LAND O’ LAKES – Academy at the Lakes continues to tinker with its inaugural varsity football season schedule, which likely will be finalized early next week.

Wildcats athletic director and coach Mark Arbet confirmed Friday that AATL will play a home game against Cambridge Christian on Nov. 2 instead of traveling to Lakeland Christian on the same day. He’s still awaiting word from Bishop McLaughlin AD Mike Zelenka on the possibility of playing on Oct. 5, a date vacated on the Hurricanes’ schedule when Tampa Bay Christian cancelled its football season this week.

On Thursday, Zelenka said he was trying to decide if the benefits of having a bye week on Oct. 5 would outweigh adding a tenth game to its schedule. But both ADs see the game as good competition between two small schools relatively close to each other. Arbet added he would agree to play the game at Bishop McLaughlin.

If Bishop McLaughlin accepts the offer, Arbet would be inclined to cancel the Wildcats’ Sep. 7 game at Lake City Christian. The Florida High School Athletics Association mandates that prep teams can have no more than 10 regular season games, but budget concerns are the main reason why that game would go.

“We’re looking at a $3,000 investment to play that game,” Arbet said of going to Lake City. “We’ve got to feed the players and transport them a long way. That’s high dollars there. It’s not a feasible game for us.”

Travel expenses also contributed to AATL canceling the Lakeland Christian game for a meeting with Cambridge. Head of School Mark Heller pushed for the Cambridge game as well.