JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – It’s the state semifinal round of the high school football playoffs. Three area teams are still alive in the Metro classification, Bolles, Mandarin and Trinity Christian. A look at the playoff matchups for those teams this week. Games are Friday. See here for a look at the Suburban matchups and the Georgia matchups.
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Class 4M
(3) Mandarin (10-3) at (2) Monarch (11-2), 7:30 p.m.
Road here: Mandarin d. Winter Park, 29-16; d. Lake Mary, 36-10; d. Seminole, 28-24; Monarch d. Stoneman Douglas, 40-7; d. Santaluces, 40-27; d. Palm Beach Central, 35-13.
Winner gets: (4) Tampa Plant (11-2) or (1) Miami Columbus (11-2) in the state championship on Dec. 8 at Ken Riley Field at Bragg Memorial Stadium in Tallahassee.
Glance: The Mustangs’ tour de force through the Orlando area has them in just their second state semifinal in program history. The previous time Mandarin was this far, it won its only state championship behind eventual Mr. Football Carson Beck and NFL draft pick DeMario Douglas. Current coach Toby Bullock was the offensive coordinator on that team. His current Mustangs squad has elite talent on both sides of the ball. QB Tramell Jones (2,797 passing yards, 29 TDs) and WR Jaime Ffrench Jr. (1,048 receiving yards, 11 TDs) are the headliners on that side of the ball. Both are juniors. RB Tiant Wyche has been a machine this year (1,558 rushing yards, 22 TDs, 9.3 ypc). The offensive stars shouldn’t discount what Mandarin has on the other side of the ball because the defense is stacked, too. LB Jackson Copeland (125 tackles, 16 TFL, 8 sacks) is fresh off a career-best 21 tackle game against Seminole. So, too, is DL Grant Pettigrew, who had 19 tackles in the regional final. LB Israel Ratliff (99 tackles, 13 TFL) and S Drake Stubbs (82 tackles) provide second- and third-level support. CBs Jon Mitchell and AJ Belgrave-Shorter are tough on the outside, with Belgrave-Shorter picking off two passes last week. Monarch is the alma mater of Jaguars WR Calvin Ridley. Senior QB AJ Hairston has passed for 2,180 yards and 21 TDs. Monarch has a pair of 1,000-yard WRs in Jabari Brady (1,241 receiving yards, 9 TDs) and Samari Reed (1,196 receiving yards, 14 TDs). A Gateway Conference team making it this far in this postseason is significant. Outside of Mandarin’s title in 2018, the only Duval County Public School programs to go beyond the state semis are First Coast (2011), Lee (1964), Raines (1973, 1997, 2015, 2017-18), Sandalwood (1995) and Wolfson (1967-68). Raines has three titles and Mandarin has the only other for Gateway schools.
Class 2M
(4) Bolles (8-5) at (1) Miami Norland (13-0), 7:30 p.m.
Road here: Bolles d. Bishop Kenny, 45-14; d. Raines, 14-7; d. Bishop Moore, 34-14; Norland d. St. Brendan, 55-0; d. Monsignor Pace, 52-27; d. Miami Central, 31-28 (OT).
Winner gets: (3) Berkeley Prep (11-2) or (2) Plantation American Heritage (10-1) in the state championship game on Dec. 9 at Ken Riley Field at Bragg Memorial Stadium in Tallahassee.
Glance: When the Bulldogs were laboring through an 0-3 start, few would have projected them to be at this point. But coach Matt Toblin and his staff know how to navigate this part of the year better than anyone. This is Bolles’ fifth straight trip to the final four in Toblin’s five years. No other area team can claim such a current streak. It’s been good defense in the playoffs leading the way. Bolles’ 14-7 win over Raines in the second round was huge for a defense that has been chewed up in games this season. Bolles followed with a dominant 20-point win over Bishop Moore in the regional final. The LBs have been excellent. Trent Carter (130 tackles, 15 TFL), Simeon Caldwell (123 tackles, 11 TFL) and Troy Holloway (110 tackles, 11 TFL) are all over the field. Carter and Holloway tied season highs in tackle performances last game. On the line, DLs Trey Railey and Garrison Butler give Bolles both push and pressure. They’ve combined for 36 tackles for loss and 19 sacks. QB DJ Moore (2,109 passing yards, 25 TDs), RB Emmett Grzebin (1,085 rushing yards, 16 TDs) and electric sophomore WR Naeem Burroughs (1,001 receiving yards, 14 TDs) have been the constants on that side of the ball. For Moore, this is a huge round. He missed chunks of last season with injury and didn’t play in the state semifinal against Plantation American Heritage. Norland is a monster. QB Ennio Yapoor has passed for 3,791 yards and 26 TDs and added another 10 scores on the ground. WR Isaiah Scott has 1,020 yards and seven TDs. Despite the projected mismatch, Toblin-coached teams have done much better than anticipated in games of this nature. His Ponte Vedra team in 2016 reached the state final and gave a loaded American Heritage team everything it could stomach in a 35-33 loss. Last season, Bolles went on the road in the state semis with backup QB Ethan Drumm leading the way and nearly upset Heritage.
Class 1M
(3) Trinity Christian (9-3) at (2) Clearwater Central Catholic (12-0), 7:30 p.m.
Road here: Trinity d. University Christian, 28-22; d. Orlando Christian Prep, 28-25; CCC d. Indian Rocks Christian, 42-14; d. Carrollwood Day, 45-41.
Winner gets: (4) Archbishop Carroll (11-1) at (1) Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna (12-0) on Dec. 7 at Ken Riley Field at Bragg Memorial Stadium in Tallahassee.
Glance: The Conquerors were bounced in last year’s regional final by rival University Christian. This year, they crushed OCP. Coach Verlon Dorminey is one of the most successful coaches in state history. He has 326 wins and nine state championships. This is his 18th time in the state semifinals and the Conquerors 11-6 in those trips. QB Colin Hurley has passed for 1,997 yards and 25 TDs for Trinity, 19 of those split up between Miles Burris and Kyle Boylston. RB Darnell Rogers has 1,149 rushing yards and nine TDs. Trinity’s top defensive player, LB Cam Anderson, has become the No. 2 back behind Rogers and is producing at a major clip (510 yards, 10 TDs, 11.6 ypc). Anderson also leads the team in tackles (99) and tackles for loss (14.5). Boylston and fellow DB Jayke Jones have combined for eight of Trinity’s 16 interceptions. QB Jershaun Newton is a two-way threat who has passed for 1,764 yards and 13 TDs and rushed for 919 and 13 scores. RB Justin Stephens has 810 rushing yards and six TDs. Goal line RB Keo Jenkins is a short-yardage deliverer. He’s scored 11 TDs on 14 carries. Clearwater Central came up to University Christian for the state semis last year and engineered a comeback in the final minute for a 34-29 win. The Marauders got taken apart by Chaminade Madonna 48-14 in the state championship game. Its most impressive win this year is a 21-14 win over Class 2M state semifinalist Berkeley Prep, a team that routed Bolles 42-7 in Week 11.
State semifinals
Friday’s schedule
SUBURBAN
Class 3S
(4) Fort Myers Dunbar (11-2) at (1) St. Augustine (12-0)
(3) Ocala Vanguard (11-2) at (2) Daytona Beach Mainland (12-1)
Class 2S
(4) Sarasota Booker (11-2) at (1) Cocoa (12-1)
(3) Pensacola Catholic (11-2) at (2) Bradford (13-0)
METRO
Class 4M
(4) Tampa Plant (11-2) at (1) Miami Columbus (11-2)
(3) Mandarin (10-3) at (2) Monarch (11-2)
Class 2M
(4) Bolles (8-5) at (1) Miami Norland (13-0)
(3) Berkeley Prep (11-2) at (2) Plantation American Heritage (10-1)
Class 1M
(3) Trinity Christian (9-3) at (2) Clearwater Central Catholic (12-0)
(4) Archbishop Carroll (11-1) at (1) Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna (12-0)