Florida
Hurricane Debby hits Florida’s Big Bend, catastrophic flooding likely this week
After lashing the west coast of Florida all day Sunday with gusty winds, tropical downpours, and damaging storm surge, the eye of Hurricane Debby came ashore around daybreak Monday near Steinhatchee in Florida’s Big Bend, only 9 miles southeast of where Category 3 Hurricane Idalia came ashore just 341 days ago.
Though officially a Category 1 hurricane at landfall with sustained 80 mph winds, the hurricane brought Category 2 wind gusts to 98 mph Monday morning to nearby Horseshoe Beach as its center approached the coast. Moderate coastal flooding was ongoing at Cedar Key, about 50 miles southeast of Debby’s center, where a 6-foot storm surge coincided with the day’s lowest high tide.
To the west over the state capital of Tallahassee, winds gusted to 39 mph but Debby, like Idalia last August, spared the panhandle’s largest population center the brunt of its damaging weather.
Debby largely tracked east of the official forecast during the day yesterday, favoring the right side of the forecast cone from yesterday morning.
So far, Perry, Florida, to Debby’s west has picked up over half a foot of rain since late Sunday night and Debby’s blistering outer rainbands brought nearly a foot of rain to portions of the western peninsula during the day Sunday, including areas near Lakeland, Pinellas Park and Sarasota-Bradenton.
Farther south, Debby’s strong onshore flow contributed to a 2-to-4-foot storm surge Sunday afternoon that flooded some low-lying coastal locations in southwest Florida, including parts of downtown Fort Myers and Fort Myers Beach.
The worst of Debby is yet to come
The biggest concern as Debby moves inland is the major slowdown anticipated by tomorrow, as steering currents collapse, leaving the storm to rain itself out over parts of north Florida, southeast Georgia, and the coastal plain of South Carolina for the remainder of the week.
This is expected to bring up to 30 inches of rainfall to some places – historically high totals that could break state rainfall records in South Carolina and Georgia – and will likely contribute to widespread and potentially catastrophic flooding this week.
The Weather Prediction Center has issued a high risk for excessive rainfall from tomorrow through Thursday morning stretching from north Florida into the coastal Carolinas, indicating the likelihood of severe and widespread flooding. While high risk rainfall outlooks are only issued for about 4% of days, they account for 80% of flood-related damages and more than a third of all flood-related fatalities.
What we’re following behind Debby
Beryl and Debby may only be the warm-up acts for the busy stretch of hurricane season ahead. As Colorado State University hurricane expert Dr. Phil Klotzbach noted, only 8 other hurricane seasons have observed two U.S. landfalling hurricanes this early in the season: 2020, 2005, 1959, 1936, 1934, 1916, 1909, and 1886, with most of these seasons especially destructive and impactful for the United States.
This week, we’re following a strong tropical disturbance now entering the eastern Caribbean. The system will be moving quickly through the Caribbean over the next few days, but models indicate possible development once it slows down later this week and into the weekend over the western Caribbean and southern Gulf of Mexico.
For now at least, steering patterns favor a trajectory to the south of South Florida and toward the western Gulf, but we’ll continue to monitor its progress. We still have some time to watch this one.
Copyright 2024 by WPLG Local10.com – All rights reserved.
The finish line is right around the corner for the sweepstakes to land Lane Kiffin.
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Florida dropped out of the marathon early. Reports surfaced on Friday that Kiffin pulled out of consideration for the Gators job. He’s set to choose between LSU and Ole Miss on Saturday.
Kiffin had been Florida’s top target after Billy Napier was fired on Oct. 19. However, communication broke down between Kiffin and the Gators in recent days.
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Florida has a couple of backup options for Kiffin. Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key is someone to keep an eye on.
On Saturday, the big name for Florida is Jon Sumrall. The Tulane head coach had been linked to Auburn for weeks, but he appears to be out of consideration for the job with the Tigers.
Multiple reports indicate that Sumrall is the top option for Florida.
Sumrall has gone 41-11 during his stints at Troy and Tulane. His resume is similar to that of Napier when Florida hired him in 2021 after going 40-12 at Louisiana.
Florida fans on social media appeared upset with athletic director Scott Stricklin for fumbling the bag on Kiffin and then considering hiring a Group of 5 coach as Napier’s replacement. Some want Stricklin to be fired before he can hire Sumrall.
“Good morning, Gator Nation It is a great day to fire Scott Stricklin,” wrote a fan.
“Scott Stricklin is 1-for-7 on coaching hires. $31M+ wasted on buyouts. Elite coaches don’t want the job. Time for a change,” argued a fan.
“Scott Striklin is the Billy Napier of athletic directors,” posted another.
“If Scott Stricklin had any sense, Lincoln Riley would be headed to Florida, not Jon Sumrall. Unfortunately, it appears he paid Billy Napier $21 million to leave so he could hire Billy Napier 2.0. The Gators continue to be unserious about football,” argued a poster.
“We don’t want Jon Sumrall as our Head Coach, nor Scott Stricklin as our AD!” suggested a fan.
“So how can we get Scott Stricklin fired if majority think he sucks at his job and ruining the football program? We would have been great again with Kiffin. If he goes after Sumrall he should be fired on the spot,” wrote another.
It’ll be interesting to see if Florida continues to go after Stricklin amid the backlash. Texas A&M had a similar situation with Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops in 2023 before the Aggies hired Mike Elko away from Duke.
For more on the NCAA, head to Newsweek Sports.
STARKVILLE — Ole Miss football coach Lane Kiffin is going to try to be a regular dad for a bit.
Then he’ll make the choice currently tearing him apart.
Ole Miss won one of the most important Egg Bowls in school history on Nov. 28. And yet, the next 24 hours may matter more to Ole Miss than what happened at Davis Wade Stadium.
The No. 6 Rebels beat the Bulldogs 38-19. It’s the third consecutive Egg Bowl win for Ole Miss (11-1, 7-1 SEC), cements the Rebels as first-time CFP participants and erases MSU’s (5-7, 1-7) path to a bowl game.
The positive momentum in Oxford could be shattered in one day. It’s up to Kiffin, who said postgame he needs to decide whether to depart for LSU or Florida on Nov. 29. That’s been Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter’s deadline since last week.
“These are hard decisions,” Kiffin said. “You guys have them all the time. You guys (reporters) have to make decisions about jobs you take, where you move. All those things. We get paid a lot so I know ours is under a different spotlight and scrutiny but, you know, a lot of people that are critical of it are the same people that do it all the time.”
Lane Kiffin’s schedule before picking between Ole Miss, LSU or Florida
Kiffin was headed straight from Starkville to Tupelo. In his words, the most important game of his day kicks off at 7 p.m.
Kiffin’s son, Knox, is starting for Oxford High in the MHSAA Class 7A state football. The game starts at 7 p.m.
Kiffin said he lives a day-to-day life. He’ll watch Knox play and leave the decision about his future until later. Sometime after that Kiffin will have to choose what offer to take.
LSU is a big brand with a recent national championship. Florida is where his coaching idol Steve Spurrier became a star, although reports indicated that the Gators are prepared to search elsewhere. Ole Miss is home.
Kiffin will become one of the sports highest-paid coaches regardless. Maybe $13 million, maybe closer to $15 million.
He knows he can’t be just another dad watching his son in Tupelo. Other dads don’t have million-dollar salaries. Other dads don’t generate headlines with their family takes trips to Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Gainesville, Florida.
“In other professions it’s a little easier because you get to go to places,” Kiffin said. “You go for a week, see all the schools. The neighborhood and stuff. Then you make the decision. Our jobs are more difficult that way, but I’m not complaining about it.”
Kiffin said he’s found himself missing his father, Monte, who died in 2024. He posted a picture of him on social media on Nov. 27 with he caption “Hero.” He wishes he could ask his dad for advice for his looming decision.
Kiffin doesn’t waver from his early morning hot yoga. It’s likely one of the last things he’ll before his big decision. He has long said it’s the hardest thing he does each day. Until Nov. 21, when he told the Clarion Ledger that it hasn’t been lately.
“Yeah, usually,” Kiffin said Nov. 21. “For most people. Except when you’ve had days like mine lately.”
Sam Hutchens covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at Shutchens@gannett.com or reach him on X at @Sam_Hutchens_
Florida
Chaminade-Madonna vs. True North Classical Academy: Where to watch live Florida high school football playoffs (11/28/2025)
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The road to the 1A state championship runs through Hollywood this Friday night as the upstart True North Classical Academy Titans (10-2) travel to face the perennial powerhouse Chaminade-Madonna Lions (9-2) in a much-anticipated regional final matchup at Zappone Field.
The Titans enter riding high after an explosive 62-28 rout of Saint Andrew’s in last week’s semifinals, showcasing an offense firing on all cylinders at the perfect time.
Meanwhile, the host Lions dispatched Edison 47-18 in their semifinal contest, continuing their quest for another state title to add to their decorated trophy case.
With both teams demonstrating dominant offensive performances in their previous outings, this clash promises to be a high-scoring affair that will test True North’s Cinderella story against Chaminade-Madonna’s championship pedigree in what could be the most exciting 1A playoff game of the season.
Opening kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on Friday, November 28 with a live TV broadcast on NFHS Network.
• WATCH: Chaminade-Madonna vs. True North Classical Academy football is livestreaming on NFHS Network
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How to watch Chaminade-Madonna vs. True North Classical Academy football livestream
What: True North Classical Academy looks to continue Cinderella run against powerhouse Chaminade-Madonna in 1A regional final
When: Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on Friday, November 28
Where: Zappone Field | Hollywood, Florida
Watch live: Watch Chaminade-Madonna vs. True North Classical Academy live on the NFHS Network
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