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Florida vs. USA: Top 10 prep football games vs. out-of-state opponents in 2023

Jon Santucci, Palm Beach Post
·5 min read

There’s a good chance the high school football national championship will go through Florida.

Four Florida powers — IMG, Miami Central, Chaminade-Madonna and St. Thomas Aquinas — are in the top nine of MaxPreps’ preseason national rankings.

Several out-of-state teams with national championship hopes, including Bishop Gorman, St. John Bosco, St. Frances Academy and Duncanville, have Florida teams on their schedules to boost their resume.

Here are the top 10 games this season featuring Florida teams versus an out-of-state opponent.

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Just missed the cut: Milton (Georgia) at Western on August 24, Rockledge at Duncanville (Texas) on Sept. 2, Cardinal Gibbons (N.C.) at Cardinal Gibbons on Aug. 25, Bolles at Coffee (Georgia) on Sept. 8, St. Augustine at Brunswick (Georgia) on Sept. 9, Catholic Memorial (Massachusetts) at Cardinal Newman on Sept. 15, Erie (Colorado) at Vanguard on August 24, Trinity Catholic at St. Xavier (Ohio) on Oct. 20, Dunbar at Lowndes (Georgia) on October 13, Madison County at Fitzgerald (Georgia) on Sept. 8, Gadsden County at Lowndes (Georgia) on Aug. 25, Prince Avenue Christian (Georgia) at Pensacola Catholic on Sept. 22

10. Jones at Our Lady of Good Counsel (Maryland)

September 1, 7 p.m.

Jones junior defensive lineman D'antre Robinson (6) prepares to lead the Tigers onto the field against Edgewater in the Region 1-3M championship game on Nov. 26, 2022 in Orlando.
Jones junior defensive lineman D'antre Robinson (6) prepares to lead the Tigers onto the field against Edgewater in the Region 1-3M championship game on Nov. 26, 2022 in Orlando.

The Tigers once again have a Week 2 out-of-state road trip scheduled against a top-ranked opponent. Last season, Jones traveled to Duncanville and fell 44-21. This time it’s Our Lady of Good Counsel, the No. 22 ranked team in the country. Jones endured a tough postseason last year off the field but still reached the Final Four; Our Lady of Good Counsel went 8-3 in 2022 with all three losses coming against teams ranked in the top 60 nationally.

9. St. John’s (Washington, D.C.) at American Heritage (Plantation)

August 26, 8 p.m.

American Heritage celebrates a touchdown against Naples on Oct. 21, 2022.
American Heritage celebrates a touchdown against Naples on Oct. 21, 2022.

St. John’s is making its second consecutive appearance in the Broward County National High School Football Showcase. The Cadets, ranked No. 54 nationally, lost to Chaminade-Madonna 35-28 in the season opener last year. American Heritage, ranked No. 23 nationally, beat Lowndes (Georgia) and Los Alamitos (California) to open the 2022 season.

8. Bergen Catholic (N.J.) at Chaminade-Madonna

September 8, 7 p.m.

Bergen Catholic is the No. 24 ranked team in the nation and coming off an 11-win season that ended with its second consecutive Non-Public A state championship. It’s the Crusaders first trip to Florida since losing to Plant 12-7 in 2011. Chaminade-Madonna has won five state titles in the past six years and begins the season No. 7 in the country.

7. St. Joseph’s Prep (Pennsylvania) at Lakeland

Lakeland celebrates winning the Class 4S state championship game over Venice 21-14 at DRV PNK Stadium, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2022 in Fort Lauderdale.
Lakeland celebrates winning the Class 4S state championship game over Venice 21-14 at DRV PNK Stadium, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2022 in Fort Lauderdale.

September 8, 7 p.m.

The 11th ranked Hawks travel to play the 56th ranked Dreadnaughts. St. Joseph’s went 12-1 last season, with its lone loss coming in the season opener at St. Thomas Aquinas. Lakeland went 14-0 in 2022 and won its eighth state championship. It’s been more than decade since Lakeland played an out-of-state opponent.

6. IMG at Lipscomb (Tennessee)

August 18, 7 p.m.

David Stone, IMG Academy defensive lineman
David Stone, IMG Academy defensive lineman

The final six games on the list all feature teams ranked in the 20 nationally. IMG opens the season at No. 4 while Lipscomb is No. 19. IMG makes its first appearance on the list, which is no surprise considering it annually plays several elite out-of-state opponents. Lipscomb went 13-0 and won a state championship in 2022, outscoring opponents 587-93.

5. St. Frances (Maryland) at Chaminade-Madonna

August 26, 12 p.m.

Chaminade-Madonna coach Dameon Jones lifts the Class 1M state championship trophy on Thursday at Gene Cox Stadium in Tallahassee. Chaminade beat Clearwater Central Catholic 48-14.
Chaminade-Madonna coach Dameon Jones lifts the Class 1M state championship trophy on Thursday at Gene Cox Stadium in Tallahassee. Chaminade beat Clearwater Central Catholic 48-14.

St. Frances, the No. 6 ranked team in the country, opens and closes the season with trips to Florida. The season opener is against the Lions as part of the Broward County National High School Football Showcase. St. Frances has made at least one trip to Florida in three of the past four years, including a win at Venice last season. Chaminade is 4-1 in its past five games against out of state opponents, with its lone loss coming last season at Bishop Gorman.

4. St. John Bosco (California) at St. Thomas Aquinas

August 26, 7 p.m.

St. Thomas Aquinas running back Jordan Lyle carries the ball against Fort Myers on Sept. 2, 2022.
St. Thomas Aquinas running back Jordan Lyle carries the ball against Fort Myers on Sept. 2, 2022.

Aquinas, No. 9 in the nation, once again opens the season with a home game against an out-of-state opponent in the Broward County National High School Football Showcase. This time it’s St. John Bosco, the No. 3 ranked team in the country and the top-ranked team in MaxPreps’ rankings last fall. Bosco went 13-1 last season, splitting a pair of meetings with national power Mater Dei. Bosco beat Miami Central 35-12 at home in the 2021 season opener. Aquinas is tied for the state record with four consecutive state titles and has won five in a row against out of state opponents.

3. IMG at St. Joseph’s Prep (Pennsylvania)

August 26, 7 p.m.

IMG is searching for its first national championship since 2020. The Ascenders finished last season on an eight-game win streak, including four wins away from Florida. St. Joseph’s has won its past two home games against out-of-state competition, including a 14-7 win against New York PSAL A state champion Erasmus Hall.

2. St. Frances (Maryland) at IMG

Nov. 17, 7 p.m.

The Panthers and Ascenders close the season against each other for the third consecutive season and have played in each of St. Frances’ past four seasons (the Panthers didn’t play in 2020). Each team has won on the other’s home turf the past two years: St. Frances beat IMG 34-24 in Bradenton in 2021; IMG beat St. Frances 27-16 in Baltimore last season.

1. Miami Central at Bishop Gorman

Sept. 1, 7 p.m.

Miami Central coach Jube Joseph lifts the Class 2M state championship after the Rockets 38-31 win against American Heritage on Friday at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale.
Miami Central coach Jube Joseph lifts the Class 2M state championship after the Rockets 38-31 win against American Heritage on Friday at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale.

Central waited a while this past offseason to see if it could schedule California power Mater Dei, but when that fell through it quickly pivoted to Bishop Gorman – the same team that crushed Chaminade-Madonna 49-14 in Las Vegas last December. With Bishop Gorman ranked No. 2 and Central No. 5 to start the season, this should serve as an early season eliminator in the national championship race. Gorman went 14-1 in 2022 with its lone loss coming by three points against Mater Dei; Central went undefeated last season – including a win at IMG, claimed its fourth consecutive state title and was named national champion by NationalHSFB.com.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida vs. USA: Top 10 out-of-state high school football games in 2023