High School Football: Winners and Losers from Oct. 15-18

If you think college football has been whacky, the high school football scene hasn’t been that far behind whatsoever. The week of Oct. 15-18 provided more surprises and upsets around the country and we’re all here for it. We’re looking at the players who impressed, the coaches who stood out and the fans who are either celebrating or scratching their heads. This week, we’re highlighting the biggest winners and losers – the people and moments that made the past weekend memorable.

WINNERS

Hoover (Ala.) head coach Chip English: The 2024 season for English wasn’t your typical way of being named the interim head coach for a high school football program. English was named the Buccaneers’ temporary lead man when a video surfaced of a practice, which led to then-head coach Drew Gilmer and defensive coordinator Adam Helms both being placed on indefinite leave. All that has happened since then has been somewhat unexpected success with English at the helm, which led to his permanent hiring over the off-season. English’s best win as Hoover’s head coach happened last week when Hoover beat Thompson, 33-30, as the Buccaneers are playing as good as anyone in the state of Alabama.

The St. James Academy Strivers (Va.): We’ve got to give this team out of Virginia their flowers, regardless of outsiders’ perception on how good they think or don’t think The First Academy (Fla.) are. Let’s first say, the Royals might be one of the best 4-4 high school football teams in the country and for the Strivers to pull off a victory on the road against a team that has well over a dozen Division I prospects on their team is impressive in any state. With five minutes left in the second quarter, St. James Academy was trailing 24-0 against the No. 20 team in the state, but that’s when the Strivers began making their comeback. Strivers’ head coach Darryl Overton guided his club all the way back to a 41-40 win over The First Academy and now according to the Massey Ratings, the top team out of Virginia. Not too shabby.

IMG Academy Ascenders (Fla.): All the Ascenders continue to keep doing is winning and against some of the best competition in the country. Too bad there isn’t a national championship game, but a matchup against St. Frances Academy on Nov. 7 is looking more and more like it could be one in some sort of way. With all the talk before the season about Mater Dei-St. John Bosco on Halloween has slowly shifted out East towards this highly anticipated IMG-SFA contest on the first Friday of November. With a couple games left before the rivalry matchup with the Panthers, things could get really interesting on the mythical national championship side of things.

LOSERS

Bixby Spartans (OK): Now this one we preface with they’re not in this category or actually losing in anyway other than they couldn’t help the score being the way it was last week. Rivals spoke with Bixby head coach Loren Montgomery last week and the Spartans’ lead man didn’t love that his team won 92-0 over Enid (OK), but what else can a man do to avoid it? Starters were taken out after the opening quarter and a running clock was initiated. That didn’t slow down much as Bixby carried a 71-0 lead at halftime and still managed to score three more times in the second half. Sometimes, a team is so bad off, there’s not much you can do to not score, even when backups are in the game.

Bartram Trail (Fla.) head coach Cory Johns: According to a News4Jax report, Bartram Trail head coach Cory Johns will sit out three games for being in communication with a student-athlete who wasn’t enrolled at the school. Johns’ punishment mirrors the same one handed down recently to Nease (Fla.) defensive coordinator Robert Garth, who was alleged to be in contact with a student-athlete via social media that attend Nease. Bartram Trail losing their head coach for three games amid a trying season already just makes matters that much more difficult this fall. It is tough for both Johns and the Bears as the season comes to an end here in the next couple of weeks.

Millard South Patriots (Neb.): I mean, is there really any contest that the Patriots can play that they won’t end up winning by more than 60 or 70 points? Millard South’s goal is getting back and repeating as Nebraska’s Class 1A state champions, but don’t expect the regular season for the Patriots to be any kind of warmup to that. The Nebraska powerhouse has through six games on the field out-scored opponents 426-10 this season, with the latest win being a 84-0 decision over North Platte. It has been beyond one-sided for opponents of the Patriots and it is no wonder why former NFL’er Danny Woodhead spoke out regarding the state of Nebraska high school football recently.

How to Follow National High School Football

For high school football fans looking to keep up with scores around the nation, staying updated on the action is now easier than ever with the Rivals High School Scoreboard. This comprehensive resource provides real-time updates and final scores from across the state, ensuring you never miss a moment of the Friday night frenzy. From nail-biting finishes to dominant performances, the Rivals High School Scoreboard is your one-stop destination for tracking all the gridiron excitement across the country.