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Week 2 high school football picks: Full slate of games, big rivalries headline week

Bolles RB Azeh Kani (34) sprints through the Bishop Kenny defense during a scrimmage at Skinner-Barco Stadium in Jacksonville, FL, Friday September 4, 2020 (Ralph D. Priddy, For News4Jax, News4Jax)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – High school football season is back and so are our weekly predictions.

News4Jax sports editor Justin Barney reveals his weekly high school football picks each Thursday. All games are 7 p.m. unless indicated.

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Last week: 7-2. Season: 7-2.

WEEK 2

Thursday, Sept. 10

Note: Records not listed if teams have not played yet

Englewood at Jackson, 6 p.m.: Expecting big things from the Tigers this season. N4J pick: Jackson 32, Englewood 14.

Friday, Sept. 11

Baker County (1-0) at Orange Park: Wildcats played in front of a capacity crowd last week and made my pick of them losing look foolish. N4J pick: Baker County 35, Orange Park 14.

Bartram Trail at Creekside: Battle of Longleaf Pine Parkway goes to the No. 1 Bears. N4J pick: Bartram Trail 39, Creekside 24.

Bolles at Trinity Christian, 7:30 p.m.: Game of the night. Maybe of the year. Bulldogs in a close one. N4J pick: Bolles 27, Trinity 23.

Dixie County at Union County, 7:30 p.m.: New coach for the Tigers and a home victory to start the season. N4J pick: Union County 28, Dixie County 14.

Eagle’s View (1-0) at Christ’s Church (1-0): A good small school game early. Host Eagles get the W here. N4J pick: Christ’s Church 34, Eagle’s View 20.

Episcopal at Bishop Kenny: Split on this game because I think it’s a close one. N4J pick: Episcopal 27, Kenny 26.

Fernandina Beach (0-1) at Interlachen: Pirates looked good in a loss last week to rival Yulee. Are they turning the corner in 2020? N4J pick: Fernandina Beach 27, Interlachen 20.

First Coast at Ribault, 6 p.m.: First game for new Trojans head coach Marlon White and it’s a close one. N4J pick: First Coast 14, Ribault 13.

Hilliard (1-0) at Paxon, 6 p.m.: Red Flashes took some time to get moving last week but got a win. They step up in classification here for a challenge. N4J pick: Paxon 27, Hilliard 22.

Keystone Heights at Bradford (0-1), 7:30 p.m.: I picked the Tornadoes last week and they promptly got butchered. N4J pick: Bradford 21, Keystone Heights 14.

Mandarin at Atlantic Coast, 6 p.m.: Always a good one between the county rivals. AC will be much better in 2020, but is that enough to beat the Mustangs for the first time since 2014? N4J pick: Mandarin 27, Atlantic Coast 20.

NFEI at Williston (0-1): Liked what I saw last week from NFEI in a scrimmage against Providence. N4J pick: NFEI 28, Williston 14.

Oakleaf at Gainesville Buchholz: Buchholz always tends to provide tough competition, but it won’t be enough to topple the Knights. N4J pick: Oakleaf 32, Buchholz 21.

Palatka (0-1) at Fleming Island, 7:30 p.m.: Golden Eagles will have a case as one of the best in the area this season. N4J pick: Fleming Island 38, Palatka 7.

Parker at Fletcher, 6 p.m.: One of the better matchups of the week and, to me, a significant test for the Braves. Parker has beaten the Senators twice since 1997. N4J pick: Fletcher 28, Parker 26.

Ponte Vedra at Nease: A test for both out of the gate. Panthers were better than their record last year, but graduated some impact players. Sharks were a Super 10 team and reached the playoffs. This rivalry game is always a great one. N4J pick: Ponte Vedra 28, Nease 14.

Providence at Stanton, 6 p.m.: Tough game to call, but I’ll take the host Blue Devils here. N4J pick: Stanton 21, Providence 20.

Raines at Venice (0-1), 7:30 p.m.: Tough opener for the Vikings, who go on the road to face an Indians team that was just drilled by IMG. N4J pick: Venice 34, Raines 20.

Rocky Bayou Christian at Bishop Snyder (0-1): Snyder played well in a Week 1 loss at Hilliard. N4J pick: Snyder 21, Rocky Bayou 13.

St. Augustine at Middleburg: Super 10-ranked Yellow Jackets have had some growth areas the past two seasons but start out here with a win. N4J pick: St. Augustine 38, Middleburg 13.

University Christian at Clay: UC starts the season with realistic state championship expectations. N4J pick: UC 33, Clay 20.

Westside at Baldwin, 6 p.m.: Another game that has the potential to be a very good one. Indians won this one last year (24-7), although Wolverines went two rounds deep into the postseason. N4J pick: Westside 27, Baldwin 20.

White at Menendez: I like this game for both teams. The Falcons are coming off of their first-ever district title and the Commanders showed promise in spots last season. N4J pick: Menendez 27, White 20.

Wildwood (0-1) at St. Joseph: Flashes open up 2020 season at home with a W. N4J pick: Wildwood 21, St. Joseph 14.

Wolfson at Ridgeview: Turnaround season for Wolfpack in 2019 continues into the new year. N4J pick: Wolfson 21, Ridgeview 14.

Yulee (1-0) at West Nassau (1-0): Battle for the best in Nassau County goes to the Warriors. N4J pick: West Nassau 37, Yulee 21.

Zarephath Academy (0-1) at Hawthorne (1-0): Tough road game for Zarephath. N4J pick: Hawthorne 38, Zarephath 8.

Others

Home team in CAPS

Crescent City over THE VILLAGES; Suwannee over HAMILTON COUNTY, 7:30 p.m. OCALA ST. JOHN LUTHERAN over Cedar Creek Christian (0-1)

OFF: Columbia, Flagler Palm Coast, Fort White, Joshua Christian, Lee, Matanzas, Raines, Sandalwood.


About the Author
Justin Barney headshot

Justin Barney joined News4Jax in February 2019, but he’s been covering sports on the First Coast for more than 20 years.

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