Predicting the winners of the 2024 Florida high school football playoffs 5A state semifinals

High School On SI is going on the record to make our predictions on the FHSAA 5A playoffs

Lakeland stuns Miami Central in a defensive struggle at Traz Powell Stadium. / Joe Frisaro

The Class 5A state playoffs continued in the state of Florida last week and the classification did not disappoint. 

Heading into Friday, it’s helped set up some fantastic state semifinal matchups, and the talented field of 4 teams is going to get sliced in half. Round 4 will feature several intriguing matchups, and several long road trips across the Sunshine State.

>>>FHSAA 2024 PLAYOFF BRACKETS<<<

While the state semifinal round might not see its tournament favorites fall, it has the potential to see several really good teams have their seasons upended a lot shorter than they anticipated. 

Check out who High School On SI predicts will win their region final matchups on Friday, and who will secure a spot in the Class 5A state championship.

CLASS 5A STATE SEMIFNALS

(3) Niceville (12-1) at (2) Lakeland (12-0)

Andy V's quick hits: Niceville was able to overcome a regular season loss to rival Mosley to capture the top spot in the region. Winning the region happened last week behind a huge performance from athlete Johnny Lewis Jr., who rushed for over 200 yards in a 31-10 win over rival Lincoln. The Eagles features UMass commitment Connor Mathews at running back, but they may look to Lewis more to running the rock a bit more against a vaunted Dreadnaughts' defense that's been playing well all season long. The X-Factor in this game will be 2026 star Malik Morris, who will should likely see time at running back along with duties at middle linebacker.

Prediction: Lakeland, 34-14

(4) St. Thomas Aquinas (10-3) at (1) Manatee (10-1)

Andy V's quick hits: The Hurricanes are one game away from booking its first ticket to a state championship game since the Joe Kinnan days. It's been a minute, right? Jacquez Green has also done a really nice job with this Manatee and behind the right arm of Army commitment Andrew Heidel, we see the Hurricanes giving the Raiders fits in this state semifinal. The Raiders haven't lost three games since 2017, which they ended up losing to Venice in the Class 7A state championship. St. Thomas Aquinas just keeps being challenged, but has answered the bell every time out. The Raiders just barely edged out Delray Beach Atlantic, 49-42, in ovetime last week.

Prediction: St. Thomas Aquinas, 38-35

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