Week 7 in Florida gave us some elite matchups, and they lived up to the hype.
South Florida powerhouses St. Thomas Aquinas and Chaminade-Madonna faced off in aclassic in Hollywood on Friday,Oct. 3, and IMG Academy hosted The St. James Performance Academy, which announced its arrival to the national stage by pushing the Ascenders to the brink at home.
USA TODAY's Florida network was on hand for both heavyweight bouts, and the stars shined for Florida's premier football talent factories.
Here are recruiting takeaways from a heavy-duty weekend of high school football in Florida:
Osani Gayles is as good as better than advertised
With Eric McFarland III and Eric Whitfield out for IMG, Gayles rose to the task. He was the No. 1 option fin the win, catching nine passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns.
He had a 63-yard catch that up a touchdown in the fourth quarter, and his 73-yard kick return that put the Scenders in range for the game-winning field goal.
Gayles is the No. 13 overall player in the USA TODAY Florida Top 100 midseason update. He's devastating in the open field, and he looked uncatchable against the Strivers. It was a fitting night for the Alabama commit, who watched the Tide pour 56 points on a ranked Mississippi State a few hours before stuffing the stat sheet himself.
"It's fun to watch (Alabama's) offense," Gayles said. "Just seeing Lotzier (Brooks), Rico (Scott), Ryan (Coleman-Williams) do their things, so it's good to see that I could possibly be one of them. And then obviously Keelon (Russell) keeps progressing as a quarterback and being able to throw the ball downfield. I feel like he's getting better every game. It's exciting to see."
Censere Gaylord is not talked about enough
Gaylord is ranked as the No. 16 player in Florida and No. 2 cornerback, but he just isn't talked about as much as other defensive backs in the state. Part of it is because he just quietly shuts down his side of the field in Bradenton.
Gaylord swung the game twice in the win over TSJPA. His first pick came in the third quarter with the Strivers driving and poised to take a two-score lead. His one-handed tip-drill pick quelled the drive and set up an IMG touchdown on the ensuing possession. His second pick ended as a 97-yard pick-six that broke a 28-28 tie.
The Huskie commit reaffirmed his commitment to Washington, confirming again that his recruitment is shut down and his only gameday visit in the works is back to Seattle.
Ohio State got a good one in Wyatt Smith
St. Thomas Aquinas has spent most of the year as the No. 1 team in the nation, and there is an argument that no single Raider has had more of an impact on their success than Smith.
The Buckeye commit and No. 10 player in Florida stepped up when it mattered most against cross-town rivals Chaminade-Madonna. On top of registering a sack, Smith blocked the Lions' look at a go-ahead field goal in the fourth quarter, and was credited with 13 tackles and four pass breakups at the line of scrimmage.
Elite programs still pushing for 5-star OT Mark Matthews
Matthews was a sturdy presence up front for a shaky Raider offense, and even played interior defensive lineman alongside Smith on a few key situations against Chaminade-Madonna.
He has been committed to Texas A&M since the spring, and has stayed tethered despite pushed from big-name coaching staffs that have been in the hunt for years. For now, it's the relationships that have kept Matthews with an impressively stacked Aggie class.
"I guess you could say it's how I built a family with the players that are already over there," Matthews said. "That was my main point, that I built a good family with them. So I felt comfortable with those guys that I'm going to be living with and hanging out with."
That doesn't other programs have given up. While Matthews says "everyone" is still calling, there are programs that are stronger flip candidates than most.
Miami has long been attached to the star tackle, and he confirmed the 'Canes are still in pursuit. Keep an eye on LSU as well. Lane Kiffin has never been shy of taking big recruiting swings, and Matthews said the Tigers are a realistic school still pushing.
Chaminade-Madonna's 2028 core is elite
Let's start with the receiver core, which features Tromon Isaac Jr. and Armani Strong. Isaac was electric against an elite Raider secondary, and finished the night with six catches for 145 yards and one touchdown — which was an impressive one-handed snag in coverage in the back of the end zone.
Strong, a Florida commit, was effective as a release valve for the Lions, catching six passes for 44 yards, but just as importantly forced the Raiders to pick their poison in coverage.
Peter Pierre is one of the most intriguing prospects in his class. The 6-foot-5, 220-pound athlete caught five passes for 49 yards, but is also an eye-catching prospect as a pass rusher. He has elite speed and hands for his size, good strength, and continues to look more polished week-over-week.
Pierre, Strong and Isaac all recently went on a visit to Gainesville together for Florida's statement win over Ole Miss.
Brady Quinn was surgical in the loss, tossing for 263 yards on 19-of-25 completions with one touchdown pass and one interception. Quinn was a true signal caller on the final driver, leading Chaminade-Madonna down the field on quick, accurate passes to the boundary while making the right reads and checks. He was also dominant on the ground, taking eight carries for 88 yards and two more scores.
Linebacker Karen Holcombe was an unsolvable problem for the Raiders. He was in the backfield all night, registering five tackles for loss while helping stifle a typically lethal Raider ground game.
Is Jayden Wade the No. 1 player in the class 2028?
The 2028 class is really, really elite at the national level. Florida players make up a significant portion of the rankings. Wade was initially the No. 1 overall player in the country when 247Sports put out its initial 2028 rankings, and he currently sits at the No. 8 spot nationally.
If he keeps up this pace, it'll be the lowest his ranking sits until signing day.
All the Georgia commit has done this season is make defenses look silly. He's only needed the first half in all but two games to put games away. Against TSJPA, he tossed for 348 yards on 16-of-22 completions with three touchdown passes. He added 39 yards and another score on 15 carries.
Now seven weeks through the season, Wade has thrown for 1,188 yards, and 16 touchdowns on 82 passing attempts with zero interceptions.
He's poised like a second-year college player, and he commands the offense at a cerebral level. He accuracy and timing in the pocket and on the run are truly best-in-class, and he takes full advantage of his loaded receiver core.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida HS football recruiting: We saw a few elite prospects up close
