Florida High School Special Teams: All-Time Team
High school football in Florida is about as big of a deal in Florida as college football, especially when every year an argument can be made that, the best football players and teams come from Florida. In this article I want to look at a few legendary names, past and present that could help put together a Florida High School All-Time Team. I won’t fill out an entire roster, but I will pick a few players as a base, and maybe you could let us know how you would fill out the rest of the team. Let’s look at the best all-time Florida high school special teams.
K John Carney
High school: West Palm Beach Cardinal Newman
The particulars: After an all-state career at Cardinal Newman, Carney signed with Notre Dame; he is third in Irish history with 51 field goals. He was not drafted in 1987 and didn’t see NFL action until ’88, when he kicked in four games for the Bucs. He eventually signed with San Diego in 1990 and his career took off. Carney played 20 NFL seasons for six teams, including 11 seasons with San Diego. He kicked 478 field goals in his career, fifth-most in league history, and he also is fifth with 2,062 points. He was an All-Pro in 1994 with the Chargers, when he was 34- of-38 on field goals. Carney tied George Blanda by playing in four different NFL decades. He was a member of the FHSAA’s All-Century team in 2009.
P Matt Bosher
High school: Jupiter
The particulars: He was a first-team all-state performer as a high school senior and became Miami’s punter as a redshirt freshman 2007, a job he held for four seasons. He added kicking duties as a sophomore and was a second-team All-ACC selection as a kicker and a punter in 2008, a first-team all-league kicker and second-team punter in ’09 and a second-team punter as a senior in 2010. Bosher was a member of the NFL’s 2011 All-Rookie team and is in the top-10 among active punters in punts and yardage. In addition, his career average of 45.7 per attempt is 13th-best in league history.
KR Devin Hester
High school: Riviera Beach Suncoast
The particulars: A prep All-American as a high school senior, Hester was one of the most electrifying players in Miami history. A standout track man in high school and college, Hester was a threat to return anything kicked his way. Hester played offense and defense with Miami and was a second-round pick of Chicago in 2006. He became one of the most dangerous return men in NFL history, setting the record for non-offensive touchdowns with 20 (including 14 on punt returns). Hester also holds the record with four punt-return touchdowns in a single season, set in 2007. Hester, who played 11 NFL seasons (eight with Chicago), retired after the 2016 season. He was a three-time All-Pro and made four Pro Bowls.
Written by: Jacquez McCoy
