Football playoff race: Panhandle games could make or break St. Johns County FHSAA hopes
Too early for scoreboard watching? Not in Week 10 football.
For fans of St. Johns County teams on the bubble for FHSAA at-large berths, the games on their own scoreboards aren't the only ones to worry about.
As they cheer on their schools, they're also watching for the possibility that at-large challengers elsewhere in their Florida regions could slip up — with potentially big implications for their place in the FHSAA rankings.
St. Augustine has already clinched District 4-3S, while Ponte Vedra is a Class 4S lock based on ranking and Bartram Trail is safe barring a major collapse. St. Joseph is out of the Class 1S race, and Beachside is independent. The county's other teams are in bubble territory, although for some, like Menendez, the road to the playoffs is less than probable.
Here are the final games for several Florida schools that could snatch at-large berths from St. Johns County teams.
Tallahassee Chiles (Class 4S; in contention with Creekside, Nease, Tocoi Creek); vs. Tallahassee Lincoln, at Sunlake
Tallahassee Leon (Class 4S); vs. Crestview, vs. New Smyrna Beach
Lynn Haven Mosley (Class 4S); vs. Niceville, at Choctawhatchee
Escambia (Class 3S; in contention with Menendez); vs. Tate, vs. Pensacola
Fort Walton Beach (Class 3S); vs. Choctawhatchee, at Crestview
Creekside's Miller sets decision time
Circle the date: Nov. 8.
That's when Creekside senior sprinter Christian Miller is set to announce his college choice from a quartet of high-profile track and field finalists: Florida, Florida State, Georgia and LSU.
Miller won both the 100 and 200-meter dash in FHSAA Class 4A and ran even faster in the summer, capturing both events at the USA Track & Field U-20 Outdoor National Championships in Oregon. His wind-legal 10.06 in the 100 ranks as the fourth-fastest all-time for a high school runner in USATF records.
National track website MileSplit ranked Miller as the nation's No. 1 track and field prospect earlier this year.
BK, Ponte Vedra win Speziale Invitational
No more evidence required: Beating Ponte Vedra in cross country won't be very easy come playoff time.
Ponte Vedra captured the boys team championship on its home course and Bishop Kenny ran away with the girls title at Saturday's Craig Speziale Invitational, the last large meet on Northeast Florida's regular season calendar.
The Sharks' Miles Wicks (16:23), Luke Ross (16:28) and Davis Brown (16:35) all placed top 10 in the boys race for an 80-point finish, followed by Bartram Trail at 98 and Nease at 117. Creekside senior Jack Zurn led county runners in second in the boys individual race, 21 seconds behind Alejandro Vinas of Bishop Kenny.
Ponte Vedra placed second in the girls race at 53 points, then Gainesville Buchholz with 68. Dashing away with yet another individual championship was Creekside sophomore Alyson Johnson in 18:02, an 11-second edge on Ponte Vedra's Daisy Ross. With a light weekend on deck, the season rolls into district races beginning Monday.
Around St. Johns
Bartram Trail cornerback Julian Porter committed to Army football. … Ponte Vedra midfielder Aubrey Schmidt committed to Embry-Riddle women's lacrosse. … Ponte Vedra junior Penny Zarczynski committed to Yale women's swimming. … Ponte Vedra boys basketball was drawn against North Florida Educational Institute for the first round of the High School 9:12 Fortegra Invitational, set for Dec. 7-9 at FSCJ South Campus. ... High School Soccer Media Day, hosted by JAXUSL, is set for 9 a.m. Nov. 2 at the Winston Family YMCA. ... High school basketball and wrestling practice will begin Monday across the FHSAA.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: St. Johns County high school football playoff chase: Panhandle games
