Only three top 20 teams lost in the first round of the FHSAA state football playoffs
Gainesville – It was status quo for most of the teams in the Prep Zone Power Poll in the first round of the FHSAA state football playoffs.
Only three ranked teams lost.
St. Augustine was the only top 10 team to fall. The Yellow Jackets (9-2) lost at 6A No. 10 Niceville, 20-3, in the 6A Regional Quarterfinals, and dropped from 10th to 19th in this week’s regional rankings.
Previous No. 14 South Sumter (Bushnell) lost at RV Santa Fe (Alachua), 26-0, in the 4A Regional Semifinals. The visiting Raiders (8-3) fell out of the rankings while the host Raiders (7-3) moved into the rankings at No. 16.
Class 8A Sandalwood (Jacksonville) was the other team to get eliminated from the state playoffs. The Saints (8-3) lost at 8A No. 9 Lake Brantley (Altamonte Springs), 44-30, in the 8A Regional Quarterfinals, and also got bounced from the top 20.
Meanwhile, top-ranked Trinity Christian (Jacksonville) cruised to a 49-3 win over Pensacola Catholic in Class 3A and No. 2 Mainland (Daytona Beach) defeated Sebastian River, 35-3, in 6A. The Conquerors (11-0) stayed on top by receiving nine of the 11 first-place votes while the Bucs (10-1) received the other two.
With the exception of St. Augustine, the top 10 remained the same.
Class 7A Columbia (Lake City) (10-1), 5A North Marion (Citra) (10-1) and 8A Mandarin (Jacksonville) (11-0) round out the top five, while 7A Buchholz (Gainesville) (10-1), and 4A schools Dunnellon (11-0), Raines (Jacksonville) (10-1) and Bolles (Jacksonville) (9-2) are ranked sixth through ninth.
Trenton (11-0), the top-ranked team in Class 1A and one of only five undefeated teams remaining, moves into the top 10 for the first time this season at No. 10. The Tigers (11-0) routed 1A #2 Fort Meade, 51-20.
Clay (Green Cove Springs) moves into the poll at No. 18 following a 44-0 win over Eastside (Gainesville) in the 5A Regional Quarterfinals. It was the sixth win in a row for the Blue Devils (8-3).
Following an upset win against rival Raines (Jacksonville) in the regular season finale, Ribault (Jacksonville) followed it up with another surprising win at RV Ponte Vedra, 24-14, in the 4A Regional Semifinals. It was the first postseason win in 21 years for the Trojans (7-4), who jump into the rankings at No. 20.
This is the last poll until the final rankings are released in mid-December.
The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, basketball, baseball & softball teams (regardless of FHSAA classification) across 26 counties in North Florida (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Hernando, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lake, Levy, Madison, Marion, Nassau, Putnam, Sumter, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union & Volusia counties). It is voted on weekly by sportswriters and sportscasters.
Prep Zone Power Poll – 2015 Football Poll #13
(School, followed by first-place votes, classification, current record, and total voting points)
1. Trinity Christian (Jacksonville) (9) (3A) (11-0) – 218
2. Mainland (Daytona Beach) (2) (6A) (10-1) – 211
3. Columbia (Lake City) (7A) (10-1) – 193
4. North Marion (Citra) (5A) (10-1) – 190
5. Mandarin (Jacksonville) (8A) (11-0) – 171
6. Buchholz (Gainesville) (7A) (10-1) – 158
7. Dunnellon (4A) (11-0) – 150
8. Raines (Jacksonville) (4A) (10-1) – 149
9. Bolles (Jacksonville) (4A) (9-2) – 137
10. Trenton (1A) (11-0) – 114
11. Nature Coast Tech (Brooksville) (5A) (11-0) – 110
12. Vanguard (Ocala) (6A) (9-2) – 109
13. Suwannee (Live Oak) (5A) (8-2) – 89
14. Bartram Trail (St. Johns) (7A) (8-3) – 72
15. Madison County (1A) (8-3) – 63
16. Santa Fe (Alachua) (4A) (7-3) – 42
17. Fort White (1A) (9-2) – 35
18. Clay (Green Cove Springs) (5A) (8-3) – 33
19. St. Augustine (6A) (9-2) – 29
20. Ribault (Jacksonville) (4A) (7-4) – 16
Also receiving votes: Gainesville (6A) (7-4) – 10; University Christian (Jacksonville) (2A) (8-3) – 6; Dixie County (Cross City) (1A) (8-2) – 3; Oakleaf (Orange Park) (7A) (8-2) – 1; Sandalwood (Jacksonville) (8A) (8-3) – 1.
