
Sadly, the summer is almost over. The kids are back in school soon.
But for student-athletes, that also means the start of the fall sports seasons.
The Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) recently released its sports calendar for the 2025-26 school year and officially welcomed back the athletes on social media on July 28.
Preseason classics start on Aug. 11 for cross country, football golf, swimming and diving, and girls volleyball. The first regular-season playing date is Aug. 18.
Postseason for volleyball begins Oct. 13-17, while regional play begins the following week. The regional quarterfinals for Classes 1A-3A are on Tuesday, Oct. 21, and the 4A-7A regional quarterfinals are scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 22.
The regional semifinals for all classes, including Rural, are on Saturday, Oct. 25, followed by the regional finals on Tuesday, Oct. 28 (Classes Rural & 1A-3A) and Wednesday, Oct. 29 (Classes 4A-7A).
The state finals will be at Polk State College – Winter Haven Health Center (Monday-Saturday, Nov. 3-8).
Last year, The Rock School won the National Christian School Athletic Association (NCSAA) Division I national championship, while Branford finished state runners-up for the second year in a row.
Branford lost in the Rural Classification championship game to Liberty County (Bristol), ending a 25-match winning streak to finish 27-4.
District meets for cross country are also Nov. 3-8, followed by regional meets Nov. 12-15, and the state championships at Apalachee Regional Park (Tallahassee) on Saturday, Nov. 22.
The Buchholz girls and boys cross country teams had the best finish last year, with the boys winning their first state title in 30 years and the girls finishing as state runners-up.
The district meets for swimming and diving are Monday-Saturday, Oct. 20-25, for Classes 1A & 2A, and Monday-Saturday, Oct. 27 – Nov. 1, for Classes 3A & 4A. The regional meets for Classes 1A & 2A are Tuesday-Saturday, Oct. 28 – Nov. 1, followed by Classes 3A & 4A (Tuesday-Saturday, Nov. 4-8).
The swimming and diving finals will return to Florida Aquatics Swimming & Training in Ocala, beginning with the two smallest classifications. The Class 2A finals are Friday, Nov. 7, followed by the Class 1A state finals on Saturday, Nov. 8.
In 2024, the Gainesville girls had a top 10 finish (ninth) at the FHSAA Class 3A state championships. The following weekend, the Eastside boys finished fourth overall in Class 2A.
The following weekend, the Class 4A state meet is on Friday, Nov. 14, followed by the Class 3A state meet on Saturday, Nov. 15.
District tournaments for golf are Oct. 27-29, followed by the regional tournaments during the first week of November (3-5).
The state championships for Class 1A (Friday-Saturday, Nov. 14-15), Class 2A (Tuesday-Wednesday, Nov. 18-19), and Class 3A (Tuesday-Wednesday, Nov. 11-12) will once again be held at Mission Resort + Club (Howey-in-the-Hills).
Suwannee (Live Oak) and Columbia (Lake City) dominated our All Area Golf teams for a second straight year.
Non-contact football practice has begun, and the first contact practice date is on Saturday, Aug. 2, but the unofficial kickoff to the high school football season was on July 24 at the North Central Florida High School Football Media Day.
There were top storylines, such as Williston coach Robby Pruitt being four wins from making history, and a discussion about continuing two of the best streaks in the area.
Hawthorne, which lost to Madison County in last year’s Rural state championship game, has a chance to make its sixth straight title game this year, while Buchholz, which lost at home to Osceola (Kissimmee) in last year’s 6A state semifinals, seeks its fifth straight state semifinal.
Throughout the month of August, we will count down to kickoff with our Alachua County football previews, plus a few others. Our online coverage begins on Monday, Aug. 11.
We’ll also preview the top football games each week in the Alachua County and Tri-County areas and announce our football broadcast schedule for the fall.
Former Gator football player and current Newberry volleyball coach Hank Rone joins me every Friday night on 106.9 FM “I am Country” for our radio Game of the Week.
We’ll also broadcast (audio stream) a second high school football game each week, beginning with Buchholz, which will host Vanguard (Ocala) at Citizens Field on Thursday, Aug. 21, to open the regular season.
And be on the lookout for our special insert high school football preview to be released on Wednesday, Aug. 20, just prior to the start of the high school football season for FHSAA teams.
Last year, the special section was inserted into 10,000 editions of Mainstreet, which were distributed throughout Alachua County. Since then, we have expanded to 20,000 print editions.
Plus, our weekly show at Sonic Drive-In returns (TBA). It features interviews with players and coaches in the area.
Buckle up, it should be a fun fall.