By FRANCIS FEDOR
francisfotography@outlook.com
Regular season football kicked off under the lights in Hillsborough County on Friday, Aug. 21, and included a full slate of South Shore Six (SS6) action for fans to take in locally.
In a highly anticipated game right out of the gate, the Lennard Longhorns traveled up I-75 to take on the Armwood Hawks. The Hawks contended for a state championship into the state semifinals last season before exiting and are considered to be a contender for a title again this season. The Longhorns took the field after an off-season that saw a number of additions, which head coach KB Belton hopes will take the team to the next level. The Hawks provided an early opportunity to gauge their progress against a formidable foe, and the Horns gave themselves a great opportunity to come away with a win but fell short, 17-7, in a game dominated by the defenses.
Coach Belton was proud of the fact that the defense played lights out and stood toe-to-toe with the high-powered Armwood offense. The defense held the highly touted offense to only two TDs and a FG, holding the Hawks passing offense to a paltry 66 yards and keeping the Armwood rushing game under 150 yards. Zylon Hall led the offense with three tackles for a loss (six overall) and a sack. Reshard Johnson stepped in front of a pass for an INT, and Ja’Khi Taylor recovered a fumble to end tje Hawk’s drives. On offense, QB Tony Balaguer threw for 140 yards with a passing TD and used his legs for another 70 yards but was intercepted twice by the Armwood defense. Junior Chase Brown was on the receiving end of the only Longhorn TD.
The Longhorns return home to take on the Morgan Mustangs in the very first match-up between the two SS6 rivals.
The Sumner Stingrays also opened their season on the road, playing just a couple of exits up I-4 from Armwood, at the Strawberry Crest Chargers. The Stingrays got off to a quick start and never looked back, locking up a 55-0 road win to open their 2026 schedule.
Makai Frederick rewarded the trust shown by head coach George Selvie’s calling on him to lead from the QB position. Frederick completed 9 of 13 passes for 150 yards with three TDs. Antrell Johnson hauled in two for scores on 74 yards receiving, and Kanye Faison added another TD from the passing game. Robert Garcia rushed for two TDs, and Christian Clemons added another. Cedric Johnson led all rushers with 70 yards on the ground. The defense held the Chargers to just under 140 yards of offense and forced five turnovers, including four INTs with Myerick Stewart and Garcia returning two of the INTs for TDs.
The Stingrays host Tampa Bay Tech (win vs. Lake Gibson in week one) in a Hillsborough County marquee match-up this Friday and in some circles being hyped as the game of the week in Hillsborough. It will be the first regular season meeting between the two teams.
The East Bay Indians hosted SS6 rival the Riverview Sharks to open their season and seized the early momentum and built a 29-0 halftime lead on their way to a 43-7 win. East Bay now leads the all-time series at 21-6 but the Sharks had won two of the last three meetings prior to the loss. The Indians capped an early drive with a goal line run by Preston Cooper (100 yds rushing/two TDs) to open the scoring. On their next drive, Carse Biggerstaff made a catch in tight coverage to put the Indians right back in scoring position and Cooper punched it in for his second TD. The Sharks had a chance to stay close in the first quarter as a potential TD connection from QB Carter Peternell, but the pass tipped off the hands of Doniven Persaud. East Bay excelled on special teams play, including recovering a kickoff that went untouched by the Sharks that essentially served as an onsides kick. The Sharks only score came on a 70-yard INT return from Kellon Patsalos late in the game.
East Bay QBs Jeremiah Argo and Cannon Farragut each threw a TD, and Richard McClary, who led all receivers with 70 yards, and Mario Davis each caught a TD. Aric Person added a rushing TD. Shawn Daniels had two INTs, and Marquis Thornton and Dorian Edwards each had one pick each.
Sharks head coach Tony Rodriguez commented that the staff will grow from the lessons learned. The team will now focus on its home opener in front of its fans vs. Parrish Community, also coming off a loss.
The Indians will take to the road to travel into Tampa, near Busch Gardens, to take on the Chamberlain Storm in the first game between the two teams since 2023, when the Storm ruled in a 46-6 rout in Tampa. Head coach DeAndra Simmons and his East Bay squad will be looking to start an early season winning streak.
The Morgan Mustangs took to the field and came away with a 42-0 win in their inaugural home opener in Wimauma against the Leto Falcons. The Falcons struggled last season and did not record a win, going 0-10 and was a great first match-up for the Mustangs. Morgan head coach Marlo Hollingshed and his staff kept the team focused and took care of business on a fun night for the home fans.
Cole Verzosa had a big night for the Mustangs at the QB position, connecting for three TDs and calling his own number for two rushing scores. Jonathan Stephen, a senior in the first graduating class of Morgan, and sophomores Donye Henderson, Martis Bunton and Jeremiah Roberson all were on the receiving end of the air game scores. Henderson eclipsed the 100-yard mark receiving.
The Mustangs, as mentioned above, will travel to Lennard to take on the Longhorns in the opening chapter of a new SS6 rivalry.
The Spoto Spartans took to the field in their 2026 home opener and sent the crowd home with a satisfying 22-3 victory over the Chamberlain Storm. Spartan sophomore Dakota Thomas dominated on offense, carrying the rock 27 times and racking up 181 yards with the ground game running up 244 yards total.
The Spartans will host the Robinson (one point loss to Steinbrenner on Aug. 21) for the first time since 2023, when the Knights spoiled the Spoto home opener, downing the Spartans 32-7. The Knights will face a much stronger Spoto team than the team that finished the ’23 season at 2-8.
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