Columbia (Lake City) continues atop regional poll after close road win
GAINESVILLE — With Hurricane Dorian wreaking havoc on most of the state of Florida, many high school football teams saw their games canceled or postponed for the second week of the season.
Even more games have already been called off for this week all over The Prep Zone Power Poll coverage area.
But for the second straight week, there is a unanimous #1 team, and it is the Columbia (Lake City) Tigers.
Columbia had to fight to win on the road against #16 Oakleaf (Orange Park), with the Tigers holding off a late two-point converstion attempt by the Knights for a 21-19 win. Columbia, which beat #5 Trinity Christian (Jacksonville), 38-7, in its opening game, improves to 2-0 and receives all nine first-place votes again this week.
Vanguard (Ocala) remains 2nd.
The Knights (2-0) rolled past then-RV Buchholz (Gainesville), 42-12, for the second win in as many weeks for Vanguard at Citizen’s Field. Vanguard was scheduled to travel to #14 Sandalwood (Jacksonville) this week, but that game has been canceled due to Duval County Public Schools being closed for Dorian.
Mandarin remains 3rd.
The defending 8A state champs improved to 2-0 with a 32-13 win at RV Ribault (Jacksonville). The Mustangs scheduled game at home against #9 DeLand this week has also been cancelled due to the hurricane.
North Marion (Citra) stays at #4.
The Colts (2-0) rolled past Palatka, 53-7, at home in week 2. North Marion’s scheduled game against Gainesville this week has been moved to September 20th.
Rounding out the top five is Trinity Christian.
The Conquerors (1-1) were on the road for the second straight week, and this time pulled out a thriller, 45-42, at Godby (Tallahassee) in overtime to even up their record. Trinity Christian was scheduled to host Ribault (Jacksonville) this Friday, but that game has also been canceled and a makeup time is not yet known.
Bartram Trail (St. Johns) moves up a spot to 6th after travelling to South Georgia for a 24-7 win at Brunswick. The Bears, who knocked off #13 Robert E. Lee (Jacksonville), 48-20, in their opening game, will host rival RV Creekside (St. Johns) this Saturday night in St. Johns County.
Madison County drops two slots to 7th despite a 55-0 romp at Jefferson County (Monticello). The Cowboys (2-0) hit the road again this Thursday to take on 5A Rickards (Tallahassee).
Raines (Jacksonville) moves up one spot to 8th despite having their game at Pahokee canceled in week 2. The Vikings (0-1) dropped their opener the week before to Jones (Orlando).
Despite a bye, DeLand (2-0) moves into the top 10 as the Bulldogs are ranked 9th.
Rounding out the top 10 is Mainland (Daytona Beach).
The Bucs (0-1) moved up a spot despite having a bye a week ago, and dropping their opening week game, 21-18, at DeLand. Mainland’s game against Treasure Coast (Port St. Lucie) is called off this week due to Dorian.
New to the rankings this week are Flagler Palm Coast at #17, South Sumter (Bushnell) at No. 18, and St. Augustine at #20. All three teams are off to 2-0 starts, with South Sumter blasting then-#8 Nature Coast Tech (Brooksville), 33-0, and St. Augustine getting revenge for a loss in 2018 with a 33-13 romp over cross-town rival Menendez (St. Augustine).
Hawthorne, ranked 13th the week before, drops out of the poll after an upset 20-17 overtime loss at Newberry.
University Christian (Jacksonville), 14th a week ago, also is out after losing on the road, 35-20, to Christ Church (NC).
Nature Coast Tech dropped 11 spots to 19th in this week’s poll.
Bolles (Jacksonville) drops out of the rankings after their game against Hialeah-Miami Lakes was canceled. The Bulldogs’ game in Savannah against New Hampstead this Friday was also called off due to Hurricane Dorian.
The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, basketball, baseball & softball teams (regardless of FHSAA classification) across 26 counties in North Florida (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Hernando, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lake, Levy, Madison, Marion, Nassau, Putnam, Sumter, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union & Volusia counties). It is voted on weekly by sportswriters and sportscasters and it is powered by Anytime Fitness of Gainesville.
THE PREP ZONE POWER POLL – 2019 FOOTBALL POLL #3
(School, followed by classification, first place votes, current record and total voting points)
1. Columbia (Lake City) (6A) (9) (2-0) – 180
2. Vanguard (Ocala) (5A) (2-0) – 166
3. Mandarin (Jacksonville) (8A) (2-0) – 158
4. North Marion (Citra) (5A) (2-0) – 154
5. Trinity Christian (Jacksonville) (3A) (1-1) – 137
6. Bartram Trail (St. Johns) (8A) (2-0) – 132
7. Madison County (1A) (2-0) – 124
8. Raines (Jacksonville) (5A) (0-1) – 111
9. DeLand (8A) (1-0) – 88
10. Mainland (Daytona Beach) (6A) (0-1) – 77
11T. Dunnellon (5A) (2-0) – 76
11T. The Villages (4A) (2-0) – 76
13. Robert E. Lee (Jacksonville) (6A) (1-1) – 70
14. Sandalwood (Jacksonville) (8A) (2-0) – 69
15. Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (8A) (1-0) – 45
16. Oakleaf (Orange Park) (8A) (1-1) – 43
17. Flagler Palm Coast (8A) (2-0) – 35
18. South Sumter (Bushnell) (4A) (2-0) – 26
19. Nature Coast Tech (Brooksville) (5A) (1-1) – 20
20. St. Augustine (6A) (2-0) – 19
Also receiving votes: Trinity Catholic (Ocala) (3A) (2-0) – 17; University Christian (Jacksonville) (2A) (1-1) – 13; Ponte Vedra (6A) (2-0) – 10; Bolles (Jacksonville) (4A) (0-1) – 5; Ed White (Jacksonville) (5A) (2-0) – 5; Orange Park (5A) (1-1) – 5; Dixie County (Cross City) (1A) (2-0) – 4; Hawthorne (1A) (1-1) – 4; Ribault (Jacksonville) (5A) (0-2) – 3; Creekside (St. Johns) (7A) (2-0) – 1; Fleming Island (Orange Park) (7A) (2-0) – 1.
