JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – It’s Week 7 of the high school football season. A glance at the top four games this week, the next four and the full schedule. All games Friday at 7 p.m. unless indicated. District games indicated by an *. Super 10 rankings in parentheses.
FIRST FOUR
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Clearwater Academy International (5-1) at (1) Bolles (6-0), 7:30 p.m.: The Knights make their third trip to Jacksonville in four weeks. They’ve lost to Trinity (53-50 in OT) and beaten Raines (40-19). Can they have success against the area’s No. 1 team in the Bulldogs? Bolles is coming off its most dominant effort of the season, a ruthless 35-0 win over Trinity in which it used RB Kade Frew (873 yards, 14 TDs) and a wicked defense to light up the Conquerors. Bolles is tough on both lines. DL Hayden Schwartz (35 tackles) is a gamechanger at the line of scrimmage. LB Jack Pyburn (55 tackles, 7 sacks) is relentless. This team has the makeup to be the best in coach Matt Toblin’s three years with the program and getting this game on the schedule (it replaced Atlanta Marist) is a test comparable to what Bolles will see in a potential state championship game opponent. QB Luca Stanzani (1,349 passing yards, 14 TDs), WR Dylan Djete (595 yards, 10 TDs) and Merton Theagene (665 yards, 8 TDs) have put up big numbers this season.
(8) Columbia (4-2, 2-0) at (2) Riverside (6-0, 2-0), 6:30 p.m.*: Always an excellent clash between these district rivals. The Generals lost the first three games to Columbia under coach OJ Small and in blowout fashion (54-0, 56-10, 53-0), but they’ve won seven of the last eight games, including a 38-21 rout last year. Riverside is rooted in defense and lights out at all three levels. CB Jaheim Singletary gets the bulk of the notoriety, but this. It starts up front with DL De’Avery Weeks and Zaire Moody (49 combined tackles, four sacks apiece). LBs Lawrence Neloms and Gregory Washington (42 combined tackles). And DB Tavales Thomas (two interceptions) joins Singletary in the secondary to keep it tough on teams. QBs Daniel Plummer and Cale Zarah have combined to throw 13 TDs. Columbia has struggled offensively to find balance, but it has playmakers like Tray Tolliver and Marcus Peterson to lean on in the passing game. The ground attack has yet to develop for Columbia, so expect the Tigers to try and create something through the air.
Mandarin (2-4) at (7) White (4-0), 6:30 p.m.: An excellent Gateway Conference clash. Mandarin is much better than its record. Three of Mandarin’s four losses have come by a combined eight points. QB Tramell Jones (929 passing yards, 10 TDs) spreads the ball out well. He’s thrown multiple TDs to three different players this season. RBs Terrance Johnson (345 yards, 2 TDs) and TJ Lane (325 yards, 3 TDs) pace the rushing attack. S/LB Tony Carter and LB Carmello Murphy have a combined 161 tackles. The Commanders have an excellent defense of their own. LB Westley Madison (34 tackles, 2 sacks) and DB Davaughn Patterson (32 tackles, 3 INT) have helped the Commanders hold teams to just an 8.8 points per game. ATH Christian Ellis remains White’s most versatile player. While he’s a force on defense, Ellis has 687 rushing yards and has scored seven TDs.
(10) St. Augustine (3-2) at (6) Nease (5-1): A step up game for the Panthers. The growth has been easy to see at Nease. QB Marcus Stokes is one of the area’s best at his position and he’s got an excellent WR targets in Dom Henry (630 yards, 6 TDs) and Donovan Wilson (278 yards, 4 TDs). LB Ben Bogle (81 tackles, 7 sacks, 2 interceptions) is a rising star and in the conversation as the area’s top defender. St. Augustine has dominated this series, losing just six times (1992-93, 2006-07, 2015 and ‘18), the last of those ending a 50-game district winning streak of the Yellow Jackets that was the second-longest in area history behind Bolles’ state-record 91 straight. RB Devonte Lyons (488 rushing yards, 7 TDs) and QB Trevon Dirden (319 rushing yards, 2 TDs, 251 passing yards, 3 TDs) are the focal points of the St. Augustine offensive attack. Safeties Ja’ki Singleton (33 tackles) and Tyshawn Campbell (31 tackles) lead the defense. This is a younger Yellow Jackets team but a very good one.
NEXT FOUR
Creekside (6-0) at Atlantic Coast (2-3), 6:30 p.m.: Knights are barreling toward a showdown against rival Bartram Trail next week. Can Creekside’s strong defense, led by Christian Yousefzadeh and Vincent Approbato, slow down RB Arthur Walker?
Episcopal (4-1) at Middleburg (4-1): The Broncos have made huge strides this season. The flip side is that the combined record of the teams that they’ve beaten is 1-20. This should be a better test for the Broncos. The Eagles are solid. They’re coming off a stunning walk-off win over Baldwin.
Plantation American Heritage (2-2) at (4) Trinity Christian (5-1), 7:30 p.m.: Always a good game and a chance for the Conquerors to refocus after last week’s shellacking by Bolles.
Sandalwood (2-4) at Raines (3-2), 6:30 p.m.: Vikings are coming off a tough defensive win at Parker. The Saints came up a point short in a loss to Oakleaf. Always a good Gateway clash between these two.
Week 7 schedule, Florida
Thursday, Oct. 7, all games 7 p.m. unless indicated; district games indicated by an *
Fernandina Beach (1-5) at Santa Fe (0-6)
Harvest (1-3) at Gainesville Oak Hall (3-1)
Hilliard (5-0) at Providence (3-3)
Friday, Oct. 8
Baldwin (3-1) at Jackson (3-3), 6:30 p.m.
Bartram Trail (4-1) at Ponte Vedra (3-3)
Bishop Snyder (3-2) at Deltona Trinity Christian (1-4)
Clearwater Academy International (5-1) at Bolles (6-0), 7:30 p.m.
Cedar Creek Christian (0-5) at Central Florida Christian Academy (3-1)
Columbia (4-2, 2-0) at Riverside (6-0, 2-0), 6:30 p.m.*
Creekside (6-0) at Atlantic Coast (2-3), 6:30 p.m.
Crescent City (3-2) at Keystone Heights (6-0)
Episcopal (4-1) at Middleburg (4-1)
Flagler Palm Coast (2-3) at Orange City University (4-0)
Foundation Academy (4-1) at North Florida Educational (3-2)
Fletcher (2-3) at Ribault (1-5), 6:30 p.m.
Gainesville Eastside (0-5, 0-2) at Clay (3-2, 1-0)*
Halifax (0-5) at Eagle’s View (4-1)
Interlachen (1-4) at Taylor Pierson (2-2)
Lake Howell (1-5) at Matanzas (1-5)
Mandarin (2-4) at White (4-0), 6:30 p.m.
Newberry (3-2) at University Christian (3-2), 7 p.m.
Palatka (1-3) at West Nassau (1-3)
Parker (4-2) at Menendez (2-3)
Plantation American Heritage (2-2) at Trinity Christian (5-1), 7:30 p.m.
Ridgeview (1-4) at Baker County (4-2)
St. Augustine (3-2) at Nease (5-1)
St. Joseph (0-4) at Christ’s Church (4-2)
Sandalwood (2-4) at Raines (3-2), 6:30 p.m.
Stanton (0-5) at Wolfson (1-5), 6:30 p.m.
Suwannee (3-3) at Madison County (3-2), 7:30 p.m.
Tocoi Creek (1-3) at Gainesville P.K. Yonge (2-3)
Union County (5-0) at Dixie County (3-2), 7:30 p.m.
Westside (1-5) at Valdosta (2-4), 8 p.m.
Young Kids in Motion at Spruce Creek, canceled
Zarephath Academy (1-4) at Zephyrhills Christian (4-1)
Off: Bishop Kenny, Bradford, Englewood, First Coast, Fleming Island, Fort White, Oakleaf, Orange Park, Paxon, Young Kids in Motion, Yulee.
Week 8, Georgia
Friday, Oct. 8, all games at 7:30 p.m.; region games indicated by an *
Brantley County (2-3, 0-0) at Pierce County (4-2, 1-0)*
Brunswick (6-0, 2-0) at Statesboro (3-2, 1-0)*
South Effingham (1-4, 0-2) at Glynn Academy (2-3-1, 1-1)*
Ware County (4-1, 0-0) at Coffee (5-0, 0-0)*
Off: Camden County, Charlton County.