New coaches, big expectations and more: Media Day opens Jacksonville high school football

Not so long ago, Daniel Thomas was spending his Friday nights between Hilliard's sidelines as a running back on his way to the NFL.

When football practice opens Monday, the former Miami Dolphins second-round draft choice is ready for a new role on his old home field.

"I went to school there, I played on the same field and I played with some of these kids' parents," he said. "So it means a lot to me to be able to coach them and be embraced by the community."

Thomas, like nearly 20 other new head coaches in the Jacksonville area, met the press with more than 40 schools across Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia on the east side of TIAA Bank Field for Wednesday's annual Baker's Sports/Jaguars Prep High School Media Day.

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The 35-year-old Thomas exemplifies two trends in a coaching carousel that reached breakneck speed this Northeast Florida offseason: graduates returning to their original high schools, a trend also noted elsewhere in Florida, and former NFL players stepping into the head coaching role.

Atlantic Coast's Step Durham represents both trends, moving across to the Stingrays after a year at Wolfson. So does Columbia's Brian Allen, back for a second stint in Lake City. Meanwhile, Jacksonville native and former Jaguars safety Jamaal Fudge is drawing on lessons from past coaches as he begins his own head coaching career at North Florida Educational Institute, barely a mile from his original high school, White.

"Coach Dan Disch [at White] instilled a culture of how we go about doing things," Fudge said. "Then coaches like Tommy Bowden [at Clemson] and Jack Del Rio [with the Jaguars]. With Jack Del Rio, what really stood out was the competition level of practice. Everything was about competition.

"Bringing those things here to NFEI is going to be a real asset to the program."

And while Anthony Rivers doesn't have NFL snaps on his resume, he has experience in the professional game after a stint in Germany with the Cologne Crocodiles. The former Ponte Vedra defensive coordinator enters his first year as Menendez head coach.

"Since I've been coaching up at PV, I've been with guys who played in the NFL, guys that coached really high-level programs at other schools, just surrounded by great men," Rivers said.

For Hilliard's Thomas, coaching means the chance to use his four years of NFL experience to inspire the next generation.

"It's definitely a motivating factor for them, because I come from here," Thomas said. "So it's like, 'OK, if you can do it, we can do it as well.'"

Focus on focus for Mandarin

Following Saturday's Alabama commitment from five-star junior wide receiver Jaime Ffrench, Mandarin football enters 2023 with as many committed power-conference college players as their District 1-4S opponents had combined wins in 2022.

But head coach Toby Bullock isn't getting carried away.

"Staying healthy and staying focused," he said. "That'll be the number-one thing."

The roll call includes not only Ffrench but senior defensive back pair A.J. Belgrave-Shorter and Jon Mitchell, both bound for Penn State; junior quarterback Tramell Jones, committed to Florida State; and junior safety Hylton (Drake) Stubbs, who has already received more than two dozen offers.

The newest addition to the squad might be the biggest. Senior offensive lineman Deryc Plazz, committed to Miami, is transferring to the Mustangs after helping Jackson to a district championship last year.

'Play hard together': Vikings impress Masline

For generations of Raines players, each new football season brings the same goal: Ichiban, number one.

Head coach Donovan Masline isn't looking that far ahead yet for the three-time Florida High School Athletic Association champions, but he likes what he's seeing so far.

"People are going to see an unselfish team that's going to play hard together and play team football," he said.

Raines, which advanced to the Region 1-2M final last year before losing to Bolles, returns two of Florida's most coveted junior line prospects in offensive tackle Solomon Thomas and defensive tackle Jyon Simon. The Vikings also benefit from the return of running back Mark Miller, who missed much of his junior year due to injury but racked up more than 100 yards in the spring game.

"He's an electric kid that can hit the home run ball from the backfield," Masline said. "One-on-one in the open field, I'm taking Mark Miller every time."

Atlantic Coast's Rourke kicks into action

Last year, Gaby Rourke made history as the first girl to kick for Atlantic Coast football.

In 2023, she's looking forward to writing the sequel.

"I've definitely worked on my technique, better technique, and being more confident on the ball," she said.

Rourke is entering fall practice as the first-string field goal kicker for the District 1-4S Stingrays, after seeing part-time kickoff duty in 2022 behind the since-graduated Kristian Karoglan.

Placekicking is just one of the many talents for Rourke, who has committed to Kentucky on a women's soccer scholarship -- although a natural goalkeeper, she lined up in nearly every position on the field to earn All-First Coast honors this winter. She also excelled in flag football for the Stingrays this spring.

Bishop Kenny's Sexton commits to Navy

News arrived on Media Day, and for the second time in three years, it came courtesy of Bishop Kenny.

Linebacker Kolbe Sexton announced his commitment to play football at Navy. In 2020, Crusaders center Michael Myslinski committed to Texas on Media Day, although he subsequently switched to Iowa amid a coaching change at the Big 12 college.

Sexton led the District 2-2M champion Crusaders last year with 74 regular-season tackles and packed a wallop, forcing four fumbles. He's the team's second Navy commit in the class along with fellow senior Nash Beenen, a one-two combination that earned the praise of Bishop Kenny head coach Tim Krause.

"Those guys are dominant football players and really tough kids," Krause said. "So I think when you have those guys up the middle, you must feel really good."

Eighth-grade QB awaits NFEI chance

The youngest player ever at High School Media Day? That one isn't in the record books.

But... enter Cruz James, who's projected to line up at quarterback for North Florida Educational Institute this season as an eighth-grader. James is the latest of several recent eighth-grade varsity quarterbacks in Jacksonville, following Zarephath Academy's Jordan Martin-Durham -- now entering his fourth year as a starter -- and current Impact Christian freshman Hans Price.

While James is four years younger than many of the pass rushers that will be chasing him around the backfield, he's eagerly awaiting the opportunity to take the field for a schedule that includes state challengers like Trinity Christian and University Christian.

"It feels good," he said. "It's a little pressure, but I've been training my whole life for it and I've got trust in my teammates."

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: High school football Media Day: Daniel Thomas eager to coach Hilliard