Eight teams entered the FHSAA playoffs two weeks ago, four remained after the first week and three teams are sill alive.
Lakeland remains the county's best bet to continue on after round three this week. The Dreadnaughts are ranked No. 12 nationally by MaxPreps, the highest of any team from Florida.
Lakeland Christian has the toughest regional final of the teams remaining as it faces the region's No. 1 seed in Clearwater Central Catholic in Clearwater.
Fort Meade continues to benefit from the new Rural B playoff format, the Florida International Tournament. The Miners were 2-7 after the regular season but are 2-0 in the playoffs and will play in the state semifinals on Friday.
My upset pick last week did not come through as Lake Wales lost by a touchdown, and I went 3-1 for the week. For the season, my record is 111-43.
This week's picks:
Lakeland is coming off their best two rushing games of the season with 266 yards vs. Spoto and 238 yards vs. Gaither last week. With Gaither passing for every play, defensive backs Sammy Etienne with six tackles and Kavon McKinney with five total tackles led the Dreadnaughts. Keon Young had an interception and blocked a field goal, and McKinney had an interception. Tampa Bay Tech piled up 484 yards in total offense with quarterback Trevon Moore leading the way with 398 yards of total offense. He threw for 268 yards and rushed for 130. Lakeland, 28-17.
Lakeland Christian finished with more than 400 yards of total offense for the fourth time this season in its 48-20 victory over Orlando Christian Prep. Aaron Truedell continues is strong late-season surge. He rushed for a season-high 137 yards. It was his third 100-yard game of the season in the last five games. Josh Bellamy, LCS's leading rusher for the season, had a 57-yard interception return for a touchdown. Wide receiver DJ Howard is coming off his best game of the season with nine catches for 120 yards. Clearwater Central Catholic is averaging 409.1 yards rushing. Quarterback Jershaun Newton has 2,674 yards of total offense. He has passed for 1,764 yards and is the leading rusher with 900 yards. CCC piled up 398 yards of total offense in its 45-0 win over Carrollwood Day. LCS lost to Carrollwood Day during the season, 31-17. CCC, 45-31.
Fort Meade trailed 14-12 after three quarters then scored 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. This is the state semifinals for the Rural Division B bracket. The winner will play the Trenton-Dixie County winner at 1 p.m. next on Dec. 6. Fort Meade, 24-21.