Most shocking part of the story is that there are 7 people in Tampa that wanted a used Lakeland helmet.   All kidding aside, this is a very sad story. 

This is one of the more embarrassing situations I can recall. Lakeland's football program had been experiencing the loss/theft of football equipment over a stretch of time this spring, and was trying to get to the bottom of it all.  It turns out the culprit was apparently the newly named offensive line coach. The coach is now behind bars and has been terminated. The coach played at Lakeland, graduating (perhaps) in 2020. He did not complete college and instead worked as a janitor at the school by day, while helping out with the JV program initially. He joined the varsity staff (I think) last season and appeared to be promoted to the OL coach for this season. He's only 23 years old, and working as a janitor obviously means he was very far from wealthy. But, this is a HUGE embarrassment not only for Yarde, but for the Lakeland program.  Personally, I lean towards the theory that this is another indictment of the post-Bill Castle staff. The 2023 season saw embarrassment in the form of a brawl with lowly Kathleen that led to mass suspensions for the playoffs. The team did manage to win the state title, but did not have to beat a true blueblood like STA to win it. The 2024 season saw embarrassment in the form of obviously poorly coordinated offense. Those who know football even somewhat, and who watched Lakeland's offense a good bit, recognized that the offense's problems had much more to do with scheming and play-calling than sheer lack of talent. And already in 2025 they apparently had to go with a 23 year-old janitor to coach a very important position group. And that coach is now on jail and terminated. As both an alum and fan, I hope like heck they are regrouping and gearing up to have a great season which proves the skpetics wrong. But, I'm too old to refuse to be honest about what I see from afar. I'm not an "insider", as I've lived on the west coast for two decades. I can't say for sure what the status of the program really is.  Article on the arrest

Geneva  Cornerstone Classical  Babcock Ranch Legacy  Masters Academy Vero

Okay okay. This is gonna be a Great Game, And a Great Test To Start the Year.    and a 8:00pm start. Most Definitely Gonna Be A Standing Room Only Event. 

I didn't even realize that Hillsborough County was getting ready to open ANOTHER high school... I am glad I went back through this thread.  All five of these schools you have named will have football as they are relief schools for existing schools. Morgan will be JV only this year and then next year (2026) have varsity. Legacy will have Varsity in 2025 as I have one team already with a varsity game on the schedule for them.