A total of 14 high school football teams from the Mainstreet Daily News coverage area received a bid to this year’s FHSAA Football state tournament.

Buchholz began with a bang, blowing out visiting Mosley (Lynn Haven) on Thursday night, 59-0, in a Class 4S-Region 1 Quarterfinal.

Suwannee (Live Oak) is at Pensacola Catholic, Bradford (Starke) hosts Atlantic (Port Orange), Eastside hosts Palatka (Radio – 106.9 FM), and Keystone Heights travels to Yulee in Class 2S.

Columbia (Lake City) travels to Choctawhatchee (Fort Walton Beach) in Class 3S.

But eight of the 14 teams can be found in Class 1R.

Union County (Lake Butler) is the No. 3 seed in Class 1R-Region 3, where Madison County is the top seed.

The Tigers (6-3) advanced to the state semifinals last year, and they’ve won three in a row since losing at defending 1R state champion Hawthorne on Oct. 13.

“We had a few key injuries early in the season that we dealt with, could have certainly changed a couple of the outcomes,” said Union County coach Andrew Thomas.

They lost in double overtime at Walton (DeFuniak Springs), which is the No. 1 seed in 2S-Region 1, and by one point at home to Orlando Christian Prep, which made the 1M state playoffs.

“You look at our three losses, all of which we were in the game and could or should have won,” Thomas said. “Those teams are 29-1. We are playing complete right now and in the playoffs each week is a new season and you can’t rely on the past. We’re just working in silence right now, we know people aren’t paying attention to us.”

Union County, which is only allowing 12 points per game, will host No. 6 seed Hilliard, which made the playoffs despite a 3-7 record. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m.

“I feel like most games you can’t have a pile of turnovers and enable other teams to have free chances,” Thomas said. “If we take care of the ball we have a good shot each week. Our defense is pretty good and that’s what we build off each week and it’s no different going into the Hilliard game.”

Fort White, the No. 2 seed, awaits the winner next Friday night, while Madison County will play next Friday against the winner of No. 5 seed Branford and No. 4 seed Lafayette (Mayo).

It’s hard to argue but the toughest region among all nine classifications might just be Class 1R-Region 4.

In fact, a month ago I wrote about how loaded the region is, again. Three of the top five teams in the state in Class 1R are in Region 4, including the defending state champions.

Williston (10-0) and 1R champ Hawthorne (9-0), which received a bye this week, are ranked first and second, respectively, according to the final FHSAA rankings.

Newberry, which is ranked fifth, is the No. 3 seed in the region.

The Panthers (8-2) lost to Hawthorne and Williston, the latter coming on a trick play with less than a minute to play.

“It has been a decent season so far for us,” said Newberry coach Ed Johnson. “We knew we had a very competitive schedule and getting through the regular season would prepare us for a playoff run. We had to take those two losses to very good programs and turn them into lessons to make sure we got better.”

They will host No. 6 seed Chiefland at 7:30 p.m.

“We have to make sure we are focused on executing and playing with great effort against a talented Chiefland team,” Johnson said. “Stop the run game and look to find some explosive plays on the offensive side for us, and be very special on special teams all night.”

Despite a 4-6 record, the Indians were able to make the playoffs thanks to a difficult schedule that included losses to Class 1R playoff teams Williston, Newberry, Dixie County and Madison County.

They also had losses to Suwannee and Frostproof, which both made the Class 2S state playoffs.

“This has been a challenging season for us from the perspective of strength of schedule and injuries,” said Chiefland coach James Corbin. “We knew going into the year that the competition we were going to face was going to be tough and a large part of that is due to the success that we’ve had the last several years. Playing good teams, however, sharpens you and prepares you for the playoffs. We’re healthy now and ready to play a very good Newberry squad.”

It’s been a while since the Indians won a game on the field. Their last victory was a forfeit win against American Collegiate Academy (Clearwater) on Oct. 20.

However, their last win on the field was six weeks ago in a 40-20 win against Trenton on Sept. 29.

This will be the second meeting this year between the Indians and the Panthers. Newberry defeated Chiefland, 34-0, on Sept. 22, holding the Indians to just 113 total yards.

Newberry sophomore quarterback Keil McGriff, who threw for 142 yards and a pair of touchdowns in that game, has a chance to go over 2,000 yards tonight (1,794 with 21 TDs).

“We have to get pressure on McGriff first and foremost,” Corbin said. “He’s a great athlete and will make you pay if you’re not able to put him under duress.”

Last time the two teams played, Chiefland was without Reggie Adams, Matt Goodale, Mike Goodale and star defender Jon Adams, who had a hamstring injury and was limited.

“Ultimately, we are who we are, a run first team with a physical defense,” Corbin said. “With everyone dressing out and ready for the rematch, it just comes down to execution. I know it’ll be a fun, hard-fought, ball game.”

Dixie County, which received the number five seed in Class 1R-Region 4, has the toughest matchup tonight with a trip to No. 4 seed Pahokee.

The Bears went 7-3 during the regular season, which was a big turnaround from last year’s team that finished 2-8.

“The 2023 season has shown that our young team has bought into what it takes to rebuild a program,” said Dixie County coach Brock Canaday. “The last two years this program had only won five games total. This group of players started working back in January to ensure that Dixie County football would make it back into the postseason.”

Canaday said his program is built around hard work in the weight room and a physical style of play on both sides of the ball.

“The maturity and growth of this team has been amazing to watch,” he said. “Our goal since week 11 of last year was to have a winning record and a spot in the playoffs. We’ve met both goals, and now it’s time to go compete against an extremely skilled Pahokee team. We are beyond blessed to have a chance to compete in the toughest region in all of 1R.”

Dixie County lost its home opener to Lafayette (Mayo), 7-6, and then reeled off five straight wins, including three straight shutouts against Bronson, Wewahitchka and Trenton.

Their other two losses came against playoff teams Fort White, which is the number two seed in 1R-Region 3, and Union County, which is the number three seed in that region.

The Bears, who are averaging over 200 yards per game on the ground, will face a Pahokee team that finished 5-4 against larger competition.

In fact, their four losses were against Santaluces and Palm Beach Central, which made the Class 4A state playoffs, Delray Beach Atlantic, which made the Class 3M state playoffs, and Palm Beach Gardens Benjamin, which made the 1M state playoffs.

“Pahokee is extremely skilled on both sides of the ball,” Canaday said. “We will have to know where 0, 2, 3, and 85 are at all times on both sides of the ball. They have a ton of depth on the defensive line, which allows them to be fresh in the fourth quarter. We will have to control the clock on offense and win on 1st down. Defensively we’ll need to stop their physical run game and be able to win the tough one on one match ups out on the perimeter.”

Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.

Top seed Williston will host the Dixie County-Pahokee winner next Friday, while No. 2 seed Hawthorne will play the Newberry-Chiefland winner.