High school football: Northeast Florida Week 10 games to watch, Thursday night
Ready for some Thursday night football? More than a dozen Jacksonville teams will be.
As usual during the annual Georgia-Florida week (or Florida-Georgia week, depending on the season), most Duval County public schools have moved their home games to Thursday, and several others will be kicking off on Thursday night as well.
Games to watch include Baldwin's home game against Ribault, a game between a host team celebrating a district title and a visiting Trojans squad hungry for an at-large berth in the Florida High School Athletic Association playoffs; Fleming Island's game at Buchholz, a must-win for the Golden Eagles to maintain any chances of an at-large playoff berth; and Wolfson at Episcopal, a game where a Wolfpack win would go a long way toward locking down the team's first regional playoff bid under a standard football schedule since 2006.
More Times-Union football coverage:
Week 9 rewind: Creekside wins thriller, huge rally for UC
Power Poll: Northeast Florida high school football Power Rankings after Week 9
Peak performers: Week 9 stars from Baldwin, Columbia, Englewood
TIGERS, VIKINGS TO DECIDE NORTHSIDE
What's at stake at the Graveyard? The District 1-2M championship, bragging rights on the Northside, and quite possibly a serious claim to the title of the best public school team in Duval County.
Super 11 defensive stars line up on each side, Grayson Howard for Jackson and Kenton Kirkland for Raines, and both defenses are coming off excellent performances: a 21-14 Jackson win over Baker County, a 36-0 shutout for Raines at Atlantic Coast.
Raines has completely dominated the series for the last decade, including five straight shutouts between 2012 and 2017. The Tigers came closer last year, but Raines held on 31-14 behind 208 rushing yards from current Florida A&M freshman Kareem Burke.
Inside the rivalry: Last 10 meetings
Nov. 7, 2008 Jackson 27, Raines 0
Sept. 4, 2009 Jackson 27, Raines 0
Sept. 3, 2010 Raines 21, Jackson 14
Oct. 7, 2011 Raines 38, Jackson 6
Oct. 5, 2012 Raines 33, Jackson 0
Oct. 18, 2013 Raines 45, Jackson 0
Oct. 18, 2014 Raines 41, Jackson 0
Oct. 17, 2015 Raines 56, Jackson 0
Sept. 29, 2017 Raines 78, Jackson 0
Sept. 17, 2021 Raines 31, Jackson 14
SANDALWOOD, MANDARIN GO HEAD-TO-HEAD
The longest-running continuous district matchup in Northeast Florida is Mandarin-Sandalwood — the two have occupied the same Florida High School Athletic Association district for 22 consecutive years. They're going to face off for a district championship yet again, and with little realistic chance for an FHSAA at-large spot, the stakes are high.
Both enter with contrasting styles, and both are coming off losses. Mandarin's aerial attack, featuring quarterback Tramell Jones and receivers Jaime Ffrench and Kieren Jackson in a high-scoring unit, lost a 35-28 shootout to Fleming Island two weeks ago. Sandalwood's offense leans on Jordan Bean at running back, but the Saints were bottled up last time in a 14-0 shutout loss to Riverside.
Among Duval County public schools, only Raines and Ribault have maintained an active season series longer than the Mustangs and Saints, who have played every year since 1991. Sandalwood leads the series 17-15, and shut out Mandarin 30-0 last year with 353 rushing yards.
Inside the rivalry: Last 10 meetings
Oct. 24, 2013 Sandalwood 31, Mandarin 0
Oct. 23, 2014 Mandarin 28, Sandalwood 20
Oct. 16, 2015 Mandarin 52, Sandalwood 29
Oct. 14, 2016 Mandarin 34, Sandalwood 31
Oct. 13, 2017 Sandalwood 34, Mandarin 10
Oct. 12, 2018 Mandarin 27, Sandalwood 7
Oct. 18, 2019 Mandarin 34, Sandalwood 27
Oct. 23, 2020 Mandarin 29, Sandalwood 14
Nov. 16, 2020 Sandalwood 28, Mandarin 13 (FHSAA play-in game)
Oct. 22, 2021 Sandalwood 30, Mandarin 0
BUCS, SENATORS BATTLE FOR DISTRICT
A Fletcher win, and the Senators are playoff-bound. If First Coast finishes on top at Jack Taylor Stadium, it could get messy: A Bucs win would secure District 1-3M outright if Englewood beats Parker, but if not, the result is a three-way tie that would go to the FHSAA ranking system.
Two junior quarterbacks, Fletcher's Marcelis Tate and First Coast's Rodney Tisdale Jr., are on display. Tate has stepped up significantly from his sophomore year, rushing for 501 yards and throwing for 1,375 in an exciting combination with wideout Anthony Vaglienti (37 catches, 591 yards). Tisdale has shaken off some early picks to pass for 1,323 yards. He also has good memories against Fletcher; while at Mandarin, he passed for four touchdowns against the Senators in 2021.
Fletcher has beaten First Coast in seven consecutive seasons. Last year, Jabarri Williams rushed for 102 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Senators to a 44-14 victory at the beach.
WHITE PLAYS FOR DISTRICT AT WOLVERINES
For White, the mission is straightforward enough Thursday: Defeat Westside, the school's local rival for more than a half century going back to the Wolverines' days as the Forrest Rebels, and the Commanders will be playoff-bound as champions of District 3-2M. A Westside win would bring the FHSAA rankings into play.
On paper, it shapes up as advantage Commanders. Tavales Thomas, Benny Lewis, Davaughn Patterson and freshman Joseph Williams combine in an offensive unit that keeps the chains moving on the ground, including 229 rushing yards last week against Ribault. Their challenge: finding a way past Westside defensive tackle and Super 11 star Jordan Hall. Westside will need big stops on D, because turnovers have plagued the offensive side of the ball.
Among the traditional rivalries in Duval County, this one has been among the most one-sided over the years, almost always in favor of White. It's been different the last two times, though, with the Wolverines getting the upper hand in 2019 and 2020.
Inside the rivalry: Last 10 meetings
Nov. 13, 2009 White 42, Forrest 28
Nov. 10, 2010 White 51, Forrest 0
Sept. 9, 2011 White 68, Forrest 21
Sept. 7, 2012 White 29, Forrest 7
Sept. 6, 2013 White 49, Forrest 0
Sept. 6, 2014 White 59, Westside 0
Aug. 25, 2017 White 31, Westside 2
Aug. 23, 2018 White 38, Westside 0
Oct. 17, 2019 Westside 35, White 24
Sept. 25, 2020 Westside 36, White 8
Thursday's games
FLORIDA
Beachside (5-2) at St. Joseph (2-6)
Englewood (4-4) at Parker (2-7), District 1-3M, 6:30 p.m.
First Coast (5-2) at Fletcher (6-2), District 1-3M, 6:30 p.m.
Fleming Island (4-3) at Gainesville Buchholz (6-1), District 3-4S
Jackson (7-1) at Raines (6-1), District 1-2M, 6:30 p.m.
Ribault (3-5) at Baldwin (7-1), 6:30 p.m.
Sandalwood (4-4) at Mandarin (4-3), District 1-4M, 6:30 p.m.
White (5-2) at Westside (1-7), District 3-2M, 6:30 p.m.
Wolfson (4-4) at Episcopal (6-2), District 2-2M
GEORGIA
Brunswick (8-0) at Evans (3-5), 7:30 p.m.
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: High school football Thursday: Jacksonville Week 10 games, previews, schedule
