Will the Florida High School Athletic Association’s first football Open Division end up being the South Florida Invitational?
Based on the MaxPreps preseason rankings, it’s a real possibility.
The top six teams eligible for the Open Division in the rankings all come from Broward, Miami-Dade or Palm Beach counties.
St. Thomas Aquinas, which is looking for an unprecedented eighth consecutive state title, is No. 1. In the new eight-team round robin format, the Raiders would be joined in a group by Chaminade-Madonna (No. 4 seed), Miami Central (5) and Lakeland (8).
The other group would be Carol City (2), American Heritage (3), West Boca (6) and Cardinal Mooney (8).
Aquinas, American Heritage, West Boca and Cardinal Mooney all won state titles in 2025.
Carol City, which had a major influx of talent this offseason, is the only team that didn’t at least reach the regional championship game last season.
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With the FHSAA using MaxPreps rankings for seeding this season, here is a look at how the brackets for each class would look based on the preseason rankings:
Open Division
Group A: (1) St. Thomas Aquinas, (4) Chaminade-Madonna, (5) Miami Central, (8) Lakeland
Group B: (2) Carol City, (3) American Heritage, (6) West Boca, (7) Cardinal Mooney
Class 6A
Region 1
(1) DeLand* vs. (8) Boone
(4) Seminole vs. (5) Spruce Creek
(3) Mainland vs. (6) Winter Park*
(2) Lake Mary* vs. (7) Creekside*
Region 2
(1) Vero Beach* vs. (8) Treasure Coast
(4) Dr. Phillips vs. (5) Ocoee*
(3) West Orange vs. (6) Fort Pierce Central
(2) Edgewater* vs. (7) Lake Nona*
Region 3
(1) Venice* vs. (8) Winter Haven*
(4) Durant vs. (5) Lennard
(3) Plant City* vs. (6) Palm Harbor University*
(2) Sarasota Riverview vs. (7) Riverview
Region 4
(1) Columbus* vs. (8) Spanish River*
(4) Western vs. (5) Palm Beach Central*
(3) West Broward* vs. (6) South Dade
(2) Miami Palmetto vs. (7) Jupiter
Class 5A
Region 1
(1) Buchholz* vs. (8) Evans*
(4) Ponte Vedra vs. (5) Oakleaf
(3) Nease vs. (6) Niceville
(2) Mandarin* vs. (7) Bartram Trail
Region 2
(1) Osceola vs. (8) Oviedo*
(4) Palmetto vs. (5) East Lake
(3) Sebring vs. (6) Wiregrass Ranch*
(2) Gaither* vs. (7) Largo
Region 3
(1) Armwood* vs. (8) Riverdale*
(4) Manatee vs. (5) Plant
(3) Sumner* vs. (6) Martin County*
(2) Tampa Bay Tech vs. (7) Palm Beach Gardens
Region 4
(1) Miami Southridge* vs. (8) Deerfield Beach
(4) Coconut Creek* vs. (5) Piper
(3) Monarch* vs. (6) Mater Academy
(2) Archbishop McCarthy vs. (7) Flanagan
Class 4A
Region 1
(1) Choctawhatchee* vs. (8) Chiles
(4) Columbia* vs. (5) Mosley
(3) Lincoln* vs. (6) Ed White
(2) St. Augustine* vs. (7) Fleming Island
Region 2
(1) Jones* vs. (8) Lecanto
(4) Vanguard* vs. (5) Zephyrhills*
(3) Bishop Moore* vs. (6) New Smyrna Beach
(2) Lake Wales vs. (7) Springstead
Region 3
(1) Jesuit* vs. (8) Blake
(4) Clearwater* vs. (5) South Fort Myers
(3) Naples* vs. (6) Dunbar
(2) Port Charlotte* vs. (7) Pinellas Park
Region 4
(1) Miami Northwestern* vs. (8) Jensen Beach
(4) Plantation vs. (5) Heritage*
(3) Miami Norland vs. (6) Miramar
(2) Atlantic* vs. (7) McArthur
Class 3A
Region 1
(1) Raines* vs. (8) Menendez*
(4) Godby* vs. (5) Wakulla
(3) Pine Forest* vs. (6) Bay
(2) Bishop Kenny vs. (7) Baker County
Region 2
(1) Eau Gallie* vs. (8) Mulberry*
(4) Rockledge vs. (5) Titusville
(3) South Sumter* vs. (6) Eastside*
(2) Merritt Island vs. (7) Dunnellon
Region 3
(1) Booker vs. (8) Hernando
(4) Southeast vs. (5) Gibbs*
(3) Jefferson* vs. (6) Tarpon Springs
(2) Nature Coast Tech* vs. (7) Bayshore
Region 4
(1) Bishop Verot* vs. (8) Cypress Lake
(4) Lely vs. (5) Glades Central*
(3) Dillard vs. (6) Key West
(2) Cardinal Gibbons* vs. (7) North Miami Beach
Class 2A
Region 1
(1) Bolles* vs. (8) Freeport
(4) Gadsden County vs. (5) Baldwin
(3) Pensacola Catholic* vs. (6) Walton
(2) Florida High* vs. (7) Andrew Jackson
Region 2
(1) The First Academy* vs. (8) Tampa Catholic
(4) Berkeley Prep vs. (5) Lakewood
(3) Clearwater Central Catholic* vs. (6) Bradford*
(2) Cocoa vs. (7) Calvary Christian (Clearwater)
Region 3
(1) Cardinal Newman vs. (4) Miami Booker T. Washington
(2) Miami Edison* vs. (3) St. Andrew’s
Region 4
(1) Immaculata-La Salle*
(4) Ransom Everglades vs. (5) Westminster Christian
(3) Gulliver Prep vs. (6) Somerset Charter (Silver Palms)
(2) Miami Killian*
Class 1A
Region 1
(1) Madison County* vs. (8) Holmes County
(4) Fort White vs. (5) Chipley*
(3) Taylor County vs. (6) Baker
(2) Blountstown* vs. (7) Maclay
Region 2
(1) Hawthorne* vs. (8) Wildwood
(4) Williston vs. (5) Chiefland
(3) University Christian vs. (6) Melbourne Central Catholic*
(2) Trinity Christian* vs. (7) Impact Christian
Region 3
(1) Carrollwood Day* vs. (8) Victory Christian
(4) Lakeland Christian* vs. (5) St. John Neumann
(3) St. Petersburg Catholic vs. (6) Fort Meade
(2) Community School of Naples* vs. (7) Northside Christian
Region 4
(1) True North Classical* vs. (8) Somerset Academy Charter (Homestead)
(4) John Carroll Catholic vs. (5) Archbishop Carroll*
(3) Benjamin vs. (6) Palmer Trinity
(2) Pahokee* vs. (7) Somerset Prep (North Lauderdale)
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: MaxPreps preseason football rankings predict first FHSAA Open Division
Reporting by Jon Santucci, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Jon Santucci, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida | USA TODAY Network
