Summer break is officially over for all, and that means the most anticipated of them all: the Gainesville Sun’s Athlete of the Week poll!
Once again, we are asking for your help with the nomination process. Please click here to see how to nominate. Nominations are due Monday morning, and they can be sent in by anyone — coaches, administrators, friends, family. It’s imperative to send in nominations so we can continue to honor the best! Please send nominations to Gainesville Sun Preps Reporter Noah Ram at nram@gannett.com.
We are relying solely on this process for nominations for the 2026-27 season, so if names are not sent in, we will not be able to conduct athlete of the week polls and honor the best in the area.
This week, we’re honoring the best from Oct. 20-26. Voting closes at noon Saturday, and you can vote as many times as you’d like, so please share this poll with friends and family.
Last week’s winner was Darius Debose from the Newberry football team, who had Five tackles, two sacks, three tackles for loss along with seven carries for 31 yards and a touchdown in the Panthers 13-7 win over Palatka.
Congratulations to all those selected!
Addison Barnes, Branford volleyball
48 assists and 19 digs in the Buccaneers 3-2 Rural-Region 3 semifinal win over Union County.
Amari Green, Columbia football
177 yards and three touchdowns in the Tigers 42-0 district title clinching win over Yulee.
Anabella Dicks, Branford volleyball
28 kills and 19 digs in the Buccaneers 3-2 Rural-Region 3 semifinal win over Union County.
Chance Johnson, Fort White football
287 yards passing and three touchdowns in the Indians 42-0 win over Hamilton County.
Charlotte Judge, Gainesville High volleyball
49 assists in the Hurricanes 3-2 Class 5A-Region 1 quarterfinals win over Chiles.
Estella Fugante, Williston volleyball
15 assists in the Red Devils 3-0 Rural-Region 4 semifinals win over Marathon.
Holdyn Moore, Santa Fe volleyball
17 digs and 19 assists in the Raiders open division game vs. Orangewood Christian.
Iyon Teague, Dixie County football
Two touchdown catches for 98 yards in the Bears win over Joshua Christian.
Jake Long, St Francis Catholic football
15 carries for 202 yards and two touchdowns, along with 70 yards passing, in the Wolves 50-7 win over Countryside Christian.
Josh Menefee, Buchholz football
12 carries for 80 yards and a touchdown in the Bobcats 37-22 district title clinching win over Oakleaf.
Lalyn Sikes, Santa Fe volleyball
12 kills and 23 digs in the Raiders open division game vs. Winter Park.
Sophia Lingis, Buchholz volleyball
19 assists in the Bobcats 3-0 Class 6A-Region 1 quarterfinals win over Seminole.
Trent Land, Branford football
12 carries for 147 yards for two touchdowns in the Buccaneers 21-16 loss to Lafayette.
Wyatt Vanlandingham, Trenton football
21 carries for 146 yards and two touchdowns in the Tigers 39-0 win over Crescent City.
Noah Ram covers Florida Gators athletics and Gainesville-area high school sports for The Gainesville Sun, GatorSports.com and the USA TODAY Network. Contact him at nram@usatodayco.com. Follow him on X @Noah_ram1, Instagram @Ramreporter, Facebook Noah Ram – Reporter and TikTok @ramreporter.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Vote for Gainesville-area Athlete of the Week for October 20-26
