Vote: South Florida high school football Player of the Week (8/26/2024)

The opening week of the South Florida high school football is complete and now it’s time to vote for the top performer in South Florida

After his breakout performance on national television on Saturday, Julius Jones of St. Thomas Aquinas is a candidate in this week's South Florida High School Football Player of the Week poll. Vote for your choice. / Joe Frisaro

South Florida was front and center nationally for opening week in high school football. 

The Broward County National Football Showcase, televised on ESPN, featured some of the top teams in the country. Then, there were key state matchups, like Lakeland traveling to Traz Powell Stadium to take on Miami Central. 

In terms of publicity, it was a terrific first week. But in terms of results, several South Florida teams took their lumps. Lakeland upset Central, while American Heritage, St. Thomas Aquinas, Chaminade-Madonna and Cardinal Gibbons were defeated in the Showcase.

Say this about the opening week, the top teams embraced the challenge of facing elite competition. They didn’t open up looking for automatic wins. And SBLive Florida was tracking all the action. 

Now, we ask you to vote on who the top performers were in our first South Florida football Player of the Week poll.

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SBLive voting polls are intended to be a fun way to create fan engagement and express support for your favorite high school athletes and teams. Unless expressly noted, there are no awards for winning the voting. Our primary focus is to highlight the abilities and accomplishments of all the athletes and teams included in our poll. You can vote as often as you wish and are encouraged to share our polls with others. The use of voting bots and other forms of automated voting are not allowed. Individuals will be removed from the poll if any form of automated voting can be verified. - SBLive Sports

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Voting closes at 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Sep. 1st. The winner will be announced in the following week's poll. Here are this week's nominees:

Here are this week’s nominations:

Darius Clements, RB, Miami Southridge

The Spartans nearly pulled off a huge upset against Columbus, but came up short, 17-14. With 3:51 remaining in the fourth quarter, Clements’ touchdown run gave Southridge a 14-10 lead. 

Tyler Chance, QB, Chaminade-Madonna

Stepping up to take the starting job in the opener, Chance was 27-for-40 for 266 yards and three touchdowns against St. John Bosco.

Bryce Fitzgerald, DB, Columbus

On offense and defense, Fitzgerald is capable of making big plays. The Miami Hurricanes commit posted a 92-yard interception return for a touchdown in the Explorers’ 17-14 comeback win against Southridge.

Robert Kerns, QB, Archbishop McCarthy

Through the air and on the ground, Kerns played a huge role in the Mavericks’ 23-6 win over Community School of Naples. Passing, the junior threw for 110 yards and a touchdown, and he rushed for 131 yards, and another score.

Jacques Dixson Jr., RB, NSU University

In a 51-7 romp over Coral Springs Charter, Dixson rushed for 79 yards and two touchdowns.

Khamari Marceus, WR, Columbus

With 23 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Marceus weaved his way from 14 yards out for the game-winning touchdown for the Explorers, who rallied to a 17-14 win over Southridge.

Julius Jones, WR, St. Thomas Aquinas

A four-star sophomore, Jones stood out on a national stage, catching 11 passes for 100 yards, including a 52-yard grab against Bishop Gorman.

Javian Mallory, RB, West Boca Raton

Able to erase a 13-point deficit against Benjamin, the Bulls rallied to a 14-13 victory. Mallory, a four-star, scored both of West Boca’s touchdowns.

Sebastian Circo, QB, Western

The Wildcats lost a tough one to Hoover (Alabama) in the Broward Showcase. Circo made his first start with the Wildcats, and was 15-for-28 for 131 yards and a touchdown.

Jasen Lopez, WR, Chaminade-Madonna

A transfer from True North Classical Academy, Lopez had 10 catches for 110 yards in the loss to St. John Bosco.

Jaden Carey, DB, St. Thomas Aquinas

The sophomore had a key interception for the Raiders in the first half in their loss to Bishop Gorman.

Naeshaun Montgomery, WR, Miami Central

On a night the Rockets didn’t get much going offensively in their 16-8 loss to Lakeland, Montgomery had a 56-yard touchdown reception, and on he added another grab for 25 yards in the second half.

Andrew Indorf, QB, St. Thomas Aquinas

Facing the best brought out the best in Indorf, especially in the first half. The Raiders fell to Bishop Gorman, but Indorf impressed 198 yards passing and two TDs.

Jayden Miller, QB, NSU University

On the mark all night, Miller completed all 13 of his pass attempts and threw for 228 yards and four TDs against Coral Springs Charter.

Calvin Russell, WR, Miami Northwestern

It didn’t take long for Russell to display why he is ranked as a five-star player. The 6-foot-5 junior caught two touchdown passes in the Bulls’ dominating win over Coconut Creek in Teddy Bridgewater’s coaching debut. One of the scores was from 39 yards.

Jayden Gonzalez, QB, Pembroke Pines Charter

The Jaguars jumped all over Northeast, 41-13. Gonzalez threw for 228 yards and four touchdowns.

Corey Pruitt, DB, Palmetto

The first week was filled with upsets, and Palmetto pulled one off, beating Homestead, 14-10. Pruitt had two interceptions, with the second coming off a deflection that secured the win.

JaMarcus Pierre, CB, Cardinal Gibbons

The Chiefs had a rough opener, losing 49-20 to Lake Mary in the Broward Showcase. A bright spot was Pierre, who had an interception, and was standout performer on defense.

Byron Louis, RB, American Heritage

At the Broward County National Showcase, Louis racked up 171 yards and had a 68-yard scoring run in a 37-28 loss to Milton (Georgia).

Deangelo Thompson, DL, Miami Northwestern

As part of the Bulls’ suffocating defense, Thompson recorded 2.5 sacks against Coconut Creek. 

Samari Reed, WR, Monarch

Showing his versatility, Reed (Ole Miss recruit) scored three rushing touchdowns and added a pair of two-point conversions, leading the Knights’ 30-29 comeback win over Peachtree Ridge (Georgia), in the Broward Showcase. Operating out of the wildcat, Reed ran for 106 yards.

Leon Strawder, QB, Miami Northwestern

Talk about efficiency. Strawder was 9-for-14 passing for 112 yards and four touchdown passes in the Bulls’ lopsided win in the Broward Showcase.