The sound of whistles returned to fields, courts, courses and pools across the Tampa Bay area Monday as high school athletes reported for the first day of fall practice, officially opening the 2026-27 school sports year.
July 27 is the first date the Florida High School Athletic Association permits official practices and tryouts for fall sports. In Pinellas, Pasco, Hernando, Hillsborough and Manatee counties, that means football, girls volleyball, cross country, golf and swimming and diving teams are all back on the clock.
Football will command most of the attention, and this season carries a wrinkle. The FHSAA board of directors gave final approval in June to a new Open Division, a championship platform that pulls the state’s top eight teams — regardless of classification — into a separate postseason bracket. Football and girls volleyball are among the 11 sports affected. For football, the eight qualifiers will be determined strictly by MaxPreps rankings at the close of the regular season, with no selection committee input. Traditional classification championships remain in place.
Football classifications also changed. The FHSAA combined the Rural class into Class 1A, leaving a 1A-through-6A structure for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 cycle.
The calendar moves quickly from here. Preseason kickoff classics are set for the week of Aug. 13, and the regular season opens Friday, Aug. 21. Volleyball, cross country, golf and swimming teams begin competition in the weeks ahead, with district and regional postseason play arriving in late October and early November.
Heat remains the first opponent. With late-July temperatures and heat indexes routinely climbing well past 90 degrees in the Tampa Bay area, most programs opened with early morning or evening sessions, and FHSAA heat-acclimatization rules limit equipment and contact during the opening days of football practice.
The Tampa Bay Beacons will have team-by-team previews, schedules and coverage throughout the fall.