Florida football title games are near

During the regular season when Armwood (Seffner) was routinely routing opponents with ease, Hillsborough (Tampa) was the lone squad to even nick the Hawks' armor.

Although it was still a 34-15 Armwood win.

Fast forward from that 19-point Hillsborough loss in October to Friday night and the Terriers were again in position to challenge the Hawks — this time with much more on the line. But Hillsborough could muster little against Armwood, which pounded the Terriers 39-6 in a Class 4A region semifinal.

And it wasn't even Armwood's best effort.

"We were flat," said Armwood coach Sean Callahan, whose team has now beaten Hillsborough eight straight times. "I'm not sure if it's because we played them before or maybe the kids are just tired of playing Hillsborough."

Still, Armwood (12-0) scored touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams in advancing to Friday's region final at home against 12-0 Charlotte (Punta Gorda).

The Hawks jumped out to an 18-0 first-half lead, getting scores on a Javonte Sneed 12-yard run, a blocked punt returned 22 yards for a touchdown by Leon McQuay and a 37-yard fumble return by Jacob Zilbar.

The second half was more of the same as Armwood got a 47-yard interception return for a touchdown from D.J. Hitchman before Josh Grady and Matt Jones completed the scoring with short touchdown runs.

The Hawks' defense was solid as well, holding the Terriers to 85 yards of total offense and only yielding a short touchdown run by Shawn Bryant in the fourth quarter.

"Coach (Earl) Garcia and Hillsborough set the bar so high in this county," Callahan said. "And we aspired to be like them. It's worked out for us and we just have a monster (program) here."

Click here to view MaxPreps' Florida football playoff brackets.

CLASS 5A
Plant (Tampa) scored 22 points in the first quarter en route to a 50-23 win against Newsome (Lithia) in the Class 5A region semifinals.

Plant quarterback (and Alabama commit) Phillip Ely threw five touchdown passes and ran for a score in the win. The Plant defense held Newsome fullback Conner Powers, the Bay area's leading rusher, to 75 yards and one touchdown. Powers left the game in the third quarter with a right knee injury.

Also in 5A, Countryside (Clearwater) outlasted Tampa Bay Tech 34-21.

Tied at 14 in the third quarter, a 94-yard touchdown pass from Gray Crow to Nico Morgado sparked the Cougars, who outscored the Titans 20-7 for the rest of the game.

Countryside (12-0) travels to Plant (10-2) this week in a region final contest.

CLASS 3A
Jefferson (Tampa) quarterback Quentin Williams threw two touchdown passes to establish a state record for career passing scores with 102. Along the way, he passed John Brantley, Xavier Lee and Tim Tebow. He also led Jefferson to a 41-14 win against previously unbeaten Pasco (Dade City) in the 3A region semifinals.

Video of Quentin Williams

Jefferson (12-0) hosts Vanguard (Ocala) (10-2) next for a chance to advance to the state semifinals.

CLASS 2A
Robinson (Tampa) made the most of its highly anticipated rematch with district rival Jesuit (Tampa).

Robinson, which lost to Jesuit 29-28 in October (and the district championship as a result) earned revenge with a 21-7 win last week in the Class 2A region finals. Running back J.J. Hubbard led Robinson with 177 yards rushing and two touchdowns.

For the second year in a row, Robinson advances to the Class 2A state semifinals. Robinson (10-2) will host Glades Central (Belle Glade) (11-1) Friday with the winner advancing to the state championship game Dec. 11 at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando.

CLASS A & B
Private schools Berkeley Prep (Tampa) and Admiral Farragut (St. Petersburg) fell short in attempts to reach the state semifinals.

Berkeley Prep was eliminated by rival Fort Meade 35-14 while Admiral Farragut lost to Victory Christian Academy (Lakeland) 24-20.