With the high school football playoffs only four weeks away, some teams are already clinching district titles.
One of those teams remains at the top of The Prep Zone Power Poll, which ranks the top 20 high school football teams across 26 counties.
St. Augustine wrapped up the District 3-4A title last week with a 56-7 romp at Clay (Green Cove Springs). The Yellow Jackets (7-0) remain on top of the poll once again this week, receiving eight of the 11 first-place votes.
Buchholz (Gainesville) leapfrogs Raines (Jacksonville) into the No. 2 spot this week. The Bobcats (7-1) had no problem with a 42-7 District 3-6A win at Tocoi Creek (St. Augustine). Buchholz can clinch the title with a win at home against Bartram Trail (St. Johns) next week. The Bobcats gained two first-place votes.
Raines remained unbeaten at 7-0 and dropped a spot despite a 27-14 win over RV (receiving votes) Madison County. The Vikings received the final first-place vote.
Bolles (Jacksonville) remains fourth as they clinched the District 4-2A title with a 48-0 blanking of Andrew Jackson (Jacksonville). Rounding out the top five is DeLand. The Bulldogs improved to 7-0 with a 49-21 win over Flagler Palm Coast.
Spruce Creek (Port Orange) again leads off the second five. The Hawks moved to 6-0 with a 35-0 victory over University (Orange City).
Nease (Ponte Vedra) and Mandarin (Jacksonville) are tied at No. 7. The Panthers (5-2) got past Bartram Trail, 10-0, and Mandarin slipped past Fletcher (Neptune Beach), 22-13, in a District 2-6A game. The Mustangs (7-1) face No. 9 Oakleaf (Orange Park) for the district title on Oct. 24.
Oakleaf (6-1) blanked First Coast (Jacksonville), 24-0, while Columbia (Lake City) rounds out the top 10. The Tigers (7-1) easily won at Ridgeview (Orange Park), 44-0.
Among the Mainstreet Daily News area teams in the second 10 are No. 11 Bradford (Starke), 13th-ranked Hawthorne, 17th-ranked Chiefland and No. 20 Eastside (Gainesville). Williston and Branford are receiving votes.
Bradford took care of Newberry 28-7 and can clinch the District 5-2A championship with a win against Santa Fe (Alachua) on Oct. 24.
Hawthorne (5-1) won a big road game 42-29 at University Christian (Jacksonville), and the Christians (5-3) dropped out of the poll this week.
Chiefland (7-1) moves into the top 20 as they won their sixth straight game and handed Taylor County (Perry) their first loss of the season, 30-15.
Eastside (5-2) clinched its third District 5-3A title as it knocked off then-No. 15 South Sumter (Bushnell), 27-21, in overtime. South Sumter also drops out of the poll this week.
Yulee (7-0) is also new to the poll this week at No. 19. The Hornets blanked Fernandina Beach, 28-0, and now look ahead to a showdown at third-ranked Raines for the District 3-3A championship next week.
Along with South Sumter and University Christian, East Ridge (Clermont) drops out from the previous week.
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 – 2025 FOOTBALL POLL #9
(School, followed by classification, first-place votes, current record, and total voting points)
Teams in the Mainstreet Daily News coverage area are in bold
1. St. Augustine (4A) (8) (7-0) – 213
2. Buchholz (Gainesville) (6A) (2) (7-1) – 205
3. Raines (Jacksonville) (3A) (1) (7-0) – 202
4. Bolles (Jacksonville) (2A) (6-1) – 185
5. DeLand (7A) (7-0) – 172
6. Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (7A) (6-0) – 157
7T. Mandarin (Jacksonville) (6A) (7-1) – 134
7T. Nease (Ponte Vedra) (6A) (5-2) – 134
9. Oakleaf (Orange Park) (6A) (6-1) – 130
10. Columbia (Lake City) (4A) (7-1) – 127
11. Bradford (Starke) (2A) (7-1) – 108
12. Vanguard (Ocala) (4A) (6-1) – 107
13. Hawthorne (Rural) (5-1) – 90
14. The Villages (2A) (8-0) – 74
15. Beachside (St. Johns) (5A) (5-1) – 50
16. Mainland (Daytona Beach) (5A) (4-2) – 46
17. Chiefland (Rural) (7-1) – 41
18. Ed White (Jacksonville) (4A) (6-1) – 37
19. Yulee (3A) (7-0) – 19
20. Eastside (Gainesville) (3A) (5-2) – 12
Also receiving votes: Ponte Vedra (5A) (5-2) – 11; East Ridge (Clermont) (7A) (6-1) – 9; Williston (Rural) (6-1) – 9; Madison County (Rural) (2-5) – 5; South Sumter (Bushnell) (3A) (5-2) – 5; Branford (Rural) (6-2) – 3; Lafayette (Mayo) (Rural) (6-1) – 3; Middleburg (5A) (6-1) – 3; Trinity Christian (Jacksonville) (1A) (3-4) – 3; Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) (3A) (5-2) – 2; South Lake (Groveland) (6A) (6-1) – 2; Tavares (3A) (5-2) -2; University Christian (Jacksonville) (1A) (5-3) – 1.