- December 4, 2025
Lake Brantley’s Jackson Stecher is among the state’s top-rated dual-threat quarterbacks in the 2028 recruiting class. Flagler Palm Coast found out why.
The sophomore transfer from The Master’s Academy passed for 358 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 61 yards and two more scores to lead the undefeated Patriots to a 48-7 victory over the visiting Bulldogs on Friday, Sept. 12.
Their quarterback is really, really good. He had two or three scrambles when our guys were in coverage, or just before he crossed the line, he’d connect with a receiver. He’s that good of a player.
— PATRICK TURNER, FPC football coach
“Their quarterback is really, really good,” FPC coach Patrick Turner said. “He had two or three scrambles when our guys were in coverage, or just before he crossed the line, he’d connect with a receiver. He’s that good of a player.”
While Lake Brantley (4-0) seems set at quarterback for the next two-plus seasons, FPC (1-3) is still looking for consistency at the position. Senior La’Darius Simmons played extensively for the first time since injuring his ankle against Matanzas in the season-opener.
Senior Caden Burchfield is out for the season after tearing an ACL and fracturing a tibia in the Mainland game on Sept. 5. In three games for the Bulldogs, he passed for 353 yards and five touchdowns.
Simmons scored FPC's only touchdown against the Patriots with a 60-yard run on the Bulldogs’ second possession. FPC was held to 157 yards of offense, including just 20 yards passing on 3 of 8 attempts.
“Ninety percent of our offense is an RPO (run-pass option),” Turner said. “We didn’t throw or we didn’t connect when the RPO was called for.”
The Bulldogs lost a fumble on their second snap from scrimmage, and the Patriots drove 32 yards for their first touchdown. They would score on all five of their first-half possessions to take a 35-7 lead. Stecher scored on runs of 3 and 9 yards and connected with the speedy Devon Washington on touchdown passes of 51 and 61 yards.
The Bulldogs were able to sack Stecher three times and had six total tackles for loss. Reagan Melland had a sack and shared another tackle for loss.
““We got a lot of pressure on the quarterback,” Turner said. “I think our defense just wore down. The score was bad, but I don’t think we played bad. Lake Brantley is a very improved team. As the season goes on, people are going to understand how good they are and how good they can be.”
The Bulldogs have a bye this week. They will try to snap their three-game losing streak on Sept. 26 in a District 2-7A game at home against University.
“We’re still only four games into the season. I think we haven’t tapped into our potential yet. We haven’t found our groove,” Turner said. “We’ve got to be more aggressive, practice better and be more disciplined.”
