Here we go.
This is the first Friday of the 2026 high school football season – and we have all looked forward to this day for the past eight months.
As you will find every week, there will be huge games that will involve teams from Miami-Dade and Broward Counties, and we will spotlight them and bring you the entire schedule.
Tonight, we will have several games that will be worth attending, but we will shine the spotlight on three of them that will truly grab the attention of not only Floridians, but many fans across the country.
Jacksonville Mandarin at Hollywood McArthur, 7. The 2026 Broward National Football Showcase will begin as these two teams will boast rosters that are among the best in the country that will spotlight several elite players on both sides of the ball.
The two “Mustangs” who both have green, orange and white in their uniforms are a perfect match as each team will have a gauntlet to run in Florida this season.
If you are a University of Miami fan you may want to check this game out – with three commitments and a few others who have shown interest.
JACKSONVILLE MANDARIN MUSTANGS 2026 SCHEDULE
8/21 - @Hollywood McArthur
8/28 - @Jacksonville Atlantic Coast
9/11 - @Ponte Vedra Nease
9/18 - @Jacksonville Raines
9/25 – Neptune Beach Fletcher
10/2 – Lake Mary
10/9 - @Ponte Vedra
10/16 - @St. Johns Beachside
10/23 – St. Johns Bartram Trail
10/30 – St. Augustine
HOLLYWOOD MCARTHUR MUSTANGS 2026 SCHEDULE
8/21 – Jacksonville Mandarin
8/28 - @Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons
9/4 – Sunrise Piper
9/18 – Fort Lauderdale Dillard
9/26 - @Miami Norland
10/2 - Miramar
10/9 - @Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas
10/16 - @Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna
10/23 – Plantation American Heritage
10/30 - @Davie Western
Miami Central at Orange Lutheran, California, 10. The Rockets will step up their game on the road in California for a matchup of two elite programs.
Central is perhaps the one team in Florida that started to travel out of state well over a decade ago when it wasn’t the norm that it is today.
After a tuneup last week against two-time defending state finalist Orlando Jones in the kickoff classic, the kinks are out and the new faces have played together.
The nation will be watching this west coast contest for a California-Florida battle.
2026 MIAMI CENTRAL ROCKETS SCHEDULE
8/21 – Orange Lutheran
9/3 – Miami St. Brendan
9/11 - @Buford, Georgia
9/19 – Miami Jackson
9/25 - @Miami Northwestern
10/3 - @Miami Springs
10/8 – Key West
10/22 – North Miami Beach
10/30 - @Miami Carol City
2026 ORANGE LUTHERAN LANCERS SCHEDULE
8/21 – Miami Central
8/28 - @Cathedral Catholic
9/4 – Basha
9/11 - @Sierra
9/18 - @Sierra Canyon
10/2 – Anaheim Servite
10/9 - @Bellflower St. John Bosco
10/16 – JSerra Catholic
10/23 - @Santa Ana Mater Dei
10/30 – Santa Margarita
West Boca Raton at Plantation American Heritage, 7. After last week’s kickoff classic overtime thriller against Miami Carol City, we already know what the two-time defending state champion Bulls will bring to the table.
They are stacked with playmakers and quality talent that has paved the way for the most successful two-year runs in school history. They have a schedule that will prepare them for just about anything.
Speaking of schedule, the Patriots – coming off two consecutive 4A titles against Orlando Jones – continues to raise the bar every season with games against some of the state’s best.
But unlike West Boca Raton, we don’t know a lot about this football team – as they didn’t play a spring or summer kickoff classic.
They added some quality players who will be put to the test for the first time this evening. Another contest where all eyes will be watching to see what direction each state champion will be headed from the start of the season.
2026 WEST BOCA RATON BULLS SCHEDULE
8/21 - @Plantation American Heritage
9/4 - @ Boca Raton Spanish River
9/10 – West Palm Beach Cardinal Newman
9/18 – Washington D.C. St. John’s
9/24 – Boca Raton Olympic Heights
10/2 - @Belle Glade Glades Central
10/8 - @Deerfield Beach
10/16 - @Orlando The First Academy
10/22 – Coconut Creek Monarch
10/30 – Delray Beach Atlantic
2026 PLANTATION AMERICN HERITAGE PATRIOTS SCHEDULE
8/21 – West Boca Raton
8/28 – East St. Louis (Broward Showcase)
9/4 - @Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna
9/11 - @Jacksonville Trinity Christian
9/18 - @Lakeland
9/25 – Miramar
10/9 – Miami Norland
10/16 – Miami True North Classical Academy
10/23 - @Hollywood McArthur
In addition to those two games this evening, here is a look at the rest of Friday’s schedule and the first week of the 2026 season:
Boca Raton St. John Paul II at Miami Belen Jesuit, 7
Coconut Creek North Broward Prep at Cooper City, 7
Doral Academy at Naples Golden Gate, 7
Doral Ronald Reagan at Miami Varela, 3:30
Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons at Miramar, 7
Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas at Davie Western (Pembroke Pines Flanagan), 7
Hallandale at Davie Nova, 7
Hialeah American vs. Homestead (Harris), 7
Hialeah Gardens Mater Academy vs. Hialeah (Milander), 7:30
Hialeah Miami-Lakes at Hialeah Gardens, 3:30
Homestead Somerset Silver Palms at Miami Ransom Everglades, 7
Lauderdale Lakes Boyd Anderson at Hollywood Hills, 4
Fort Lauderdale NSU University at Mount Dora Christian, 7
Miami Braddock at Miami Florida Christian, 7
Miami Carol City at Daytona Beach Mainland, 7
Miami Coral Park vs. Southwest Miami (Tropical), 7:30
Miami Coral Reef at Miami Archbishop Carroll, 3:30
Miami Edison vs. Miami Springs (Ives Park), 7
Miami Ferguson at Miami Gulliver Prep, 3:30
Miami Gardens Monsignor Pace at Naples St. John Neumann, 7
Miami High vs. Coral Gables (Curtis Park), 7:30
Miami Immaculata LaSalle vs. Miami Booker T. Washington (Curtis Park), 3
Miami Northwestern at St. Petersburg Lakewood, 7:30
Miami Palmetto vs. Miami Killian (Southridge), 7:30
Miami SmartEn Sports at Miami Palmer Trinity, 4
Miramar Everglades at Hollywood South Broward, 6:30
North Lauderdale Somerset Prep at Fort Lauderdale Westminster Academy, 7
North Miami at Clearwater Calvary Christian, 7
Plantation at Coconut Creek (Deerfield Beach), 7
Pompano Beach at Coral Springs Parkridge Christian, 7
Pompano Beach Blanche Ely at Coral Springs Coral Glades, 7
THURSDAY STATE SCOREBOARD
Boca Ciega 34, Zephyrhills Christian 6
Boca Raton Christian 48, Belle Glade Glades Day 14
Bratt Northview 40, Niceville Rocky Bayou Christian 6
Deerfield Beach 49, Pembroke Pines Charter 7
Delray Beach American Heritage 49, Pembroke Pines Somerset Academy 12
Dunedin 28, St. Petersburg Northeast 13
Fort Lauderdale Calvary Christian 66, Oakland Park Northeast 0
Fort Lauderdale Dillard 44, Sunrise Piper 21
Heritage, Colorado 38, Orlando East River 13
Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna 49, Coconut Creek Monarch 21
Immokalee 54, Clewiston 12
Lynn Haven Mosley 15, Fort Walton Beach Choctawhatchee 13
Miami Christopher Columbus 45, Miami Southridge 7
Miami Norland 20, Homestead South Dade 0
Miami Westminster Christian 49, Miami St. Brendan 7
North Fort Myers 41, Cape Coral Island Coast 6
North Miami Beach 61, Miami Lakes Barbara Goleman 3
North Port 28, Bradenton IMG Academy (State) 21
Pensacola Catholic 20, Milton 0
Port Orange Spruce Creek 14, Erie, Colorado 10
Sanford Seminole 26, Mountain Vista, Colorado 17
South Miami 12, Miami Sunset 6
Orlando University 47, Magnolia, California 7
Port St. Lucie 53, Lake Worth 14
South Fort Myers 38, Lehigh 0
Tarpon Springs 35, St. Petersburg Hollins 6
Wellington Palm Beach Central 14, Belle Glade Glades Central 9
Weston Cypress Bay 28, South Plantation 21
Winter Garden West Orange 28, Archbishop Hoban, Ohio 24
MIAMI-DADE/BROWARD INFORMATION YEAR-ROUND. https://larryblustein.com/
For the past 56 years, we have spent more time on football fields than anyone in the country. From games to practices, camps, combines and 7-on-7 events, we get to as many events as possible to see the athletes LIVE. Follow us on Facebook (Larry Blustein), Instagram (OurBoyBlu) and Twitter (@PrepRedzoneFL). Contact us at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..