For local teams, second season is about to begin

It’s time for playoff football across Florida, and there are a bunch of games involving Broward and Palm Beach county teams.

Twenty-nine local teams made the postseason, and 24 of them will play this Friday.

Adam Lichtenstein predicts the outcome of each first-round game with teams from Broward or Palm Beach. He was 52-8 in the regular season.

All games are at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.

Class 8A

No. 8 Miramar (6-4) at No. 1 Deerfield Beach (9-1): The Bucks had a week off to recoup and recover, while the Patriots suffered a blowout at the hands of St. Thomas Aquinas. On the road on the opposite side of the county, it will be tough for Miramar to overcome Deerfield Beach’s talent advantage. Deerfield Beach 35, Miramar 21. No. 7 Western (8-2) at No. 2 Atlantic (10-0): The Wildcats’ season ended in Delray Beach at the hands (or wings) of the Eagles last year. They have to do better to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Atlantic has rolled over its toughest opponents this year but has faced only one playoff opponent since Week 3. Atlantic 28, Western 24. No. 6 Wellington (6-4) at No. 3 Palm Beach Central (9-1): This was a major blowout when these two rivals faced off in the regular season. The Broncos rolled over the Wolverines 52-10. Is Wellington six touchdowns better than they were in Week 4? Is Palm Beach Central six touchdowns worse? That’s unlikely, so expect the Broncos to take Round 2 of this rivalry. Palm Beach Central 38, Wellington 20. No. 5 Piper (6-4) at No. 4 Plantation (9-1): Like Miramar, the Bengals are coming into the playoffs following a blowout. Piper traveled to Naples to lose 42-6, and Plantation is just as tough. The Colonels’ only loss this season was to Western, and they’ve looked better since then.

Plantation 28, Piper 21.

Class 7A

No. 8 South Miami (8-2) at No. 1 St. Thomas

Aquinas (9-1): St. Thomas is a juggernaut, just like it usually is. The Raiders are the team to beat in Class 7A, and it’s unlikely they fall in the first round. St. Thomas Aquinas 42, South Miami 13. No. 7 West Broward (7-3) at No. 2 Dwyer (9-1): The Panthers have not been a discriminating opponent. Since losing to Atlantic in Week 2, they have put up 40 or more points against everyone they have faced except for West Boca Raton (a team they beat 33-2 in Dwyer’s final game of the year). West Broward struggled against the three playoff teams it faced, dropping all three games by an average score of 34-16. Dwyer 35, West Broward 17. No. 6 Palm Beach Lakes (7-3) at No. 3 McArthur (9-1): This will be an interesting game to watch. McArthur has the better record, going undefeated until it faced Cardinal Gibbons in Week 11. But the Mustangs played only two playoff teams, losing 21-0 to a strong Chiefs team (ranked third in Class 5A) and beating West Broward 25-14. Palm Beach Lakes has two more losses, but those losses were a 28-19 loss to Pahokee (ranked fourth in

Class 1A), 41-13 to Dwyer (fourth in Class 7A) and 25-6 to Jacksonville Trinity Christian (No. 1 in Class 5A). It’s tough to say who has the advantage. Palm Beach Lakes 17, McArthur 16. No. 5 Fort Lauderdale (8-2) at No. 4 Doral Academy (8-2): The Flying L’s are back in the playoffs and will have to travel down to Miami to face the Firebirds. Doral Academy hasn’t played a very tough schedule, but neither has Fort Lauderdale. The Flying L’s two losses came to two of the three playoff teams they faced. Fort Lauderdale 24, Doral Academy 20.

Class 6A

No. 5 Miami Central (8-2) at No. 4 Dillard

(8-2): The Panthers have the misfortune of facing the best at-large team in the state. The Rockets are ranked No. 2 in Class 6A in the state Associated Press poll and 11th in MaxPreps’ national Xcellent 25 rankings. This is an extremely good team, and it would take a massive upset for even a good team like Dillard to pull off a win. Miami Central 48, Dillard 24.

Class 5A

No. 8 Coconut Creek (6-4) at No. 1 Rockledge

(9-1): The Cougars made it back to the postseason for the first time since 2010, but they have to face top-seeded Rockledge. The Raiders are the No. 5 team in Class 5A, and I’m not sure Coconut Creek has enough to win on the road. Rockledge 35,

No. 7 Merritt Island (5-5) at No. 2 Cardinal Gibbons (8-2): The Chiefs earned the right to stay home for the first round by pulling off the win against American Heritage. They host Merritt Island, which is coming into this game after losing 42-3 to Sebring. Cardinal Gibbons should be able to move on. Cardinal Gibbons 38, Merritt Island 14.

No. 5 American Heritage (8-1) at No. 4 Fort Pierce Westwood (7-3): The Patriots may be the lower seed, but they are heavily favored in this game. I expect them to win this one by a solid margin. American Heritage 42, Fort Pierce Westwood 20.

Class 4A

No. 6 Coral Springs Charter (7-1) at No. 3 Glades Central (7-3): Coral Springs Charter earned a playoff berth for the first time in program history. Unfortunately, the thrill might be short-lived, as they run into a Glades Central team that has rolled to five straight victories without allowing more than 12 points in any of them. Glades Central 30, Coral Springs Charter 14.

Class 3A

No. 5 Melbourne Holy Trinity (5-4) at No. 4 Cardinal Newman (8-2): The Crusaders scheduled a few tough teams this year with mixed results. They went 1-2 against playoff teams, beating Glades Day while losing to Glades Central and Pahokee. I think that strength of schedule only helps, and they’ll move on. Cardinal Newman 24, Holy Trinity 17. No. 6 Calvary Christian Academy (5-5) at No. 3 American HeritageDelray (7-3): After hitting a three-game rough patch, the Stallions recovered with a pair of victories to end the season 7-3 — their best record since their state runner-up season in 2015. American HeritageDelray 30, Calvary Christian 17.

Class 2A

No. 6 Naples First Baptist Academy (4-6) at No. 3 Glades Day (6-4): The Gators have won their last two games by solid margins and have played strong small schools like Benjamin, Cardinal Newman, Jupiter Christian and King’s Academy. That’s enough to give them an edge. Glades Day 45, First Baptist 21.