The high school football regular season has barely reached the midseason, but several key district races could be decided — or at least frontrunners will emerge — in Week 6.
DeLand travels to Spruce Creek, a game that will not only give the winner the inside track to the District 2-7A championship but also the top seed in Region 1.
St. Augustine hosts Columbia in a battle of unbeaten District 3-4A rivals. St. Augustine is No. 1 in the Class 4A power rankings while Columbia checks in at No. 5.
Nease and Buchholz meet in a District 3-6A showdown. Nease won last year’s thriller and went on to win the district title. The winner will remain in the lead in the race for the top seed in Region 1. It could be a tight race during the final six weeks with Mandarin, Pace and Oakleaf all in top eight overall in Class 6A.
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Here’s a closer look at the top games to watch in Week 6.
DeLand (No. 4 Class 7A) at Spruce Creek (No. 2 Class 7A)
This already was shaping up to be one of the biggest games in the state, and then the initial FHSAA rankings came out. Spruce Creek is No. 3 overall in the state. DeLand is No. 4. This game has so much more than bragging rights on the line. The winner will have the inside track on claiming the No. 1 seed in Region 1-7A.
Recruiting matchup to watch: DeLand 2028 RB Taihj Moore vs. Spruce Creek 2026 DL Freddie Wilson (No. 76 USA TODAY Florida Network top 100, Georgia Tech commit).
Columbia (No. 7 Class 4A) at St. Augustine (No. 1 Class 4A)
Columbia’s defense has played well this season, including shutting out defending Rural champion Madison County 9-0. But it will have a tough challenge with a St. Augustine squad that has scored at least four touchdowns in every game this season.
Recruits to watch: Columbia 2027 WR Kyren Caldwell; St. Augustine WR Somourian Wingo (No. 23 top 100, Miami commit).
Nease (No. 6 Class 6A) at Buchholz (No. 4 Class 6A)
Nease is looking to rebound from a tough loss in Week 5 against St. Augustine, while Buchholz is looking to win its third consecutive game. Nease won its first four games by dougble digits. Buchholz has scored at least three touchdowns in each of its past four games. Nease beat Buchholz 20-17 in overtime in 2024.
Recruiting matchup to watch: Nease 2026 LB Jacob Curry (No. 91 top 100, Northwestern commit) vs. Buchholz 2026 ATH Justin Williams (No. 40 top 100, Florida commit).
Cardinal Mooney (No. 1 Class 2A) at Bishop Verot (No. 6 Class 2A)
Mooney and Verot have a common opponent: True North Classical. Mooney beat True North 44-14 in the season opener, Verot beat True North 44-34 a week later. The Florida team to beat Mooney in the regular season was Verot in 2023 — the same year Mooney won the Class 1S state championship.
Recruiting matchup to watch: Cardinal Mooney 2026 DL Elijah Golden (No. 38 top 100, Notre Dame commit) vs. Bishop Verot 2026 RB Deshon Jenkins (Bowling Green commit).
IMG (No. 1 Super 25) at Central (Alabama)
The Ascenders road tour — this is the team’s sixth consecutive road game including the Kickoff Classic — continues with its second trip to Alabama this month. IMG beat Hoover 34-13 in the season opener. Central has scored at least 38 points in every game this season, including a 38-35 win at The First Academy on Aug. 29.
Recruiting matchup to watch: IMG 2026 DL Preston Carey (No. 27 top 100, Georgia commit) vs. Central 2027 IOL Jatori Williams.
Other top games to watch in Week 6
Thursday, Sept. 25
Achbishop McCarthy at Miami Norland, 7 p.m.
Port Charlotte at South Fort Myers, 7 p.m.
Miami Palmetto at Coral Gables, 7 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 26
True North Classical at Archbishop Carroll, 3:30 p.m.
Mandarin at First Coast, 6:30 pm.
Bolles at Baldwin, 6:30 p.m.
Merritt Island at Ed White, 6:30 p.m.
Oakleaf at Fletcher, 6:30 p.m.
Osceola at Melbourne, 7 p.m.
Williston at Trinity Catholic, 7 p.m.
Calvary Christian (Clearwater) at Berkeley Prep, 7 p.m.
Vero Beach at Fort Pierce Central, 7 p.m.
Pensacola Catholic at Freeport, 7 p.m.
South Lake at Forest, 7 p.m.
W.S. Neal (Alabama) at Blountstown, 7 p.m.
South Sumter at North Marion, 7 p.m.
Walton at South Walton, 7 p.m.
American Heritage at Plantation, 7 p.m.
Milton at Mosley, 7 p.m.
Auburndale at Jones, 7 p.m.
Lake Brantley at Seminole, 7 p.m.
Lake Howell at Evans, 7 p.m.
Titusville at Eau Gallie, 7 p.m.
Western at Chaminade-Madonna, 7 p.m.
Hagerty at Lake Mary, 7 p.m.
Neumann at Community School of Naples, 7 p.m.
Lake Nona at St. Cloud, 7 p.m.
Eastside at Dunnellon, 7:30 p.m.
Lecanto at Vanguard, 7:30 p.m.
Plant at Armwood, 7:30 p.m.
Sarasota at Sarasota Riverview, 7:30 p.m.
Carrollwood Day at Lakeland Christian, 7:30 p.m.
Bayshore at Booker, 7:30 p.m.
Tampa Bay Tech at Spoto, 7:30 p.m.
Trenton at Chiefland, 7:30 p.m.
Plant City at Sumner, 7:30 p.m.
University Christian at Santa Fe, 7:30 p.m.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Florida HS football top games this week include DeLand at Spruce Creek, Nease at Buchholz
Reporting by Jon Santucci, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
