3 takeaways from Mitchell's 6A-9 district title win over Wiregrass Ranch

The home team has always won between these two teams and on Thursday night, that didn't change one bit

Mitchell Mustangs after winning the Class 6A, District 9 championship / Andy Villamarzo

TRINITY, FLORIDA- The margin of victory in the all-time series between Mitchell and Wiregrass Ranch heading into Thursday night's Class 6A, District 9 championship game was 30 points.

It wasn't quite the final margin, actually half that, but at times it felt like a 30-point deficit for the Bulls.

Mitchell rushed out to a 14-0 first quarter lead and never looked back in a dominating 31-14 win over Wiregrass Ranch. The Mustangs secured the 6A-9 district crown and at least an outside shot of claiming the Class 6A, Region 3 No. 1 seed.

The Mustangs (10-0) ended up out-gaining the Bulls 476-281 offensively on the evening in a game that saw plenty of penalties and turnovers. Nonetheless, Mitchell was able to take advantage of the Wiregrass Ranch (9-1) miscues and notch a landslide win.

High School On SI was on hand for the rivalry game and give you three takeaways from the contest:

1. Home team dominates this cross-county rivalry

Mitchell Mustangs football team / Alex Walworth

We gotta call this thang a rivalry because these two teams just flat out don't really like one another. If the plethora of flags throughout the game didn't tell you that, I'm not quite sure what will. Not matter what the year is or how good one of the teams are, the home team ends up dominating the game. This time, the game was played at Mustang Stadium and though the crowd wasn't quite a sold out affair, it just didn't matter. Whether its the long drive across State Road 54 or just mental hurdle, neither team has figured out how to win on the road against each other. Mitchell continued the series trend and pulled away with a double-digit victory.

2. Let's give Mitchell's Corey Simms his flowers

All the talk heading into the game was about Wiregrass Ranch running back Nathan McNeil, an Iowa commitment. Many might've forgot that Mitchell has themselves a pretty good tailback themselves in junior Corey Simms. Simms displayed his overall versatility all throughout the evening, whether it was running in between the tackles, off tackle or catching passes. When it comes to all-around running backs, it's surprising that no Division I schools are taking a closer look at the back. Simms ended the night with 249 yards on 30 carries and scored three touchdowns. What a night for the junior back and he's not done just yet.

3. Wiregrass Ranch falls flat

Wiregrass Ranch improved to 2-0 after a 21-19 win over Coearwater / Wiregrass Ranch Football/X

The way Wiregrass Ranch had been playing all season long against some pretty good competition, it seemed like it would be surprising to see them come out flat whatsoever against Mitchell. Welp, here we are surprised. This team had played some solid teams throughout the regular season, defeating the likes of Clearwater, South Sumter and Zephyrhills. Heading into Thursday's contest, it seemed like the Bulls were the more battle-tested team. They might be, but none of it mattered when it meant the most. Mark Kantor's crew could see Mitchell again in the postseason, but they'll likely be on the road in the regional quarterfinals before getting another crack at the Mustangs. For now, it's wondering what could've been.

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-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @sblivefl