Armwood, Tampa Bay Tech clash in a battle for bragging rights, district championship

The Hawks and Titans have proven this matchup to be a budding rivalry with a lot riding on the line

TAMPA, FLORIDA- When Armwood and Tampa Bay Tech face off against one another, it always seemingly comes down to the final quarter. 

The last three meetings between the Hawks and Titans have been decided by a combined 10 points. Last year’s edition was one of the most exciting games yet between the two Hillsborough County powers. 

With the Class 3M, District 4 championship on the line, the Titans found a way to sneak off and defeat the Hawks 18-17. The year before that, Tampa Bay Tech beat Armwood 34-26 and the Titans also edged out the Hawks 48-47 in 2020. 

It seems like Armwood is due for a win in this series as the Hawks last defeated Tampa Bay Tech on October 11th, 2019 32-0. That was then and this is now, with both teams having actually a lot more in common in 2023. 

Both teams have lost only one game and each have fallen to Jesuit during the season. Also the losses to the Tigers have come in somewhat similar fashions. 

When you dig deeper into quarterback play, each team is breaking in a new starter compared to last season. 

On the Armwood side, the Hawks have sophomore Rhys Brush under center and he has filled in nicely. Brush has completed 73-of-117 passes for 1,091 yards and 13 touchdowns to just a mere two interceptions. 

Flipping over to the Tampa Bay Tech side of the spectrum, the Titans are also starting a youngster at quarterback. Junior signal caller Xzavier Jackson is in his first season and has played well within the system. 

Jackson has completed 79-of-141 passes for 1,147 yards, 17 touchdowns and four interceptions. 

Each quarterback also has a nice supporting cast around them. Brush has had the luxury of having running back Girard Pringle to hand the ball off to, with the tailback rushing for 1,229 yards and scoring 20 touchdowns. 

At wide receiver for the Hawks, senior Mekhi Anderson (26 catches, 576 yards) and Kason Stokes (UCF commitment) have been the top targets throughout the season. 

For Jackson, he’s got a pretty good backfield mate himself with speedster Rod Gainey, a Charlotte commitment, next to him. Gainey has carried the rock 110 times for 866 yards and scoring 11 touchdowns. 

The Titans’ wide receiving corps is led by Oregon commitment Dallas Wilson (34 catches, 516 yards) and Javion McKay (36 catches, 446 yards). 

Both teams have plenty of firepower on offense and loads of experience when it comes to the head coaches. 

Armwood’s Evan Davis and Tampa Bay Tech’s Jayson Roberts are two of the county’s most tenured head coaches and their respective track records speak for themselves. 

Davis has been apart of the Armwood program during its hay day winning state championships and Roberts led Tampa Bay Tech to the Class 7A state championship game in 2021, falling to St. Thomas Aquinas. 

What makes this game that much more exciting is the Class 3M, District 4 championship is on the line once again. 

Everything on the line from bragging rights to a district championship and a better seed when it comes to the playoffs, best believe every coach and player will leave it all out on the field tonight off Orient Road. 

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-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @sblivefl