![\"\"](\"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/IMG_8678-scaled-e1702311231929.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Last year the FHSAA decided to go to a new format which would break down the divisions into rural, metro and suburban districts. The state title games in
the past would usually pit one team that was very good against another that
would be outmatched. This year only Chaminade who won 65 -0 over ClearwaterCentral Catholic ended in a blowout. The reality is that if any of the other teams that played this weekend went against the Lions they would have probablyreceived the same results. Chaminade is one of the best teams in the past decade to win a state title.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The top prospect at the event was Chaminade receiver Jeremiah Smith. He took
one of his first catches 50 yards for a touchdown. The talented star was not
the only one to play well for the Lions. Joshisa Trader also stood out. His
touchdown catch would have been good in the NFL. He made an acrobatic catch for
a touchdown. The name to remember for Chaminade next year will be Denarius
Gray. He will be the next star to come out of Hollywood, Florida.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
If Jeremiah Smith was the number one prospect at the State Finals, Dallas
Golden of Berkeley Prep would be right behind him. Golden stole the show as his
play on the field will go down as one of the best ever. He got it done on both
sides of the football. Golden ran the ball and was tough to bring down. He put
Berkeley Prep on his shoulders and led them to a state finals win over a very
good Norland team. Running Back Joseph Troupe also played at a very high level.
When Norland needed a stop it was Troupe he plowed through the Vikings defense.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Saint Thomas has now won five straight state titles. They played Homestead
in a rematch of a game last season. Saint Thomas had stars all over the field.
Jordan Lyle ran hard and gave the Saint Thomas offense balance. He helped open
up the passing game for the Raiders. Julius Jones made the catch of the day when
he caught a 48 yard touchdown that pretty much sealed the victory for Saint
Thomas. For Homestead it was the play of both Cortez Mills 7 catches for 86
yards and Isaac Brown – 7 catches for 81 yards -2 touchdowns and he rushed for
over 70 yards on the ground. Brown played great and he should have a great
career playing for the Louisville Cardinals.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In the state 4M finals Columbus played Jacksonville Mandarin. Columbus
changed their offense by allowing Alberto Mendoza their quarterback run the
football. He had 20 rushes for over 140 yards. He also threw for 150 yards and
a touchdown but it was his timely runs that sparked the Columbus offense. The
star of the future for Columbus is junior athlete Bryce Fitzgerald. He will be
one of the top recruits in the 2025 class. For Mandarin Jamie Ffrench put on a
show. He showed why he is a five star receiver and committed to Alabama.
Ffrench is a difficult match up for any corner. He had over 100 yards and 2
touchdowns. FSU commit and quarterback Trammel Jones had a nice game. He threw
for over 220 yards and two touchdowns. The defensive players for both Columbus
and Mandarin that stood out where Hector Chavez (8 tackles-1-TFL), Willis
McGahee (8-tackles-2 sacks) and Daylan Russel for the Explorers and Drake
Stubbs (8 tackles-1 TFL) and Atoine Shorter for the Mustangs.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In the class 3S finals Mainland played St. Augustine. Both teams were
looking for their first state championship in over ten years. This was one of
the closest games of the weekend as Mainland kicked a game winning field goal.
The MVP for Mainland was quarterback Dennie Murray. He rushed 21 times for 182
yards. He had two touchdowns on the weekend. Murray ability to run the ball was
the difference in the game. For Saint Augustine underclassmen Carl Jenkins was
very impressive. He had 6 receptions for over 70 yards and a touchdown. He will
be heavily recruited over the next 12 months. Dennis King was one of the stars
for the Mainland defense. He had six tackles which led his team. Braylon James
had 13 tackles for St. Augustine.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In Class 1 S Cardinal Mooney took home a state title over Trinity Catholic.
For Mooney they upset an Irish team that was in the finals last year and looked
like the Favorite team to win it this season. Teddy Foster and Chris McCorkle
both displayed their play making ability with 77 and 82 yard touchdowns. These
two were the difference and you can see why they were heavily recruited.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Class 2S came down to Bradford County and Cocoa. This game was not as close
as the score 20-6. Cocoa took a 14-6 lead at halftime and never looked back.
Freshman quarterback Brady Hart for Cocoa had his moments where he looked very
good. He passed for over 200 yards and touchdown but also had two
interceptions. His lead receiver on offense was CJ Bragg who is committed to
Ohio State. Bradford fought hard but was overmatched against Cocoa who could do
what they wanted on the night.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In the final game of the weekend it had Venice go against Lakeland. Both
programs have played in plenty of finals and won a few championships. Lakeland
won the game 60-48. There were plenty of highlights in this game. When you
watch Lakeland play there is one thing you can count on and that is a physical
run game. D’Damirus Rucker ran for over 200 yards and 3 touchdowns. His teammates
Malik Morris and Jordan Henderson combined for another 150 yards and 2
touchdowns. Lakeland ran for over 500 yards and had a 7.8 yard average. Jordan
Glasser for Venice threw for over 200 yards and 3 touchdowns. It was his 4 interceptions
that hurt Venice. One interception was a hail marry at the end of the half.
Jamarice Wilder ran for over 100 yards and 2 touchdowns. Both defenses had an
off night.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Final Thoughts: I have been going to the state finals for over 20 years now
and this year had the best talent assembled in one weekend. There are plenty of
players we will look back on that will not only star in college but the NFL.
FAMU was a great host as they have done a phenomenal job with the upgrades to
their stadium. We were lucky and had great weather. It is not often that you
have a great event. We would like to congratulate all the state title winners.
For those teams that came up shot, you still had a great year and should be
proud of your accomplishments.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Last year the FHSAA decided to go to a new format which would break down the divisions into rural, metro and suburban districts. The state title games inthe past would usually pit one team that was very good against another thatwould be outmatched. This year only Chaminade who won 65 -0 over ClearwaterCentral Catholic ended […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3893"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3893"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3893\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3901,"href":"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3893\/revisions\/3901"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3893"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3893"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elitescoutingservices.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3893"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}