LAKE CITY – After seeing a void in team activities after the football season ended, former Lake Weir coach Will Dettor did something about it.
Dettor created the Florida High School 7v7 League a 7-on-7 passing league for teams to participate in that void from January till spring practice begins.
“We saw there was a need for this, and with the help and support from coaches, we needed to encourage the kids to play 7-on-7 instead of going to personal trainers,” Dettor stated. We worked with the FHSAA to make sure weren’t breaking any rules and had their support.”
Beginning in January and lasting through late April, teams compete in a passing league against area teams to keep themselves in shape or in organized team activities until spring practice started.
What he has created is a niche that only continues to keep growing and becoming the event it has become today.
Beginning his fourth year of the program, Dettor could have never imagined the growth of his vision so quickly, as over the last four years the league has doubled every year.
“My first year in 2014 we had 12 teams, the next year in 2015 we had 34, two years ago in 2016 we had 63 and last year in 2017 we had 83 teams,” Dettor said.
At the conclusion of the season, Dettor organized statewide regional tournaments held at various sites across the state, with the top four advancing to the state tournament.
In its fifth year, the Florida High School 7v7 Association will hold three regional competitions beginning today with the Northwest Regional at Columbia High, continuing Saturday with the Northeast Regional at St. Augustine and ending June 20 with the South Central Regional at Faith Christian Academy in Orlando.
Among the 14 teams scheduled to compete in Columbia today are Florida High, North Florida Christian, Crestview, Santa Fe, Villages, Newberry, North Marion, South Sumter, Vanguard, Lafayette, Buchholz, Vernon, Bradford and host Columbia.
Locally, Bradford and Columbia will compete in the event and try to earn one of the four qualifying spots to ove on to the state tourney June 27 at Haines City.
Pool play begins at 10 a.m. followed by a single elimination bracket starting around 1 p.m. and the championship game around 1:45 p.m. according to Dettor.
On Saturday, Dettor confirmed 8 of the original 12 teams that signed up will compete in the Northeast Regional at St. Augustine.
Competing Saturday will be Orange Park, Creekside, Bartram Trail, Nease, Menendez, Sandalwood, Englewood and host St. Augustine. Dettor added Yulee, Bishop Kenny, Mandarin and Palatka which originally signed up withdrew from the competition.
Pool play begins at 10 a.m. followed by a single elimination bracket around 12:45 and title game around 1;45 according to Dettor.
Tickets are $5 each day with the proceeds going to the host schools as a fundraiser for their football programs.
The top four teams from each regional will move on to the state tourney June 27 at Haines City.
Games are two 18 minute halves with a consistent running clock, until the last two minutes when the clock refers back to a normal game clock and stops on first downs, scores and out of bound plays. The field is 50 yards along the 10 yard end zones.
Possession starts at the 40 yard line and teams have three plays to advance the ball past the 25 yard line, three more past the 10 and three more to score. Teams can go for 1 point after the score from the 3-yard line or go for two from the 10-yard line.
Columbia will look to get back to the state tourney and get some revenge after falling to Spruce Creek last year in the title game.
Spruce Creek the defending state champions will compete in the South Central Regional June 20 at Faith Christian along with teams such as Mainland, Manatee, Braden River, East Ridge and East Lake.
