Atlantic and Pine Ridge’s football programs will be returning to the FHSAA as independent, non-playoff members, Volusia County athletic specialist Lary Beal and Atlantic athletic director Ryan Vaughan confirmed to the Daytona Beach News-Journal on June 10.
The two Volusia County schools had previously left for the Sunshine State Athletic Association, a different organization that allows members to have more autonomy over their scheduling practices. Atlantic played its first SSAA season in 2025, while Pine Ridge announced its intention to play the 2026 football season as a member on Dec. 16.
Both programs opted to return to the FHSAA after nearly two months of communication between them, Beal and the FHSAA prior to the June 1 cutoff for registration. They’ll join as members of the FHSAA’s new independent league that was approved in January by the governing body’s Board of Directors.
The FHSAA’s independent league will bridge the gap between it and the growing SSAA, which had announced an increase from 20 members a season ago to 42 set to play in 2026. But that’ll be cut to at least 40 with the departure of the Sharks and Panthers.
According to Beal, who acted as a liaison between both programs and the FHSAA, the primary concern was avoiding any penalties and still maintaining their respective schedules, which was the original draw to joining the SSAA. It granted schools the opportunity to schedule competitive games without districts in an effort to rebuild.
“When this was first brought up, and Lary kind of guided us through this, it was presented as there’s different levels to it,” Vaughan said. “So we wouldn’t have to go making massive schedule changes, we wouldn’t be forced into anything, we would be back under their umbrella. … It just made the most sense right now to get back on board with the rest of our district, kind of in alignment and such.”
But according to Vaughan, Atlantic also potentially faced implications beyond the gridiron that impacted the Sharks’ decision. Vaughan said Pine Ridge was also “given the same information” that he received.
Panthers’ athletic director John New wasn’t available for comment by the time of publication.
“Somewhere along the process, we were informed by the FHSAA that if we chose to remain with the Sunshine State (Athletic Association), that we run the risk of not being allowed to host any playoff postseason of any sport, not just football, for the next year,” Vaughan said. “Like I said, they kind of held it over our head a little bit. It was in writing, but that wasn’t the final straw, but that definitely played into our decision.”
Both Pine Ridge and Atlantic had successful seasons in other sports, especially basketball. The Sharks finished as the Class 4A runners-up, while the Panthers made their first regional final on the hardwood since 2002.
Atlantic and Pine Ridge’s membership in the SSAA also misaligned Volusia County, something Beal and other county higher-ups were hoping to reorganize in the coming seasons. However, there was some leeway if the move back to the FHSAA this season was too complicated.
“If the wrinkles couldn’t be worked out, we were going to leave it alone and continue working to pull everything the following year,” Beal said.
Pine Ridge and Atlantic will keep their current schedules, with the exception of the Week 1 game between the Panthers and Sharks moving to the last week of the season to adhere to the FHSAA’s football calendar, Beal said. The SSAA regular season starts one week before the FHSAA’s.
The move to the independent league may be a temporary one for Atlantic and Pine Ridge, as participants will reconvene in March 2027 to review the season.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Atlantic and Pine Ridge return to FHSAA football as independents
