Fernandez: South Florida powerhouses face tough road obstacles in state semis
We have reached the final four in each class.
There are seven teams left standing in South Florida.
Three regulars to this round — Miami Northwestern, Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas and Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna — are playing at home and don’t appear too threatened on the road to Pitbull Stadium.
Four others — Plantation American Heritage, Pembroke Pines West Broward, Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons and Miami Palmetto — have daunting tasks to overcome on the road.
How many will make it to the state finals next week? And can North Miami Beach secure the FIT championship?
Let’s take a look.
Class 7A — Palmetto (11-2) at Vero Beach (13-0), 7
The Panthers’ breakthrough season reached another milestone last week with their first trip to the state semifinals since 2020. And this time, Palmetto did with every other playoff team including Columbus in the mix. This is a major hurdle on the road against a Vero Beach squad stacked with major college-level talent.
Four-star quarterback Efrem White is one of the best in the state, passing for more than 2,000 yards and 27 touchdowns, and he has weapons such as Iowa commit Xavier Stinson and FSU commit Jordan Crutchfield, who doubles at safety on defense. Up front, Vero Beach is big and led by UCLA commit Micah Smith.
Palmetto has shown it can put up points with the best of them, led by quarterback Andre Bailey, running back Aiden Butler and wide receiver Connelius Miller Jr. But the Panthers will only survive this and play for a state title if their defense plays lights out like it did earlier this season. Dre’s pick: Vero Beach 27, Palmetto 20.
Class 6A — West Broward (11-2) at Gainesville Buchholz (12-1), 7:30
West Broward has reached historic territory for its program, advancing to its first state semifinal. Next, it will face Buchholz (also nicknamed the Bobcats), which has been eliminated in that round each of the past four seasons. Buchholz will have the edge in terms of overall experience and home field as a team many believe is long overdue for a breakthrough.
West Broward defied the odds already last week, taking down Miami Southridge, a team many expected to repeat as regional champions. West Broward has been led by their versatile athletes like Daquan Adderly and Amir Sears and can control a game on the ground especially when it plays penalty and turnover-free football, which it will have to on the road.
West Broward’s defense faces the key challenge in this matchup as it will have to find a way to limit Buchholz wide receiver Justin Williams, a four-star athlete prospect and Florida Gators commit. Williams leads Buchholz’s offense with 1,059 yards and 12 touchdowns receiving as well as 492 yards and nine touchdowns rushing. Williams will barely leave the field on Friday as he’ll line up on defense as well.
West Broward has its own all-around threat in Sears, who is quickly emerging as one of the top prospects in the nation. If the Bobcats can handle the road elements, it will be a tough, but not impossible to get them to their first state championship game. Dre’s pick: West Broward 33, Buchholz 31.
Class 5A — Fort Myers Riverdale (12-1) at St. Thomas Aquinas (12-1), 7:30
Don’t let the records fool you. This has a bit of that David vs. Goliath feel. Riverdale is in its first state semifinal and in the midst of a breakthrough season. But now those Raiders have to punch above their weight class against the Raiders from South Florida, who are 16-time state champions, and are seeking to extend their state-record title streak to seven in a row.
Aquinas’ talented group led by dual-threat quarterback Mason Mallory, who scored four touchdowns in last week’s rout of McArthur, is on one of its typical playoff stampedes. Its march to another state title seems like more of a countdown than a question. Dre’s pick: Aquinas 41, Riverdale 8.
Class 4A — American Heritage (7-5) at Fort Walton Beach Choctawhatchee (12-1), 8
Nine and a half hours driving. And that’s without making stops. It will be longer for the Patriots to trek all the way to the panhandle to face the Indians, who are chasing their first state title since 1990. Choctaw will have a raucous home-field advantage to draw upon and a talented roster led by senior linebacker and USF commit Ellis Alloway and wide receiver Zion Legree, a Wisconsin commit, who has 10 touchdowns this year.
Heritage was healing up at the right time with starters like receiver Brandon Bennett and running back Jonathan Bueno back in the lineup. But Bueno got hurt again last week. If he’s out, it will be up to reserves such as TJ Mullen, who made an impact last week against McCarthy to do the same. Dre’s pick: Heritage 21, Choctawhatchee 20.
Class 3A — Orlando Bishop Moore (12-1) vs. Miami Northwestern (12-0), 7 at Traz Powell.
Much like Aquinas, this seems to be a formality as many figure the Bulls just have to avoid a letdown the next two weeks to repeat as state champions. Northwestern’s victory over Miami Central last Saturday was impressive in all three phases.
Neiman Lawrence’s seven touchdown passes were just the start. An often punishing pass rush and a talented secondary has made the Bulls one of the best defenses in the country. Northwestern is only ranked No. 20 nationally largely because of the one loss it had against an out-of-state opponent to Orange Lutheran, which it later forfeited due to an ineligible player. The Bulls are playing like a top 10 team now and are also on a march to their 10th state title. Dre’s pick: Northwestern 44, Bishop Moore 14.
Class 2A — Cardinal Gibbons (10-3) at Jacksonville Bolles (12-1), 7
The Chiefs’ experience against tough competition paid off big time last week as it finished off a 20-17 win over previously unbeaten La Salle to get to this round for the first time since 2021 when it won the second of back-to-back state championships. This will be one of their biggest challenges against Bolles, an 11-time state champion trying to break a 14-year title drought.
The Bulldogs have lost in the state finals six times since winning their most recent championship under the direction of the late Charles “Corky” Rogers. A loaded roster led by wide receiver Naeem Burroughs (Clemson commit) and linebacker Simeon Caldwell (Ohio State commit) will be a formidable obstacle for the Chiefs, who have proven they can win in different ways. Dre’s pick: Bolles 38, Gibbons 21.
Class 1A — Jacksonville Trinity Christian (9-4) at Chaminade-Madonna (10-2), 6:30
Derrek Cooper. Enough said. I could probably end it right there by just mentioning the next-level greatness shown again last week by the Chaminade running back and Texas commit, who took over in the Lions’ victory over True North. He is the next big star from this program that you’ll see starring on Saturdays and eventually Sundays. Before he leaves though, Cooper has one more state championship to lead Chaminade to in a couple of weeks. Dre’s pick: Chaminade 45, Trinity Christian 7.
3A-1A FIT state championship — North Miami Beach (6-6) vs. Dunnellon (6-6), 1, Thursday, The Villages
NMB coach Jeff Bertani is the longest-tenured coach in South Florida. He came close to winning a state championship multiple times in the late 2000s with talented squads that eventually fell against some of the all-time great teams at Northwestern. But he has kept his teams competitive throughout the years and stuck with his program. It would be great to see him be able to hoist a trophy and share it with his sons.
And road trips for the Chargers? That’s nothing new. Dre’s pick: NMB 22, Dunnellon 14.
Andre’s record — Last week (Top 20): 6-1; Overall: 7-1; Season (Top 20): 174-22 (.889); Overall: 460-97 (.825).
