Tag Archives: Florida

Coach Jamie Rodgers has transformed the Bradford High School football team – which saw its last two seasons end prematurely in the regional semifinals – into a powerhouse program that is tearing through its competition. The Tornadoes are currently 9-0 on the season and have outscored their opponents 270-21 in the process. The Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) has the Tornadoes ranked No. 9 in the state and first in the “2S” class. Next in the Tornadoes’ path is the Suwannee Bulldogs, a team that currently has a 7-2 record on the season. Friday’s game against Suwannee will take place at Paul Langford Stadium in Live Oak, Florida, at 7:30 p.m. Both teams will find out their opponent for the first round of the state playoffs Sunday at 11 a.m. during the FHSAA’s bracket reveal on YouTube. 

A Levy County middle and high school shut down on Wednesday after the school’s staff feared two students had come into contact with fentanyl in the school’s bathroom. One student was taken to the hospital and arrested, and the other student was treated and released to their parent. Today, several other students reported feeling sick and school activities were briefly put on hold while an investigation unfolded. A white powdery substance was found in the bathroom with the two students on Wednesday and was confirmed to be methamphetamine with no trace of fentanyl. The students who reported feeling ill had flu-like symptoms and school activities were resumed by 10 a.m. Attorney General Ashley Moody also announced in a press release the launch of a new webpage, One Pill Can Kill, which aims to warn Floridians about the dangers of fentanyl.

Subscribe to The Point, arriving in your inbox Monday through Friday at 8 a.m. The stories near you • WUFT News: Gainesville’s mayor candidates have sparred, but they share a common goal. “After being narrowed down from nine to two candidates, Harvey Ward and Ed Bielarski will be pitted against each …

Florida Gator fans already have a reason to love Tom Petty; the lyrics of his 1989 hit “I Won’t Back Down” echo through Ben Hill Griffin Stadium during every home football game. Now fans have more reason to love the late Gainesville native and rock icon after several donations to the community have been made in his honor. A gift of $25,000 was made to the Cade Museum on Petty’s behalf by his daughter, Adria Petty, in October. Jennifer Dempsey, the marketing manager for the Cade Museum, said the donation will go toward Operation Full Steam, an outreach program serving students in Title I schools in Alachua County. 

The smell of various foods filled the air, pans of grilled chicken sizzled on the stove and inmates wearing aprons, hats and chef’s coats rushed around the industrial kitchen at Lowell Correctional Institution as they worked with their team to win the gold trophy. Wendasia Gipson, an inmate, kept her cool as she moved through the kitchen calling out “behind” to her teammates warning them not to bump into her as she helped prepare a dish called “Not the Taco." Four teams of male and female inmates from across the state competed in the first Culinary Arts Training Competition hosted by Lowell Correctional Institution Wednesday.

A crushed Pepsi can, damp cigarette butts, a rusted tire wheel buried deep in soggy mulch. They’re part of the debris collected after a day’s work for Current Problems, an Alachua County-based waterway cleanup organization. By the end of the year, the junk-filled bags Current Problems hauls away at cleanups will reach a milestone: 1 million pounds of total trash collected.