Ten months after Cardinal Newman football ended Chaminade-Madonna’s four-year Florida state championship run, the Lions are headed back to West Palm Beach.
Cardinal Newman stunned Chaminade-Madonna 17-14 in last season’s Class 1A state championship game, winning the first football state title in school history.
The rematch comes Friday, although the circumstances have changed.
Chaminade-Madonna (4-2) and Cardinal Newman (5-1) are now members of Class 2A District 7, turning the championship rematch into an important regular-season game with postseason implications.
Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Sam Budnyk Field in West Palm Beach.
Chaminade Looks to Bounce Back
The Lions enter the rematch coming off a 21-20 loss to unbeaten St. Thomas Aquinas.
Chaminade led 20-7 in the third quarter before Aquinas scored 14 unanswered points to take the lead.
The Lions still had an opportunity to win in the final two minutes. Quarterback Brady Quinn helped move Chaminade into position for a 20-yard field-goal attempt, but Aquinas defensive end Wyatt Smith blocked the kick with 1:23 remaining.
Quinn accounted for all three Chaminade touchdowns, running for two and connecting with junior receiver Tromon Isaac Jr. for another.
He finished with 263 passing yards and added 88 on the ground, while Isaac had 145 receiving yards.
Through six games, Quinn has thrown for 1,221 yards and 16 touchdowns with just one interception.
Cardinal Newman Has Won Two Straight
Cardinal Newman’s only loss came Sept. 10, when West Boca Raton defeated the Crusaders 24-7.
They have responded with consecutive victories, beating Jensen Beach 22-7 and Atlantic 28-7.
Senior running back and linebacker Janarro Sumpter has taken on a larger role after playing behind the veteran group that led Newman to last season’s championship. Sumpter has scored 11 touchdowns while also contributing on defense.
Junior quarterback Pedro Martinez has taken over an offense that lost Jyron Hughley, who accounted for both Newman touchdowns in last year’s championship game before signing with West Virginia.
The Crusaders have shown they can win in different ways.
Newman scored 47 points in a one-point victory over Cardinal Mooney and 45 against John Carroll Catholic. In its past two games, the defense has allowed seven points each time.
Brady Quinn Presents New Challenge for Crusaders
The quarterback Newman will face Friday is playing some of his best football of the season.
Quinn has thrown 16 touchdown passes against only one interception and showed against Aquinas that he can hurt a defense with his legs as well.
Chaminade is averaging more than 360 yards of offense per game.
Newman counters with a defense that has allowed a combined 14 points over its past two games.
Linebacker Cooper Clark has been one of the Crusaders’ most active defenders, while Ty Kirkpatrick and senior defensive end Sean Fleming give Newman threats off the edge.
Containing Quinn and preventing the explosive plays that have fueled Chaminade’s offense will be one of Newman’s biggest challenges Friday.
Much Has Changed Since the State Championship
The teams share plenty of history, but neither is the same team that played for a state championship last December.
Newman lost key players from its championship roster, including Hughley, and has turned to players such as Martinez and Sumpter in larger roles.
Chaminade arrives with a different challenge. The Lions have already lost twice, but their most recent defeat came by one point against an unbeaten St. Thomas Aquinas team after Chaminade held a 13-point second-half lead.
There is also more at stake Friday than the rematch itself.
Both teams now compete in Class 2A District 7, putting the game directly into the district race. Both also remain in contention for Florida’s new eight-team Open Division playoff field.
For Cardinal Newman, Friday offers another opportunity to beat the program it dethroned last December.
For Chaminade-Madonna, it’s a chance to rebound from a difficult loss — against the same opponent that ended its season 10 months ago.
Chaminade-Madonna vs. Cardinal Newman Game Information
Matchup: Chaminade-Madonna (4-2) at Cardinal Newman (5-1)
When: Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, 6:30 p.m. ET
Where: Sam Budnyk Field, West Palm Beach, Florida
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleÂ
