Flagler Palm Coast’s Dakoda Wagner lingered on his rivals' field after the Bulldogs cruised to their fifth consecutive Potato Bowl victory. The senior running back posed for a photo with a neighbor and reflected on his high school football career.   “If this is the last game, it’s the way to go out,” Wagner said of the Bulldogs’ 40-0 victory against Matanzas at "The Ship" on Thursday, Nov.

The Matanzas youth movement started on Day 1. The Pirates graduated 26 seniors from coach Matt Forrest’s first team last year, and they knew patience would be key as their younger players gained experience. Flagler Palm Coast had more veterans entering coach Robert Paxia’s first season at his alma mater.

On Senior Night beneath the lights, the Matanzas seniors shined. Before the Pirates' Oct. 15 football game, the senior cheerleaders, band members, color guard, football players, student trainers and team managers were honored with their parents.

So many thoughts went through Noah Cundiff's head in such a short span. As the ball hung in the air with Cundiff waiting to snare it for his first of three touchdown catches, he thought, "I have to start something. I have to give my defense something to work with.

It started with filming highlights of their kids playing sports. Now, with more than 673,000 YouTube followers, Matanzas mom Rachel Mills spans the football field recording all the action. Mills keeps an eye on sons Jordan and Tyson when they are playing, but she is mindful to capture the best moments of every player, even the competition.

Dakwon Evans passed for 147 yards and two touchdowns in Matanzas' 44-14 home loss to Orange Park on Sept. 24. "He's one of the hardest workers on the team," Matanzas coach Matt Forrest said of the sophomore quarterback, who had no turnovers for the first time this season.

When 54 of the players on your roster are freshmen and sophomores, your team will experience some growing pains. That's been the case with the Matanzas Pirates football team. But sometimes scores can belie the progress a young squad is making.

One week after scoring 42 points in its Kickoff Classic victory, the young Matanzas High football team discovered it still has a lot of work to do. St. Augustine Menendez took advantage of five Pirates turnovers to shut out Matanzas 29-0 in the season opener for both teams Friday, Aug.