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High school football brackets set: Atlantic Coast, Fleming Island, Parker among qualifiers

clayton freeman, florida times-union
·4 min read

Time to put down the calculators. Pick up the footballs.

Atlantic Coast, Fleming Island and Parker joined the list of Northeast Florida teams celebrating Sunday, as the Florida High School Athletic Association announced the final brackets for the 2021 football playoffs.

For others, though — including St. Augustine, missing out on the playoffs for the first time since 1998 — the bubble finally burst.

Three all-local matchups will be on tap when the playoffs kick off Friday night: Baker County at White, Parker at Raines and Riverside at Columbia, all rematches from district competition.

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The FHSAA used its RPI system — a mathematical formula that includes each team’s record along with the record of its opponents and its opponents’ opponents — to determine its at-large qualifiers.

Fleming Island players run onto the field ahead of the start of Friday night's game against Oakleaf. Fleming Island High School hosted Oakleaf in High School football Friday, November 5, 2021.
Fleming Island players run onto the field ahead of the start of Friday night's game against Oakleaf. Fleming Island High School hosted Oakleaf in High School football Friday, November 5, 2021.

In a rarity, four teams qualified from District 3-7A, with Atlantic Coast, Fleming Island and Nease joining district champ Fletcher. All three at-large teams likely needed to win their season finale to make the field, and all three did so, with help from Panhandle losses by Navarre and Tallahassee Chiles.

White held on to qualify despite forfeiting two games due to an ineligible player, but dropped from a No. 5 seed to a No. 8.

But it wasn't celebration time everywhere. Missing out was St. Augustine, which has reached every postseason since 1999. The 6-3 Yellow Jackets' three losses — all narrow defeats against high-ranked qualifiers Bartram Trail, Bolles and Gainesville — proved too much to overcome in a packed Region 1-6A.

Also missing out were Clay, which finished 7-3 and beat Orange Park Friday but fell short of the Region 1-5A top eight; West Nassau, edged out (an .001 margin) in Region 1-4A by Gadsden County despite their season-ending win at Ridgeview; and North Florida Educational, whose chances ended with a Week 11 loss to First Academy.

Class 3A saw a seeding shakeup: Trinity Christian hopped back to the No. 1 seed in Region 1-3A despite losing to Tallahassee Lincoln, while University Christian slipped from No. 1 to No. 3 after their last-minute loss to Atlantic Coast. That defeat cost UC a first-round bye.

Union County, Northeast Florida's lone unbeaten team at 10-0, received only a No. 3 seed in Region 3-1A behind Chiefland and Hilliard. The Fightin' Tigers open the playoffs at home against Trenton.

Full matchups for Northeast Florida regions:

REGION 1-8A

(8) Winter Park at (1) Sanford Seminole

(5) Lake Mary at (4) Timber Creek

(7) Lake Brantley at (2) Bartram Trail

(6) Creekside at (3) Apopka

Inside Class 8A: USA Today Florida Network's FHSAA Class 8A football playoff preview

Atlantic Coast running back Arthur Walker runs against the Nease defense in a September game. Both teams earned at-large berths in Class 7A.
Atlantic Coast running back Arthur Walker runs against the Nease defense in a September game. Both teams earned at-large berths in Class 7A.

REGION 1-7A

(8) Fleming Island at (1) Gainesville Buchholz

(5) Orange City University at (4) Fletcher

(6) Atlantic Coast at (3) Niceville

(7) Nease at (2) Spruce Creek

Inside Class 7A: USA Today Florida Network's FHSAA Class 7A football playoff preview

Cale Zarah braces for a hit during the first quarter of Columbia's 28-26 victory against Riverside. The teams meet again on Friday.
Cale Zarah braces for a hit during the first quarter of Columbia's 28-26 victory against Riverside. The teams meet again on Friday.

REGION 1-6A

(8) Tallahassee Rickards at (1) Pine Forest

(5) Riverside at (4) Columbia

(6) Tallahassee Lincoln at (3) Gainesville

(7) Gulf Breeze at (2) Lynn Haven Mosley

Inside Class 6A: USA Today Florida Network's FHSAA Class 6A football playoff preview

REGION 1-5A

(8) White at (1) Baker County

(5) West Florida at North Marion

(6) Bishop Kenny at Wakulla

(7) Parker at (2) Raines

Inside Class 5A: USA Today Florida Network's FHSAA Class 5A football playoff preview

Jackson quarterback Jalen Sonnier pitches out to RB J'Nethen Jackson (8) against Fletcher in a September game. The Tigers recorded their first winning season since 2009.
Jackson quarterback Jalen Sonnier pitches out to RB J'Nethen Jackson (8) against Fletcher in a September game. The Tigers recorded their first winning season since 2009.

REGION 1-4A

(6) Gadsden County at (3) Jackson

(5) Marianna at (4) Baldwin

Byes: (1) South Walton, (2) Bolles

REGION 2-4A

(6) Umatilla at (3) Keystone Heights

(5) Hernando at (4) South Sumter

Byes: (1) Cocoa, (2) The Villages

Inside Class 4A: USA Today Florida Network's FHSAA Class 4A football playoff preview

Episcopal's (3) Corey Scott scrambles from University Christian defenders on the opening kickoff of an Oct. 28 game.
Episcopal's (3) Corey Scott scrambles from University Christian defenders on the opening kickoff of an Oct. 28 game.

REGION 1-3A

(6) Episcopal at (3) Florida High

(5) Crescent City at (4) P.K. Yonge

Byes: (1) Ocala Trinity Catholic, (2) Walton

Inside Class 3A: USA Today Florida Network's FHSAA Class 3A football playoff preview

University Christian is heading for the FHSAA football playoffs in Class 2A.
University Christian is heading for the FHSAA football playoffs in Class 2A.

REGION 1-2A

(6) Rocky Bayou Christian at (3) University Christian

(5) Tallahassee NFC at (4) Tallahassee St. John Paul II

Byes: (1) Trinity Christian, (2) Quincy Munroe

Inside Class 2A: USA Today Florida Network's FHSAA Class 2A football playoff preview

REGION 3-1A

(6) Trenton at (3) Union County

(5) Fort White at (4) Mayo Lafayette

Byes: (1) Chiefland, (2) Hilliard

Inside Class 1A: USA Today Florida Network's FHSAA Class 1A football playoff preview

REGION 4-1A

(6) Newberry at (3) Bradford

(5) Fort Meade at (4) Wildwood

Byes: (1) Hawthorne, (2) Pahokee

Clayton Freeman covers high school sports and more for the Florida Times-Union. Follow him on Twitter at @CFreemanJAX.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: FHSAA announces 2021 high school football playoff brackets