Top speed: Jacobelli runs past First Coast in Flagler Palm Coast victory

Jacobelli scored two touchdowns, Ehimen Ajede ran for 131 yards and a TD in FPC's 38-15 win.

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Logan Jacobelli is the fastest 100-meter sprinter in Flagler Palm Coast's track and field history. Many of his football opponents don’t know that. But they’re learning.

Jacobelli outran the defense on two long touchdown receptions as FPC defeated Jacksonville First Coast 38-15 on Friday, Sept. 11, at Sal Campanella Stadium. The Bulldogs improved to 4-0 on the season.

“He's a little deceiving,” FPC football coach Patrick Turner said. “He won a state championship (in the 4x400 relay), but not everybody's going to look that up and know how fast he is.”

Jacobelli outran the secondary to catch a 39-yard touchdown pass from Reid Pritt with 9:27 left before halftime to give the Bulldogs a 21-7 lead. He later scored FPC’s final touchdown in the fourth quarter, taking a forward pitch from Pritt and running 88 yards past a host of stunned Buccaneer defenders to the end zone.


I know I can beat people with my speed, so I feel like that’s my most dangerous factor. I don't think people know really who I am, and once I step on the field, it's just go time. It's time to show them.
— LOGAN JACOBELLI

“I know I can beat people with my speed, so I feel like that’s my most dangerous factor,” Jacobelli said. “I don't think people know really who I am, and once I step on the field, it's just go time. It's time to show them.”

Jacobelli now has 13 catches for 214 yards this season. The senior is not only the Bulldogs’ deep threat, he also filled in as a part-time quarterback in a 49-14 win against Jackonsville Parker on Sept. 4. And he filled in as a defensive back against First Coast. 

It was the first time he played defense since his sophomore season.

“Logan Jacobelli has stepped into the role of a football player,” Turner said. “I'm extremely proud of him. He's doing a great job on both sides.”

FPC was banged up entering the game. Edge rusher Brian Veal and safety Shawn Smith missed the game with injuries. Nei’cco Murphy, who had a 16-yard pick-six on the game’s first play from scrimmage, was nursing a knee injury and did not play on offense, where he had been used as a change-of-pace quarterback. Linebacker Josiah Hathaway had his minutes limited but still finished with eight tackles, including one for a loss.

“I think we had four or five starters that were either banged up or out completely, and we needed other people just to step up,” Turner said. “And that was our challenge all week long, that there can't be a drop off. And I'm extremely proud of that.”

Brian Gunter caught two passes and also had 1.5 sacks on defense. Jacobelli said that he’ll play wherever the Bulldogs need him.

“I feel like playing DB is something I had to step up to do,” Jacobelli said. “If my team needs me there, my team needs me there. It's not going to get you anywhere if you're scared out there. I think this shows that there's not a drop-off, because we work together. We got a few players out with injuries, but they're still on the sideline coaching people.”

Running back Ehimen Ajede rushed for 131 yards on 20 carries and scored his ninth touchdown of the season on a 34-yard run early in the fourth quarter.

Pritt, who missed the previous game under concussion protocol, passed for a season-high 184 yards and three touchdowns with an interception. In addition to the two touchdown passes to Jacobelli, Pritt fired an 18-yard touchdown pass to Trace Paffrath on the Bulldogs’ first offensive possession.

“Reid’s really evolving,” Jacobelli said of the sophomore. “He's really stepping up. He puts the ball in great places, where only the receivers can get it. He's still learning, but I think he's going be a really good quarterback.”

Defensive lineman Jacob Harnish led the Bulldogs with nine tackles. Yamon Jordan and Mathias Parker joined Hathaway with eight tackles apiece. 

Kicker Garrett Tucker, who drilled a school-record 52-yard field goal against Jacksonville Riverside on Aug. 28, kicked a 43-yard field goal against First Coast, and four of his kickoffs were boomed into the end zone for touchbacks.

With the win the Bulldogs surpassed their 2025 win total. And they won their first District 1-6A game with four more district games remaining. They have a bye this week and then will play another district opponent on Sept. 24 at Tocoi Creek.

“We’re one step closer to a district championship and the playoffs, and every game from here on matters,” Turner said.

First Coast fell to 0-4. Penalties hurt the Buccaneers, but they battled until the end, scoring their second touchdown with 2:36 left. That was the first time FPC has given up a second-half touchdown this season.

First Coast quarterback David Hunter passed for 166 yards with two touchdown passes to Aaiden Harrell. But FPC sacked Hunter four times for a loss of 44 yards.

“I thought their entire team was good,” Turner said. “But the Bulldogs just showed up and played as a three-headed monster — offense, defense, special teams. Tonight, we got it done.”

 

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