BUCHHOLZ
Jacob Bruce
Position: Offensive line
Height/weight: 6-foot-4, 270 pounds
College chosen: West Florida
Other schools considered: Valdosta State, Florida Tech, Jacksonville, Tusculum
Stats: First team all-area as a senior, Bruce led the Bobcats in pancake blocks with 50+, called tenacious and relentless by Buchholz coach Mark Whittemore.
Quotable: “It felt like home there (West Florida), and I liked the coach there. The downtown and the beaches are nice, everything about it felt like home. They have already played for a national title (Division 2) over there so that is pretty exciting.” — Jacob Bruce
Reiss Coleman
Position: Linebacker
Height/weight: 6-foot-1, 226 pounds
College chosen: Troy
Other schools considered: Jacksonville University, Stetson, Florida A&M
Stats: First-team all-area as senior, Coleman led the Bobcats and District 3-7A in tackles with 116, and added one interception and three pass breakups. Coleman also saw time on the offensive side at fullback for Mark Whittemore's team.
Quotable: “I went up there and visited maybe three times. Everytime I went up there I had a good time. The campus is beautiful, and the coaching staff is amazing. They were 11-2 this year, it was awesome. It's going to be awesome to go up there to talk to Luke Whittemore (former teammate) about football and life, and it will be just like high school again.” — Reiss Coleman
Heston Humphries
Position: Offensive line
Height/weight: 6-foot, 280 pounds
College chosen: West Florida
Other schools considered: Albany State, Valdosta State, Jacksonville
Stats: First team all-area as senior, Humphries helped anchor the Bobcats offensive line at center with 27 pancake blocks. Buchholz coach Mark Whittemore calls him arguably the quickest and most explosive lineman in District 3-7A. Transferred from P.K. Yonge before his junior year.
Quotable: “Pensacola is beautiful with the beaches, and it is a brand new and up and coming program. There is a lot to improve. It's exciting to be playing with Jacob Bruce again. I really liked the program and the environment. Going from 4A to 7A was a big change, but I'm glad I did it.” — Heston Humphries
Stephen Lewerenz
Position: Offensive line Height/weight: 6-foot-3, 280 pounds
College chosen: Tulane Other schools considered: Middle Tennessee, Liberty, Mercer, Furman, Yale
Stats: Despite missing half of his senior season with an injury, Lewerenz was first team all-area once again. The Bobcats team captain graded out at 80 percent plus throughout the 2017 season with 38 pancake blocks. A preseason Super 11 selection.
Quotable: “Awesome academics, New Orleans is a great city, it's cultural and historical. Tulane has been playing football since 1894, lots of All-Americans and great players there. There is a great class coming in, I am excited about the future. Tulane is in the hardest conference outside of the Power 5, with Houston, Navy, Memphis, UCF. Our entire line and quarterback are coming back next year, so it is exciting. The official visit to New Orleans was plenty of fun. It just made sense to go to Tulane. Coach Whittemore is like another dad to me, he is a great man and great father figure in my life. I will miss all of the Gainesville games, the Cardiac Cats. I am going to miss Gainesville and the community, it is a great place to grow up.” — Stephen Lewerenz
- Marty Pallman
EASTSIDE
Braxston Presley
Position: Slot receiver/cornerback
Height/weight: 5-foot-11, 165 pounds
College chosen: University of Mount Union (Ohio)
Other schools considered: Mayville State University (North Dakota)
Stats: Had 18 catches for 319 yards for an average of 17.7 yards per reception with two TDs; he finished 2nd on the team in receptions for the second consecutive season.
Quotable: “This was a very big day for me. It shows that I was actually able to finish my four years of high school and now get the chance to go to the collegiate level and play. That’s very big to my family and myself. They (Mount Union) showed me I could come in and compete and that I would actually have a chance to get on the field. I really enjoyed being on the field with my teammates at Eastside, and scoring touchdowns.” — Braxston Presley
Sholophious McCoy
Position: Defensive End
Height/weight: 6-foot-3, 265 pounds
College chosen: Garden City Community College (Kansas)
Stats: First team all-area selection; totaled 60 tackles, 26 solo, with seven sacks and seven quarterback hurries for Rams; had 15 tackles for a loss
Quotable: “It’s going good for me right now. I’m using it as a business trip. I’m taking it one day at a time. I’m training and trying to keep myself right until fall season. I’ll remember going out with a winning season at Eastside and playing with my coaches and friends from Little League. I talked with their coach (Garden City), and he broke it down and told me it was not a game. He explained how the system and the program works. There were a lot of other big schools I was considering but due to my eligibility I wasn’t able to pursue them yet.” — Sholophious McCoy
- Mike Ridaught
FORT WHITE
Doug Johnson
Position: Offensive line
Height/weight: 6-foot-5, 320 pounds
College chosen: Florida Atlantic University
Other schools considered: Florida, Georgia, Ole Miss, Louisville (total of 18 offers)
Stats: Friday Night Football Magazine first team all-state, dominant blocker up front for 7-4 Indians. Four-year starter at Columbia and Fort White, didn’t allow a sack his junior or senior years.
Quotable: “It’s a blessing. It’s the next level. It’s college, so that’s a great achievement. It’s a milestone. So overall, it’s a big blessing for me. It was a long journey, a long process. Coaches calling every day, going on visits and to games. I had a lot of fun. FAU is in a beautiful city. You can’t beat playing football on the beach. It’s a great opportunity. I love coach (Lane) Kiffin. He said I would have the opportunity to come in and play. I love the environment. I love everything about the school.” — Doug Johnson
- Mike Ridaught
GAINESVILLE
Taurean Hill
Position: Defensive back
Height/weight: 5-foot-9, 165 pounds
College chosen: Coffeyville Community College Hill
(Kansas)
Other schools considered: Mercer University (Macon, Georgia) because closer to Florida.
Stats: First team all-area with five interceptions, returning two for touchdowns, 22 tackles. Also had five receptions for 150 yards and three scores. Averaged 30.6 yards on kickoff returns. He transferred from Columbia for senior season.
Quotable: “It is really meaningful. I am blessed to be in a position where I can play football longer and set a good example for my little brother. My main school that I am really focused on is the University of Oregon. I will do whatever it takes to get there. If it takes to go through JuCo to get there, I will take it.” — Taurean Hill
Joey Zellman
Position: Linebacker
Height/weight: 6-foot-2, 210 pounds
College chosen: Alvernia University (Pennsylvania)
Stats: Missed his senior season because of injury
Quotable: “Because of my injury, I wasn’t able to play my senior year. I didn’t know if I would continue to play football. God blessed me with able to complete my career playing football. My sophomore and junior years, played a lot of different positions. The coaches have been great. I learned a lot. It really changed my life.” - Joey Zellman
- Larry Savage
NEWBERRY
Chris Washington
Position: Linebacker
Height/weight: 6-foot, 240 pounds
College chosen: Appalachian State (Boone, North Carolina)
Other schools considered: Miami, West Florida.
Stats: Three-year starter for Panthers who was first team all-area as junior and senior; in eight games in senior season, had 78 tackles; also played fullback on offense and every special teams.
Quotable: “To me it pretty much means I can extend my education to fulfill the dreams I’ve had since I was a little kid. It is an exciting day for me. I never thought of this coming so soon. Especially at the school that I’m at. So I’m blessed to have the offer I received from Appalachian State. They made me feel at home instead of like another number. They actually talked to me, welcomed me in, it just felt like home.” — Chris Washington
Cameron Brown
Position: Offensive lineman
Height/weight: 6-foot-1, 315 pounds
College chosen: Franklin College (Franklin, Indiana)
Other schools considered: Webber International and Valdosta State.
Stats: Had highest grade along the line at 89 percent with 14 pancakes for Panthers, who averaged 197 yards a game rushing.
Quotable: “It means a lot to me. Coming from a small town like Newberry and going to college, it means a lot. A lot of people overlooked me because of my height, but Franklin is taking a chance with me. Will try to prove the others wrong. Newberry has been a great program. I love it. We’ve worked our butts off from the beginning of the year until the end. I believe that paid off in the end.” — Cameron Brown
- Larry Savage
SAINT FRANCIS
Ike Walker
Position: Defensive lineman
Height/weight: 6-foot-4, 345 pounds
College chosen: UCF
Other schools considered: FAU, Auburn, Kentucky, USF, FIU
Stats: First team all-area in both his junior and senior seasons for the Wolves, opponents often ran away from him, finished with 25 tackles, 12 for loss, 1.5 sacks and five forced fumbles in 2017. Also punted for the team, averaging 34.5 yards on 13 punts.
Quotable: “It means I get to further my education first. And I get to pursue my career of playing football still. You get to keep moving in that situation, which is always great. It was really the coaching staff (that swayed him to UCF). First Scott Frost and then he ended up leaving. And I was still getting recruited by Florida some, and then Randy Shannon ended up coming to UCF. I love the way he coached at Florida.” - Ike Walker
Demari Turner
Position: Utility (WR, RB, DB)
Height/weight: 5-foot-11, 150 pounds
College chosen: Dodge City Community College (Kansas)
Other schools considered: North Dakota. Mount Union (Alliance, Ohio), College of Canyons (Santa Clarita, California)
Stats: First team all-area both his junior (as defensive back) and senior seasons; caught 25 passes for 912 yards (36.5 avg.) with 14 touchdowns, rushed for 260 yards on 19 carries (13.7 avg.) with three TDs, and defensively had 24 tackles with three interceptions for the 8-2 Wolves, who reached their first state playoff.
Quotable: “If I do really good at Dodge City, then hopefully get a D1 scholarship there in football. The coaches said they have sent a lot of kids from there to D1 schools. It was pretty cool to experience being the first to do something (Wolves reached state playoffs for first time in 2017). It was fun while it lasted.” - Demari Turner
- Larry Savage
UNION COUNTY
Charles Strong
Position: Running back
Height/weight: 6-2, 225 pounds
College chosen: Texas A&M
Other schools considered: Ole Miss, Arkansas, Florida, Florida State, Alabama.
Stats: First team all area in 2018. 1,388 yards rushing and 15 TDs for the 6-5 Tigers in 2017; 1,279 yards, 18 TDs in 2016.
Quotable: “Texas A&M because I feel like it’s a good environment for me. Academic-wise, it’s good for me. With playing time, I’ll be with (Texas A&M rising junior) Trayveon Williams. Playing behind him will be good. (Texas A&M running backs coach) Jay Graham, I’ve worked with him since eighth grade. He and I have a big relationship. He knows how I run and how I play. … As soon as (former FSU coach Jimbo Fisher) got to Texas A&M, he called me. It was like, ‘Hey, I need you. I want you here. I need running backs.’ ” — Charles Strong Jr.
Maurice Strong
Position: Defensive Tackle
Height/Weight: 6-2, 290 pounds
College chosen: South Alabama
Other schools considered: Florida A&M, Charleston Southern, Georgia Southern.
Stats: First team all area as a senior with 31 tackles, 14 for loss, 8 sacks, 9 quarterback pressures.
Quotable: “(South Alabama) stuck with me from the beginning, even when my grades were bad and when I was down and when I was up. They never dropped me. That’s what I really appreciate.” — Maurice Strong
— Mike Hodge