Marty Pallman
Week six of the high school football season came and went last week as the halfway point of the season was passed.
And two unbeaten teams remain at the top of the Prep Zone Power Poll this week.
Mainland (Daytona Beach) remains at the top after an easy 45-0 romp at Pine Ridge (Deltona) last Friday night. The Bucs (6-0) received ten of the 13 first-place votes to stay No. 1 for the sixth straight week. Mainland is off this week before hosting Deltona on Oct. 12.
Right behind Mainland is another unbeaten team in No. 2 Buchholz (Gainesville). The Bobcats (6-0) also had a bye last week but still earned the other three first-place votes. Buchholz returned to action Thursday night at Citizens Field against city rival Gainesville, where they defeated the Hurricanes, 35-7.
Two more unbeatens, Hawthorne and St. Augustine, are tied for third. The Hornets (5-0) also had the week off last week, and travel to Pinellas County to play winless 2M Gibbs (St. Petersburg) on Friday.
St. Augustine also improved to 5-0 with a 49-9 beating of Matanzas (Palm Coast). The Yellow Jackets face a tough test this week at St. Johns County rival RV (receiving votes) Nease (Ponte Vedra).
Rounding out the top five is another unbeaten, 5-0 Bradford (Starke). The Tornadoes pounded rival Keystone Heights, 48-6, but faces a tough road trip this week at 4S Oakleaf (Orange Park).
Leading off the second five and remaining No. 6 is Trinity Christian (Jacksonville). The Conquerors (4-2) slipped past 3S No. 7 Rockledge, 19-13, in overtime.
Bartram Trail (St. Johns) is at No. 7. The Bears (3-2) rebounded from a heartbreaking loss at St. Augustine the week before by winning at Fleming Island (Orange Park), 49-28.
Vanguard (Ocala) moves up a spot to No. 8 as the Knights (4-1) blanked Belleview, 47-0.
Another unbeaten team, Suwannee (Live Oak), also moves up to No. 9 as the Bulldogs (5-0) won at Taylor County (Perry), 33-9.
Rounding out the top 10 this week is DeLand. The Bulldogs (4-1) have won four in a row since an opening week loss to Mainland. Last week, DeLand slipped past then-RV Spruce Creek, 28-27, on the road.
Among Mainstreet Daily News teams in the second 10 is 12th-ranked Williston. The Red Devils (6-0) also remained undefeated with a 56-0 blanking of North Florida Educational Institute (Jacksonville). Williston faces a tough test on the road this Friday at RV Newberry.
Also receiving votes from the Mainstreet area are Newberry and Fort White.
Providence (Jacksonville) is new to the rankings this week at No. 20. The Stallions (5-1) upset then-No. 8 University Christian (Jacksonville), 17-14, on the road to win their fifth game in a row. University Christian falls to No. 15 with the loss.
Also moving in is No. 19 Madison County. Dropping out are Oakleaf and Palatka, who lost its first game of the season 24-19 at Tocoi Creek (St. Augustine).
The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, girls basketball, boys basketball, softball & baseball 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 – 2023 FOOTBALL POLL #7
(School, followed by classification, first-place votes, current record, and total voting points)
Teams in bold are inside the Mainstreet Daily News coverage area.
1. Mainland (Daytona Beach) (3S) (10) (6-0) – 257
2. Buchholz (Gainesville) (4S) (3) (5-0) – 243
3T. Hawthorne (1R) (5-0) – 225
3T. St. Augustine (3S) (5-0) – 225
5. Bradford (Starke) (2S) (5-0) – 198
6. Trinity Christian (Jacksonville) (1M) (4-2) – 182
7. Bartram Trail (St. Johns) (4S) (3-2) – 157
8. Vanguard (Ocala) (3S) (5-1) – 151
9. Suwannee (Live Oak) (2S) (5-0) – 146
10. DeLand (4S) (4-1) – 139
11. Raines (Jacksonville) (2M) (4-1) – 129
12. Williston (1R) (6-0) – 121
13. University (Orange City) (4S) (6-0) – 118
14. South Sumter (Bushnell) (2S) (5-1) – 69
15. University Christian (Jacksonville) (1M) (3-2) – 65
16. Ponte Vedra (4S) (4-1) – 62
17. Bolles (Jacksonville) (2M) (3-3) – 60
18. Mandarin (Jacksonville) (4M) (4-2) – 48
19. Madison County (1R) (3-1) – 34
20. Providence (Jacksonville) (1M) (5-1) – 33
Also receiving votes: Leesburg (3S) (5-1) – 18; Creekside (St. Johns) (4S) (3-3) – 12; Lake Minneola (Minneola) (4S) (3-3) – 11; Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) (2M) (4-1) – 10; Newberry (1R) (4-1) – 5; Lafayette (Mayo) (1R) (4-1) – 3; Clay (Green Cove Springs) (4-1) – 2; Nease (Ponte Vedra) (3S) (4-2) – 2; New Smyrna Beach (4S) (4-1) – 2; Palatka (2S) (4-1) – 2; Fort White (1R) (4-1) – 1.