifying addresses so they could enroll at LHS illegally is laughable at best.  Had Lakeland knowingly committed such an egregious act, none of the coaches including Castle, possibly the principle would've survived it. 

Another fun fact, they somehow got their county and lee put in the suburban when their population is bigger than other metro counties and pulled the old switcheroo between the first proposal and the one that actually passed to dodge st Thomas Aquinas and other metro teams. Screw them and I hope Venice beats them by thirty.  FHSAA board of directors.  As you can see, no one from Polk County is represented.  Try again.  Regarding STA, why the hell would Lakeland dodge a program that it has a winning 6-2 advantage over?  Maybe you're pissed because whatever your imaginary program is can't beat the Raiders.  

He roots for the Atlantic Eagles. Remember "Acer12" from ScoreStream?

[Dan in Daytona]

1 hour ago, Nulli Secundus said:

It could be the radiation in the water.  I'll give you the short version without cliff notes, lol.  Four things brought African Americans to Polk County:  Spanish-American war, Citrus, Phosphate and the railroads. 

You have to go all the way back the the start of the Spanish-American war when the 10th Calvary (1 of 4) all black Buffalo soldiers was stationed in Lakeland.  During that time, Lakeland and other outlying areas of Polk County amassed large numbers of soldiers that were awaiting deployment to Cuba.  They (and their families) were set up and eventually settled around Lake Wire near downtown in what is know known as the Lake Ridge community all the way north to the Washington Park area near the hospital.  This includes central city where Bryant stadium is now located all the way up to the old Tiger Town air force base on Lake Parker once stood.  Just to give you an idea what I mean when I say "central city", central city  Every town at the time had pockets of African-Americans that were associated with the war with the largest concentration in Lakeland & Bartow.

Citrus is another not thought of industry and back then, Polk County was the largest producer of Citrus in the state all the way until a few years ago.  Before other ethnicities came to be in Polk County, African-Americans were the top choice for menial back-breaking labor and picking trees all day in the Central Florida heat was about as rough as it got.  That further spread African-Americans all over the county especially those with endless groves (Winter Haven, Auburndale, Haines City, Lake Wales and Frostproof). 

Phosphate mining was another hot industry beginning in the late 1800's and is still prevalent today starting in South Polk (Ft. Meade) and eventually working its way north to Bartow, Mulberry and parts of South Lakeland now known as Lakeland-Highlands where George Jenkins HS resides.  More so than Citrus, phosphate mining was laborious work and was downright dangerous, both short and long term.  Again, trying to be politically correct but what group was favored to do what others didn't want to do?  

The railroad industry is big business in Polk now but it was really big back in the day.  When you take into account the man power to establish and maintain the rail infrastructure to move Citrus, cattle and phosphate to points north and to/from the port of Tampa, the railroad probably had the largest noticeable impact on Polk County.  Bone Valley (Mulberry and Ft. Meade) consists of an intricate rail network that crisscrosses Polk County before heading west to Tampa, north to Winston in Southwest Lakeland using either the Seaboard Air Line or Seaboard Coast line where they meet at Diamond Junction in Auburndale.  Polk County was one of the few places in the state where both companies were in direct competition with each other before deregulation and consolidation into what is now CSX.  A few miles northeast of Winston, there was a 180 acre rail repair and refurbishing yard on the edge of downtown Lakeland bordering Kathleen Rd.  That area is now home to the recently opened Bonnet Springs Park.  That area is also located in central city where large swaths of African-Americans still reside generations later.  Winter Haven, Lake Wales and Haines City also had burgeoning rail industries and a few have railroad museums that chronicle how the railroad impacted their communities.  The next time you're in Polk County and you happen to be in a town/city and you notice railroad tracks, there's a good chance there's some African-American history behind it and it probably shows.    

How that translates into what you deem as continued D-1 success, I can only contribute that to the grind and historically, it wasn't hard to do being surrounded by Hillsborough, Pinellas, Osceola and Orange.  No disrespect to anyone affiliated with a school in those counties.  However, those are the facts.  The first Lakeland school to capitalize on integration was Kathleen given their new location and proximity to the defunct all black Rochelle High School and the neighborhood in which it served.  Lakeland was better in basketball and Kathleen was the football King.  Fast forward a few decades and both schools have swapped roles.  However, Lakeland was a little more resistant to change as it was known as the more upscale of the two.  When I was in high school 91-94, a popular chant at games against Lakeland was "Sink the Snobs" as the school pulled from wealthier, more established South Lakeland neighborhoods including Lakeland Highlands until George Jenkins opened in 1993.  The rest of the county for a long time were one schools towns so there wasn't a massive tug on talent like it is in Lakeland.  After that, Winter Haven lost some personnel when Lake Ridge opened (1995).  They have always had a decent amount of athletes but Winter Haven bleeds into Auburndale.  The 2nd city to truly suffer was Haines City with the opening of Ridge (2005) and if you take a look at their records, you can see the shift when the Oak Hill community that once drove Haines City was split.  What also happened around the same time (2003) is the city of Lake Wales created it's own charter school system and although in Polk County, operated independently of Polk County school district.  That really made things difficult talent wise in East Polk as Lake Wales was able to take in students from anywhere but primarily up US27 into Haines City/Davenport and 540 into Winter Haven.  The Blue Devils are one program I do not envy in football as they are literally smack in the middle of most of the high schools in Polk County.

Winners
1973 Haines City
1974 Frostproof
1977 Bartow
1985 Bartow
1986 Lakeland
1992 Frostproof
1996 Lakeland
1996 Bartow
1999 Lakeland
1999 Frostproof
2004 Lakeland
2004 Ft. Meade
2005 Lakeland 
2005 Evangel Chr. (Lakeland)
2006 Lakeland
2014 Victory Chr. (Lakeland)
2018 Lakeland

Runner-ups
1967 Auburndale
1968 Kathleen
1971 Haines City
1972 Frostproof
1973 Ft. Meade
1981 Frostproof
1991 Haines City
1991 Frostproof
1993 Lake Wales
1993 Ft. Meade
1994 Lake Wales
1996 Frostproof
1999 Ft. Meade
2000 Ft. Meade
2001 Ft. Meade
2003 Lake Gibson
2003 Ft. Meade
2004 Lake Gibson
2005 Ft. Meade
2006 Victory Chr. (Lakeland)
2008 Lakeland
2008 Ft. Meade
2013 Victory Chr. (Lakeland)
2016 Lake Gibson
2019 Victory Chr. (Lakeland)

Great Polk history lesson there Nulli, much appreciated. In my day (early 1970's) Winter Haven had basketball legend Otis Birdsong (NY Knicks) who knocked my Bucs out of the playoffs my senior year and Haines City was a monster in Track and Field. I also played with QB Victor Smith at BCC who came out of Lakeland or Kathleen. Both of whom were better than us. Thanks again.

[Floridaatlantic1]

Sorry I misspelled Polk.  I respect Lakelands success and even saw you beat St Thomas in

last championship. However, I think you rep was a joke and submitted some crazy proposals just because you guys got caught cheating.  What has been passed by state legislature has ruined high school sports where either you’re forced to cheat and recruit or get drilled.  Then they pass this dumb suburban plan and they conveniently do closed door changes to actual plan and sneak super large counties into suburbs to benefit certain counties and POLK was one of them.  I said when they passed this that it be for the elite suburb schools who already made semi finals at the expense of 100’s of schools. What do you know. The teams in state are the same ones who were great before but could not win state. So great news for about 16 schools and screw tons of others. 

[nolebull813]

Polk County crushed the myth that “suburban” teams have a built in disadvantage when Pinellas County has ZERO titles in football history but Polk has been cranking them out for decades. All that population hasn’t helped Pinellas County win any titles. So why do metro areas that have success get penalized? 

[Perspective]

38 minutes ago, nolebull813 said:

Polk County crushed the myth that “suburban” teams have a built in disadvantage when Pinellas County has ZERO titles in football history but Polk has been cranking them out for decades. All that population hasn’t helped Pinellas County win any titles. So why do metro areas that have success get penalized? 

Perhaps Pinellas County doesn't have a history of "Citrus, Phosphate and the railroads."   

[Nulli Secundus]

4 hours ago, Perspective said:

Perhaps Pinellas County doesn't have a history of "Citrus, Phosphate and the railroads."   

Phosphate - Never
Citrus - Dead
Railroads - Almost dead

Again, it depends on your @Perspective 

[Nulli Secundus]

13 hours ago, nolebull813 said:

Polk County crushed the myth that “suburban” teams have a built in disadvantage when Pinellas County has ZERO titles in football history but Polk has been cranking them out for decades. All that population hasn’t helped Pinellas County win any titles. So why do metro areas that have success get penalized? 

 

Seriously, it's very telling to compare Pinellas to any county with a title, metro or suburban in which this rushed plan was conceived bring some semblance of football equality to the state.

Regarding metro areas being penalized, if you would, I would really like to hear more about how metro counties (or specifically which ones) are suffering.

[181pl]

it’s population per square mile:

Pinellas 3425

Miami Dade 1070

Hillsborough 1429

Orange 1494

Polk 414

 

but Pinellas county has a large elderly population, so it’s deceiving.

[Nulli Secundus]

25 minutes ago, 181pl said:

it’s population per square mile:

Pinellas 3425

Miami Dade 1070

Hillsborough 1429

Orange 1494

Polk 414

 

but Pinellas county has a large elderly population, so it’s deceiving.

What is also deceiving is that Polk has a larger district population than Pinellas.