First Coast Varsity Weekly: Stingray Step Durham returns as Atlantic Coast football coach

Steeped in the lessons of a Hall of Fame trio, Step Durham is coming home.

"There's a sense of nostalgia just walking in here, going through this experience at this field," he said during his introduction Tuesday. "It feels great to be back."

The first Super 11 selection in Atlantic Coast's gridiron history, Durham returned as the Stingrays' new head football coach at the school where he once starred on the field.

He moves eastward after one year at Wolfson, where he finished 5-5. At Atlantic Coast, he takes the place of Mike Montemayor, who finished with a 12-30 record in five seasons and led the Stingrays to their first-ever Florida High School Athletic Association playoff victory in 2020.

Durham graduated from Atlantic Coast in 2014, earning a berth on the Super 11 in 2013 as an all-purpose weapon on both sides of the ball.

He soaked in the legends' lessons from original Atlantic Coast coach Kevin Sullivan, inducted into the Florida Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2015; from Georgia Tech's Paul Johnson, named to the College Football Hall of Fame's 2023 class on Monday; and from a sure-fire future Pro Football Hall of Fame selection in Andy Reid with the Kansas City Chiefs, where Durham played during training camp in 2018 before injury cut his NFL career short.

"I think I've had a good balance of influences from great minds," Durham said.

Despite the task ahead at Atlantic Coast, which finished 0-10 in 2022 and has incurred 14 consecutive losses (two by forfeit) dating back to October 2021, Durham is looking forward to the project of building a winning tradition.

"I want them to think of [Atlantic Coast] as a powerhouse," he said. "The sense of tradition that you get from a Bolles, the sense that you get from a Raines. I want to up there with those schools."

Northeast Florida high school girls basketball stats leaders through January 10

FHSAA rankings: Where Northeast Florida basketball & soccer teams stack up through Jan. 10

First Coast Varsity Weekly: Jackson, Raines out of Gateway girls hoops after fight

All-First Coast boys swimming: Record-breaker Will Heck driven to lead Bolles' title quest

All-First Coast: Swimming carried Ponte Vedra's Annie Wohlgemuth from therapy to titles

Reynolds to lead Keystone Heights

For the first time since the 1990s, Keystone Heights has a new head football coach.

But that doesn't mean the foundations of Keystone football are changing all that much.

"Schematically, the offense will look a little different," new head coach Steve Reynolds said, "but ultimately, the core values we teach the kids, the hard work and overcoming adversity, those core values stay the same."

The Clay County school promoted defensive coordinator Reynolds as their new coach Monday. He moves into the head coaching job in place of longtime coach Chuck Dickinson, who stepped away from the sidelines after 24 seasons but remains with the program as athletic director.

Keystone Heights finished 2-8 last season in District 6-2S, competing against Bradford, Palatka and Tocoi Creek, although the team won 10 games in 2021.

Inside FHSAA football: What we know about a potential Open Division and what it would have looked like in 2022

A veteran of the Northeast Florida scene, Reynolds previously coached at Bradford from 2012-2013, then moved into Clay County with Oakleaf, leading the Knights in 2016 and 2017. He compiled a 9-11 won-lost record at Bradford and an 8-11 mark at Oakleaf.

Reynolds, who graduated from Bradford in 2004 and played college football at Jacksonville University, also coached at St. Johns Country Day before spending the last three seasons on the Keystone staff.

Keystone has persisted as a stronghold of the ground game under Dickinson's tenure, rolling up 4,007 rushing yards two seasons ago compared to 298 through the air. Reynolds, however, said the 2023 Keystone squad can expect to open up a bit more, starting with plans for 7-on-7 activities.

Whatever the run-pass mix this season, Reynolds said he's planning to keep up Dickinson's emphasis on building strong relationships and team spirit, a characteristic that caught his attention even during his playing days at nearby Bradford.

Also continuing, Reynolds said, will be the emphasis on the school's strength program. That unit, under Keystone coaching veteran Lantz Lowery, has brought back Florida High School Athletic Association boys weightlifting championships in 2021 and 2022.

"We often have kids where it takes them the full six years [as a combined middle-senior high school] to fully develop to where they're ready," Reynolds said. "We don't give up on them."

Reynolds' hiring fills the last open position in Clay County football. Fleming Island hired Bartram Trail assistant Chad Parker at the turn of the new year, and Oakleaf named Jackson's Christopher Foy as the Knights' new coach in December. Now, Reynolds is ready to begin his next chapter barely a mile from his home.

"Keystone Heights is a tight-knit, close community," Reynolds said. "It's a very special thing here, and I'm glad to not only be a part of it but have a chance to lead this team."

Spartans' Pickett enters FACA hall

The hall officially called for St. Johns Country Day girls soccer's Mike Pickett.

The 14-time Florida High School Athletic Association state champion entered the Florida Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame on Saturday at the Hilton Daytona Beach Oceanfront Resort.

Pickett, who topped the 500-win mark in February, entered the hall as part of a 2023 class that also included Robert Dupler (Lecanto softball), Tom Fadul (Satellite softball), Earl Garcia (Hillsborough football), Brandt Moser (American Heritage golf) and Mike Posey (Tallahassee North Florida Christian baseball).

The Spartans girls have won Florida High School Athletic Association championships in 2005, 2007, 2009 and every year from 2012 to the present.

Pickett is off to a winning start in 2022-23 as well. The Spartans, at 10-1-1, stand second in the FHSAA statewide girls soccer rankings.

Webb finds paydirt in All-American Bowl

For Treyaun Webb, this week's touchdown was maybe the first of many on the national stage.

Trinity Christian senior Webb found the end zone during Sunday's All-American Bowl, the annual showcase for elite high school recruits played at San Antonio's Alamodome and televised on NBC.

A Super 11 and Super 24 honoree who signed in December with Florida, Webb scored 47 rushing touchdowns and won two FHSAA championships at Trinity Christian.

He wasn't the only local achieving success in San Antonio. Evaluators from 247Sports selected Bartram Trail quarterback Riley Trujillo as the offensive MVP at the National Combine, which includes leading underclassmen nationwide.

Westside defensive tackle Jordan Hall, Jackson linebacker Grayson Howard and Fleming Island running back Samuel Singleton were also among the All-American Bowl selections.

UC's Riles makes his list

The early signing period for football's class of 2023 is in the books, but the recruiting watch is far from over.

University Christian pass rusher Desirrio Riles announced his top six candidates for National Signing Day: Coastal Carolina, East Carolina, Indiana, Memphis, Michigan and South Florida.

The Super 24 athlete, who lined up at quarterback in his first three seasons at UC and played in a Class 2A title game, recorded 14 sacks and two interceptions this season while playing on the defensive side in University Christian's run to the Region 1-1M championship.

He also caught 17 passes for 280 yards and four touchdowns on offense, mostly in a tight end role.

Fleming Island, Middleburg among duals victors

It's a green and gold victory in the latest round in Clay County's decades-long wrestling rivalry.

The Fleming Island-Clay rivalry — now contained within a single district — swung toward the Golden Eagles in the District 4-2A duals at New Smyrna Beach. Fleming Island rolled to the title, overcoming Belleview 82-0 and New Smyrna Beach 72-0 before topping Clay 70-3 in the championship.

The schools could meet again in Thursday's regionals, which Fleming Island will host.

Meanwhile, Middleburg's wrestling program emerged from the shadows of the county's wrestling giants. Middleburg brought home its first-ever Florida High School Athletic Association district title for duals wrestling, winning the District 3-2A duals at Westside.

The Broncos overcame Ponte Vedra 68-12, Ridgeview 65-12 and finally Oakleaf 39-29 in the championship bracket. Middleburg wrestlers winning in all three rounds were Tucker Cody, Joe Forte, Porter Loveland, Logan Moore and Grady Woodard.

Also emerging as duals district champs were Bartram Trail (District 1-3A), Suwannee (District 2-1A), Episcopal (District 3-1A) and Union County (District 4-1A).

Duals wrestling will continue with regionals, held as a combined first and second round on Thursday evening. The winners progress to the state duals championships at Kissimmee Osceola from Jan. 20-21.

Mandarin to hold Gateway weightlifting

The Gateway Conference's fourth tournament of the winter arrives Thursday, with the girls weightlifting championships at Mandarin.

The host Mustangs have dominated the competition throughout the past decade. The Gateway tournament is among the top events left before girls weightlifting districts open on Jan. 25.

Still to come in Gateway action are the wrestling tournament, set for Jan. 20-21 at Sandalwood, and the boys basketball tournament, scheduled for Jan. 23-27.

Around the area

Ridgeview named Aimee Stutz as the school's athletic director Tuesday. She takes the place of Chris Gallagher, who had led the department since the summer of 2020. … Former Bartram Trail defender Ethan Dudley, who played college soccer at Florida Gulf Coast and Northwestern and competed with the Jacksonville Armada U-23 squad in the National Premier Soccer League, signed with Charlotte FC's MLS Next Pro squad. … Bartram Trail senior Joshua Lindblom committed to UNC-Charlotte men's track and field. … Potter's House guard Samuel Wilson committed to Waldorf men's basketball. … Episcopal named former Jacksonville University team captain Jeremy Winston as its coordinator for youth lacrosse, working under program director Glenn Carter. … Former Columbia running back Teon Dollard is entering the NCAA transfer portal. … Former Bartram Trail offensive lineman Brad Cecil (USF), former Oakleaf defensive back Nick Roberts (SMU) and former Trinity Christian defensive end Deon Pate (Illinois) announced plans to enter the 2023 NFL Draft. … Former Bolles quarterback Josiah Johnson announced his transfer from UMass to Oklahoma State football, where he will play tight end. … Gainesville Buchholz quarterback Creed Whittemore was named Florida Dairy Farmers Mr. Football for 2022, and retiring Lakeland coach Bill Castle received the Florida Dairy Farmers football coach of the year award. … Plantation American Heritage wide receiver Brandon Inniss won the Gatorade Player of the Year award for Florida high school football. … The FHSAA Region 1 competitive cheerleading championship begins Saturday morning at West Nassau, with more than 60 teams in action. Applications for the FHSAA's Roger Dearing Heart of the Arts and Spirit of Sport scholarships are due Jan. 18. … It's almost time: Tennis practice begins Monday across Florida.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: First Coast Varsity Weekly: Atlantic Coast football hires Step Durham