Thursday and Friday brought the kickoff classic to the area. 

While Thursday night went smoothly, highlighted by the return of the Niceville-Fort Walton Beach rivalry, Friday was a different story. Thunderstorms rolling into the area shortly before several games kicked off wreaked havoc on the schedule. The Freeport-Bozeman game was canceled, Destin and North Florida Christian got through only a quarter and a half before the game was called, and both the Choctaw-Bay and South Walton-Chiles matchups sat through lengthy lightning delays.

Weather aside, the kickoff classic revealed a lot about area teams. Here are all the takeaways:

Niceville 28, Fort Walton Beach 7 (one half)

Niceville

1. The Adron Robinson era has begun

Any concerns about the transition from Richard Morgan to Adron Robinson can be put to rest. Robinson has hit the ground running at his alma mater, and that showed as Niceville’s varsity beat Fort Walton Beach 28-7 in one half of play Thursday night.

But Robinson gives the credit to his players.

“It’s not about me. It’s about our kids and it’s about our players. This game is won and lost by players,” Robinson said.

Jakobe Gilyard and Deegan McCoy were singing Robinson’s praises.

“He’s a great coach, coaching up people, not being hard on people, but pushing them up to be great players,” Gilyard said.

• “That’s my guy. He’s believed in me since I got here as a freshman, and there’s nobody else I’d want to have that job,” McCoy added.

2. Jakobe Gilyard is the real deal

If Gilyard’s freshman season didn’t have you believing in his potential, his tape from Thursday night should. Gilyard had two key touchdown runs. The first came with the game tied at 7, when Gilyard took it 50 yards to the house, outrunning every Viking in his way. The next came after an Eagle interception deep in Fort Walton Beach territory, and Gilyard punched it in.

“Two touchdowns, imagine what I could do in a full game with two touchdowns at halftime,” Gilyard said.

3. Caleb Leonard is a welcomed addition

The biggest headline outside of Robinson’s hiring would easily be the addition of Freeport’s Caleb Leonard through the transfer portal. Leonard, who shined as a two-way star at Freeport, found himself in the shadow of Louisville-bound Julius Miles last season. Now, he doesn’t have to worry about that.

Leonard is the Eagles’ No. 1 receiver, and he made two standout plays on Niceville’s final drive, including a leaping over-the-head catch before converting a touchdown on a pass from McCoy.

“He’s a Niceville guy who does things the Niceville way,” Robinson said.

“That’s my guy. We’ve got a really special connection, and I’m really excited about what’s to come,” McCoy added.

4. Growth from Deegan McCoy to be expected

McCoy, like Gilyard, had an electric breakout year last season, and based on everything from Thursday, his junior year should be even better. McCoy showed off his dual-threat ability, running for a touchdown and throwing a touchdown pass to Leonard.

“Last year people didn’t think I could run it that much, just because I didn’t run it, but I’m going to prove a ton of people wrong this year,” McCoy said.

5. Improvement along the offensive line

Greg Thomas’s impact on the offensive line has been felt. The unit made life tremendously easy for Gilyard and McCoy on Thursday.

“I give the o-line all the credit and all the glory,” Robinson said.

“My o-line’s great. I’m thankful for every play, I have a lane to make a run. Without them I couldn’t do it,” Gilyard added.

• “Coach Thomas is a great coach. They said o-line wasn’t a strong suit for us last year, but he and Coach Graham took them to another level,” McCoy added.

Fort Walton Beach

1. Tyshaun Montgomery is a potential star

Tyshaun Montgomery, a Choctaw transfer, was easily the best player on offense for the Vikings on Thursday. Most notably, Montgomery had a long touchdown run that proved to be Fort Walton Beach’s lone score of the night.

2. A young defense with room to grow

The Vikings are breaking in a new-look defense after graduating eight seniors, and Thursday was the first live look at a young group still finding its footing. Early penalties, including several encroachment calls, were typical of a unit getting its first varsity reps together. 

The talent is there, and as this group continues to gel, the Vikings’ defense has the potential to come into its own as the season progresses.

Choctaw vs. Bay

Choctaw

1. The run game will be the headliner

It appears that this year, the Indians will find their most success on offense running the football. Both Carter Marracco and Dante Whidbee made the most of their reps Friday night, with the third back in the committee, last year’s leading rusher Von’Tavious Keller, sitting out. Marracco had two touchdown runs, while Whidbee added one of his own.

“They were really good. We’ll keep getting better. You always make a jump between Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, so we’ll continue to improve,” Choctaw Head Coach Frank Beasley said.

2. Special teams are once again special

Quite possibly the most underrated part of Choctaw’s Final Four run last year was its special teams play. Under Keith Hendrix, Choctaw’s special teams unit set the tone for many games, putting both the offense and defense in great positions to execute. Friday night made it clear that more of the same should be expected in 2026.

The Indians have a new kicker in Andrew Rynearson after last year’s starter, Kyler Galkowski, suffered a torn ACL that will sideline him for the season. Rynearson was perfect on extra-point attempts Friday, while Rives Brown took the opening kickoff deep into Bay territory, setting up Marracco’s first touchdown run.

• “I thought Andrew Rynearson really kicked the ball well. I thought our kicking game the first game out did some really great things. I’m proud of them,” Beasley said.

3. Baker Giles is the starter at quarterback

In the three-way competition between Baker Giles, Isaiah Collins and Camden Aden for the starting quarterback job, it appears that Giles will be the guy to open the season. Giles had a rough first quarter but settled in as the game went on, showing command of the offense, especially in the second quarter.

“We wish we had more time, could’ve played more, but a lot of that takes time, new guys, new wide receivers, new quarterback, and we’ll get our timing down,” Beasley said.

4. Penalties are an early-season focus

Penalties stood out as a concern for Choctaw heading into the regular season. The Indians were flagged for multiple personal foul and unsportsmanlike conduct penalties Friday night, and a key pass interference call allowed Bay to score its only touchdown.

“It’s really embarrassing some of the way our players played, the unsportsmanlikes, the personal fouls, but we’ll get it fixed,” Beasley said.

Crestview vs. Booker T. Washington

Crestview

1. The run defense could be special

Crestview did a tremendous job stopping the run Thursday night, as the Wildcats were unable to establish much of anything on the ground. Teams looking to run the ball on the Bulldogs this season may want to rethink their approach.

2. The ground game is working

Manwell Robinson and JD Dortch both made big plays on the ground Thursday. Robinson had several key runs, while Dortch’s night was highlighted by a 75-yard touchdown run to the house. While Crestview’s passing game has limitless potential, the Bulldogs’ run game looks like it will be the calling card of the offense this season.

3. Slow starts could be a concern

The Bulldogs had an uneven start Thursday. On defense, Crestview came out with a deflating pass interference penalty, then seemed to have no answer for Washington quarterback Caden Osborn and company for the rest of the drive. After that, the offense came out flat. Overthrown balls, missed blocks, drops and missed routes were all prevalent early, and at several points, the offensive line was not giving Zy Tassin or Brock Spears much room to operate.

After Dortch’s touchdown run, however, Crestview looked much better. But with the Bulldogs’ schedule, they can’t afford too many of those starts.

South Walton vs. Chiles

South Walton

1. JD Brown is everything he’s hyped up to be

JD Brown entered the season coming off a breakout year that cemented him among the best quarterbacks in 3A, and on Friday night, the UConn commit continued to live up to the billing. Brown’s dual-threat ability was on full display, as he consistently found open receivers and ran for two touchdowns himself.

Walton vs. Gulf Breeze

Walton

1. A potential dark horse in 2A?

The Braves made a statement Friday night. Walton dominated Gulf Breeze and looked complete in all facets. In a region that’s wide open outside of Bolles and Pensacola Catholic, it looks like Walton could make some noise.

2. Whitton West’s time

Walton’s X-factor this year figures to be quarterback Whitton West. West looked sharp Friday night, throwing two touchdowns that quickly put the Braves up 14-0 and showing complete command of the offense.

Baker vs. Chipley and Pensacola Catholic

Baker

1. This defense might be really good

Under Matt Brunson, Baker’s defensive philosophy has always been simple: next man up. On Friday night, that was once again on display as the Gators’ defense showed no early-season rust, holding 2A contender Pensacola Catholic scoreless and limiting fellow 1A contender Chipley to just one touchdown in the final moments. The highlight was a Chasen Lawrence interception on the goal line, costing the Crusaders their best chance to put points on the board.

2. Back to the basics?

Last year, Baker’s offense was unconventional compared to years past, thanks to the dual-threat abilities of Justice Baldwin and the talent of Riley Renfro. With both graduated, Friday night looked more like what we’ve come to expect from the Wing T. New quarterback Dawson Mitchem and Lawrence both had productive nights on the ground, including a Lawrence touchdown against Chipley that proved to be the only points the Gators scored.

Destin vs. North Florida Christian

Destin

1. The Sharks are a resilient squad

If anything stood out most about Destin on Friday night, it was the Sharks’ resilience. They managed to overcome an early Kellen Ramsey interception, red zone miscues and untimely penalties, plus a North Florida Christian touchdown, to rally in the second quarter and score two unanswered touchdowns to take the lead before the game was called due to thunderstorms.

2. A lot to like about Donnie Couitt

Replacing Junior Harris wasn’t supposed to be easy for the Sharks, but Friday night proved the transition will be smoother than many expected, and it’s because of Donnie Couitt. Couitt was a force all night, highlighted by several key runs, most notably a 55-yard touchdown run.