District football play begins this week and while they are not “must-win” games, no team wants to start 0-1 in district play.
Harmony (3-2) opens its District 7A-10 slate by hosting county rival Tohopekaliga (22) on Thursday night, with each coming off a Week 5 loss.
The Longhorns dropped a 26-10 decision to a good Lake Howell (4-1) team last week. The Tigers fought back from a 17-7 deficit before running out of steam in a 44-22 loss to Viera. Sabby Meassick threw for three touchdowns and Tohopekaliga rushed for a season-high 150 yards, but four turnovers and the inability to slow down running back Duke Butler (25165-1 TD) proved costly.
Harmony trailed just 1310 and had picked up some momentum with just seven minutes remaining. But the ensuing kickoff was returned for a touchdown and tacked on a score in the final minutes.
“It was a fun, physical game where both defenses dominated,” Harmony coach Don Simon said. “Each team got some breaks and had opportunities, they did a better job of taking advantage of them.”
Simon said his team played well overall, praising his defense, including lineman Mekhi Ealy and Brody Malukiewicz. He added that the keys to the Tohopekaliga game were pretty simple.
“Stop their passing game,” he said. “(Meassick) will throw the ball all over the place and they have some talented receivers. We need to be efficient with our offense, move the ball and finish drives.”
Also on Thursday, Celebration (0-4) faces 5-0 East Ridge in its 7A-9 opener. The Storm face a team that has excelled on both sides of the ball, averaging 45 points a game and allowing just 7.6 per contest. Those numbers included Friday’s 49-7 win over Ridge Community.
The action continues into Friday when St. Cloud ( 3- 2) hosts Lake Nona (3-2) at 7:30 p.m. in a 7A-10 clash. The Bulldogs are coming off tough 24-21 road loss to Merritt Island while Lake Nona broke a two-game losing streak with a 31-27 win over Olympia. The Lions are the defending 7A-10 champion and are highest ranked team in the district according to MaxPreps. While not being as explosively pass-happy as in prior years on offense, the Lions have a rugged defense led by senior edge rusher Deanthony Lafayette (13 TFL, 9 sacks) and a ballhawkish secondary that has snared six interceptions.
St. Cloud Coach Michael Short says the game against the Lions and Coach David Aubrey, a former Poinciana head coach, should have a playoff atmosphere.
“With only three district games, they are all vitally important and the winner of this game will definitely have a leg up,” he says. “The key for us will be to move the ball efficiently and get a great defensive effort. It should be a low-scoring, rugged game.”
The Bulldogs are coming in the contest a little angry after giving up a 21-10 lead in the fourth quarter against Merritt Island. St. Cloud opened the quarter with an 11-point lead and drove the length of the field, but failed to punch the ball in from the 2. The Mustangs went 98 yards on just five plays and then scored on their next possession for the three-point win.
“You make decisions in football and when they work you’re a genius when they don’t you’re a fool,” Short said. “I made the decision to go for the touchdown, never envisioning they would drive 98 yards on us if it didn’t work. I feel bad for our players because they played so well that night and deserved a win. The loss belongs on the coaches.”
Short lauded the play of both his defense and tight end Owen Sullivan who caught seven passes for 110 yards and a career-high three touchdowns.
“For a second week in a row I thought our defense played really well against some topnotch competition in hostile environments. Owen had the best game of his career.”
Osceola, a district champ every year since 2010 (champs weren’t crowned in 2020), goes to Melbourne (4-1) Friday for a District 6A-5 game. The Kowboys (3-2) fell behind state power Jones 21-0 early in the second quarter. While OHS stopped digging the hole and got touchdowns from Alijah Jenkins on a 45-yard pass and 20-yard run, the 28-14 loss was a matter of two plays.
“A blocked punt and a scoop and score were the difference,” OHS Coach Eric Pinellas said. “On defense I thought we a good job containing their passing game, but I told them we have to start fast and end faster.”
Melbourne’s wins have come against teams with a combined 5-14 record and its MaxPreps ranking is considerably lower than Osceola’s. Last year, the Kowboys defeated the Bulldogs, 48-7.
“We’re not happy with the loss, but we’re in the exact same position we were last year. We lost to Jones in a close game and fell to 3-2. We didn’t lose again until the state championship game. The important thing is to take care of district business in our next two games and then get ready for the playoffs,” Pinellas said.
Among the county’s independents, if any county team is better than their record indicates, it’s Gateway. The Panthers traveled to 4-1 Winter Springs last Friday and led 14-7 at the half. Although they scored 20 and played well on defense, they lost their third one-score game of the season, 27-20.
“We just struggle to throw the ball and our opponents know it and areputting eight in the box every play,” Coach Marlin Roberts said. “Running backs Nydrell Thigpen and Honor Kim are balling out every game and our defense has been really good but we keep shooting ourselves in the foot.”
The Panthers travel to Liberty on Thursday. Pedro Rodriguez hit RJ Coleman for 157 yards and four touchdowns as Freedom kept the Chargers winless, 30-20.
Poinciana (2-3) reaches its bye week after being the only Osceola County team to come away with a win last weekend, 33-14, over Haines City. After Coach Taron Mallard made some changes to his offensive line, the Eagles responded with 400 yards of total offense in beating the Hornets for the first time in school history.
Chance Frazier had both a rushing and receiving score and Daveon Williams also rushed for one in the win.
“For the first time this season, it feels like we are heading into the direction we envisioned,” Mallard said. “We need to win the bye week; I mean we need to have a great week of practice and build on what we did last week.”
