Six area teams take part in four region championship games and a state semifinal Friday. Here's a preview of what to look for in the third round of the postseason.
Class 8A, Region 1 final
No. 2 Seminole (11-0) at No. 5 Winter Park (9-3)
At Showalter Field, Winter Park
Buzz: D.J. Hampton leads Seminole with 1,586 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns and averages 205 all-purpose yards per game. Ben Roth leads the Seminole defense with 63 tackles (7.5 for loss). D.J. Artis has 42.5 tackles (12.5 TFL) with six sacks and three forced fumbles. Winter Park has picked off 15 passes, led by seven interceptions from Jonathan Griffin-Heard. Jordan Pouncey averages 111.7 all-purpose yards as a ball-carrier, receiver, special teams returner and defensive back. Pouncey is second on the team behind QB Cameron Legree with 633 yards rushing and 10 touchdowns. Legree has run for 852 yards and seven scores.
History: Third postseason meeting. They split games in 2009 and 2010. Seminole is 5-1 all-time against Orange County schools in the playoffs. Winter Park is 4-1 against Seminole County in the postseason and 15-5 at home in the state series.
Predicted winner: Seminole
Next: Winner will host Dr. Phillips or Vero Beach in state semifinal.
Class 8A, Region 2 final
Vero Beach (11-0) at No. 3 Dr. Phillips (10-2)
Buzz: Dr. Phillips recovered three fumbles and intercepted three passes last week to up its takeaway total to 37 on the season. The Panthers are allowing just 8.9 points per game and have outscored opponents 120-10 in the first quarter. Robert Porcher has 82 tackles and 14 sacks on the season. Joe Gulla leads the team with 86 tackles and three fumble recoveries. Tanner Ingle has 537 yards and five touchdowns on 16 returns on defense and special teams. Emare Hogan and JeQuan Burton have combined for 62 receptions for 905 yards and 13 touchdowns. Vero Beach relies on QB Mike Dean, who has passed for 2,700 yards and 31 touchdowns with just three interceptions. Michael Smith has caught 53 passes for 1,361 yards and 21 touchdowns. Colorado State commit Patrick Moody leads a talented group of linebackers.
History: Programs have a combined 59 playoff appearances (32 for Vero, a much older school), but this is the first time the Panthers and Indians have met. DP is playing a region final for the fifth time in seven seasons. The Panthers won those games in 2010 and 2012 but lost in this round the past two years.
Predicted winner: Dr. Phillips
Next: Winner travels to Seminole or Winter Park for a state semifinal.
CLASS 6A, Region 4 final
Miami Carol City (7-3) at No. 1 Mainland (11-0)
At Daytona Beach Municipal Stadium
Buzz: Mainland QB Denzel Houston has completed 70 percent of his passes for 2,344 yards and 29 touchdowns with three interceptions. Houston has also rushed for 878 yards and 15 scores for the No. 1 team the state 6A poll. C.J. Wilson leads the Bucs with 905 yards on the ground and 10 touchdowns. Senior linebacker Maurice Headen has 132 tackles (25 for loss) and two defensive touchdowns. Carol City coach Aubrey Hill played wide receiver at UF. The Chiefs have leaned on backup QB Marlon Smith, who has passed for 1,402 yards with 14 touchdowns and three interceptions. Wide receiver Kevaughn Dingle and linebacker Deandre Wilder are Miami commits. Dingle has 31 receptions for 563 yards and four touchdowns.
History: The visiting Chiefs own four state titles, the last in 2003, which was the year Mainland won its only state championship. Mainland is playing in a region final for the sixth straight year, having won three and lost two of those games. The Bucs are 0-4 vs. Miami teams in the playoffs. All of those losses were to Miami Central, which had a four-year state title streak end when it lost district games to Carol City and Miami Northwestern this season.
Predicted winner: Mainland
Next: Winner travels to Fort Myers or Charlotte for state semifinal.
CLASS 5A, Region 4 final
Plantation American Heritage (11-0) at No. 4 Bishop Moore (11-1)
Buzz: Bishop Moore is allowing 14 points per game on the season and has not yielded more than 19 the past six weeks. Donovan Winter led the Hornets in the regular season with 55 tackles (18 for loss) and seven sacks. Charles Rask (51 tackles) and Bobby Spitulski (27) each entered the playoffs with two interceptions. Patrick Surtain, an 11-year NFL veteran, is a first-year head coach at American Heritage, which is No. 1 in the AP 5A rankings. Harvard commit Jason Brown has passed for 1,235 yards with 10 touchdowns and three interceptions. Junior defensive end Andrew Chatfield led the team with 65 tackles in the regular season and enters the game with 16 sacks. Linebacker Willie Hampton is a Nebraska commit.
History: Bishop Moore lost 20-17 at American Heritage in a 2014 state semifinal game.
Predicted winner: American Heritage
Next: Winner hosts Tampa Jesuit or Immokalee in a state semifinal.
CLASS 4A, State semifinal
No. 8 South Sumter (10-1) at Jacksonville Bolles (12-0)
Buzz: South Sumter has scored 42 or more points in four of its past five games and enters the matchup averaging 39.6 per game. Bokeyon Rice has led the Raiders in rushing through 10 games with 691 yards and nine touchdowns while Deon Williams had tallied 577 yards and 10 touchdowns. QB Malik Bell has passed for 615 yards and 15 touchdowns with two interceptions. State No. 2 Bolles is averaging 52 points per game after posting 60 last week in a 40-point win over Jacksonville Raines. The Bulldogs have held opposing teams to 15 points or less seven times with three wins coming by way of shutout. Bolles senior quarterback Mac Jones is committed to Alabama.
History: Raiders are 3-6 vs. Bolles in playoffs since 1993 but have lost three in a row vs. the Bulldogs since 2007. Bolles owns a state record 11 state championships, 10 of those under current coach Corky Rogers, who is the state all-time wins leader.
Predicted winner: Bolles
Next: Winner advances to Orlando's Camping World Stadium for the Dec. 8 state championship game against Cocoa or Miami Booker T. Washington.
Note: Rankings are from Sentinel Super 16. All games start at 7:30 p.m.
Last week: 7 correct, 1 fumbles (.875). Season: 358 correct, 96 fumbles (.789).
J.C. Carnahan is a sports writer covering high schools for the Orlando Sentinel. You can reach him at jcarnahan@orlandosentinel.com.