Wildwood looked absolutely dominant in this game. This Rivalry has seen it’s fair share of lopsided affairs over the years but this was perhaps the biggest ever defeat for The Villages. From the first play of the game Wildwood was in control. The offense for the Wildcats looked so good, Vincent Brown Jr. ran all over the opposing defense. Lorenzo Simmons and Zach Poyser had almost no competition at the wide receivers position and made the defense look silly at times. There was just nothing The Villages could do to get the offense going and there was a big reason for that. 

The Villages decided to start Alvon Isaac at the quarterback position. Now Isaac is an interesting story. Last year he was a running back for The Buffalo. This year they started Isaac out as a wide receiver. However the chemistry  between he and quarterback Danny Bitting was just not cutting it so Richard Pettus moved Isaac back to running back for a few games. This appeared to work early in the season as Isaac had back to back games in which he scored 5 touchdowns. But that novelty has worn off and the Buffalo have been struggling for answers. Isaac is a heck of an athlete but even he couldn’t overcome a young offensive line who couldn’t handle the defensive weapons the Wildcats possess.

The win puts Wildwood in the drivers seat and there is a good chance they now make the playoffs and potentially host a playoff game. The win moves the Wildcats to 6-2 on the season. Unfortunately for The Villages they now move to 2-6 on the year and are assured a losing season for the first time in almost a decade. They amazingly still have a shot for The Playoffs but it’s a long one at best. The Villages finish the season against Umatilla, Eustis and Wiregrass. Two of those games are district games and if The Buffalo can find ways to win against Umatilla and Eustis there is a very slim chance at the playoffs this season. It’s going to take a ton of work this week for The Villages and honestly they really need to go back to the drawing board.

The game against Umatilla is the final road game of the season. The Villages has not hosted a home game since midway through September! In fact The Buffalo only have 2 more home games at the Original Villages High School Football Stadium or (The HG Morse Range). This field will soon become a junior high school facility as The Buffalo move into their new home down near the south end of The Villages next season. 

The Hurricanes have assured themselves a winning season for the first time since 2014! This win takes the Hurricanes to a 6-2 start. If they win 1 more game it will mark the first time in over a decade that this team wins more than 6 games in a season. Coach Luke Hutchinson has this program rolling. They haven’t lost a game since September 2nd. The Hurricanes are on a 6 game winning streak and they extended that this weekend. Mount Dora Running Back Dante Johnson-Turner had another stellar performance this weekend.

Turner rumbled for 176 yards on 21 carries and scored 3 touchdowns. However the best running back in Lake & Sumter county had some assistance from his quarterback. Senior Matthew Butler had 132 passing yards and also had 56 rushing yards in this game. There was nothing Tavares could do to stop this duo as Butler scored 2 rushing touchdowns and added on to that total with a passing touchdown. The defense for The Hurricanes looked fierce in this game.

Although they have had points this season where they have struggled the defense is coming into their own this year. Hurricanes Maurice “MJ” Lampkin had 15 total tackles in this game and 1 fumble recovery. Lampkin was everywhere and absolutely decimated the offense of Tavares. There was nothing the Bulldogs could muster up to get around this guy. Overall offensively and defensively this team is really coming into November hot. There is a good chance they could possibly not only make the playoffs but host a playoff game.

That would be incredible considering this team averaged 2 wins the past 10 years combined. The Hurricanes have come out of nowhere this season and it’s one of the best stories of High School Football in our area this season. The Hurricanes finish the year against Eustis and Lake Howell which are two games that could test the Hurricanes. Honestly its good Mount Dora is being challenged before the playoffs instead of playing games against struggling opponents. Can The Hurricanes run the table and go 8-2 this year? It’s possible but only time will tell.

For Tavares this marks the 8th loss of the season for them. We only hope for all the Bulldog Seniors that they can at least win a game this season. It’s been a year since Tavares last won a football game so hopefully that win is coming soon. 

Big win for the Panthers as they keep their season and playoff hopes alive. Even though this was a non conference game it speaks volumes that this team got a victory against an obviously struggling Leesburg program that’s only won 2 games this season. Senior QB Noel Rodriguez looked amazing in this game, as did his fellow favorite wide receiver Tyree Patterson. The two of them connected on a few deep balls. Even Senior Running Back Jalen McKay has looked impressive and is coming into his own.

Eustis has a difficult schedule to end the season but they still have a shot at making The Playoffs. If Eustis can win against Mount Dora and The Villages that puts the Panthers in the drivers seat to make The Playoffs which would be an enormous accomplishment considering how the season has been so far. Don’t rule this team out and the game next week against Mount Dora is for all intensive purposes a Playoff Game. Look for next weeks game to be one of the most highly competitive contests of the season!

Meanwhile Leesburg just can’t seem to get anything going this season. Senior night was unfortunately spoiled for The Yellow Jackets and the loss hurt. It’s no secret that this team has struggled offensively but they also give up many penalty yards which hurts the team on both sides of the ball. The Yellow Jackets get a bye week coming up before heading into the last game of the season which will be another difficult matchup against Lake Minneola. Depending on how Lake Minneola does they may choose to rest their starters for that game. There is a chance it could be more competitive but if Lake Minneola plays their starters this game could get out of hand fast. Look for Leesburg to come out fresh from a bye week and go for broke as they play their last game of the year November 4th.

An amazing win for East Ridge. Everyone was counting them out of this game but what a defensive battle in the trenches it was. Offense was barely a part of this game and both teams struggled however East Ridge was able to outlast West Port and pull a stunner! East Ridge appears to be coming together late in this season and are finally starting to figure some things out. East Ridge. Its not out of the question that East Ridge could potentially run the table and win the last two games of the season.

The final two games are against two teams who have not won this year. They finish against 0-8 Tavares and 0-8 South Lake. There is almost no shot for The Knights to make the playoffs but there is a slim chance if they win out. They need a lot to happen around them though and even if they do go 2-2 in district play it might not be enough to propel them into the playoff discussion.

As for West Port this was a stunning loss and something they could have never guessed would happen. West Port has had an up and down year and with this loss the likely-hood of making the playoffs may have slipped through their grasp. They can only go out next week and try and get a win against Forest on Senior Night. This should be a good competitive contest as both these teams are trying to vie for a playoff spot. The winner of this game likely has an outside shot at making it although it’s slim.

Big win for Lake Minneola as the Hawks move to 7-1 on the year. This is a good win and Lake Minneola is likely headed to the playoffs now. The Hawks have battled all season to get themselves into this position and it shows. Senior QB Quinn Neimann has now thrown for over 1500 yards on the season and has 15 touchdowns. He is one of if not the best quarterback in Lake & Sumter Counties. Meanwhile Senior Running Back John Celestin has continued to spread defenses apart. He now has an impressive 24 touchdowns this season the most of any running back in the county.

You would have to think this guy is going to carry the team on his back come playoff time. Overall Lake Minneola has a good chance to win against Leesburg. They get a bye week late in the season too. The Hawks don’t play until November 4th which is Senior Night. The Hawks look in good shape to host a playoff game as well so this may not be the final game at home for these senior players.

The loss for Forest was difficult to take for this program as they’ve been looking good lately. They are now 2-1 in district play but can still make the playoffs if they win the final district game of the season against West Port next week. Forest went from 1-3 this season to actually having a winning record until this loss which brought them back to 500 overall on the season. Look for Forest to go for broke next week in what is essentially a must win situation for this program.

This was such a great game and it came down to the wire. Umatilla really needed this win but Lake Weir wanted it just as bad. The win gives The Bulldogs their 4th victory of the season. Unfortunately for The Bulldogs they have already lost two district games and the chances of making the Playoffs are slim to none. There is an outside chance that they win against The Villages this week and could make it if Eustis looses to Mount Dora and The Villages. For Umatilla it all comes down to winning against The Villages. A loss would eliminate this team from the playoffs. If in the event they do pull off a win against an ailing Villages team then they need to hope for some carnage. Eustis would need to lose two remaining district games if Umatilla has any shot. Not a likely scenario but we have seen crazier outcomes so don’t could Umatilla out just yet.

As for Lake Weir it’s a tough loss. The Hurricanes played their hearts out and kept this one close. Many people said that Lake Weir would lose by over 30 points but they defied the critics and although the loss stung this is one of the better performances out of the team this season. Lake Weir amazingly has not been eliminated from playoff contention. They have a district win against Taylor and win against Cresent City next week may just give them a chance to make the playoffs if they win their district. The game next Thursday night is Senior Night for Lake Weir and what a way for the regular season to end if the Hurricanes could get a district win and possibly win their way into a playoff spot.

This was never even close. The Bulldogs dominated every possible way as they cruised to a 50-0 victory. MDCA now turns their attention to the playoffs. The Bulldogs get a first round playoff game against Masters Academy from (Oviedo) next week. While many other teams are still in the regular season MDCA is already in playoff form. This is a game that we will have a full in depth analysis on during out Thursday Friday Night Lights Preview but lets just tell you a little bit of info. These two teams have already met this season. It happened less than a month ago when MDCA got beat by Masters 28-21 in a thriller. This game will likely be another close one. This will be a road game for MDCA as they travel to Master’s Academy for the second time this season. MDCA is the underdog but we will see if they can pull what would be a big upset and extend their season!