Week 4 High School Football Preview

Plenty of district match ups are on the slate this evening in area high school football match ups. Here are the notables:

Buchholz (2-1) at Oakleaf (3-0) – 7 PM

An early gutcheck game for the Bobcats as they hit the road again after coming off a tough loss to Columbia last Friday. Despite that, Buchholz still drew plenty of confidence from the battle against the Tigers.

“We definitely came out of there aware that we’re a decent football team,” head coach Mark Whittemore said. “That’s important for these kids.”

And it will certainly be important tonight as they will look to crack Oakleaf’s stout defense, which has surrendered a measly four points per game and 195 yards per game in their three contests. They are led by Miami commit Shaq Quarterman, who has 32 tackles on the year.

The Knights rolled in last year’s meeting at Citizens Field, 35-14.

PK Yonge (2-1) at Bradford (2-1) – 7:30 PM

The Blue Wave have dropped three straight contests to the Tornadoes, a team that won just one game last season. Now Bradford is in position to make a run in the District 3A-4 race, looking to get a leg up as they host district foe PK Yonge.

Returning tonight for the Wave will be quarterback Dylan Mulhearn, who has been injured the past two weeks. Having him back behind center to guide the offense will be key against a tenacious Tornado defense.

“They’re aggressive and they’re going to come at you, stop your run and make you throw it,” head coach Kent Johnson said. “We have to be ready to meet aggression with aggression.”

Offense could be the name of the game tonight, as both defenses have surrendered 20+ points per game in their campaigns thus far.

Lake Weir (3-0) at Gainesville (2-1) – 7:30 PM

It’s a clash of Hurricanes at Citizens Field this evening, as GHS is looking to extend its streak of 14 consecutive home wins in district games. Lake Weir is 3-0 for the first time since 2009, but might not have the talent to match up with Gainesville tonight in the district opener.

Don’t be surprised to see the ball in the air quite a bit with GHS’s Caelan Christian (555 yards, 4 TDs) and Lake Weir’s Christian Creese (584 yards, 4 TDs) slinging it around. Both teams average over 30 points per game as well.

Gainesville has won the last six meetings between the two schools.

Other area games on tap include Santa Fe at Interlachen, St. Joseph at Oak Hall, Jacksonville Lee at Columbia, Williston at Newberry, and Chiefland at Branford.

TO HEAR AUDIO FROM COACHES, CLICK BELOW

Mark Whittemore – Buchholz Head Coach

Kent Johnson – PK Yonge Head Coach