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Florida Football: Week 9 5A Rankings

Being only a single individual, I tend to suffer some oversights. One of the biggest injustices has been corrected this week, as Tampa Chamberlain appears in the 5A rankings, replacing the team it defeated 41-0, Alonso. Chamberlain lost back-to-back games in weeks 2 and 3 and fell off the radar a bit. Both of those losses, though, came in close games, and the team has reeled off five straight victories, including four shutouts since then.

As if that blunder isn’t embarrassing enough, I’ve decided to do the unthinkable again this week by leaving Lake Gibson as high as No. 6. Allow me to explain. The team is 5-2, which isn’t exactly terrible. Lots of the top 5A teams have two losses. In this case, those losses happen to be to two teams I consider the best of the class. Last week’s 34-41 road loss to Osceola would increase the ranking of most teams. So why should it fall out of the top 10 just because this team is now eliminated from the playoffs?

Having said that, I couldn’t see leaving Largo and Manatee out of the top 5, so I pushed Lake Gibson down to No. 6, which also leaves room for St. Thomas Aquinas (6-1) in the top 5. Mainland (5-2) is right there behind Lake Gibson, which defeated the Bucs 6-2 earlier in the season.

The moment in the sun for Pine Forest is over. The team lost 23-7 to Niceville, which moves up to No. 10. That’s loss No. 4 for Pine Forest, and they’ve been pushed out of the top 20 despite being No. 9 last week, mostly based on that Sept. 28 triple-overtime loss to Tallahassee Lincoln. Good game, but not necessarily an indication of how tough Pine Forest is. More likely, it’s a sign that Lincoln doesn’t have much of a defense.

Lakeland is still at the top with Osceola right now, but that could change if the Kowboys pull out a win when they meet on Nov. 2. Fort Myers breaks into the top 10, and Sarasota makes its way back after starting the season 2-3 with losses to Booker, Manatee and Osceola. Out this week is Charlotte, which lost to Venice, a team that nearly made it in this week. Plant City is still there largely based on its narrow defeat to Armwood two weeks ago, and Gaither makes it in this week.

5A
1. Lakeland (7-0)
2. (Kissimmee) Osceola (8-0)
3. Largo (7-0)
4. (Bradenton) Manatee (8-0)
5. (Fort Lauderdale) St. Thomas Aquinas (6-1)
6. (Lakeland) Lake Gibson (5-2)
7. (Daytona Beach) Mainland (5-2)
8. (Tampa) Chamberlain (6-2)
9. Fort Myers (7-1)
10. Niceville (6-1)
11. (Jacksonville) Bartram Trail (5-3)
12. (Neptune Beach) Fletcher (6-1)
13. (Delray Beach) Atlantic (5-1)
14. (Deltona) Pine Ridge (6-2)
15. Sarasota (5-3)
16. Gaither (6-2)
17. Palm Bay (5-2)
18. Plant City (5-3)
19. (Pompano Beach) Ely (5-2)
20. Cape Coral (6-2)