Now that spring break has concluded, the Florida High School Athletic Association flag football season has hit the midway part of the regular season.
With that, the latest FHSAA rankings were released on Monday. Any games that were played that night are not included in a team's record, rating or strength of schedule as far as the rankings go.
Similar to the last couple rankings, Pace remains Escambia and Santa Rosa counties' top-ranked team at No. 26 in the state with a 7-1 record and a 16.599 rating. That's a four-spot drop from last week, despite not playing a game over spring break.
Navarre is still the area's second-best team at No. 86 with a 6-4 record and a 9.620 rating, staying put compared to last week.
With district tournaments from April 14-17, region tournaments start the following week on April 23.
Here are the second FHSAA flag football rankings for teams from Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, plus a way-too-early playoff watch.
Class 3A
- Pace (16.599) – first in District 1-3A, second in Region 1-3A, sixth in Class 3A, 26th overall in state
- Navarre (9.620) – second in District 1-3A, seventh in Region 1-3A, 27th in Class 3A, 86th overall in state
- Tate (1.863) – fourth in District 1-3A, 13th in Region 1-3A, 47th in Class 3A, 187th overall in state
- Gulf Breeze (-10.791) – sixth in District 1-3A, 19th in Region 1-3A, 86th in Class 3A, 333rd overall in state
Class 2A
- Booker T. Washington (5.074) – second in District 1-2A, seventh in Region 1-2A, 36th in Class 2, 147th overall in state
- Pensacola (-7.802) – fourth in District 1-2A, 17th in Region 1-2A, 80th in Class 2A, 304th overall in state
- Pine Forest (-8.062) – fifth in District 1-2A, 18th in Region 1-2A, 81st in Class 2A, 309th overall in state
- Escambia (-21.273) – sixth in District 1-2A, 21st in Region 1-2A, 103rd in Class 2A, 387th overall in state
Way-too-early region playoff picture
District tournaments aren't for another month, but it's still fun to discuss what the playoff scenarios would look like if the regular season ended today as far as region tournaments.
District champions automatically advance to the region tournament after the district tourney, and there are four at-large bids per region in all classifications.
Rankings are bound to change after district tournaments as well, so we'll pretend that they didn't change at all through districts to make things a little easier. Remember: anything can happen in the playoffs.
Here's what the region tournaments would look like.
Region 1-3A
- 1. Ponte Vedra (3)* vs. 8. Lake Howell (4)
- 2. Pace (1)* vs. 7. Navarre (1)
- 3. Fleming Island (3) vs. 6. Oviedo (4)*
- 4. Chiles (2)* vs. 5. Fletcher (3)
Notes: The Region 1-3A quarterfinals provides a rivalry matchup, as of now, with Pace and Navarre duking it out. The Patriots are the second seed in the tournament, while Navarre is an at-large bid and the No. 7 team. The four district champions are all in the top eight teams, however, Oviedo would still host Fleming Island as the District 4 champion.
Region 1-2A
- 1. Choctaw (1)* vs. 8. Riverside (4)
- 2. Ed White (4)* vs. 7. Booker T. Washington (1)
- 3. Stanton (3)* vs. 6. Wakulla (2)*
- 4. Paxon (3) vs. 5. Yulee (3)
Notes: With the four district champions all within the top eight teams, there isn't anyone omitted from the region tournament. However, Wakulla would lose out on hosting as it goes to a higher-seeded district champion. Booker T. Washington, as of now, sneaks in as an at-large bid and the seventh-ranked team. The Wildcats, in the quarterfinals, would head to Ed White in Jacksonville.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: FHSAA Flag Football Rankings: Pace and Navarre remained top two area teams
