Miami Edison repeats as GMAC flag football champion, chasing elusive first state title

Despite their dominance in recent years, Miami Edison’s flag football team doesn’t take winning championships for granted.

So when the final buzzer sounded on Thursday night, the Red Raiders screamed and celebrated winning the GMAC championship as if it was their first.

Actually, Edison has become quite proficient at winning county titles, clinching its third in a row and fifth in the seven years since the tournament’s inception, following a 21-7 win over Miami Central at Traz Powell Stadium.

The Red Raiders (11-1) will turn their attention to trying to win the title they have yet to claim - a state championship.

“We must stay focused and take one game at a time,” Edison coach Vince Hall said. “If we play our best football we’ll be back in Jacksonville.”

This year’s state tournament will be played May 12th and 13th at Mandarin High in Jacksonville.

Edison has made it to the state semifinals in 2017, 2018, 2021 and 2022.

A return trip looks likely if the Red Raiders deliver more performances like the one they did this week.

After suffering its lone loss of the season to Lake Worth Park Vista last week, Edison beat Miami Northwestern 33-12 in the quarterfinals on Wednesday and then survived a nail-biter, 12-6, over Miami Killian in the semifinals on Thursday afternoon.

The Red Raiders gave up a touchdown to the Rockets (8-2) on their first drive when quarterback Zayra Whyms broke free for a 21-yard touchdown run.

Edison bounced back quickly as Alexandra Harris tied it up with a 5-yard run. Earlier in the day, Harris scored the winning touchdown on the final play of regulation to help the Red Raiders beat Killian. Harris leads the Red Raiders with 13 rushing touchdowns this season.

“(Harris) was our leader throughout the tournament,” Hall said. “She was our MVP.”

Rakyia Louis threw a pair of second quarter touchdown passes to give the Red Raiders the cushion they would need to win. Lewis connected first with Poetry Auguste for a 25-yard score and then a 20-yard touchdown pass to Makayla Brown. Louis is the Red Raiders’ top passer this season with 14 touchdown passes and nearly 2,500 passing yards.

Edison’s defense did the rest during a scoreless second half, denying the Rockets near the goal line with three minutes left in the fourth quarter to seal the victory.

Edison closes its regular season with a home game against state power Loxahatchee Seminole Ridge on Tuesday before the district playoffs begin the following week.