Top 20 picks: Soul Bowl, part I? And a look at top games with playoff implications
The final week of the regular season used to feel a lot like the preseason classics week.
And for a lot of the state’s top contenders (as you’ll see when you read our top 20 rankings below), it’s a chance to heal up and gear up for potential championship runs when the playoffs begin next week.
But thanks to the FHSAA’s playoff seeding system, this week still has some meaningful games where teams are trying to either sneak their way into the postseason or lock up better seeding and more favorable matchups.
One of the more interesting clashes is the Broward Soul Bowl rivalry which pits Fort Lauderdale Dillard against much improved Pompano Beach Blanche Ely.
Before we get to the new poll and the picks, a shout out to Miami Northwestern quarterback Taron Dickens, who broke the Miami-Dade County all-time passing yardage record last week. I had the pleasure of covering Jacory Harris, Rakeem Cato and Jeff Godfrey — three of the best to ever come out of Dade — and after covering Dickens this season, the record is well-deserved for a talented young man with a bright future.
THE TOP 20
1. Miami Central (9-0); 2. Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna (8-0); 3. Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas (9-0); 4. Miami Columbus (9-1); 5. Plantation American Heritage (9-1); 6. Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons (9-1); 7. Homestead (8-2); 8. Miami Booker T. Washington (8-2); 9. Dillard (5-3); 10. Blanche Ely (8-0); 11. Miramar (7-1); 12. Northwestern (5-4); 13. Miami Norland (6-2); 14. Davie Western (5-3); 15. Coconut Creek (6-3); 16. Doral Academy (6-3); 17. Miami Carol City (5-4); 18. Pinecrest Gulliver Prep (5-3); 19. Miami Southridge (5-4); 20. Miami Palmetto (4-5); On the cusp: Miami Jackson (6-3), Plantation (7-2), Coconut Creek Monarch (7-2), Fort Lauderdale Calvary Christian (8-2).
THIS WEEK’S TOP GAMES
10. Blanche Ely (8-0) at 9. Dillard (5-3), 7, Saturday.
The Broward Soul Bowl means more this year, especially since it has a good chance to be the first of two meetings between the two longtime rivals.
As it stands, Dillard and Blanche Ely are in position to be the No. 2 and 3 seeds respectively in Region 3-3M which could set up a second-round rematch between the two.
Ely is enjoying one of the top turnarounds of any program statewide going from a 1-9 team a year ago to within one victory of an unbeaten regular season. Tigers coach Michael Bailey’s squad has been solid on both sides of the ball and kept the team performing consistently.
Ely has beaten only two teams which currently stand to make the postseason (Coconut Creek, Fort Lauderdale), and Dillard will be its toughest challenge to date.
The Panthers’ only losses are to the top three teams in the state (Central, Chaminade, St. Thomas Aquinas). Dillard’s Christopher Johnson leads a cast of some of the most explosive players in the state and the Panthers have been building momentum lately toward a potential postseason run.
Dre’s pick: Dillard 34, Blanche Ely 21.
15. Coconut Creek (6-3) vs. 20. Palmetto (4-5), 7, Thursday, Southridge.
Coconut Creek has had some ups and downs during a generally positive season. The Cougars have won four in a row since losing three in a row — each by seven points — to Blanche Ely, Western and Plantation. Creek is led by its defense with playmakers such as defensive end Erron Brown and defensive back Andre Poitier-Abreu leading the way.
It has been a generally disappointing regular season for Palmetto, which remains hopeful that its best days are ahead and will result in a state championship run. The Panthers rattled off three consecutive wins following a 1-4 start only to be handled again by a strong Miami Norland squad two weeks ago. But with a bye week to continue to heal up at key spots and game-changing playmakers such as the Washington brothers (Robby and Bobby) leading the way, Palmetto should cap the regular season with a 5-5 record that is appropriate for the way it went.
Dre’s pick: Palmetto 19, Coconut Creek 12.
Plantation (7-2) at 14. Western (5-3), 7, Friday.
Western’s dormant offense exploded again last week against a subpar opponent in a 63-0 win over Coral Glades. The Wildcats have scored 147 points this season against teams with losing records and only 64 points against teams with winning records with 36 of those coming in a win against 5-4 Cypress Bay. This will have to improve if Western is to have any hopes of contending in the upcoming Class 4M playoffs.
While Western appears to have a top-three seed in the region pretty solidified, Plantation offers a chance to show some improvement on offense against a fellow playoff qualifier a week before the postseason. The Colonels haven’t had a problem putting points lately thanks to quarterback Amer Ellis and showed it in a convincing win over Piper.
Plantation also has more on the line in this game as it entered last week clinging to the No. 4 seed in Region 4-3M and a win like this would likely secure a home game in Round 1.
Dre’s pick: Plantation 21, Western 20.
THE REST OF THE TOP 20
1. Central (9-0): Regular season complete.
Port St. Lucie Treasure Coast (3-5) at 2. Chaminade-Madonna (8-0), 6, Thursday.
Dre’s pick: Chaminade-Madonna 35, Treasure Coast 13. Finally, more of a challenge for the Lions, but not enough to believe they’re in jeopardy of an upset.
3. St. Thomas Aquinas (9-0): Regular season complete.
4. Columbus (9-1): Regular season complete.
5. American Heritage (9-1): Regular season complete.
6. Cardinal Gibbons (9-1): Regular season complete.
7. Homestead (8-2): Regular season complete.
8. Booker T. Washington (8-2): Regular season complete.
Hollywood South Broward (5-3) at 11. Miramar (7-1), 7, Friday.
Dre’s pick: Miramar 35, South Broward 3. The Patriots’ defense is playing at a higher level these days, and that should be a boon come playoff time.
12. Northwestern (5-4): Regular season complete.
13. Norland (6-2) vs. Miami Killian (3-6), 7, Thursday, Traz.
Dre’s pick: Norland 42, Killian 12. The Vikings need this one to make sure they can host a playoff in Round 1 and shouldn’t have an issue locking it up.
Miami Edison (4-5) at 16. Doral Academy (6-3), 7, Friday.
Dre’s pick: Doral 27, Edison 22. The Firebirds solidify their chances of hosting a first-round playoff game with another strong performance.
17. Carol City (5-4) at Wellington Palm Beach Central (8-1), 6:30, Thursday.
Dre’s pick: Palm Beach Central 27, Carol City 24. The Chiefs’ brutal schedule concludes before making their first playoff trip in three seasons.
West Palm Beach Cardinal Newman (9-0) vs. 18. Gulliver Prep (5-3), 3:30, Thursday, Tropical.
Dre’s pick: Cardinal Newman 35, Gulliver 14. Give the Raiders credit for their five-game winning streak, but Newman is a top-10 team in the state for good reason.
Homestead South Dade (2-6) vs. 19. Southridge (5-4), 7:30, Friday, Harris.
Dre’s pick: Southridge 24, South Dade 8. Spartans close a turnaround regular season with a victory over another neighborhood rival.
OTHER GAMES
Tuesday — Miami-Dade: South Miami vs. Miami High (Tropical), 3:30; S. Miami 20-19.
Thursday — Miami-Dade: Southwest vs. Coral Gables (Tropical), 7:30; Gables 35-3; Hialeah vs. Krop (Milander), 7; Krop 27-14; Somerset South Homestead at Somerset Silver Palms, 4; Silver Palms 16-6; Ferguson vs. TRU Prep (Hialeah Gardens), 3:30; TRU Prep 21-7; Varela at Mourning (N. Miami), 3:30; Mourning 28-8; Coral Park at Sunset, 3:30; C. Park 14-12; Broward: Hollywood Hills at Northeast, 7; Hills 28-7; North Broward Prep at American Heritage-Delray, 7; NBP 35-24; Nova vs. Coral Springs Charter (Glades), 7; CSC 20-6.
Friday — Miami-Dade: Jackson vs. Miami High (Curtis), 7:30; Jackson 20-6; NMB vs. American (Traz), 7:30; NMB 26-6; Goleman vs. HML (Milander), 7:30; Goleman 34-6; Belen vs. La Salle (Tropical), 7:30; Belen 24-14; Braddock vs. Reagan (Southridge), 7:30; Braddock 34-6; FIFC championship: Archbishop Carroll vs. Ransom Everglades (Tropical), 3:30; Carroll 34-20; Coral Reef at Hialeah Gardens, 3:30; Coral Reef 24-7; Miami Beach at Lakeland Lake Gibson, 7:30; Lake Gibson 27-10; Dade Christian at Naples First Baptist, 7; First Baptist 30-8; Broward: Cypress Bay at South Plantation, 7; Cypress Bay 27-20; Deerfield Beach vs. Monarch (Coconut Creek), 7; Monarch 24-12; West Broward at Everglades, 7; West Broward 27-10; Hallandale at Flanagan, 7; Hallandale 12-8; Pines Charter at Pompano Beach, 7; PPC 23-13; Stranahan vs. Fort Lauderdale (Lockhart), 7; Stranahan 20-17; Coral Springs at Taravella, 4; Coral Springs 13-6; Boyd Anderson at McArthur, 7; McArthur 30-8; Douglas at Coral Glades, 7; Douglas 35-14; Pine Crest at Boca St. Andrews, 7; 30-27; Somerset Prep at Archbishop McCarthy, 7; McCarthy 20-6; Miami-Dade vs. Broward: Avant Garde Academy at Monsignor Pace, 7:30; Pace 26-22.
Saturday — Miami-Dade: North Miami vs. Westland Hialeah (Milander), 7; N. Miami 22-8; Miami-Dade vs. Broward: Mater Academy vs. Somerset Academy (Milander), 3:30; Somerset 20-14.
Andre’s record (Through Saturday’s games) — Last week: 42-4; Top 20: 19-0; Season — Overall: 382-102; Top 20: 122-19.
