Week 1 is in the books, and the Wharton offense wasted no time announcing itself. Here’s what stood out in football and volleyball, plus a look ahead to a Friday night that needs no selling.
TOP TANDEM
New starting quarterback Ty Nesmith and junior running back Berry Sanders had a big Week 1 as the 2026 season opened.
Wharton won the game 54-10, thanks in part to Nesmith, who threw for a career-high 225 yards and added a team-best 89 yards rushing. Nesmith accounted for five touchdowns — one rushing, and four passing.
Sanders, meanwhile, averaged 14 yards a carry while gaining 56 yards and a touchdown on the ground, and caught three passes for 75 yards, including a touchdown.
JAHEIM RANKINGS
1. Jaheim Frazier, Freedom: The Patriot wide receiver had seven catches for 175 yards and a touchdown in Freedom’s opening week loss to Sickles.
2. Jaheim Sewer, Freedom: The senior running back, who didn’t play last year, returned to the field and plowed his way to 126 yards on 20 carries and scored twice for the Patriots.
3. Jaheim Hoagland: Known as Jaheim, the R&B singer whose 2003 hit Put That Woman First is a classic. He drops from No. 1.
4. Jaheim Oatis, DT: Oatis was 6-foot-4, 286 pounds when he received an offer from Alabama. Oh, he was also in eighth grade. Anyway, played for the Tide and then Colorado and is now at Ole Miss.
5. Jaheim Bell, TE: Bell committed to Florida out of high school, but eventually ended up at FSU. The seventh-round draft pick in 2024 is trying to make the Pittsburg Steelers roster this preseason.
WINNING WILDCATS
For the second straight season, the Wharton volleyball team is off to a 3-0 start.
The Wildcats, working on an 11-year postseason streak, have dispatched East Bay, Bloomingdale and Newsome.
Bloomingdale was a state finalist last year and finished 22-2.
The Wildcats most recent win was Aug. 26 over the Wolves. Senior outside hitter Amia Kennerdy continued her hot start this season, with her second straight game of 18 kills, and is hitting at a 46.7% success rate this season.
FREEDOM REIGNS
The Patriots volleyball team coasted to a 3-0 victory over Plant City behind 10 kills from junior Ellie Cole and seven from sophomore Naya Daniels.
BY THE NUMBERS
4: Touchdowns Nesmith threw for in the first game of the season, which also is the number of touchdown passes he threw all of last season.
18.7: Average yards Berry Sanders gained every time he touched the ball in Wharton’s opening win over Brandon.
19: digs by Maliyah Battle, a career-high. Battle topped her previous high of 18 digs, which she accomplished in three different games last season.
46: Number of kills Amia Kennerdy has through the first three matches of the season, one of the best three-game stretches of her career. Last year, she had 49 kills (in consecutive games against Riverview, Strawberry Crest and Freedom), 56 in the last three games of her sophomore year (Spoto, Strawberry Crest, Wiregrass Ranch) and 50 during one stretch her freshman year (Steinbrenner, Sumner, Sunlake).
225: passing yards for Ty Nesmith against Brandon, a career high. Nesmith played in seven games last year but never passed for more than 98 yards.
CHECK IT OUT
Friday, Sept. 4: Wharton football at Freedom. ‘Nuff said.