Florida high school football: The Master’s Academy (Oviedo) draws 55 players for spring drills

Defending two-time SSAA state champ Eagles enter 2025 with familiar faces

Former UCF lineman Bailey Granier has returned for his second coaching stint at The Master's Academy (Oviedo), which reported that 55 players have turned out for spring drills. The Eagles are the defending two-time Sunshine State Athletic Association state champions. / Bailey Granier

Taking over a two-time state championship football team is a tall order for any coach, but a little familiarity is helping to make for a smooth transition for Bailey Granier.

A former UCF lineman who recently returned to coach The Master’s Academy in Oviedo for the second time, Granier announced that 55 students turned out for the first week of spring drills. Thirty players came out for varsity, 25 for junior varsity.

Granier, who coached at TMA in 2021 and 2022 before leaving for St. Petersburg Northside Christian for two seasons, will be looking for some leaders as the Eagles attempt to win a third consecutive Sunshine State Athletic Association (SSAA) state championship this fall.

“We operate under a “together but separate” model — individual work, teaching, and drills are done together, while team and group periods are separated by level,” Granier said.

TMA began shell drills on April 30 and will practice Monday through Saturday this coming week. The Eagles then practice Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, May 12-14, before playing at Out-of-Door Academy in Sarasota for a spring game on May 15. Out-of-Door Academy went 8-1 last year, losing in the SSAA Class 5A semifinals.

Granier said rising seniors Ashton Bosco, a quarterback/free safety; and Brett Gotwalt, kicker; and rising juniors Phillip Faragella, center/defensive tackle; Winston Anderson, tight end/defensive end; and Jadon McLennen, cornerback/wide receiver, will lead the team this year,

TMA went 11-1 last season, winning the 11-man SSAA title. The Eagles also captured the SSAA championship in 2023, going 9-2.

Granier led TMA to the SSAA playoffs in both 2021 and 2022, and Northside Christian to the FHSAA Class 1M playoffs in 2023 and the SSAA playoffs in 2024.

Granier played high school football at South Lafourche in Galliano, La., before going to Vanderbilt for the 2014 season. He redshirted in 2014 and then played on the offensive line for three years before transferring to UCF in 2018.

At UCF, he played in all 13 games as a redshirt senior, starting in three contests.

---

Download the SBLive App

To get live updates on your phone - as well as follow your favorite teams and top games - you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App | Download Android App