Class 3A Round 1 recap and Round 2 Preview

[SPCjessica2004]

With the first week of the class 3A playoffs in the books let's see how I (and by extension husband) did! I'll go down the list of Rd 1 games and then going into week 2. I am not doing any further rankings since the playoffs will ultimately determine who the top ranked teams are from here on out.

WEEK 1 REVIEW

Game of the Week: Tampa Catholic at Clearwater Central Catholic
Jessica's pick: CCC 31, TC 28 (Overtime).

What I said going into the game: " Unlike week 3, I think CCC gets the best of what the Crusaders of TC have to offer. This one will go the distance and the Marauders will have to rally late..but..expect an all time classic! "

Result: CCC 37, TC 35

 CCC was picked by as many as 21 by the computer polls, but this is a heated, vicious rivalry. Tampa Catholic is one of the most individually talented teams in the entire state and I believe by the time this 4 year rotation finishes will have as many as 19 of their 38 players playing college football somewhere. This was not the same TC team that lined up against CCC in week 3 and it wasn't the same TC team that lined up against Jesuit last week.  TC did not turn the ball over once while forcing 5 turnovers for CCC (including a pick 6). In the end, TC has an answer for everything CCC did or attempted to do.

In the end it still wasn't enough, CCC did just enough to hang around and then stole the game on a 29 yard TD pass from QB Rory Hicks to WR Brett Seither on a jump ball to the back of the endzone with no time left on the clock to win. This was indeed an all-time classic game! Kudos to the TC Crusaders for a great season, I've no doubt this will be a top 3-5 team in 3A and a top 50 team in Florida at some point in 2018.

American Heritage Delray at Chaminade-Madonna
Jessica's pick: Chaminade by 38

What I said going into the game: " Chaminade Madonna is ranked #12 in Florida according to MaxPreps, AHD is #181 and that's probably the closest this game will be. That said, it won't show on Friday night, but I do think the Stallions are heading in the right direction "

Result: Chaminade 38, AHD 0

Thank you Chaminade-Madonna for making me look great on this pick! Chaminade moves onto round 2 against after a strong victory. AHD is clearly rebuilding but they gave everything they had against a much better Chaminade team. I still stand by my statement that there are good things happening at AHD and this will be a program that returns to prominence in the near future. I think for 2018 AHD needs to back off the tough schedule a bit. Still, you have to respect AHD for playing a tough schedule and building the program back up. I think 2018 could be a strong season if the guys they have stay and they add a few pieces in the off season.

Melbourne Central Catholic at Orlando First Academy
Jessica's pick: MCC 42, TFA 14

What I said going into the game: " Despite being undefeated MaxPreps has First Academy 141 and 7-3 MCC at 78. Is it an upset is a 4 seed defeats a 1 seed? In this case- no. "

Result: MCC 55. TFA 21

It was always going to be an uphill battle for Orlando TFA simply because of the firepower that MCC has. Kudos to TFA for an undefeated season, that's an accomplishment for the program as they work toward the future. I would like to see them schedule a bit tougher, but they do have a bright future. This will be a player in the Region 2 race in 2018.

King's Academy at Oxbridge Academy
Jessica's pick: Oxbridge by 35

What I said going into the game: " The Thunderwolves can't get caught looking ahead to MCC or Chaminade and I don't think they will. Kings has had a strong season, but staying on the field with Oxbridge is more than they're capable of. "

Result: Oxbridge 42, King's 7

King's Academy is not a bad football team and I still maintain that point. I admit going into the season I didn't know much about them, but thank's to Broward Handicapper I educated myself..err.. my husband educated himself and then explained it to me. King's to me, is a solid 3A team that can compete with most 3A teams- but, right now- it's probably to much to expect them to compete with the top 4 teams in 3A (Oxbridge, Chaminade, CCC, MCC).  Oxbridge did what they needed to do after a slow start. I think King's will still be solid in 2018 and compete in Region 2 along with TFA for a playoff spot, but needs a few south Florida game breakers to compete with the elite teams.

Calvary Christian (Clearwater) at Lakeland Christian
Jessica's pick: Calvary by 14

What I said going into the game: " LCS has a couple of key wins including Avon Park and Berkeley Prep so I can dig LCS being a favorite ONLY if Tate Whatley plays. If the QB doesn't play it's hard to see them staying on the field with Amari Bruney, Deandre Ferguson and the rest of the Warrior football team. "

Result: Calvary Christian 24, LCS 10

It turns out  that LCS QB Tate Whatley did not suit up against Calvary, but the LCS defense showed up limiting Calvary's big play ability. In the end Calvary's Amari Burney is one of the top players in America for a reason, he single handedly turned the game around with a series of interceptions (including a pick 6).  LCS moved the ball, but without a running game to speak of and the Sr. QB out- LCS had to resort to trick plays which mostly didn't work.  Calvary advanced to the first regional championship game in school history.  LCS finished a very fine 8-2 and if not for injury may still be playing this week. LCS has some holes to fill, but there's good talent on the team. Region 3 in 3A is top heavy, so I expect they'll fight for a playoff spot in 2018.

OTHER RESULTS:
Taylor County 34, Newberry 8  (Jessica's pick: Taylor County by 21)
FSU School 28, Ft. White 27 (Jessica's pick: Ft. White by 7)
Benjamin 43, Everglades Prep 6 (Jessica's pick: Benjamin by 14)




 

 

[SPCjessica2004]

CLASS 3A- ROUND 2 PREVIEW

Game of the week:
#4 Melbourne Central Catholic at # 2 Oxbridge Academy

Rankings: MCC is ranked #58 in the state by Maxpreps, Oxbridge is ranked #22

This is a game that was hyped the moment the new regions were broken down. MCC who is a defending Class 3A Regional champion vs Oxbridge Academy looking for their first ever Regional championship. On paper this is an even match-up with both the Hustlers and Thunderwolves senior loaded with major division 1 talent. Both teams are battle tested going into this one, both teams have expectations of playing in Orlando. 

I think Oxbridge has an advantage in the trenches, I think MCC has an advantage at the skill positions. For Oxbridge the key is going to be getting pretty on MCC Qb Joaquin Collazo and for MCC they have to find a way to disrupt Oxbridge QB Gio Richardson who is playing at a very high level right now. Oxbridge has a good 1-2 punch at RB with Meeks leading the charge. Many believe that MCC is peaking at the right time, while whispers in the background are that Oxbridge, after struggling against Lakes 2 weeks ago and a tough start against King's last week may have peaked already. I don't believe any of that- I believe that both teams will get each others best efforts and I also believe that both teams started preparing for each other weeks ago.

Jessica's Pick: Neither team is very deep, but each teams starting 11 is as good as you're going to find anywhere in the smaller schools in America. The winner of the game will come down to which linemen will wear down first. MCC brings back most of an offensive and defensive line that survived 9 overtimes last year against CCC, but that game was in Melbourne where MCC has a history of pulling special upsets. Going to Oxbridge is a totally different story. At the start of the season I had MCC in Orlando, it was my gut choice unless something happened. So this pick is really going against my gut and based more on logic. Somebody has to win..and I just think Oxbridge's CJ Smith will make one extra play to win the most thrilling game in Oxbridge Academy history..

Oxbridge 35, MCC 32


Chaminade Madonna vs Benjamin School

Rankings: Chaminade-Madonna is ranked #12 in the state by Maxpreps and Benjamin School is ranked # 92

The Lions have peaked at the perfect time and are rolling in the playoffs behind the running ability of Shaun Shivers. Benjamin School is 8-2 with losses coming to North Broward Prep and at Key West. Benjamin turned heads when they defeated rival King's Academy and to win a playoff game is a huge step forward for the Buccaneer program. I'm a fan of QB Jordan Travis who is a Louisville commit. This is going to be one of the better QB/Offensive line combo's that Chaminade has seen, but I don't think Benjamin School has seen anything like the machine that is Chaminade.

Jessica's Pick: Benjamin School coach said, and I quote, " We’re just a very average team without Jordan".  While Benjamin has a couple of other players- Chaminade will take Jordan away and force somebody else to beat them- thus, by the Bucs own admission, they're probably not anywhere close to pulling this upset. Chaminade on the other hand has played some of the top competition in America and while it hasn't always been pretty, they're healthy and are better for it. I don't see Chaminade winning this one by an obscene score as I think CM will prioritize health over scoreboard shock...which is the right call at this point in the season.

Chaminade by 35

Taylor County vs Florida State University School

Rankings: Taylor County is ranked #105 and FSU School is ranked #129 in the state by Maxpreps.

Kevin Sawyer's 150 yards rushing helped FSU school upset Ft. White in overtime 28-27. Taylor County defeated Newberry for the second time this season in convincing fashion. Josh Mixon had a big night. 

Jessica's Pick: Taylor by 17

Clearwater Central Catholic vs Calvary Christian (Clearwater)

Rankings: CCC is ranked #27 and Calvary is ranked # 108 in the state by Maxpreps

The first round of the playoffs featured quite a few rematches from regular season games in the entire state of Florida; however, as we enter regional championship week in 3A CCC vs Calvary is the only rematch from a regular season game. Earlier this year, CCC defeated Calvary 23-14 at Calvary. Since the loss Calvary has been on fire offensively averaging just over 35ppg while only giving up 5ppg.  Calvary gave CCC everything they wanted and then some earlier this year as Amari Burney and Deandre Ferguson had big nights.

Jessica's Pick:  When the teams met earlier this year CCC was coming off a huge 21-13 win over Rockledge while Calvary had a bye week before hosting CCC.  There is a complete difference in strength of schedule between the two teams. CCC got the jolt it needed by beating Tampa Catholic for the second time this season. Calvary picked up their first ever playoff victory last week and now plays in the schools first ever Regional Championship game, CCC has played in 11 Regional Championship games and this will be the 6th consecutive. CCC won 4 in a row before having that streak snapped last year. 

Calvary is a good team, but CCC is playing for an undefeated regional championship season at home. Good enough for me!

CCC 42, Calvary 17

[BrowardHandicapper]

Your picks and insight were great last week, SPCjessica2004!  

I agree with almost all of your picks this week but not sure MCC puts up a 32 spot on Oxbridge Academy.  I understand MCC has their QB back and seems to be running on all cylinders now but I feel they are facing the best defense they have seen all season.  Granted MCC is going to throw the kitchen sink and their playbook at Oxbridge Academy, but I still see maybe closer to 21 pts for MCC.  If MCC puts up a 31+ spot on Oxbridge they have a good shot.  Keep in mind this may also be the best Offense MCC has seen all year as well.  I'm leaning Oxbridge Academy 34  Melbourne Central Catholic 22 in  this one.

 

[MuckCityChamp]

12 hours ago, SPCjessica2004 said:

CLASS 3A- ROUND 2 PREVIEW

Game of the week:
#4 Melbourne Central Catholic at # 2 Oxbridge Academy

Rankings: MCC is ranked #58 in the state by Maxpreps, Oxbridge is ranked #22

This is a game that was hyped the moment the new regions were broken down. MCC who is a defending Class 3A Regional champion vs Oxbridge Academy looking for their first ever Regional championship. On paper this is an even match-up with both the Hustlers and Thunderwolves senior loaded with major division 1 talent. Both teams are battle tested going into this one, both teams have expectations of playing in Orlando. 

I think Oxbridge has an advantage in the trenches, I think MCC has an advantage at the skill positions. For Oxbridge the key is going to be getting pretty on MCC Qb Joaquin Collazo and for MCC they have to find a way to disrupt Oxbridge QB Gio Richardson who is playing at a very high level right now. Oxbridge has a good 1-2 punch at RB with Meeks leading the charge. Many believe that MCC is peaking at the right time, while whispers in the background are that Oxbridge, after struggling against Lakes 2 weeks ago and a tough start against King's last week may have peaked already. I don't believe any of that- I believe that both teams will get each others best efforts and I also believe that both teams started preparing for each other weeks ago.

Jessica's Pick: Neither team is very deep, but each teams starting 11 is as good as you're going to find anywhere in the smaller schools in America. The winner of the game will come down to which linemen will wear down first. MCC brings back most of an offensive and defensive line that survived 9 overtimes last year against CCC, but that game was in Melbourne where MCC has a history of pulling special upsets. Going to Oxbridge is a totally different story. At the start of the season I had MCC in Orlando, it was my gut choice unless something happened. So this pick is really going against my gut and based more on logic. Somebody has to win..and I just think Oxbridge's CJ Smith will make one extra play to win the most thrilling game in Oxbridge Academy history..

Oxbridge 35, MCC 32






 

 

Not taking anything away from Lakes, because they are good and athletic on defense, but the only reason that game was close is because 5 of Oxbridge"s best players were suspended for either a quarter or a half in that game.  

[SPCjessica2004]

1 hour ago, MuckCityChamp said:

Not taking anything away from Lakes, because they are good and athletic on defense, but the only reason that game was close is because 5 of Oxbridge"s best players were suspended for either a quarter or a half in that game.  

See, that's why I love message boards! Great posters like MuckCityChamp and Broward can fill in the blanks for me:-)

[SPCjessica2004]

Since yesterday I've received a ton (okay, by ton I mean 7 E-mails..but let's keep things in perspective!) about the MCC/Oxbridge game. I'll try to weed through them as time permits and post questions and answers and post some of them to the forums and try to provide a breakdown.  One of the questions was super technical, don't expect a response on that. Another one was a fan who was very upset I didn't know Oxbridge had suspensions during the Lakes game.  Sorry, I didn't know.

The only non MCC/Oxbridge question I received was from a really nice Chaminade-Madonna parent asking who and where they would play since their players/coaches aren't allowed to look beyond the team they're playing this week.  You will play the winner of the Clearwater Central Catholic vs Calvary Christian (Clearwater not Ormond Beach).  If you draw Calvary Christian then Chaminade would host. If you draw CCC you would need to travel to Clearwater on Black Friday.

I'll be out of town today and probably tomorrow, I'll gather questions/comments and post on Wednesday.



 

[SPCjessica2004]

Figured I haven't done a mailbag session in awhile- now is a good time to do so.

Question #1:  For a person (or people) who cover one single class maybe you should come down to Oxbridge and see how many kids we DIDN'T HAVE PLAYING THIS YEAR that are NOW PLAYING. Also, we are NOT DE-EMPHASIZING FOOTBALL stop spreading that rumor. The football team will be just as good next year as we are this year. Sorry 3A!

Response: Okay, I had to modify the message a bit as I had to take some words out. I don't "cover" class 3A- I don't actually cover anything. I'm not a paid reporter (neither is my husband or brother). Just a simple woman giving her thoughts on things after consulting with her family. We love football and while we can no longer make trips from Orlando/St. Pete to West Palm Beach due to children.

As for De-Emphasizing football, this isn't me saying this- this is everybody in the world saying it because of the Palm Beach Post article that was written about a year ago. If there's evidence (or articles or fact) to the contrary then it needs to be said. Many others, not just myself, have said the reason for the sense of urgency Oxbridge is showing is because they know this is their best chance to win states for a while. Nobody ever said Oxbridge was going to suck. Bottom line, I wouldn't talk about next year when there's plenty of this year left.


Question #2: Calvary fan here. We've had a good season, what do you think we need to do to beat CCC on Friday and how to you project us going into the future?

Hi Calvary fan here!   You've had a great season honestly. You made the playoffs for the 2nd time in school history and you won your first road playoff game, that's an amazing first step for such a young football program. Nobody is saying Calvary can't beat CCC, after all you do have Amari Burney and Deandre Ferguson 2 of the top players in the state. I feel Amari is one of the top overall players in the country.

Projecting next year is tough since I don't know what your schedule will be. While you still have Ethan White, who I feel is one of the best offensive linemen in the country you graduate Amari, Deandre, Jacque Sarnoff and your starting QB Alex Laccube. CJ Burge has the talent (but not experience) to be a very solid 3A QB going forward. I also think Smash Lopez is a blast to watch. The big question is wither River Wood transfers back to Calvary or not. My understanding is that he transferred out of Calvary, that's a huge loss since he would have been a 3rd team all state RB at the pace he was going.

I see Calvary being in the playoff mix, but CCC has all of their key pieces coming back in 2018, Tampa Catholic has all of their key pieces coming back in 2018. Both teams will get  a crazy amount of transfers for the simple fact that kids want to transfer to programs that already have a foundation. Calvary got a lot of transfers last year when Amari and Deandre transferred in because they had built something, I don't see a selling piece to get kids to want to play for the program in 2018..at least yet. A win over CCC Friday could change that mentality.

Question #3: Any love for Taylor County?

Yes! I've made new Bulldogs friends this week. A trip to Taylor County is on my agenda in the future as I hear Johnson's bakery is amazing! As a coffee loving woman, I must also try Toasted Mug/Parkside Cafe. Oh, you probably meant the football team huh? okay..okay..okay!

This is a big game for Taylor County for the simple fact that I think FSU Schools is a worthy opponent. Both teams have beat them teams they should beat and lost to teams that were clearly better than them. I freely admit, I don't know much about the teams once you go north of Winter Park and know next to nothing about Panhandle teams. I do know about Justin Wentworth and the Williston team though, he's the former OTC defensive coach who always seems to have a very good game plan. Taylor County put up a great fight on the road, but FSU Schools is coming off a huge win vs Ft. White.  I'm going Taylor County though.

Question #4: Should Chaminade just starting preparing for Oxbridge right now?

My understanding on how Chaminade does things is that their coaching staff starts breaking down the following week opponents on Wednesday afternoons. So, up to this point they've focused only on Benjamin; however, the coaches will do some very basic legwork on Calvary and CCC.  The coaching staff at Chaminade is very disciplined, so while I'm sure somebody has collected film on Oxbridge- I don't think they've looked at it in-depth yet. Another key factor is that there are 2 weeks from the State-Semi's to the State-Finals.

Question #5: Have you thought about doing a weekly podcast with your family?

Sure have and it almost happened, but when you have kids you can't commit to anything. Plus, I want to write for fun not for work.

Question #6:  Any chance you will extend your coverage to other classifications?

Probably not. I just can't get to all of the games I'd like to go to so I really stick with the Tampa private schools since I grew up there and attended St. Pete Catholic (who WILL become a good football team again..one day). Since I've become friendly with most of the coaches and parents over there, there's a personal investment to write about those teams.  There are just to many schools in 5A up, I've also found that those aren't nearly as forgiving as the smaller schools.

Case and point, I made a mistake regarding Oxbridge and was politely corrected by MuckCityChamp and I received 2 E-mails that were negative regarding Oxbridge suspensions. I don't consider either of the E-mails hate e-mails. Had this been a 6A team with a sizeable fan base, it would have been personal attacks.


 

[MuckCityChamp]

28 minutes ago, SPCjessica2004 said:

Figured I haven't done a mailbag session in awhile- now is a good time to do so.

Question #1:  For a person (or people) who cover one single class maybe you should come down to Oxbridge and see how many kids we DIDN'T HAVE PLAYING THIS YEAR that are NOW PLAYING. Also, we are NOT DE-EMPHASIZING FOOTBALL stop spreading that rumor. The football team will be just as good next year as we are this year. Sorry 3A!

Response: Okay, I had to modify the message a bit as I had to take some words out. I don't "cover" class 3A- I don't actually cover anything. I'm not a paid reporter (neither is my husband or brother). Just a simple woman giving her thoughts on things after consulting with her family. We love football and while we can no longer make trips from Orlando/St. Pete to West Palm Beach due to children.

As for De-Emphasizing football, this isn't me saying this- this is everybody in the world saying it because of the Palm Beach Post article that was written about a year ago. If there's evidence (or articles or fact) to the contrary then it needs to be said. Many others, not just myself, have said the reason for the sense of urgency Oxbridge is showing is because they know this is their best chance to win states for a while. Nobody ever said Oxbridge was going to suck. Bottom line, I wouldn't talk about next year when there's plenty of this year left.


Question #2: Calvary fan here. We've had a good season, what do you think we need to do to beat CCC on Friday and how to you project us going into the future?

Hi Calvary fan here!   You've had a great season honestly. You made the playoffs for the 2nd time in school history and you won your first road playoff game, that's an amazing first step for such a young football program. Nobody is saying Calvary can't beat CCC, after all you do have Amari Burney and Deandre Ferguson 2 of the top players in the state. I feel Amari is one of the top overall players in the country.

Projecting next year is tough since I don't know what your schedule will be. While you still have Ethan White, who I feel is one of the best offensive linemen in the country you graduate Amari, Deandre, Jacque Sarnoff and your starting QB Alex Laccube. CJ Burge has the talent (but not experience) to be a very solid 3A QB going forward. I also think Smash Lopez is a blast to watch. The big question is wither River Wood transfers back to Calvary or not. My understanding is that he transferred out of Calvary, that's a huge loss since he would have been a 3rd team all state RB at the pace he was going.

I see Calvary being in the playoff mix, but CCC has all of their key pieces coming back in 2018, Tampa Catholic has all of their key pieces coming back in 2018. Both teams will get  a crazy amount of transfers for the simple fact that kids want to transfer to programs that already have a foundation. Calvary got a lot of transfers last year when Amari and Deandre transferred in because they had built something, I don't see a selling piece to get kids to want to play for the program in 2018..at least yet. A win over CCC Friday could change that mentality.

Question #3: Any love for Taylor County?

Yes! I've made new Bulldogs friends this week. A trip to Taylor County is on my agenda in the future as I hear Johnson's bakery is amazing! As a coffee loving woman, I must also try Toasted Mug/Parkside Cafe. Oh, you probably meant the football team huh? okay..okay..okay!

This is a big game for Taylor County for the simple fact that I think FSU Schools is a worthy opponent. Both teams have beat them teams they should beat and lost to teams that were clearly better than them. I freely admit, I don't know much about the teams once you go north of Winter Park and know next to nothing about Panhandle teams. I do know about Justin Wentworth and the Williston team though, he's the former OTC defensive coach who always seems to have a very good game plan. Taylor County put up a great fight on the road, but FSU Schools is coming off a huge win vs Ft. White.  I'm going Taylor County though.

Question #4: Should Chaminade just starting preparing for Oxbridge right now?

My understanding on how Chaminade does things is that their coaching staff starts breaking down the following week opponents on Wednesday afternoons. So, up to this point they've focused only on Benjamin; however, the coaches will do some very basic legwork on Calvary and CCC.  The coaching staff at Chaminade is very disciplined, so while I'm sure somebody has collected film on Oxbridge- I don't think they've looked at it in-depth yet. Another key factor is that there are 2 weeks from the State-Semi's to the State-Finals.

Question #5: Have you thought about doing a weekly podcast with your family?

Sure have and it almost happened, but when you have kids you can't commit to anything. Plus, I want to write for fun not for work.

Question #6:  Any chance you will extend your coverage to other classifications?

Probably not. I just can't get to all of the games I'd like to go to so I really stick with the Tampa private schools since I grew up there and attended St. Pete Catholic (who WILL become a good football team again..one day). Since I've become friendly with most of the coaches and parents over there, there's a personal investment to write about those teams.  There are just to many schools in 5A up, I've also found that those aren't nearly as forgiving as the smaller schools.

Case and point, I made a mistake regarding Oxbridge and was politely corrected by MuckCityChamp and I received 2 E-mails that were negative regarding Oxbridge suspensions. I don't consider either of the E-mails hate e-mails. Had this been a 6A team with a sizeable fan base, it would have been personal attacks.


 

I met a few of the Taylor County Coaches at the Down N Dirty camp this past summer. They were really excited about the season. Looks like they are taking care of business. 

As for next season, Oxbridge will return some talent, though they will have to replace a good amount of players in the trenches. The staff pretty much knew before the season that MCC would be the team that they need to get by, so I/m guessing they are prepared. 

[nolebull813]

Still wondering how Oxbridge lost to that PA team. After that game They have been humming. This is a senior laden team and they have been building up for this year. Defitnely the big favorite to win 3A. 

This game is one of the best 2nd round games regardless of class. Chaminade should sleepwalk to the finals. The winner of this game will bomb Taylor County or Florida High. 

I want to see Chaminade vs Oxbridge. These seem to be the best 2 teams in 3A and it's only fitting for the 2 best teams to play in the finals. 

I remember a few years back when American Heritage-Delray killed a Louisiana team who made their semi finals and had over 2,500 in enrollment. But they ran into University School in the 2nd round. Those were the 2 best teams in the class and it was a shame they had to meet so early 

[DisabledAccount]

1 minute ago, nolebull813 said:

Still wondering how Oxbridge lost to that PA team. After that game They have been humming. This is a senior laden team and they have been building up for this year. Defitnely the big favorite to win 3A. 

This game is one of the best 2nd round games regardless of class. Chaminade should sleepwalk to the finals. The winner of this game will bomb Taylor County or Florida High. 

I want to see Chaminade vs Oxbridge. These seem to be the best 2 teams in 3A and it's only fitting for the 2 best teams to play in the finals. 

I remember a few years back when American Heritag-Delray killed a Louisiana team who made they semi finals and had over 2,500 in enrollment. But they ran into University School in the 2nd round. Those were the 2 best teams in the class and it was a shame they had to meet so early 

Archbishop Wood is a solid team and it was early in the year but oxbridge looks to be heading to Orlando to face Chaminade 

[SPCjessica2004]

The head coach of that American Heritage team was Stacey Sizemore, the guy at MCC now.  Oxbridge vs MCC will be a great one this week, I  totally agree- this will be one of the top games in the state. 

 

[nolebull813]

2 minutes ago, SPCjessica2004 said:

The head coach of that American Heritage team was Stacey Sizemore, the guy at MCC now.  Oxbridge vs MCC will be a great one this week, I  totally agree- this will be one of the top games in the state. 

 

He had a big time falling out with the American Heritage leaders to the point he refused to even play AH-Plantation. 

Is Keith Hindsley the coach at AHD still? I don't think he's a very good coach. He used to coach up in Pensacola and had a terrible record. Wonder why AHD chose him. 

I would loved to have seen Sizemore play AHD in the playoffs where they would be forced to play. Lol. 

[SPCjessica2004]

Yes, Keith Hindlsey is still the coach at AHD. AHD has some young talent that they need to develop, but nobody would confuse this AHD team with the AHD team that Sizemore had. The QB for American Heritage Plantation this year was the QB at AHD back in 2015.

  Many MCC fans aren't sure if he'll stick around for the rebuilding job at MCC after this season. This MCC team is a result of Mike Riazzi doing a great job building the program and then Sizemore taking them to the next level. After this year, rebuilding is all on the current staff/administration.

[nolebull813]

39 minutes ago, SPCjessica2004 said:

Yes, Keith Hindlsey is still the coach at AHD. AHD has some young talent that they need to develop, but nobody would confuse this AHD team with the AHD team that Sizemore had. The QB for American Heritage Plantation this year was the QB at AHD back in 2015.

  Many MCC fans aren't sure if he'll stick around for the rebuilding job at MCC after this season. This MCC team is a result of Mike Riazzi doing a great job building the program and then Sizemore taking them to the next level. After this year, rebuilding is all on the current staff/administration.

Where would Sizemore go? College? 

 

[peezy28]

3A might have the most balanced state finals match-ups of all the classes this year. 

[SPCjessica2004]

Nole,

Good question and one that nobody seems willing to speculate on. The popular census is that he heads back down South to his roots. I personally would like to see him stay at MCC. He was part of Doug Socha's American Heritage team as the D-Co, when Socha was let go he became the HC.

I think he can build a program and he's young enough to  become one of the greats in HS if he chooses to. MCC has a beautiful campus and good financial connections to the community (They're in big with Mike Erdman who sent all his kids there). They are also finishing building a nice fieldhouse.  MCC also has a built in advantage of being the only private school in a large area- yeah, there's Melbourne Holy Trinity; however, MCC is really the only viable football private school in the entire county. It's a long drive to get the athletes from Cocoa/Rockledge/Merritt Island and they do have to compete with a solid Palm Bay Magnet and quickly rebuilding Melbourne High School, but the program is well recognized enough to attract big names

I think the pieces are there for 2018 to be a better than average team, but they won't have the big weapons they do this year.  The bigger program is scheduling. The only teams that will play them are powerhouses and they won't have the Collazo's and Hardy's out there. This is why I see them struggling in 2018. But, I don't want to get a head of myself while the season is still on going.

[MuckCityChamp]

7 minutes ago, SPCjessica2004 said:

Nole,

Good question and one that nobody seems willing to speculate on. The popular census is that he heads back down South to his roots. I personally would like to see him stay at MCC. He was part of Doug Socha's American Heritage team as the D-Co, when Socha was let go he became the HC.

I think he can build a program and he's young enough to  become one of the greats in HS if he chooses to. MCC has a beautiful campus and good financial connections to the community (They're in big with Mike Erdman who sent all his kids there). They are also finishing building a nice fieldhouse.  MCC also has a built in advantage of being the only private school in a large area- yeah, there's Melbourne Holy Trinity; however, MCC is really the only viable football private school in the entire county. It's a long drive to get the athletes from Cocoa/Rockledge/Merritt Island and they do have to compete with a solid Palm Bay Magnet and quickly rebuilding Melbourne High School, but the program is well recognized enough to attract big names

I think the pieces are there for 2018 to be a better than average team, but they won't have the big weapons they do this year.  The bigger program is scheduling. The only teams that will play them are powerhouses and they won't have the Collazo's and Hardy's out there. This is why I see them struggling in 2018. But, I don't want to get a head of myself while the season is still on going.

Maybe Socha is asking him to come to Keiser with him. 

[Cat_Scratch]

If Sizemore leaves MCC, that may give Viera a boost in transfers. If the Hawks can beat Plant and give the winner of the Lakeland game 4 quarters that will go a long way in getting state wide respect. Kids want to be a part of a winning program.

Wouldn't it be crazy if Sizemore went to Viera. Just driving through that city every week is like driving through a new city with all the developing there. The school can expand also. Viera is like a boom town with wealth all over the place.

IMHO, they become the Force to reckon with in the near future.

[SPCjessica2004]

Very interesting storylines for when the offseason starts, but again- I don't want to go to far off course as there are still 8 teams playing in 3A and want to make sure they get their fair due for still being in it.

[Cat_Scratch]

3 hours ago, SPCjessica2004 said:

Very interesting storylines for when the offseason starts, but again- I don't want to go to far off course as there are still 8 teams playing in 3A and want to make sure they get their fair due for still being in it.

LOL, Roger that. Sorry, I just get going and next thing I know I'm all out there in Whack Land.

[SPCjessica2004]

9 hours ago, Cat_Scratch said:

LOL, Roger that. Sorry, I just get going and next thing I know I'm all out there in Whack Land.

You're good! It'll be one of my off season topics to explore :-)