This Friday night, the spotlight shines bright on Lake County as Tavares High takes on South Lake High in our Lake & Sumter Style Game of the Week. Both teams enter this matchup 1-0, a far cry from just a few years ago when each program was coming off winless 0-10 seasons. Now, both these teams are some of the top teams in Lake County and they are set to clash in what could be an early-season classic. The football fan in me is incredibly excited that we get this high quality of a matchup this early in the year.

Credit where it’s due, Brad Lord has orchestrated an incredible turnaround at South Lake, re-establishing the Eagles as a competitive force in the county. On the other sideline, Gavin Jones has done just as remarkable a job, leading a Tavares Bulldogs resurgence that has the school excited and hopeful for postseason football which they narrowly missed out on last year.

(South Lake High Football head coach Brad Lord has turned around a South Lake since taking over three years ago.)

Defensive Showdown in the Making

Both teams boast top-tier defenses that will be key in this matchup.

For South Lake, Tyson Williams, a senior outside linebacker, made his presence felt in Week 1 with 11 tackles, a tone-setting performance. He’ll be a major challenge for Tavares’ offense to contain. Alongside him, Jessie Barker Jr. recorded 8 tackles, while Chase Coello added 10 of his own. In the secondary, junior Joseph Robinson emerged as a game-changer, grabbing two interceptions in their victory over Nature Coast Tech.

Tavares enters the game on the heels of a dominant 53-0 win against Citrus High. Their defense looked nearly impenetrable, anchored by the Bentley brothers, Ari and Jelani. We are currently unsure of the status of defensive end Izayia Williams but he is among the top defensive ends in the country. Tavares has some great defensive backs and the team has shown that they can handle adversity. Despite not having Izayia last week Tavares still put up a shutout against Citrus.

(Tre Kelly and Keydrick Powell connected for 3 touchdowns last week. Photo Credit – Andrea Rush Photography.)

Offensively, South Lake comes in with a dangerous passing attack led by one of the best quarterbacks in Lake County, Tre Kelly, who threw for 153 yards and 3 touchdowns in Week 1, completing 12 passes. All three of those touchdown throws were caught by Keydick Powell, who had a monster game with 10 receptions for 149 yards, averaging an impressive 15 yards per catch. On the ground, senior running back Malik Holman adds balance to the attack. Malik rushed for 83 yards in the win over Nature Coast Tech.

(Tavares plays old school style football and is not afraid to ground and pound the football. Photo Credit – Joe Ott.)

Tavares, meanwhile, keeps things old school with a power run game that wears down defenses. Tamauri Collins, a hard-nosed junior running back, rushed for 96 yards and 2 touchdowns last week in their blowout win. At quarterback, Khairi Coleman only needed to throw once but he made it count, completing his only pass for a touchdown. Tavares has an impressive amount of players who can run the ball but the offensive line is among the strongest in Central Florida. Despite the high school game changing and quarterbacks getting more accurate and throwing more, power football in the trenches can still win football games.

With both teams bring some insane depth on defense, both school’s will need to bring their A-game. This isn’t just a game, it’s a statement. South Lake’s explosive air attack meets Tavares’ relentless ground game. Two elite defenses. One Friday night. Expect fireworks. This is a can’t miss game if you love football.

Photo Credit – Andrea Rush Photography and Joe Ott Photography “Fan Zone”