50 things we observed from Florida's high school football Week 5 action

Week 5 was wild to say the least around the Sunshine State and we list 50 things we noticed

Cardinal Mooney's Raymen Mosley (#1) picks up a first down. Cardinal Mooney played host to Bishop Verot winning 49-28 over Verot at John Heath Field at Austin Smithers Stadium in Sarasota. / Thomas Bender/ Sarasota Herald-Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Week 5 was anything that could happen, happened and then some.

The unexpected went haywire throughout the high school football scene all over the Sunshine State this past week.

From major upsets, unexpected results and of course there was plenty of surprises along the way, as we observed aplenty from the over 200 games played.

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Here we list 50 things we observed from Florida's Week 5 of action.

1. Preston Wright as Chaminade-Madonna's starting QB continues to be the best storyline

It's another week and another Preston Wright start. Oh yeah and another Chainade-Madonna victory. Wright threw for nearly 300 yards and two touchdowns in the Lions' 45-20 victory over Miami Norland. Every week, the former Ocala Trinity Catholic quarterback impresses and this looks like what should be a permanent move to keep Wright under center for 2024 and roll with Tyler Chance in 2025-26.

2. Venice pulls off another thriller

Action from a high school football game between Bishop Verot and Venice at Bishop Verot on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024. Venice won the offensive slugfest. / Andrew West/The News-Press/USA Today Network / USA TODAY NETWORK

Venice just has a taste for the theatrics. The Indians always seems to be in some kind of a barn burner every week, but finding a way to win. Dorien Jones is a star running back in the making after bulldozing his way to over 200 yards against Cocoa in a 54-51 thriller. If anything else, Venice is very entertaining to watch every time out.

3. How about the Nease Panthers?

Ponte Vedra Sharks Mason Hauseman (24) makes an ankle tackle on Nease Panthers quarterback Nate Harry (4) during late first quarter action. The Nease Panthers hosted the Ponte Vedra Sharks in High School Football Friday evening, August 23, 2024. The Panthers were the 24 to 7 victors over the Sharks. / Bob Self/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK

So, who had the Nease Panthers upending St. Augustine on its high school football bingo card? We certainly did not, but Nate Harry and crew pulled off a 35-34 stunner up in Northeast Florida. The win vaults the Panthers into the Top 25 this week and the question is can they keep it up? This was definitely one of the more surprising results of Week 5.

4. Cardinal Mooney has arrived

Cardinal Mooney played host to Bishop Verot winning 49-28 over Verot at John Heath Field at Austin Smithers Stadium in Sarasota. / Thomas Bender/ Sarasota Herald-Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Jared Clark and his bunch were probably getting tired of looking at weekly rankings and analysis, with Cardinal Mooney always being left out. Not no more. The Cougars knocking off Bishop Verot 49-28 was another stunning upset victory by an unranked team. Needless to say, Cardinal Mooney has arrived when it comes to the state rankings, making their debut at No. 25.

5. Miami Central edges out Plantation American Heritage

Miami Central is looking to rebound from an 8-4 2023 season and the end of their run of four straight state championships as the 2024 season is set to get underway. / Robson Lopes

Displaying what they can do all across the board, the Rockets overcame a 21-7 deficit at one point to defeat the visiting Plantation American Heritage Patriots. Miami Central got a big night from quarterback Anthony McQueen, who led the comeback for the Rockets. This firmly entrenches the Rockets as the favorite in Class 3A.

6. Niceville just keeps on keeping on

The Eagles defense converges on a Raiders runner during the Niceville South Sumter football game at Niceville. / Michael Snyder / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Eagles continued their dominance tour of the Florida Panhandle and rolled to a 42-25 victory over Choctawhatchee. Standing at 5-0 and having done this all without the services of East Carolina running back Eddie Love Jr. has been very impressive. It'll be interesting to see how good this team is with Love Jr. in the lineup.

7. Manatee's trajectory meter is trending up

The Manatee Hurricanes with a 41-0 win over the Southeast Seminoles in a non-district game Friday night, Aug. 30, 2024, in Bradenton. / Thomas Bender/ Sarasota Herald-Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK

Up against a talented IMG Academy White team, the Hurricanes smacked the Ascenders 44-7. This Manatee team every week is showing why they deserved consideration in the Top 25 rankings and the last two wins have been very impressive. Jacquez Green's bunch will have a chance again this week against a talented Pinellas Park team.

8. IMG Academy dismantles Mandarin

IMG Academy running back Donovan Johnson (#26) weaves his way through Cocoa High defenders on his way to the end zone in the second quarter. The IMG Academy National squad hosted the Cocoa High School Tigers Friday, Sept. 6, 2024 in Bradenton. / Mike Lang / Sarasota Herald-Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK

We saw this coming because of the littany of injuries piling up over at Mandarin. The Ascenders rolled to a 49-6 victory over the Mustangs and now setting up an interesting next two weeks against Phenix City Central (Alabama's No. 1 team) and a trip down Interstate 75 to Venice.

9. What has happened at Plant?

There was a lot to like about the Plant Panthers coming off a Class 4M state semifinal appearance, but the losses are starting to stack up. Plant has fallen to Gaither, Tampa Bay Tech and now Sumner, the most surprising of them all. It won't get too much easier against No. 4 Armwood this week.

10. Zephyrhills flexed proverbial muscle against Gulf

Dave Walters

Needing to show they are still one of Pasco County's top teams, the Bulldogs answered the call delightfully. Zephyrhills responded with a 48-21 win, welcoming back 5-star DJ Pickett into the lineup after the LSU commitment was held out of last week's Land O' Lakes game.

11. The First Academy's win over Delray Beach Atlantic, 41-28, was impressive seeing that they were dominating the game at one point.

12. Should we have seen Dr. Phillips defeating Lake Mary, 26-21, coming?

13. West Boca Raton has yielded only 28 points in four games.

14. A nice story out of he Florida Panhandle is Baker, who is 4-1 right now.

15. Blanche Ely has cooled off immensley since beating Chaminade-Madonna.

16. Jordan Durham of Zarephath Academy has 2,097 yards passing this season. Whoa.

17. Dereon Coleman made the argument he's the top dual-threat quarterback in all of the Southeast.

18. Cocoa's Brady Hart threw for 498 yards and four touchdowns in the loss to Venice.

19. Cliff Lohrey notched win No. 1 at DeSoto County, 29-26, over Bayshore.

20. Titusville beating Spruce Creek 21-18 was lowkey one of the better games on the Week 5 slate.

21. What a start for Taylor County as they now sit at 5-0 after beating Blountstown.

22. Edgewater made easy work Apopka, winning 35-0.

23. Buchholz drops its second straight, falling to Richmond Hill (Georgia), 35-28.

24. Lecanto remains Citrus County's best after soundly defeating Crystal River, 35-7.

25. How many people how Glades Central sitting at 5-0 this fall?

26. The Battle for Lakewood Ranch (Sarasota) belongs to Out-of-Door, 36-31 winners over Sarasota Christian.

27. Mandarin not having either Tramell Jones or Jaime Ffrench has derailed what could've been a very special season.

28. Didn't see Sarasota Riverview beating Sarasota Booker. Nice win for the Rams.

29. Impressive 38-13 win by Mosley over Escambia. Could the Dolphins seriously challenge Niceville?

30. We have Eau Gallie on the radar when it comes to consideration for the Florida Top 25 after a 40-7 rout of University.

31. Tavares is back on track after a 22-0 shutout of The Villages.

32. Two of Florida's most northeastern teams, besides Fernandina Beach, went at it with West Nassau edging Yulee 22-21.

33. Leesburg needed a game-winning field goal in the waning moments to defeat Land O' Lakes.

34. Got to continue recognizing the job Curt Bradley has done at Southeast, now sitting at 3-2.

35. Plantation keeps moving along undefeated after beating West Broward, 23-0.

36. First Baptist Academy of Naples is another team on the radar after a 31-13 defeat of Port Charlotte.

37. We can't wait to see the stats after Bolles defeated Oakleaf, 57-50.

38. Sarasota has been a nice surprise at 3-2.

39. Two thrillers in Hillsborough County: Steinbrenner 45-44 over Plant City and Spoto, 44-42 over Chamberlain.

40. East Lake picked up win No. 1 in a thrilling 44-34 win over rival Tarpon Springs.

41. Lakeland is 2-0 against Dade County teams after a 48-13 win over Miami Booker T. Washington.

42. Springstead won the 'Glory Days Burger Bowl' 51-14 over Hernando. Eagles making the case for best team in Hernando County this season.

43. Mainland just can't nab win No. 1, losing to Coffee (Georgia), 10-7.

44. The Gainesville Hurricanes are quietly having a nice season, sitting at 4-1.

45. Clearwater makes a statement in a 23-18 win over Largo.

46. St. Petersburg just barely edged out Lakewood in the 'Battle for the Burg.'

47. Tate is 5-0 for the first time since 1999.

48. Pinellas Park-Manatee could be a good Week 6 game.

49. Will the FHSAA be announcing the rest of the state championship venues this week? They did so this time last year.

50. Week 6 isn't a strong week when it comes to top-tier matchups.

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