By: J. Daniel Pearson
Positively Osceola
Published 9/15/2025
Week Five of the high school football season rolls in with some intriguing match-ups for Osceola County Schools. The biggest game will happen in Orlando, when state powers Osceola and Jones meet for the fourth time in the regular season.
Jones is not only one of the top teams in Class 4A, they are one of the top teams in the state. In the last four seasons, they have made four consecutive Final Four appearances, finishing as state runner-ups in 2024 (4A) and 2021 (3 Metro).
They will come into the Osceola game with two losses, both coming to highly ranked teams in Edgewater (4-0) and Evans (3-1). After a season opening loss to Lake Mary, the Kowboys (3-1) have won three straight.
The teams have been no strangers in recent years.
Jones has met Osceola in each of the last three years, winning all three in tight fashion including a 34-28 overtime decision last year. “They are dynamic, fast, and athletic at every position,” Osceola coach Eric Pinellas said. “Similar to us, they play a tough schedule each year to get ready for the post-season and they are always one of the top teams in the state.”
Jones returns Division-1 talent on offense in quarterback Dereon Coleman (Miami commit), WR Larry Miles (Nebraska commit) and running back Duante Williams. All three played big roles in last year’s win over Osceola, as Coleman completed 23 of 35 passes for 488 yards and four touchdowns, Miles caught 4 for 144 and a score and Williams kept the Kowboys pass rush honest by averaging 5.8 yards on eight carries. DJ Hicks, who caught 1000 yards of passes for Bucholz last season, transferred in to Jones and Colorado commit Xavier Payne (6-7, 345-lbs.) anchors a solid offensive line.
Although the Jones possesses an explosive offense, Pinellas does sees a path to a win. “Our defense has played really well all season and we will need their best effort of the year this week. On offense, we need to be able to run the ball, control the clock, and finish drives. We ran for more than 300 yards against them last year but did not put the ball in the end zone in the fourth quarter. We have to be able to finish our drives this week.”
Harmony (3-1) will go for its fourth straight win when it hosts Lake Howell (3-1). Kickoff is 7 p.m. at the Ranch. The Longhorns offense has been on a roll since its 43-3 road loss to Windermere in its season opener – having averaged more than 38 points during its three-game win streak.
Those totals included a school record five passing touchdowns by Landon Hayes in a 39-6 win last week over Clewiston. Bryce Berry and Damarion Moore pulled in two touchdowns. “Great team win, offense, defense, everyone contributed,” Harmony coach Don Simon said. “The thing that has been really encouraging has been that the team has been getting better each week.”
Lake Howell will present a real challenge for Harmony. Sophomore quarterback Bryden Mabrey is an accurate passer (63%), who has thrown to nine different receivers this year in tossing eight touchdowns against just one pick. Malek Wilkerson is a threat both running (248 yards) and as a receiver (100 yards).
“Slowing down their passing game is going to be the key,” Simon noted. “They have an explosive offense and he (Mabrey) likes to throw the ball all over the field. We will need to be methodical on offense and maintain some drives to limit their possessions. It should be a really fun game to watch.”
Tohopekaliga (2-1) will look to get back on track when they host Viera (2-2), a future district opponent for Osceola. The Tigers will be coming off a bye week after dropping a 49-20 decision to a very good Hagerty team in their last game.
“The Hagerty game was physical and we lost some kids to injury, so the bye week came at a good time for us, but we will still be a little short-handed this week,” Tohopekaliga head coach Anthony Paradiso said. “Viera is a good team, but our focus will be to continue on concentrating on ourselves and controlling what we can control.”
Senior quarterback Sabby Meassick looks to build on his school and country record passing totals. Heading into his fourth game of the year, he is averaging 360 yards per game on the year with 13 touchdowns and one interception.
After playing a great first half against Osceola last week before falling late 44-7, the St. Cloud Bulldogs (3-1) are smack in the middle of the toughest part of their schedule.
They travel to Merritt Island (2-2). The Mustangs will present a tough challenge. Their two losses this season were a 30-24 overtime loss to defending 2A State Champion Cocoa and a 57-51 setback to undefeated Deland (4-0). Merritt Island features a strong passing attack, led by junior quarterback Kevin Verpaele, a 63% passer who averages just under 300 yards passing per game.
St. Cloud’s defense played well in the first half against the potent Osceola offense – keeping them out of the end zone on the Kowboys first five offensive possessions.
Marlin Roberts has his best defense in maybe a decade or longer, as the Panthers are allowing just 10 points a game through their first four contests. But scoring has been a major issue as the Panthers have only tallied nine points in their three losses – including a 12-7 setback last week against Lake Region.
The Panthers host Winter Springs, 3-1, at 7 p.m. Friday. An independent like Gateway, Winter Springs will look to go 3-0 against Osceola schools as they beat Celebration (17-3) earlier in the season and knocked off Liberty (60-6) at home last week.
Celebration (0-3) returns to action after a bye week and hosts Space Coast (3-1) at 7 p.m. The Vipers have not played a particularly tough schedule and Celebration will be looking for its first win of the 2025 season.
A pair of 1-3 teams clash when Poinciana hosts Haines City at 7 p.m. Haines City has had trouble finding the end zone this year, as the Hornets have been shutout three times and are averaging just four points per game. The Eagles were shutout by an extremely talented Evans team last week (31-0) and have also struggled on offense this year – scoring
13 points per game.
Liberty (0-3) rounds out the county action with a road game at Freedom (0-4).
Week 5 Games
Osceola (3-1) at Jones (2-2), 7 p.m.
Lake Howell (3-1) at Harmony (3-1), 7 p.m.
St. Cloud (3-1) at Merritt Island (2-2), 7 p.m.
Liberty (0-3) at Freedom (0-4), 7 p.m.
Haines City (1-3) at Poinciana (1-3), 7 p.m.
Space Coast (3-1) at Celebration (0-3), 7 p.m.
Winter Springs (3-1) at Gateway (1-3), 7 p.m.
Viera (2-2) at Tohopekaliga (2-1), 7 p.m.
