Wiregrass Ranch & Mitchell to meet for a once in a lifetime district championship tilt

Never in Pasco County high school football history have two teams met with undefeated records in the final week of the season and a district championship on the line

Mitchell Mustangs football team / Alex Walworth

A once in a lifetime opportunity is something any athlete hears about and rises to the occasion.

For Wiregrass Ranch and Mitchell when they meet on Thursday night at Mustang Stadium, the two programs will do something Pasco County teams have never done: Play for a district championship in the final week of the season and both be undefeated.

When thinking of the top county teams in recent memory, there's not a long list of teams that match up to how good these two have been throughout the course of the regular season. Actually, might have to think of the last time two teams in the county met undefeated at the end of a season.

Oh, that's right. It was in 1992 when undefeated Land O' Lakes and Pasco met in a non-district clash, with the Pirates coming out on top. That very Pasco team ended up winning the county's lone state championship.

Now we're not saying the winner of this game will come away with the Class 6A state crown, but one will come away with the Class 6A, District 9 title, however. Thinking long and hard about it, this was a game that was predicted to be the best on the North Suncoast all year long.

Can it live up to the hype?

If history tells us anything, this game tends to let down a little bit when it comes to margin of victory.

Heck, all we have to do is travel back in time to last year's meeting between the two clubs as the Bulls pulled away handily with a 55-34 victory. In 2022, it would be Mitchell handing Wiregrass Ranch a tail whooping, winning 50-6.

Wiregrass Ranch in 2021 handed Mitchell a 21-6 loss and in 2020, the Bulls fell 42-14 to the region finalist Mustangs. If you get the picture, almost every other year, the other team is winning in this series. Oh yeah, the home team has always been victorious and will anything change this time around?

If Wiregrass Ranch head coach Mark Kantor, a longtime staple in the head coaching community in the Tampa Bay region, and his staff have a final say, they look to change they very narrative with a talented crew heading into town.

The Bulls feature two Division talents in running back Nathan McNeil (Iowa commit) and wide receiver Bryce Randolph (Liberty commit). Throw in an experienced offensive line and quarterback Dillon Rose-Bailey at the controls, this team has been one of the most consistent in the 813.

Flipping to the 727 area code area part of town in Pasco, Mitchell's got a high-flying offense at their disposal as well. The Mustangs feature a junior-laden group, headed by quarterback Cayden Thomas, running back Corey Simms and wide receivers Bryce Backus, RJ Peabody.

Both teams will not be lacking for offensive firepower whatsoever, but it may really come down to which offense can make the most stops on the evening. Nonetheless, it's shaking out to being a slobber knocker of a district title tilt over in Trinity on Thursday.

A one of a kind meeting with major implications and a possible No. 1 spot in the region on the line. What more can you ask for in the final week of the Florida high school football season?

FHSAA's official high school football bracket reveal show to air Friday evening

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