Dunedin High School's football season isn't over yet. The Falcons earned the No. 8 seed in the Class 3A Region 3 playoffs and will travel to Sarasota on Friday, Nov. 13, at 7 p.m. to face No. 1 seed Cardinal Mooney.

The Cougars are the defending Class 2A state champions and moved up to 3A after the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) reclassified teams for 2026-27.

The FHSAA released its football brackets on Nov. 6, according to the Herald-Tribune.

What Dunedin is up against

Cardinal Mooney finished the regular season 9-1, outscoring opponents 540-209. The Cougars' only loss came 47-46 to Cardinal Newman, ranked 12th in Florida, the Herald-Tribune reported.

Head coach Jared Clark's squad graduated 25 seniors from last year's title-winning roster. Thirteen of those players are in NCAA Division I football, Your Observer reported Oct. 28.

Senior running back Connail Jackson had rushed for 2,066 yards and 30 touchdowns on 150 carries, averaging 13.8 yards per carry, according to the October report. He topped 2,000 rushing yards last season as a junior, too, running for 2,452 yards and 39 touchdowns.

Senior quarterback Davin Davidson, a four-star Florida commit ranked No. 107 in the Class of 2027 by ESPN in June, had thrown for 1,446 yards and 13 touchdowns against five interceptions with a 60% completion rate at the time of the report. Receivers CJ King and Seneca Hawthorne had combined for 1,043 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns.

On defense, junior linebacker Travion Lester had recorded 77 total tackles, 21 tackles for loss, three sacks and 10 quarterback hurries. Senior defensive lineman Kaleb Exume, a Boston College commit, had 63 total tackles, 37 tackles for loss, five sacks, 11 quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.

The Falcons' season

Dunedin enters at 4-6, ranked No. 330 in Florida by MaxPreps. The Falcons closed the regular season with losses at Gibbs (9-6 on Oct. 23) and at Palm Harbor University (23-12 on Oct. 30).

Senior running back Mike Rodriguez leads Dunedin's ground game at 40.3 rushing yards per game with five total touchdowns. Sophomore wide receiver Evan Bell paces the receiving corps at 47.3 yards per game. Junior safety Deondre Miles anchors the defense with 6.6 tackles per game and four interceptions. Junior defensive lineman Wade Robertson has five sacks, while Dereon Pugh leads the team with six.

Head coach L. Coleman's squad will need a big upset to keep playing. No public comment from the Dunedin coaching staff about the playoff draw appeared in available sources.

The bigger bracket picture

The Herald-Tribune's bracket breakdown noted that Central and Raines were pulled into the FHSAA's inaugural Open Division, removing two elite programs from the 3A field.

Elsewhere in Region 3, No. 5 Tarpon Springs travels to No. 4 Robinson, according to Your Observer's bracket report. No. 7 Gibbs plays at No. 2 Nature Coast Tech, and No. 6 Jefferson visits No. 3 Braden River.

Cardinal Mooney won state championships in 2023 and 2025. The 2025 title came with a 52-28 victory over Jacksonville Bolles. The program posted a 14-1 record that season.

Kickoff is 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 13, in Sarasota.