Lennard traveled to East Bay on Friday, Sept. 18, and left with a 35-0 shutout, giving the Longhorns the best record in the South Shore Six.

The Longhorns (4-1) have won four straight since a season-opening loss to Armwood. East Bay (3-2), which entered the rivalry game with an identical 3-1 record, was held scoreless.

Fourth-year head coach K.B. Belton's squad has now posted two lopsided wins against South Shore Six opponents. Lennard beat Morgan 41-20 on Aug. 28 and followed it with the shutout of the Indians. No other team in the six-school group owns a better record through five weeks.

Roster loaded with Division I recruits

The Longhorns' roster is loaded with Division I talent. Junior wide receiver and defensive back Chayse Brown is committed to Florida State. Senior running back Preston Beckham is headed to Cincinnati. Senior defensive back Robert Gibbons has signed with FIU, and junior safety Mekhi Williams is pledged to Wisconsin. Senior quarterback Antonio Balaguer, a three-year starter who transferred from Sumner, has run the offense since the opener.

In the Week 3 win over Morgan, Balaguer threw for 221 yards and two touchdowns, added a rushing score and threw one interception, according to the Observer News. Brown finished with 106 yards receiving and a touchdown in that game. Gibbons returned a kickoff 90 yards for a score. Individual stats from the East Bay shutout were not available.

Before the season, Belton told the Osprey Observer his senior class was driven by unfinished business after an 8-3 season in 2025 that ended with a first-round playoff loss. "Now we want to go deeper in the playoffs," Belton said in August. "They know how to win football games."

East Bay's promising start now interrupted

East Bay head coach DeAndra Simmons, in his second full season, described a blue-collar identity for the Indians during the same preseason window. The shutout loss marks a setback for a program that opened 2026 with a 43-7 win over Riverview and a 35-0 blanking of Chamberlain.

South Shore Six standings after Week 5

Here is where the South Shore Six stands after Week 5, according to the Southshore Circle: Lennard 4-1, East Bay 3-2, Sumner 3-2, Riverview 2-3, Morgan 2-3, Spoto 1-4. Riverview beat Morgan 43-7 in the other local matchup. Sumner fell to Armwood 43-6, and Spoto lost to Steinbrenner 26-12.

Lennard does not face Sumner or Spoto during the regular season, so the Longhorns' remaining South Shore Six test is a road game at Riverview later this fall.

Lennard travels to Plant City on Friday, Sept. 25.