Miami-Dade

South Florida High School Football Powers Kick Off 2022 Season Friday

The FHSAA Football State Championships will take place in both Tallahassee and Fort Lauderdale for the second straight season

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For much of the last decade and a half, the best high school football in the state of Florida has come from Miami-Dade County and Broward County. In the 2022 season, some of the area's top programs have their sights set on a bigger prize.

The FHSAA Football State Championships will take place in both Tallahassee and Fort Lauderdale for the second straight season, and DRV PNK Stadium held a dress rehearsal Friday in the opening week of the season by hosting a game between Fort Lauderdale and Deerfield Beach.

South Florida's best chance to win the mythical national championship comes from Northwest 95th Street, as the Miami Central Rockets are looking to win a fourth straight state championship, this time under new head coach Jube Joseph.

NBC 6 sports anchor Hailey Sutton has more on one of the state's top programs who looks to bring home the national crown.

“It’s in our DNA of hard work, and our separation is in our preparation, and obviously our dedication to being the greatest that we can be every down, every day, every moment that we put this green and white on," said the man who spent the previous three seasons as the Rockets' defensive coordinator.

Central took a huge step toward a ninth state title and a first national title Friday with a 20-14 win on the road at one of the nation's top programs, IMG Academy.

"When you sign up to be a Rocket, you sign up to play the biggest games," Joseph said. "They could tell us we’re playing the Miami Dolphins, we’re going to be ready. And that’s the thing about us. We don’t shy away from anything."

Central was one of four teams from South Florida to win a state championship last season, adding to a total of 16 teams from Broward and Miami-Dade who have won a state title since 2019.

One of last year's title teams, Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons, won their opener Friday over DeMatha (MD). Fort Lauderdale's St. Thomas Aquinas and Hollywood's Chaminade Madonna will open their seasons on Saturday.

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