The Apopka Blue Darters football team gave the first public glimpse of the 2026 season Friday night at the Northwest Recreation Complex, and the offense wasted little time showing its explosiveness. 

Behind big plays from junior quarterback Hunter McNenney and wide receiver Nyzier Collington, the White team defeated the Blue team, 29-15, in Apopka’s annual Blue and White spring game. 

The White team was made up of the Darters’ offensive units, and the Blue team was their defensive units. This made for a different style of football game with different scoring rules. 

The evening opened with physicality before the offense even took the field, as players lined up for an Oklahoma drill to set the tone for the night. From there, the White offense quickly found rhythm against the Blue defense. 

McNenney opened the first drive completing passes to Collington and junior receiver Ceon Cotton to move the chains. Cotton then broke free for a 25-yard reception down the sideline into the red zone. 

A few plays later, junior running back Jakyvion Kemp powered through a tackle up the middle and burst into the end zone for the first touchdown of the night. After the special teams unit converted the extra point. the White squad jumped ahead 12-1. 

Sophomore Diondre McGee took over at quarterback on the next drive and immediately faced pressure after fumbling a snap and being dragged down for a big loss. But the sophomore recovered quickly, using his legs and quick throws to guide the offense deep into Blue territory. 

From the 25-yard line, McGee rolled left and delivered one of the best throws of the night, lofting a pass down the sideline to sophomore receiver Nehemiah Maignan, who made a diving touchdown catch on a wheel route for another score. 

The White offense continued to pile up chunk plays throughout the first half. 

Senior receiver Xavier Cruz turned a bubble screen into a 10-yard gain and drew a helmet-to-helmet penalty to move the offense further downfield. Moments later, he hauled in another pass along the right sideline for 20 more yards. 

Then came the biggest highlight of the night. 

Facing third down near the red zone, McNenney looked left and launched a high pass toward Collington in traffic. The junior receiver elevated and extended his body to make a spectacular one-handed grab at the five-yard line, stunning both sidelines and the crowd. 

On the very next play, Collington took a bubble screen into the end zone to extend the lead to 24-0 before halftime. 

Head coach Marcus Neeson said the sequence stood out immediately. 

“There were so many highlights,” Neeson said. “Collington had the one-handed catch, and the referees blew the whistle for water break. Right after that, the guys came over, and I was like, ‘Hey, you made a heck of a catch. We’re gonna get you in the end zone next play.’” 

Neeson said the team celebrated exactly the way he hoped. 

“I told my guys, ‘Have a little fun, go celebrate when we score on this play,’” he said. “They said, ‘Coach, we got you,’ and then we scored the touchdown that next play.” 

The second half featured more opportunities for younger players and defensive units to make an impact. 

The younger offensive group struggled early, turning the ball over on its opening possession before the second-team defense forced another turnover on downs. 

Later, with the White offense facing fourth-and-five, defensive lineman Demetri Tarpley stepped in front of a short pass for an interception and rumbled 30 yards for a touchdown, creating one of the loudest reactions from the Blue sideline all night. 

The Blue defense struck again moments later after another fumbled snap popped loose for them to jump on. Shortly after, Junior defensive back David Wimberly intercepted a pass, followed his blockers across the field and broke a tackle on his way to the end zone, cutting the deficit to 22-13. 

Despite the defensive momentum, McNenney and Collington answered late. 

McNenney rolled left and appeared to connect with Collington for a 70-yard touchdown pass down the sideline, but the play was wiped away by a holding penalty. Even so, the duo kept attacking. 

During the final goal-line segment of the scrimmage, McNenney connected with Collington twice more for touchdowns, first on an out route from the two-yard line and later on a slant across the middle that Collington turned into another score. 

Neeson said one of the biggest benefits of the spring game was evaluating players in their natural positions before expanding roles in the offseason. 

“It was significant being able to see what guys can do in their primary positions,” Neeson said. “This week, we’ll have the ability to start game planning, and we’ll have some crossover. Some guys on defense that we can utilize on offense, and some of the skill guys that can go over to defense and help out in the secondary.” 

Even with the offensive fireworks, Neeson emphasized there is still work to do before the regular season arrives. 

“Offensively, we’ve got to make sure we’re in shape and limit the penalties,” he said. “We had some points taken off the board because of miscommunication and holding penalties. Things like that, we’ve got to clean up.” 

Neeson also highlighted the continued development of younger players throughout the offseason. 

“We’ve done a good job recruiting our hallways and getting guys that look like they should be able to help the football team,” Neeson said. “We’ve got a bunch of freshmen that just have size, and we’ve got some guys that have never played football before, and they’re doing some good things.” 

Apopka now turns its attention toward Friday night’s spring matchup, a 6:30 p.m. at Tavares High School, before beginning summer workouts and camp season.