East Ridge returns a bunch; Horizon, Ocoee excited | 6A District 7 football

East Ridge coach Donnie Burchfield learned a lot last year after his team jumped out to a 6-0 record, but then failed to win another game to finish 6-4. “We need to build more depth in the trenches, that’s the No. 1 focal point. And No. 2 is to build depth at some of the other crucial spots, like safety and linebacker. Those are some crucial things,” Burchfield said. “It’s a three-prong effect for us and the third thing is defensive scheming, with halftime adjustments and we went out and got Billy Hubbard.” Hubbard was an assistant coach at Bishop Moore for 16 years, spending 11 of those seasons as defensive coordinator. Burchfield thinks he has found the right guy to make a difference. He also is very happy with his offensive coordinator Frank Scott, who was a head coach at Eustis and Leesburg. “It makes for some pretty competitive practices,” Burchfield said. “One day one of them leaves frustrated and the next day the other one leaves frustrated. They’ve had some wars back and forth. “I think the competition on offense and defense has made us better. We had to get way better on defense and I think Billy is that answer. He’s literally a game-changer for our program.” East Ridge comes in as the favorite in a new-look 6A District 7, but Horizon has a team coach Dennis Thomas thinks could surprise some people. And no one ever counts out Buck Gurley at Ocoee, a playoff team last year. Chris Blanton and Celebration are coming off a 1-9 season and looking to improve. Hubbard has some pieces to work with on that East Ridge defense. Key returnees are Davis Suchora, who can play the edge or linebacker, and talented defensive back Jordyn Butler. The D-line should be solid with Jayden Edwards and Jeremiah Mickens. If the Knights can shore up its defensive issues, then things could be looking good, because the offense is loaded. Nearly everyone is back, with the exception of receiver Tony Brown, who split for Miami Columbus. Dynamic receiver Lamar Garrison gives quarterback Karon Palmer a terrific target. Running backs Daryl Ellis and Brian Neves Dos Santos are also back, and the offensive line is stacked, with Aiden Galles, Bryce Davis and West Orange transfer Fenway Cochrane. Horizon lost 50% of its offense with the graduation of Kaio Oliveira, who is now at Army. Thomas, however, believes he has some weapons to fill the void, starting with two brothers who transferred from Evans in senior quarterback Azariel and junior receiver Gavriel Woods. Pair those two with big Brazilian running back Rodrigo Tolentino (6-foot, 205), along with Ryan Dugan and Ethan Witt on the offensive line, big tight end Davien Bradley (6-4, 250) and slot-type athletes Sean Guzman and Hunter Sampson and Thomas is liking the way things look. “Azariel and Gavriel, those kids are dynamic,” Thomas said. “We got some good kids, so I feel like we’ve got a really good, dynamic offense.” Re-joining Thomas this year will be Raul Gomez as offensive coordinator. They were a duo at Lyman High seven years ago and Gomez is the former head coach at Cypress Creek. “Gomez brings some offense and he knows how to put weapons in the right spots,” Thomas said. “He’s interesting because you don’t know where he’s gonna go next. He’s just a great offensive mind.” Thomas boasts about his linebacker Abishai Smith-Foreman and he loves his defense. “He’s just a stud. I don’t know of anyone who’s better in the area,” Thomas said of Smith-Foreman. “He’s strong and fast and he can run.” Thomas also likes his defensive line with Lorenzo Olivera, David Cole and Ryan Ruel, along with linebacker Nathan Dickinson. “We feel good. It should be a lot of fun,” Thomas said. “We love competition and we love playing good teams. It just makes us better. The goal is to make the playoffs and we gotta go through some tough teams. We gotta earn it. “This team has a chance to be our best team. I feel really good about it. I think we have some respect in the area, but we’ll surprise some people.” Ocoee will have a former East Ridge player running the show in junior quarterback Nate Watkins, but the Knights will be looking for plenty of players to step up after losing more than 10 players who transferred to other schools. Ocoee also lost its top four rushers from a year ago due to graduation, but Gurley is upbeat. “This is probably the best we have ever looked since I’ve been the head coach,” said Gurley, who is headed into his fourth season. Gurley is mega-excited about freshman running back Kevin Bridges, and new receiver Langston Johnson, a move-in from the Philadelphia area. On defense, Ocoee has Cornelius Laney, a junior defensive end, along with defensive tackle Bradley Lapommeray (6-0, 250). “Laney is coming off that edge looking great and then we got our plugger in the middle who’s gotten bigger and a whole lot stronger and is looking good,” Gurley said. “We’re plugging in some areas where we were struggling before, so I’m pretty excited about that.” Ocoee made the playoffs last season despite some issues Gurley said he had with a few transfer players who have since left the program. “I like the situation we’re in now because we got our regular Ocoee guys now; hard-working guys which is what they’ve always been,” he said. Celebration Storm Coach: Chris Blanton (3rd year, 4-16). 2025: 1-9, missed 7A playoffs. East Ridge Knights Coach: Donnie Burchfield (4th year, 14-17; 18-22 career). 2025: 6-5, made 7A playoffs. Horizon Hawks Coach: Dennis Thomas (6th year, 19-31; 46-75 career). 2025: 4-6, missed 6A playoffs. Ocoee Knights Coach: Sheddrick “Buck” Gurley (4th year, 14-17; 43-31 career). 2025: 5-6, made 7A playoffs. Chris Hays can be found on X.com@OS_ChrisHays.