Florida Friday night high school football rewind: Expect the unexpected in Week 1

What we thought we knew, we didn’t really know. We take a dive into Friday night Week 1 action

Author:
Andy Villamarzo
Publish date:
Aug 27, 2022

To say there’s a lot to unpack from this Friday night of craziness for high school football around the state of Florida would be huge understatement. From upsets to surprises to the expected, plenty of games went on throughout the state (weather didn’t get in the way finally) and we were able to get ourselves a better look of what to expect heading into next week. We do have some Saturday games from the Broward County Elite Showcase at St. Thomas Aquinas High School, but we’ve got you covered on the action going on throughout Florida. Let’s take a look at a few games that stood out and surprised us from the Week 1 slate on Friday night.

Miami Central 20, IMG Academy 14: I mean, the only people this isn’t really much of a surprise to is those down in the 305. The Rockets came in with the confidence, swagger and pulled off the upset in Bradenton.

The Rockets make their case to be the SBLive Sports Florida No. 1 team.
Photo by Alex Walworth

Sanford Seminole 48, Sarasota Riverview 0: Umm, this game had us scratching our heads from the start. This Rams team is supposed to be a state playoff contender, but didn’t play like one Friday night.

Jesuit 24, Wharton 13: We can’t say we didn’t know this game wouldn’t have been a close one. And for a while, it was even closer than many would’ve ever been led to think. If for better offensive line play, Wharton might’ve been able to pull this off. Oh, and Jesuit head coach Matt Thompson picks up win No. 100.

Niceville 42, North Miami Beach 6: Between two long road trips for North Miami Beach, they got to see a lot of nice scenery. They didn’t score a lot of points, though (12).

Lakeland 42, Clearwater 6: Same score in back-to-back recaps? Well, sure, because we have to touch on how the Dreadnaughts did after only playing barely a half in the preseason.

Apopka 13, Ocoee 12: It looked like Ocoee was going to win this one and then the Blue Darters came roaring back to win this one. The 2021 Class 8A state finalists losing the season opener would’ve been surprising to say the least.

Trinity Christian 48, Ed White 40: Man, if you like a lot of points and excitement throughout, this contest between the Conquerors and Commanders would’ve been your ticket up in Jacksonville area.

Cardinal Gibbons 11, DeMatha 6: Low scoring affair for the Chiefs, but they’ll take a win over one of the east coast’s perennially top programs. Now they’ll play Calvary Christian Academy next week.

Naples 45, Lehigh 9: It wasn’t the Richard Young show whatsoever. It was the Golden Eagles’ rushing show, which ran to the tune of 224 yards between Raphael Kendrick and Isaiah Augustave.

Tampa Bay Tech 28, Plant 21: Snatching victory from the jaws of. ...overtime? That’s where this game was heading until the Titans scored the go-ahead touchdown in the waning moments.

Northwestern 32, Venice 26: Mistakes became the undoing for the Indians and the Bulls took advantage. It doesn’t get any easier for Venice as the season continues.

Some other scores that stood out Friday night

Kissimmee Osceola 14, Treasure Coast 5

Lake Gibson 28, East Lake 20

Clearwater Central Catholic 24, Berkeley Prep 7

Bishop Verot 57, Port Charlotte 49

Belleview 21, Lecanto 15

North Fort Myers 16, Fort Myers 10

Pensacola Washington 51, Pensacola 43

Dillard 35, Rock Creek Christian 0

Jones 29, Cocoa 19

Gaither 28, Steinbrenner 21

Fort Meade 49, Hardee 28