Sam’s 2025 spring football stops: Windermere Wolverines

Sports
High Schools

The 2025 spring high school football season is officially underway in West Orange and Southwest Orange County, and Orange Observer Sports Editor Sam Albuquerque has begun his 11-stop journey to each of the area’s programs to bring you behind the scenes with all the best notes, tidbits and observations he picks up from each visit.

In the first of Sam’s 11 spring football stops, Albuquerque gives us the latest on one of last season’s top and most controversial teams: Windermere Wolverines.

Windermere Wolverines

2024 record: 10-0

Spring jamboree: Thursday, May 22 vs. Edgewater High and Osceola High

Coach: Riki Smith, fourth season.

Key returners, additions: DB C.J. Bronaugh, ATH Jaylen Davis, OL Deuce Forrester, RB Henry Rogers and LB Willems Noel.

There’s only one way to describe Windermere football’s 2024 season: Perfection. Not only was it the Wolverines' first undefeated season in program history, it was the first winning season in program history — something coach Riki Smith, the program’s winningest and longest-tenured coach, has been building toward in his time at the school.

Now, in 2025, the questions Smith and his staff will be working on answering is how do you avoid the pitfalls of complacency that come from winning and how do the Wolverines continue to build on the positive momentum from its historic season?

If you ask Smith, he’ll tell you straight up, 2024 was 2024. Windermere football is focused on 2025.

No. 1: Undefeated 2024 has Wolverines football rolling into 2025

The most successful season in program history did more than just put smiles on the faces of fans in the bleachers of Windermere’s new stadium and shiny championship rings on the coaches and players fingers, the success on the field has been a catalyst for the team moving into 2025.

Not only has winning brought more attention to the young program, bringing a plethora of benefits based on that alone, but it has also helped change the perception of the program within the school. Smith and company have seen a significant uptick in interest and participation from Windermere’s student-athletes this spring.

No. 2: Key returners could break out in 2025

With a few key players graduating, specifically from its receiving core and starting quarterback Jack Reilly, Windermere’s approach on offense could see a significant shift this season. Because of this possible shift, along with obvious physical development during the offseason, rising junior athlete Jaylen Davis and rising senior running back Henry Rogers look like the clear choices to centralize the Wolverines' offense around.

No. 3: Strength is Windermere’s strength

After seeing the early edition of Windermere’s 2025 team in action, speaking with Smith and knowing his general approach to developing his teams, I can say with conviction that he’ll adjust his scheme to take advantage of the strength of his players.

This season, it’s clear that the Wolverines’ strength going into 2025 is, well, their size and strength — especially in the trenches. With the return of a key players across both offensive and defensive lines, led by rising seniors Deuce Forrester and Will Trimble, the emergence of a few new quality players among the two groups and the development of Rogers and Davis at the skill positions, let’s just say Windermere’s going to a lot more power than finesse this season.

author

Sam Albuquerque

A native of João Pessoa, Brazil, Sam Albuquerque moved in 1997 to Central Florida as a kid. After earning a communications degree in 2016 from the University of Central Florida, he started his career covering sports as a producer for a local radio station, ESPN 580 Orlando. He went on to earn a master’s degree in editorial journalism from Northwestern University, before moving to South Carolina to cover local sports for the USA Today Network’s Spartanburg Herald-Journal. When he’s not working, you can find him spending time with his lovely wife, Sarah, newborn son, Noah, and dog named Skulí.