The past three seasons have been difficult and just plain weird for The First Academy football team.
Two years ago, the Royals were entering Week 10 of the football season with an 8-1 record, primed for a playoff run, when the FHSAA found the Royals guilty of rules violations and hit them with a two-year playoff ban.
Last season, several TFA parents filed a lawsuit in a last-ditch effort to lift the playoff ban. That looked feasible, at least for a couple of days into November, until a circuit court judge upheld the FHSAA ban three days before the playoffs began.
Judge’s ruling effectively eliminates TFA from state playoffs
This year, the Royals are finally able to shed the off-the-field drama and concentrate on football. They are again eligible for the playoffs and ready for FHSAA district play.
Still, this season won’t come without an unusual factor. TFA was placed in Class 2A District 5, which includes only one other team. That would be Cocoa, which has won seven state championships since 2008.
The district championship game will be Oct. 2, with the Tigers traveling to play at TFA. The winner, regardless of its season record, will automatically qualify for the playoffs.
The First Academy football coach Jeff Conaway is pictured during Varsity Media Day at Seminole State College in Heathrow on July 23. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel)
TFA coach Jeff Conaway doesn’t quite know how to describe his thoughts about this scenario.
“This will be my first time, but the district championship will be against Cocoa. One game,” said Conaway. “We’re excited to have an opportunity to be in the tournament, but we gotta get a lot better before Week Zero.
“The excitement, we can feel, but last year we were excited, too. What we do day in and day out is a lot of fun. So it doesn’t matter when football season starts or finishes, the fact that they get to practice together, lift together and do all of those things. I really believe that when these guys are our age, they’re probably going to remember a lot of those 24-hour days where they invested. It’s the experience they will remember.”
Despite the run-ins with the FHSAA, Conaway still lauded the association for its ability to listen to concerns and revamp the state playoff system with a new open division and two independent leagues.
“I think they are trying to do their best and I applaud them for trying to do their best,” Conaway said. “I know it’s a difficult job trying to please so many different schools.”
Transfers Trace Johnson from Timber Creek and Justin Kemp from Poinciana will give TFA speed at both ends of the defensive line. (Chris Hays/Orlando Sentinel)
Recent departures will change things for the Royals a bit, as star receiver Brian Dillard and standout corner David Coleman both transferred to Evans just before practice started. The Royals also lost linebacker Jacob Duffy to Lake Nona and running back Jaelyn Powell to Edgewater among seven players who left the Orlando private school.
TFA has only three returning starters on both offense and defense, but transfers will fill the void.
Orlando-area 2026 High School Football Transfer Tracker
The Royals continued to draw talent from all over the region, picking up more than 12 transfers, including 1,400-yard rusher Tamauri Collins from Tavares, bookend defensive ends Trace Johnson from Timber Creek and Justin Kemp from Poinciana, athlete Kymani Fils-Amie from Ocoee, defensive back JuJu White from South Lake and touted offensive lineman Noah Scott from Lake Howell.
The Royals had 10 players sign with FBS programs in December, and the offensive line took a big hit, but transfers will fill those voids. Back is Auburn commit Reed Ramsier for his senior year and he will play center. When the Royals really want to beef up the run game, they will send in big, versatile sophomore tight end J’deion Jackson.
This year’s TFA offensive front will include Atreyu Creantur, Noa Scott, Reed Ramsier, Dominic Miranda, Jack Mazurek and Ashton Jones. (Chris Hays/Orlando Sentinel)
Back to help anchor the defense is aggressive senior cornerback Bam Whitfield, who also plays receiver. He recently committed to play for the Florida Gators. Senior defensive tackle JP Furtado and senior linebacker Kyler Priester are the other returning starters. Two-way player Jackson, who plays D-line, and senior linebacker Brayden Evans, who was injured last year, have also been starters in the past.
TFA also has several freshman stars in the making.
Young phenom quarterback Deuce Woods will trigger the offense. He earned his first start in the season finale at Lakeland last year as an eighth-grader and led the Royals to an impressive victory over the 5A powerhouse Dreadnaughts. It’s his team this year and the Royals have circled around him.
“They’ve accepted me really well. I told them what I want to do. I want to win the state championship and be playing in Miami in December, so they’ve been trusting me and I’ve been trusting them,” Woods said. “I don’t really feel any pressure. I can’t get too big-headed and I can’t get down on myself. I gotta be ready to play on Fridays.”
Four other ninth-graders are players to watch: ATH Brycsen Robb, WR Jaylen Johnson, WR Jaylen Jackson, and RB Hyquez Russell.
The First Academy Royals
Coach: Jeff Conaway (4th year, 20-10; 145-70 career).
2025: 5-5 as independent.
Chris Hays can be found on X.com @OS_ChrisHays.