High school football’s 2026 regular season kicks off tonight with five games that pit Orlando-area teams against out-of-state visitors.
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The Thursday lineup has a tradition-rich Archbishop Hoban team from Ohio playing at West Orange, which is No. 9 in the Sentinel Super Coaches Poll; and Colorado power Mountain Vista playing at No. 11 Sanford Seminole. East River and University (Orlando) also host interstate games and Oak Ridge plays an Illinois squad at the Austin-Tindall Sports Complex.
The Friday night slate includes challenging road trips for No. 1 DeLand and No. 2 Jones.
We’ll be posting live updates from selected games right here once games kick off. Check back often.
Also, the Sentinel’s 2026 football preview section will be in Sunday’s newspaper. All of those stories are posted online at orlandosentinel.com.
CHECK HERE FOR SCOREBOARD UPDATES ON ALL GAMES
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.
Archbishop Hoban (Ohio) at No. 9 West Orange, Thursday
Coverage by Chris Hays
Tim Tyrrell, formerly head coach at South Florida power Chaminade-Madonna (Hollywood), is 151-27 in 14 years at Hoban in Akron, including five state championships since 2015.
Both of these teams went 10-2 last season.
Mountain Vista (Colorado) at No. 11 Seminole, Thursday
Coverage by Chris Martucci
The Golden Eagles, 12-1 last season in Colorado’s large-school classification, are ranked No. 3 in 5A. They are led by senior quarterback Marquise Reese, a Colorado State commit who passed for 3,314 passing yards and 44 touchdowns last year.
Seminole counters with a rugged defense.
Orlando-area high school football preview for 2026
Friday games
No. 5 Evans at No. 13 Lake Nona
Coverage by Chris Hays
Two 2025 playoff teams go at it. Will Evans go wide-open on offense with its new transfer tandem of quarterback Will Jackson and receiver Brian Dillard?
Hawthorne at No. 6 Bishop Moore
Coverage by Philip Rossman-Reich
Bishop Moore vies for head coach Matt Hedrick’s 200th career win against last year’s Rural Division state champ from the Gainesville area. Hawthorne is a very small school, but has talent.
No. 3 Edgewater at Ocoee
Coverage by Jean Racine
Edgewater is 46-1 in regular season games since 2021 — losing only to TFA in a 2024 season opener. First matchup since the Eagles blanked Ocoee 46-0 in 2023.
Read more Orlando-area Week 1 high school football scoreboard
No. 16 Dr. Phillips at No. 7 The First Academy
Coverage by Chris Martucci
This is the first official game for new DP head coach Caleb Walls, and the first football meeting for Orlando schools that sit five miles apart.
No. 8 Osceola at St. Cloud
Coverage by J. Daniel Pearson
This is the 103rd game in one of the longest standing rivalries in Florida high school football. Osceola has dominated, including 15 wins in a row. That streak is 20 in a row on the field, but the Kowboys forfeited their 2010 win due to an ineligible player.
Other big games
No. 1 DeLand at Lake Wales
DeLand outscored Sumner 52-46 in a wild preseason game and might be in for another track meet. Lake Wales was a 15-0 state title team in 2022 and finished 10-3 with a playoff loss to Jones last season.
No. 2 Jones vs. .Santa Margarita (California)
Jones coach Elijah Williams has an “anytime, anywhere” attitude about scheduling and the Tigers have started with two giant challenges. He took his team to Dade County to play Miami Central (a preseason loss) and fly this week to take on the team that was No. 1 in California last season at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo. The Eagles are No. 6 in MaxPreps’ national rankings.
Both teams have former NFL players as head coaches. Williams was an NFL defensive back. Santa Margarita’s Carson Palmer was longtime pro quarterback.
No. 10 Oviedo at Titusville
Oviedo, 40-15 under coach Greg Odierno, looks to get off to another strong start.
No. 12 South Lake at East Ridge
East Ridge leads Lake County rivalry 10-8, but Eagles won the past two — including a come-from-behind 49-35 victory last season at home.
No. 14 Winter Park at Windermere
First meeting with the Wildcats is a big test for the host Wolverines, who went 10-0 as an independent in the past two years and are riding a 21-game winning streak.
Hernando at No. 15 Lake Brantley
Visiting Leopards were 7-4 district champs last season, but seven players are suspended for their part in an on-the-field fight with players from Sunlake High last week.
Varsity content editor Buddy Collings can be contacted by email at [email protected].
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