VOTE: Which football team will be best in Sarasota County (FL)

VENICE, FL – When you have the Class 8A state champion Venice Indians in your specific county, it kinda leaves little to no question whom the top team around might be. But there are some other teams in Sarasota County that may want a say in who’s got the best football program heading into the 2022 campaign?

There’s a slew of clubs that are gearing themselves up for a big season. Other than Venice, there’s Sarasota Riverview, Sarasota and Cardinal Mooney that have talented programs that could make some noise this summer/fall. We’ve picked these four teams from the county for a closer look and we want you to decide, who’s got the best high school football program out of Sarasota County?

Venice: If you think the Indians have fallen off a bit because of the 31-24 spring loss to Lakeland, well, think again. Venice brings back one of the most talented teams in the state and they have several players that everyone knows about heading into a game versus the Indians. Gaither transfer Brooks Bentley will be at the controls of the offense along with a bevy of skill players around him.

Sarasota Riverview: The Rams lost three games in 2021 and two of those losses came against the same opponent - Venice. The Indians ended up ending the season for the Rams in the region semifinals and Riverview looks to redeem themselves in 2022. They have a very talented team, led by Charles Lester III, who has offers from seemingly everyone around the country.

Sarasota: It could be a big turnaround season for the Sailors, who looked to really change it up on offense and be physical at the line of scrimmage. Sarasota competed with some of the better teams around, but could be a few top tier players away from being amongst the county’s best. Should be interesting to see where the Sailors land by season’s end.

Cardinal Mooney: The one private school out of Sarasota County that really competed when it comes to getting into the postseason in Class 3A. The Cougars went 7-4 last season and ended up losing twice to Bishop Verot, including in the playoffs. They’ll need to rely more on the run game, as starting quarterback Tayven Clark has graduated. Cardinal Mooney has enough to compete against the public schools in the area, but can they be amongst the county’s best?

Andy Villamarzo can be reached at andyvillamarzo@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Villamarzo.