Florida high school football Thursday night kickoff [8/22/2024]: 5 takeaways

There was plenty of action that took place across the state and we provide some takeaways from the night

Columbus vs Mandarin - FHSAA 4M Football State Championship / Matt Christopher

The Florida high school football season kicked off its season on Thursday night with quite the appetizer before Friday's main course of games.

Before Friday and even Saturday's national slate of games, there were plenty of good ones played on Thursday and we've got some takeaways from those contests. Take a look below at the five takeaways from Florida's opening day of games.

• HS FOOTBALL SCOREBOARD | RECRUITING UPDATES

SBLive/SI Top 25 preseason high school football rankings: Mater Dei starts 2024 season No. 1 in the country

---

No. 1 IMG Academy falls on the road to Corner Canyon (Utah)

So who has the Ascenders losing on the road to start the season on their Florida high school football bingo card? I mean, we knew it would be a matter of time until someone eventually beat the Ascenders again. We just didn't know it would be to start off the season, though. IMG Academy lost 35-34 to Corner Canyon (Utah) in an upset that reminds many of the Ascenders' loss to Miami Central a couple seasons ago at home. This was surprising and begs the question, could IMG Academy lose multiple games this season? With Bergen Catholic, Cocoa, Mandarin and Venice all dotted along the schedule, it's all plausible at this point.

Teddy Bridgewater leads Miami Northwestern to a thrashing of Coconut Creek

Miami Northwestern's favorite son made his triumphant return in dominant fashion. Teddy Bridgewater's regular season debut can't be judged anything other than an overall success, with the former NFL'er leading the Bulls to a 45-0 thrashing of a good Coconut Creek team on the road. Leon Strawder showed his abilities under center and Calvin Russell displayed why he's a 5-star 2026 prospect. Needing a game to show folks, like myself, why they should be favored in a lot more games this fall was all anyone needed to see. The West looks like they're back to winning football.

Columbus survives scare against Southridge

This isn't your Columbus Explorers team that won the two previous Class 4M state championships. The Explorers back in the spring struggled against Bishop Verot and Sarasota Riverview, needing a summer to get right and a few transfers to roll in. Dave Dunn's bunch fought tooth and nail against Southridge, pulling off a nail biter, 17-14. Now you can chalk it up to that the Spartans are vastly improved, which Southridge is getting better. There's no debating that. But championship-level good? That's the kind of team Columbus has been, but they showed its mettle by pulling off the win in the waning moments. We will see how the Explorers navigate a difficult 2024 schedule the rest of the way.

West Boca Raton barely edges out Benjamin in defensive slugfest

Talk about two teams just going blow for blow in a defensive battle. Both programs last season showed the ability to win games pretty and ugly, with no matter how they get it done. The Bulls defeated the Buccaneers 14-13, showing grit and determination along the way. When you have a talented front seven, led by defensive end Xavier Reed, and a power run game behind Javian Mallory, you can win low-scoring affairs like this.

Dunbar, New Smyrna Beach and Tarpon Springs have solid showings

We can't forget about the best of the rest. Yes, there was other teams playing on the night and some notable ones at that. Dunbar, a Class 3S state semifinalist the last couple of years, downed Cypress Lake 30-15. Sam Brown still has plenty of talent, so expect this group to compete against Naples and Port Charlotte in Class 4A, District 12. John Wilkinson's New Smyrna Beach Barracudas made quick work of Golden (Colorado), winning 41-19. It's been a work in progress, but it feels like Wilkinson might have his team just about there as they look to take the next step. Tarpon Springs followed up the 48 points they scored against Sunlake in the kickoff classic with a 42-20 drubbing of Seminole. The Spongers start off 1-0 and could this be the year they knock off rival East Lake?

---

Follow SBLive Florida throughout the 2024 high school football season for Live Updates, the most up to date Schedules & Scores and complete coverage from the preseason through the state championships!

---

Be sure to Bookmark High School on SI for all of the latest high school football news.

Download the SBLive App

To get live updates on your phone - as well as follow your favorite teams and top games - you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App| Download Android App

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