High school football playoff predictions for Orlando area games
Four of seven FHSAA football playoff games will be played locally Friday night, including an Orange vs. Seminole County matchup featuring teams ranked in the Sentinel Super 16.
No. 8 Apopka hosts No. 11 Lake Mary in that Class 8A region championship game. The Rams are one game away from the state semifinals for the first time since reaching the second round in four week state tournament in 1985.
A live radio broadcast of the game in Apopka can be heard at 94.9 FM and AM 950 The Answer.
No. 2 Seminole plays at home for the first time this postseason. No. 3 Edgewater and No. 6 Lake Minneola host undefeated teams.
The Eagles face Mitchell High out of New Port Richey, which defeated No. 9 Wekiva last week. Lake Minneola is home for a region final rematch against Tampa Gaither.
No. 1 Jones plays at unbeaten Tampa Jesuit and No. 4 Osceola is at Lithia Newsome in other region championship games involving area teams.
Foundation Academy, the top-ranked small school in the Orlando area, travels to Jacksonville to face University Christian in a Class 2A state semifinal.
Online streaming of select playoff games is viewable on the subscription-based National Federation of High Schools (NFHS) Network website. Check FHSAA.com for a full schedule.
Admission for all region playoff games is $8 per person. Tickets are available at the Go Fan website. Capacity is limited for games played locally in Orange and Seminole counties due to COVID-19 restrictions.
In non-playoff games Friday in Osceola County, Harmony (3-4) hosts Celebration (2-5) and Liberty (3-4) hosts Gateway (2-5).
Predicted winners for postseason games involving area programs this week are listed below along with current team records and area Super 16 rankings. Games kick off at 7:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted.
Check for score updates at @OSVarsity on Twitter and our full coverage at SentinelVarsity.com.
No. 11 Lake Mary (8-2) at No. 8 Apopka (7-3), 7
Buzz: Blue Darters, state runners-up a year ago, defeated Lake Mary 21-9 on Oct. 30 and 44-11 last season. Rams are playing in the third round of the postseason for the first time.
MaxPreps 8A rankings: Lake Mary, No. 14; Apopka, No. 4.
State quarterfinal records: Lake Mary 0-1; Apopka 8-3.
Past playoff history: First meeting.
Next: Winner hosts state semifinal vs. Seminole (9-0) or St. Johns Bartram Trail (10-1).
Pick: Apopka.
No. 1 Jones (8-0) at Tampa Jesuit (12-0)
Buzz: Jesuit averages 42 points per game and is playing in a region final for the sixth time in seven years. Jones, 2019 state runner-up, is allowing 16.5 points per game after recording back-to-back shutouts.
MaxPreps 5A rankings: Jones, No. 2; Jesuit, No. 4.
State quarterfinal records: Jones 2-2; Jesuit 8-8.
Past playoff history: First meeting.
Next: Winner plays state semifinal at Plantation American Heritage (8-2) or Melbourne Eau Gallie (7-1).
Pick: Jones
St. Johns Bartram Trail (10-1) at No. 2 Seminole (9-0)
Buzz: Balanced offense for Bartram Trail has produced 158 passing yards (16 TDs) and 155 rushing yards (20 TDs) per game. Seminole has allowed just 93 points this season.
MaxPreps 8A rankings: Bartram Trail, No. 2; Seminole, No. 1.
State quarterfinal records: Bartram Trail (4-3), Seminole (4-1).
Past playoff history: First meeting.
Next: Winner plays state semifinal at Apopka (7-3) or Lake Mary (8-2).
Pick: Seminole
New Port Richey Mitchell (11-0) at No. 3 Edgewater (5-2)
Buzz: Mitchell beat Lake Howell, East River and Wekiva in playoffs and has held seven opponents to 10 points or less. State runner-up Eagles have scored at least 31 points in each of their five wins.
MaxPreps 7A rankings: Mitchell, No. 8; Edgewater, No. 2.
State quarterfinal records: Mitchell (0-0), Edgewater (9-3).
Past playoff history: First meeting.
Next: Winner plays state semifinal at Niceville (10-0) or Orange Park Fleming Island (9-2).
Pick: Edgewater
No. 4 Osceola (7-2) at Lithia Newsome (7-2)
Buzz: Ja’Randy Swint leads Osceola with 658 rushing yards and 8 TDs. Jason Albritton has rushed for 661 yards and 11 TDs for Newsome, which averages 205 yards on the ground.
MaxPreps 8A rankings: Osceola, No. 8; Newsome, No. 17.
State quarterfinal records: Osceola (9-4), Newsome (0-1).
Past playoff history: Osceola leads 2-0 with wins in 2008 (21-13) and 2012 (21-18).
Next: Winner plays state semifinal at Miami Palmetto (4-1) or Vero Beach (8-2).
Pick: Osceola
Tampa Gaither (10-0) at No. 6 Lake Minneola (9-1)
Buzz: Lake Minneola, in the playoffs for the third time and playing in a region final for the second year in a row, has outscored opposing teams 440 to 71. Gaither has outscored opponents 385 to 45.
MaxPreps 6A rankings: Gaither, No. 2; Lake Minneola, No. 5.
State quarterfinal records: Gaither (1-2), Lake Minneola (0-1).
Past playoff meetings: Gaither won 41-7 at home in 2019 region final.
Next: Winner hosts state semifinal vs. St. Augustine (9-2) or Lake City Columbia (5-5).
Pick: Gaither
Foundation Academy (8-1) at Jacksonville University Christian (7-4), 7
Buzz: Lions were short-handed at home during a 35-0 loss on Oct. 16. University Christian has won nine state championships, third best in FHSAA playoff history.
MaxPreps 2A rankings: Foundation, No. 2; University, No. 3.
State semifinal records: Foundation (0-0), University (11-5).
Past playoff history: First meeting.
Next: Winner advances to state championship game vs. Hialeah Champagnat (9-2) or Seffner Christian (8-4).
Pick: University Christian
J.C. last week: 9 correct, 2 fumbles (.818). Season: 279 correct, 49 fumbles (.851).
Season complete: Bishop Moore (6-3), Boone (7-3), Central Florida Christian (5-2), Colonial (3-6), Cornerstone Charter (0-6), Cypress Creek (0-9), Dr. Phillips (5-2), DeLand (4-3), Deltona (3-4), Clermont East Ridge (4-5), East River (4-3), Eustis (3-4), Evans (2-5), Faith Christian (1-8), First Academy-Leesburg (0-7), The First Academy (5-1), Freedom (2-4), Hagerty (5-5), Lake Brantley (6-4), Lake Highland Prep (4-3), Lake Howell (3-5), Lake Nona (4-4), Leesburg (0-7), Legacy Charter (6-3), Lyman (2-8), The Master’s Academy (5-5), Mount Dora (1-7), Mount Dora Christian (7-4), Oak Ridge (3-6), Ocoee (4-5), Olympia (5-4), Orangewood Christian (7-4), Orlando Christian Prep (8-2), Oviedo (5-5), Deltona Pine Ridge (0-4), Poinciana (3-6), St. Cloud (5-2), Groveland South Lake (4-4), Tavares (3-5), Timber Creek (7-2), Tohopekaliga (5-4), Deltona Trinity (4-6), Trinity Prep (1-6), Umatilla (2-7), Orange City University (4-4), Orlando University (0-9), Wekiva (6-4), West Oaks (4-8), West Orange (6-4), Windermere High (2-7), Windermere Prep (3-3), Winter Park (8-2), Winter Springs (0-8).
This article originally appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email J.C. Carnahan at jcarnahan@orlandosentinel.com.
———
©2020 The Orlando Sentinel (Orlando, Fla.)
Visit The Orlando Sentinel (Orlando, Fla.) at www.OrlandoSentinel.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
