Last year, these teams were struggling.
In 2026, they're on the rise — sometimes dramatically so.
The turnaround, or at least its first signs, came quickly for these seven Northeast Florida high school football programs, who have already surpassed last year's regular-season win totals with more than half the season to spare.
For a few, like formerly-winless Englewood, it only took one win to beat the mark of 2025. Here's a closer look at the area's early turnaround teams and what is helping them change the momentum in 2026.
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CLAY
Coach: Jeff Gierke
2025 record: 2-8
2026 record to date: 3-1
What's going right: Last year, the Blue Devils allowed 358 points, or 35.8 per game. That's too many. Early indications
show significant improvements, including a shutout of Palatka, and Clay is playing like a team capable of bouncing back from trouble. After falling behind 18-7 to Orange Park, they rolled up 56 unanswered points last week. Quarterback Landon Martin is a big-play threat as a passer and rusher, Eric Gentry has sparked the offense since arriving from Fleming Island and Mi'Keise Battle is coming off an excellent game on both sides of the football. At their current pace, the Blue Devils could push for their first FHSAA regional berth since 2020.
CORNERSTONE CLASSICAL
Coach: Brian Trippett
2025 record: 0-6
2026 record to date: 4-0
What's going right: After two short seasons, both winless, the Spartans have found new scoring punch under Trippett. This team is airing it out, with junior quarterback Hunter Rowley averaging more than 300 yards per game in the air and receivers Ja'Quez Gilyard (19 catches, 550 yards, 7 TD), Isaiah Hunt (nine catches, 332 yards, 4 TD) and Eddi Wohlgemuth (eight catches, 241 yards, 4 TD) racking up big yardage downfield. Cornerstone Classical's challenge does step up soon with Old Plank Christian, Port Orange Atlantic and Duval Charter among the coming opponents.
ENGLEWOOD
Coach: Randy Grace
2025 record: 0-10
2026 record to date: 1-2
What's going right: A win, 22-20 over Bishop Snyder, something that's been in short supply at Englewood in recent years. Under new coach Grace, who has helped several squads in Georgia turn their game around over the years, the Rams have implemented a run-first offense with steady ground contributions from Keondre Smith (260 yards) and Geovanni Johnson (187 yards). Johnson also has a pair of sacks on defense, while Hugo Rubio leads with 27 tackles.
KEYSTONE HEIGHTS
Coach: Cameron Porch
2025 record: 0-10
2026 record to date: 1-3
What's going right: There's still a lot of work ahead for Keystone, which most recently went down 56-7 against Hilliard. But the losing streak is gone, ended at 18 games, and the Clay County school has a long-awaited victory against P.K. Yonge, 33-8 on Aug. 28. That was the first time Keystone had scored 30 points since Oct. 27, 2023. On offense, Cole Crabtree and Mikey Gamble both average nearly five yards per carry, and Ryder Thomas continues to stand out on special teams.
RIBAULT
![Ribault Terrance Croley (3) runs during a Spring football game at Union County High School in Lake Butler, FL on Thursday, May 21, 2026. Union County beat Ribald 21-16.[Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/authoring-images/2026/05/22/NTGS/90207458007-gai-union-county-springfootball-167832.jpg)
Coach: Michael Hunter
2025 record: 1-9
2026 record to date: 2-1
What's going right: While the Trojans still have a climb ahead to return to their prime years, which included NFL players like Laveranues Coles and Travis Taylor in the 1990s, they made a perfect start until running into the Columbia buzzsaw last week. Versatile defensive standouts like Jalen Peters and Breon Bethea are boosting Ribault in various roles, while on the offensive side, they've got three running backs to watch in Terrance Croley Jr., Arnez Harris and Jayden Mills.
SANDALWOOD
Coach: Malik Reaves
2025 record: 1-9
2026 record to date: 3-1
What's going right: Sandalwood no longer resembles the team that lost 29 consecutive games up until Week 11 in 2025. The change begins on the offensive end with senior quarterback Jarelle Sims, who has thrown for 707 yards and rushed for 347 in his first four games this year, with significant assists from junior tailback Javien Strobridge, senior receiver Houston Thompson and junior athlete Michael Hills. Hills, newly transferred from Parker, already has 909 all-purpose yards and 12 touchdowns (four rushing, five receiving, three returning) as an all-purpose super weapon.
SUWANNEE
Coach: Kyler Hall
2025 record: 1-9
2026 record to date: 4-0
What's going right: Maybe the most dramatic of the turnaround stories. Even after losing Division I prospect Koy Frier, who transferred to Gainesville Buchholz, the Bulldogs have rolled up four consecutive victories, allowing only 26 points in the process. Defense is doing the damage. Suwannee has 11 takeaways, five of them interceptions by Jarquez Gwinn, as well as more than a dozen sacks, with Marco Rojas (30 tackles, 3 1/2 sacks), Travis Fead (41 tackles, three sacks) and Kyler Watson (39 tackles) as top contributors.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: They've turned it around. Northeast Florida's most improved football teams
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