It’s Kickoff Classic time, where high school football’s preseason games don’t count but do matter.
Read more ESPN’s Herbstreit weighs in on UCF, Gators and direction of college football: ‘I’m so frustrated’
Lake Mary, coming off its first state championship season, lost its home exhibition against Buchholz of Gainesville, 26-17, on Thursday night. Rams coach Scott Perry said there will be lessons learned from that game.
Winter Park fared better, winning on the road against Spruce Creek.
Tonight’s schedule showcases 14 of the Sentinel Super 16 ranked teams.
We’ll be posting live updates from selected games right here once games kick off. Check back often.
CHECK HERE FOR SCOREBOARD UPDATES ON ALL GAMES
The Sentinel’s 2026 football preview section will be in Sunday’s newspaper, with online posts to come.
Go to the Sentinel Varsity home page for news on all high school sports.
Games listed are scheduled for 7 p.m. kickoffs unless noted otherwise. Rankings in bold are from this week’s preseason Sentinel Super 16 coaches poll.
Here are tonight’s game with live coverage:
Armwood at No. 3 Edgewater
Coverage by Chris Hays
Edgewater quarterback Cruz James runs 20 yards for a touchdown and the Eagles tie the game 7–7.
Edgewater linebacker Brandon Thompson intercepts a pass. The Eagles take over at the Armwood 20 yard line
Tanner is back in the game.
Edgewater defensive end Jamarcus Tanner is injured on the third player of the game. His return is questionable.
Armwood scores first. The Hawks lead the Eagles 7-0 with 6:14 to go in the first quarter.
PRE-GAME NOTES:
Two prolific programs clash. The last time they met was in a 2019 Class 7A state semifinal. Edgewater pulled off a big upset at Armwood, 38-27.
Armwood has officially won two state championships (2003, 2004). The Hawks won another final in 2011 but were stripped of the title due to rules violations.
MaxPreps has Armwood at No. 28 and Edgewater No. 30 in its state rankings.
No. 14 Lake Brantley at No. 6 Bishop Moore
Coverage by Philip Rossman-Reich
TOUCHDOWN: Blake McCullough throws a 39-yard touchdown pass to Magnus Talma after the duo’s first touchdown connection from 20 yards was called back for a procedure penalty. Bishop Moore further backed itself up with a personal foul. But the Hornets still score and tie the game at 7-7 with 4:22 to play in the first quarter.
Water break time. Bishop Moore is answering Lake Brantley’s opening drive. Aided by a pass interference call and a 12-yard run from Blake McCullough. The Hornets have moved to the Brantley 20-yard line.
TOUCHDOWN: Lake Brantley quarterback Jackson Stecher avoids the rush up the middle and scrambles to the right side to reach the end zone on a 12-yard run. The Patriots take the lead despite using all three first half timeouts on their opening drive. Lake Brantley leads 7-0 with 7:45 left in the first quarter.
PRE-GAME NOTES:
Checking in from Bishop Moore. Clear skies and ready to start the season!
Bishop Moore coming off a 12-2 state semifinal season is No. 48 in the MaxPreps state rankings. The Patriots (6-4) start at No. 165.
Spotlights two highly-rated junior quarterbacks, Lake Brantley’s Jackson Stecher and Bishop Moore’s Blake McCullough.
Mainland at No. 8 Osceola
Coverage by J. Daniel Pearson
First quarter ends with Mainland leading 6-2.
Braylin Simmons scores on a 1-yard for Mainland at 1:18 in the first quarter. Mainland 6, Osceola 2. He gained 20 yards on a run that set up the TD.
An Osceola fumble is recovered by the Buccaneers at the Kowboys’ 48.
Mainland starts with two long snaps over their quarterback’s head. The second snap sailed through the end zone for a safety. Osceola leads 2-0 with 5:54 to go in the first quarter.
Read more Growing threat to free speech: Bogus copyright claims making political stories disappear
Javintay Burnett opens game with a 30-yard run for Osceola. But the drive stalls and the Kowboys punts to Mainland.
PRE-GAME NOTES:
Late afternoon thunderstorm cleared out. So there may be a slight delay but this game will start close to the scheduled 7 p.m.
Two tradition-rich programs square off. MaxPreps ranked Mainland (9-3) No. 34 in Florida, Osceola (7-5) No. 44.
Apopka at No. 9 West Orange
Coverage by Jean Racine
TOUCHDOWN: After a 20-yard throw and catch, Warriors RB Jayden Ammons punches it in for a 1-yard TD. After two offsides by Apopka, West Orange made the 2-point conversion on another run by Ammons. West Orange leads 8-0 with 10:37 remaining in the first quarter.
Apopka fumbles, Warriors recover at the Apopka 21-yard line.
After a touchback, the Blue Darters begin the 2026 season on their 20-yard line.
Apopka has won the toss and chooses to receive.
PRE-GAME NOTES:
Drizzling in the area before kickoff.
West Orange (10-2) is ranked No. 71 by MaxPreps. Apopka hopes to turn things around after a 2-7 season.
No. 11 Seminole at No. 13 Lake Nona
Coverage by Chris Martucci
Lake Nona defense forces a turnover on downs. Offense takes over at the Seminole 25. It’s 5:27 to go in the first quarter.
First play from scrimmage is a 29-yard pass from Lake Nona quarterback Eli Nickerson to receiver Josiah Hall for a Lions first down.
Seminole’s Joseph Watson IV picks off Eli Nickerson’s pass to the end zone. ‘Noles take over at their own 4-yard line with 8:08 to go in the first.
PRE-GAME NOTES:
Weather looks good for this game.
Seminole (5-6) is No. 36 and Lake Nona (8-4) No. 149 in MaxPreps state rankings.
Orlando-area preseason high school football scoreboard
Other key games
With Sentinel Super 16 preseason rankings:
No. 1 DeLand at Sumner
DeLand, with almost everything back from a 12-1 season, treks to the Tampa area to face another 2025 playoff team. The Bulldogs are ranked No. 10 in the state by MaxPreps. The Stingrays (10-3) are No. 49.
No. 2 Jones at Miami Central
Jones (12-3) made the trip to Miami for state championship losses in the past two seasons. Here they go again to play one of South Florida’s best. The nine-time state champ Rockets (10-2), are ranked No. 6 for all classes by MaxPreps. Jones is No. 16 on that list.
No. 5 Evans at Wakulla
Evans, coming off an 8-3 year, is ranked No. 64 by MaxPreps — and is looking better than that. Wakulla was 6-5 last season.
No. 7 The First Academy at Kathleen
TFA (5-5) is back in the playoff picture after a two-year suspension and is ranked No. 11 in Florida. Kathleen was 2-8 last season.
University (Orange City) at No. 10 Oviedo
Oviedo (8-3) went 34-11 over the past four seasons — including three consecutive 8-win years. The Titans (1-9) are rebuilding.
Viera at No. 12 South Lake
South Lake made program history with its 11-2 season of 2025. This team could be better. The Hawks (7-5) were also a playoff team.
No. 16 Dr. Phillips at Boone
Metro Conference rivals both have new head coaches after big years. DP went 9-4 and Boone went 10-2.
DeLand starts No. 1 in Sentinel Super 16 football coaches poll; Jones second
Varsity content editor Buddy Collings can be contacted by email at [email protected].
Read more Orlando-area preseason high school football scoreboard