By: J. Daniel Pearson
After last week’s exhibition Kickoff Classics, things get real for Osceola County eight public high school football teams this week with the opening of the 2025 regular season. All games are on Friday night at 7 p.m.
The rundown:
Celebration (0-0) at Poinciana (0-0)
The Eagles recorded a 34-14 road win over the Storm in last year’s season opener, but Poinciana was hit hard by graduation – especially on the offensive side of the ball. Still, the Eagles displayed a lot of potential in last week’s 33-12 Kickoff-Classic exhibition loss to Orlando Christian Prep. (Read about that game here: Poinciana Eagles Fall 33–12 in Preseason Kickoff Classic; Coach Mallard Finds Positives Before Next Week Opener ).
For Poinciana, Daevion Williams and Sean Abdul appear more than capable of picking up in the backfield and WR Chance Frazier has the potential to play at the next level. Keep an eye on Kamari Lewis (WR/QB), an electric player that coach Taron Mallard says needs to get more touches than he did in last week’s game.
Celebration won three times last year under first year head coach Chris Blanton, after winning just one game each in the previous two seasons. Blanton says his team is well into the process of changing the culture of Storm football and believes a winning season and possible playoff appearance are reachable goals. The Storm pounded out an impressive 46-0 win against Discovery in their kickoff classic last week.
“Last week’s game was a good start for this group. We played with a lot of energy, paid attention to details and executed our game plan,” Blanton said.
In last year’s loss to the Eagles, Dalton said departed Poinciana QB Cam Brown was the difference maker. “We moved the ball pretty well against them but we simply could not stop their quarterback,” Blanton says about that game. “They have a lot of new personnel this year but we really aren’t going to worry about that. Our attitude is that we are going to face championship opposition every week and our main concern will be to worry about executing our game plan.”
Osceola (0-0) at Treasure Coach (0-0)
The Kowboys open their season with a team that made the playoffs last year, which is nothing new historically. It is one of seven 2024 FHSAA Playoff teams Osceola will play in the upcoming season. “Playing a difficult schedule has always been our M.O.,” Coach Eric Pinellas said. “You play a tough schedule to get ready for the playoffs.” Osceola lost 21 starters or regular contributors to graduation or transfer from last year’s 12-3 FHSAA State Runner-up team but returns ample skill and talent at most positions.
Osceola dropped a 14-13 game to Daytona Beach -Mainland (another playoff team from last year) but Pinellas was not concerned. Pinellas said new quarterback Amaree Rutland (transfer from Wekiva) played well and the Kowboys running attack, featuring Jeff Sinophat, piled up more than 200 yards on the ground. Defensively, Osceola stopped the run and the Kowboys had a 13-0 lead into the fourth quarter before two turnovers led to scores for Mainland. Overall, Osceola lost five turnovers in the game.
This week’s opponent has played Osceola tough in recent years. But the opening of a new county school has drained some talent away from Treasure Coast and they were also hit hard by transfers. The Titans lost 41-0 to Lake Wales in their Kickoff Classic last week. Counting playoffs, the teams have met five times in the last three years with the Kowboys going 3-2.
“Traditionally they like to play ball control with a single wing offense and rely on their defense,” Pinellas said. “Not sure what their team looks like this year, but we will prepare for a tough challenge regardless.”
St. Cloud (0-0) Freedom (0-0)
The Bulldogs open on the road against an opponent that has struggled in recent years. Freedom has not posted a winning record in more than a decade and lost to the Dawgs 27-0 in last year’s opener. Mike Short’s team, under new quarterback Jeremiah Lattimer, should still have more than enough firepower to get by the Patriots.
“We respect all our opponents and Freedom is no different. They are a large school and have a lot of athletes on their campus, so we are not viewing this as a warm-up or easy “W”,” Short said. “If we play hard and execute, I like our chances – but we never will take anything for granted.”
Last week, St. Cloud was victorious in their kickoff game beating Innovation 28-14 – a school that opened in 2021. The Bulldogs needed two fourth quarter touchdowns to pull out the win. “They (Innovation) were a lot better than they were a year ago,” Short said about the win. “We played pretty, well and put up some numbers.”
Owen Sullivan caught two touchdowns from quarterback Lattier in the game and the St. Cloud defense forced four turnovers. The Dogs played the game without four starters who were serving one game suspensions.
Tohopekaliga (0-0) at IMG Academy State (0-0)
In late spring, Melbourne informed Tohopekaliga that they would not be honoring the second-year of a home-and-home contract, sending the Tigers scrambling to find a new Week 1 opponent. The only game they could find on late notice was IMG State – a private academy that fields a national powerhouse. Although the “State” team is their third team in skill level, it is viewed as a developmental team for their highly ranked National and Junior National teams.
To make matters even more difficult. IMG’s Kickoff Classic was cancelled leaving no film exchange between the two teams. “Not really sure what to expect, we will be going in blind against them,” Tohopekaliga coach Anthony Paradiso said. “We will do what we always do, play our game and make adjustments.”
Tohopekaliga came up with a 27-7 win in its Kickoff Classic against Timber Creek. Record-setting quarterback Sabby Meassick had three touchdown passes in the game and freshman WR/DB Josiah Hall played a solid game on both sides of the ball. Paradiso said he was pleased overall with his team’s efforts. “When you work hard, execute the game plan and get a positive result, it’s always gratifying,” the veteran coach said. “But we are still a young team finding our way.”
Liberty (0-0) at Innovation (0-0)
Playing an independent schedule, the Chargers will open their 2025 regular season on the road against an improved Innovation team. Coach Janko Beras, who took over for Dee Hart late last season, saw a lot of positives in his team’s 28-14 loss to University last week – where his team put together several good drives but saw four fumbled exchanges between center and quarterback lead to four opposing touchdowns.
As a team, the Chargers rushed for more than 300 yards, including 100-yard games by Dylan Kennedy (20-141) and Rashard Robinson (11-115). Beras admits the Chargers, who won just four games in the last three years combined, are a work in progress. “The biggest thing is that this group needs to learn how to win,” Beras said. “Both winning and losing can become a habit. I’m proud of the way our kids fought last Friday and I am seeing progress.”
Harmony (0-0) at Windermere (0-0)
Harmony hits the road on Friday night and will face a stiff challenge against Windermere, a team that beat Gateway in its Kickoff Classic, 35-6. Head coach Don Simon says his team underwent some expected “growing pains” in its 41-14 loss to Villages Charter. (Read about game: Turnovers and Big Plays Cost Longhorns in 41–14 Preseason Loss to Villages Charter )
“We are playing a lot of young guys on both offense and defense and when you do that some mistakes are going to happen,” Simon noted. “We did some good things in that game that hopefully will carry over and the mistakes we made are correctable. This week will be a big test for us.”
Gateway (0-0) at Space Coast (1-0)
For a second straight year, Gateway will open the season against Space Coast, a small private school that competes in the Sunshine State Athletic Conference (SSAC). Although small, Space Coast put together a solid 10-3 season last year that included a win over the Panthers, 40-0. Space Coast played a regular season SSAC game last week against Cedar Creek Christian, winning 59-0.
Roberts believes his team will have a better showing this time around. “Last year, they had a great QB/RB combination that we had trouble with, but both of those guys are gone. They have some good athletes, but it’s a little hard to judge what you see on tape given the level of opposition they played in the spring and last week.”
Calling his team’s 35-7 loss to Windermere in his Kickoff Classic “frustrating,” Roberts said he remains optimistic. “We fell way behind early on mistakes, turnovers and frankly a bad call,” Roberts noted. “We would get them in third and long and then blow a coverage and allow a first down. We stopped one drive with an interception that was then called an incomplete pass, and then we it seemed like every decent offensive play we had was called back by penalty. Not really complaining because the calls are the calls, but it was frustrating.”
Roberts said several players had outstanding games against Windermere, including WR/RB Nydrell Thigpen and DE Dory Thimote.
