5 Bold Predictions: Do Hawthorne and Buchholz weather tough competition to remain undefeated?

Through the first three weeks of this high school football season, Hawthorne and Buchholz clearly marked themselves as the Gainesville area’s two best.

But this week, both teams face immense challenges as Buchholz enters district play, and Hawthorne welcomes in a top 10 foe two classes above them.

Those are just two of the top games in a week four littered with them.

Reminder for week three to follow me @noah_ram1 on X, formerly Twitter, for updates throughout Friday night. I'll be at Citizens Field for Buchholz against Creekside, but I'll be sending out scores and stats from around the area, as well as running as a live scoreboard, which fans can update themselves.

Here are five bold predictions for the week:

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Hawthorne’s run of excellence rolls on

Over the last three seasons, Cornelius Ingram has taken Hawthorne on an adventure-filled thrill ride.

One state title, three state title game appearances and a 19-game regular season win streak.

But the Hornets have arguably never seen an opponent like South Sumter during those seasons. It’s not that the Raiders are in Class 2S and Hawthorne is 1R. The Hornets have slayed opponents in classes above them all the time.

South Sumter, though, is 3-0 and coming off a 12-1 season that ended in a 35-7 loss to Cocoa in the Region 3-Class 2S Final.

The Raiders’ bread and butter comes in the run game, where they’ve totaled a mind-blowing 1,008 yards and 17 touchdowns through three games. That’s an average of 336 yards per game.

On the other side, Hawthorne has struggled a bit against the run. For example, in its 40-10 thrashing of Newberry on Sept. 1, the Hornets allowed 174 yards on the ground.

All the numbers point towards a Raiders win, but I also am not going to bet against the state champions until proven otherwise.

Give me the Hornets to make the statement across Florida.

Trace Johnson shines under the lights

Buchholz (3-0) opens play in what coach Chuck Bell said last week is the “District of Death” with powerhouses like Bartram Trail and Fleming Island.

One of them – Creekside – ventures to Citizens Field. The Knights, coming off a regional semifinal loss in 2022, have stumbled a bit out of the gate with a 1-2 record.

Now those two losses came to Palm Beach Central, a top 15 Class 4M team, and Richmond Hill, one of Georgia’s best teams.

However, in those two losses, Creekside allowed 48 and 49 points respectively. With a defense like that, I expect Trace Johnson to respond in a big way after he faltered a bit in the 35-0 win over Eastside last week.

On the other side, Buchholz’s star-studded defense, led by UF commits Myles Graham and Kendall Jackson, will shut down a not too shabby offense that’s averaged 43 points per game

Third time isn’t the charm for Eastside against Bradford

I want Eastside (2-1) to put up a good fight against Bradford (3-0). Gator Hoskins in his first two seasons as Rams head coach has led them on a transformation.

But he’s failed to beat the top teams – Bradford chief among them. The Tornadoes outpaced the Rams by a combined score of 65-0 in both matchups last season.

Despite its 35-0 loss to Buchholz last week, EHS is better this year, but BHS is still elite, especially on defense. Led by Marshall commit Chason Clark, it has allowed 13 points through three games.

I don’t think Eastside will get shut out like the last two games, but I just don’t know if it can put up enough points against the beasts of Class 2S.

PK Yonge suffers first loss

The Blue Wave, helmed by new coach Willie Jackson, have quietly impressed to a 2-0 start with wins over Father Lopez and Mt. Dora Christian.

Nothing against those two schools, but they aren’t on the same level as PK’s next opponent – Union County (1-1).

The Fightin’ Tigers, one of Class 1R’s best, will come in clawing after a tough 31-28 double OT loss to Walton last Friday.

The Blue Wave struggled in the run game last week vs Mt. Dora Christian, and you’d have to imagine Thomas Williams, and the UC run game, will chomp at the bit to teach PK a lesson or two.

Branford remains unbeaten

Out in Suwannee County, the Branford Buccaneers are discreetly off to a 2-0 start. Not just another 2-0 beginning, but one where they outscored Cedar Creek Christian and Bell 93-0.

The competition ramps up significantly this weekend when Hilliard (1-1) comes to town. The Red Flashes advanced to the 1R Region 3 semis last season.

QB Thomas Sikes leads the Bucs after a breakout 223 yards passing against Bell.

In a battle between Branford’s offense and Hilliard’s defense (allowing 13 points per game) give me the home team.

Noah Ram covers Gainesville-area high school sports and University of Florida athletics for The Gainesville Sun. Contact him at Nram@gannett.com and follow him @Noah_ram1 on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Five Bold Predictions for Week Four Gainesville Area High School Football