The Miami Dolphins held their high school football media days at Nova Southeastern University and there was much excitement in the air. The athletes were delighted and thrilled inside of Nova because the attention, and because media days signaled that the new high school football season is almost underway. At media days, we found out that they’re a lot of interesting storylines to keep an eye out for.
Today we’re going to highlight five teams from Broward county who you should keep an eye out for during the upcoming season. Here are five teams to look out for in Broward.
St. Thomas Aquinas:
The reputation for St. Thomas Aquinas speaks for itself. This might be the best football program in the entire state of Florida because of the way that the school each year seems to produce NFL talent. Every year we hear about an alumni from St. Thomas making a huge impact in the collegiate and NFL world.
Last year we got to see Joey Bosa dominate for Ohio State in the College Football Playoff. Bosa is now looked at as a top five pick in the 2016 NFL draft. Bosa’s brother Nick is still in high school and plays for St. Thomas. Nick Bosa is on his way to dominating comparable to the way his brother did.
Moreover, St. Thomas has Michael Irvin Jr., Sam Bruce, Kedonis Haslem and Jake Allen, all of which are going to play football at a major division one school. On the quest to win their ninth state championship St. Thomas opens the season with a big game against Booker T. Washington, the best school in Miami-Dade county.
Coconut Creek:
Coconut Creek has a lot of weapons at their disposal, however, there’s no one more important than the nation’s third best cornerback Trayvon Mullen. This year Mullen is expected to take Coconut Creek to the playoffs and dominate. Coconut Creek’s path won’t be easy because their schedule is chock full of tough games. In addition to playing American Heritage, they’ll have to play Miami Jackson and Hallandale. Let’s also keep in mind that Coconut Creek will travel up to Atlanta, Georgia to compete against Marist High School.
Coconut Creek is currently ranked No. 28 in the state of Florida but with an undefeated season under their belt they could have a top 15 ranking. Their team has all of the talents to do so, it’s going to only come down to execution.
American Heritage:
One of the schools that’re in Broward county that everyone understands is a contender is American Heritage.
Last year American Heritage ended the season win a romp of Tallahassee Godby in the Citrus Bowl winning the 5A state championship 38-0. When they captured the victory, Heritage became the second Broward county school to win back-to-back state championship titles since St. Thomas Aquinas did it in 2007-2008.
The team who is coached by a former NFL player and local Miami Hurricane standout Mike Rumph is only coming back hungrier than before. Heritage will get the opportunity to become the first Broward county team to win three straight state championships, but their road to repeating won’t be easy. On their schedule they play two games against out of state opponents, Stephenson (GA) and DeMatha Catholic (MD). In addition, Heritage will also play against IMG Academy, Miami Northwestern, Miami Jackson and Cardinal Gibbons before the season is over.
Dillard:
This season it looks like Dillard is prime and ready to attempt to have another big year in their school’s history. Dillard starts off the season against an out of state opponent in Eastview/Apple Valley from Apple Valley, Minnesota. Their next following game is against St. Thomas Aquinas who many feel could have the best team in Florida by the end of the season. Furthermore, Dillard will also travel to Lakeland, Florida to play against Lake Gibson, and travel to Parkland, Florida to play against Stoneman Douglas.
By the end of the season, we’ll see if they’ll have enough firepower to make the playoffs. A player to keep an eye out for is Demetrius White, he’s a 6’2 wide receiver and he’s also a prospect that is flying under the radar. He could have a big year and boost up his stock in order to get a better college scholarship offer.
Hallandale:
Last season Hallandale did what they were supposed to do, they won and they won big. Hallandale captured a district championship and their goals now have been increased. The next goal is to now get to the state championship game and their team is skilled enough to proceed to the next step.
Hallandale last year lost to Miami Central 35-19 in the playoffs and quarterback Tyler Huntley didn’t approve of their loss. Huntley, this offseason has been watching tape of his bad games and has studied in order to become better. Additionally, Huntley also took his development a step further and worked out with Teddy Bridgewater of the Minnesota Vikings.
Under the guidance of Huntley, Hallandale is only going to continue to get better. Last year Hallandale scored a whopping 38.5 points per game so it won’t be a surprise if they crack 40 this season.
