OAKLEAF - Ed White came to Oakleaf High's with a marquee quarterback, Navy-bound King Boylston, but it was the smaller sophomore backup quarterback Mike Hinson who created the chaos to lead the Commanders to a 21-18 non-district win Friday night.

Oakleaf's Class 5A region playoff hopes are still viable. The Knights are in fourth position in Region 1-5A, with a road trip to Ocala Forest on Friday to start a stretch of district games with Matanzas at home and Gainesville Buchholz on the road.

Oakleaf had an early 10-0 lead in the first quarter on a scoring pass from Knights quarterback Jaidan Delaune to Terrance James near the eight minute mark.

Oakleaf's defense seemed on top by corralling Boylston's runs out of the pocket and downfield passes until he left the game with a possible ankle injury.

In came in Hinson, who immediately took a quarterback sweep left nearly 75 yards to paydirt.

"We will have to look at the film and see what happened there," said Foy, cognizant that Hinson was effective in breaking through the Knights defensive line for quality gains for three run touchdowns. "We have to find a way to win games like this."

Foy's lamentation is due to losses in previous games to Bolles and Raines, both in different classes, in anticipation of his team returning to a deep playoff run.

"We can't win the big games and do the things we did tonight," Foy said. "We got Buchholz coming soon, and they will be ready to go."

One of the highlights was an 80-yard kickoff return by senior returner Michael Conner after Whites' first touchdown. But his zigging and zagging to the Commanders' red zone was negated by a penalty flag near the Knights' 25.

Oakleaf was also victimized by a series of dropped passes in wide open spaces, including the end zone.

In the second half, Oakleaf was able to respond with running back London Carswell crashing in from the 2 for the game's final score.

Oakleaf also had the stadium lights go out near the five-minute mark of the fourth quarter that caused a 35-minute delay.

Ridgeview to build on small individual victories in 31-0 loss to Paxon

By Don Coble,

don@claytodayonline.com

ORANGE PARK – Progress for the Ridgeview High football team wasn’t defined by the scoreboard Friday night. While the Panthers lost 31-0 in a non-district game to visiting Paxon, first year head coach Jason Smith said the first challenge is establishing a new culture.

“We’re a young team, and we are trying to eliminate the mistakes,” Smith said. “We keep beating ourselves. We’re just changing the culture because they’re used to doing certain things.”

Ridgeview (1-5) won some small battles, like a goal line stand with 5:07 remaining and two long passes by quarterback Jordan Mesa to running back Amani Blount. Those types of small wins are what Smith plans to emphasize when the team reviews the game film.

The Golden Eagles (5-2) were bigger and faster. Senior running back Kj Palmer ran from 168 yards and three touchdowns, including a 27-yarder with 9:00 remaining in the first quarter and a 70-yard run with 2:17 to go in the third.

“We missed some assignments, some alignments,” Smith said. “We need to work on our technique."

The Panthers trailed 24-0 at halftime. The first two quarters were played in a heavy drizzle, but it didn't affect Ridgeview's effort — or the combined performance by junior high bands from Lakeside, Lake Asbury, Orange Park and Wilkinson.

The Panthers got a pep talk from Jacksonville Jaguars’ defensive end Josh Hines-Allen during the break. After intermission, the only blemish on defense was Palmer’s 70-yard run. However, a high punt snap and 12-yard tackle for loss gave Paxon the ball at the Ridgeview 21. The Golden Eagles got inside the five for a first down, but the Panthers rallied to stop four consecutive runs up the middle. The critical fourth-down stop was by senior defensive end Adrien Rivera, who is only one of six seniors on the roster, and junior linebacker Chris Copeland.

“I keep telling them to play with pride," Smith said. "It’s not about giving up. Usually, they would give up in the second half. They didn’t quit. They kept competing.”

Knowing games are won between December and August in the weight room and offseason drills, Smith said he wants to build on the small successful battles since once the season starts, all that’s left is keeping score.

“We’re going to get there,” he said. “We’re moving in the right direction.”

Ridgeview will host 6-0 St. Augustine in a Class 4A-4 game on Friday, Oct. 9, before finishing the season with trips to Clay, Orange Park and Englewood.