When are they going to start handing out the “I survived Hurricane Isabel” T-shirts? The sports world, and especially high school football was thrown all akilter by what was supposed to be. In the end, the kids all got a day off and the football games, whether played on Thursday, Saturday or Monday got just about the same amount of rain, or more than if they would simply have been played on Friday as originally scheduled. When you stop and think about that’s the way it always is. Trust Mother Nature to stick it to you in the end. Or wherever else you happen to be.
The Pitt-Toledo game got all of the pickers this week. John Harlow had the best week with a 9-1 card, missing only with the Panthers. Our guest picker Eleanor Feltenberger and Sports Editor Bob Miller tied with 8-2 marks. Both erred on the Pitt game and the Chestnut Ridge win over Penns Valley. The two hottest early pickers, Chris Lash and Kerry Webster tied with 7-3 marks to fall into a first place tie with Harlow and the guests overall with 32-8 logs after four weeks. Kerry Naylor went 6-4 to record a 26-14 overall. Miller is two games back of the jammed up group of leaders at 30-10.
This week our guest picker is Mike Blaska, Tyrone sports enthusiast and Sales Representative for General Mills. Good luck Mike!
This week promises to include a coupe of tough picks for the panel.
Tyrone at Bald Eagle Area: Tyrone is starting to really get in gear for the stretch run in October and November. Coach John Franco has settled on Leonard Wilson at quarterback and Brice Mertiff, Ben Gummo and freshman Brinton Mingle form a trio of very dangerous running backs for the Orange and Black. BEA started strong with consecutive wins in the first two weeks, but losses to Sharpsville and Indian Valley have brought them back to earth. Take into account the losses are to two schools with solid football programs.
The picks: Miller Tyrone 30-7, John Harlow Tyrone 21-10, Kerry Naylor Tyrone 42-6, Kerry Webster Tyrone 35-7, Chris Lash Tyrone 21-10, Mike Blaska Tyrone 27-13.
Bellwood-Antis at Southern Huntingdon: The Blue Devils have come through a four-game homestand to begin the season with a 2-2 mark. B-A seems to be leaning toward more passing than John Hayes teams are comfortable with, but Dan Houser is doing his best to remedy the situation. Its seems that maybe Shawn Weiand’s passing might loosen up opponents for the run, rather than the other way around. Look for a game with a lot of offense. Southern Huntingdon is averaging 309 yards of total offense per game, but is giving up 278 yards to their opponents per game.
The picks: Miller Bellwood-Antis 27-24, John Harlow Bellwood-Antis 14-10, Kerry Naylor Southern Huntingdon 12-7, Kerry Webster Southern Huntingdon 28-7, Chris Lash Southern Huntingdon 30-28, Mike Blaska Bellwood-Antis 20-7.
Bishop Guilfoyle at Huntingdon:The first of the tough picks. Two 4-0 teams battle at War Vets Field. Huntingdon has one more A in their classification and most importantly have Geoff Kozak in the lineup, which should give them the Triple-A Bearcats an edge in any close contest. The Double-A Marauders have beefed up their schedule and this should be a severe test Bishop Guilfoyle.
The picks: Miller Huntingdon, John Harlow Huntingdon, Kerry Naylor Huntingdon, Kerry Webster Huntingdon, Chris Lash Huntingdon, Mike Blaska Bishop Guilfoyle (upset of the week).
West Branch at Penns Valley: West Branch finally picked up a win last weekend, but that was over Tussey Mountain. Penns Valley is 1-3 with losses to some heavy hitters in Bishop Guilfoyle, Philipsburg-Osceola and Chestnut Ridge. On paper, this looks like a no-brainer.
The picks: Miller Penns Valley (if I keep picking the Rams, sooner or later, they have to win?), John Harlow Penns Valley, Kerry Naylor Penns Valley, Kerry Webster Penns Valley, Chris Lash Penns Valley, Mike Blaska Penns Valley.
Indian Valley at Philipsburg-Osceola: Tough pick II mentioned above. Indian Valley is 2-2 with losses to Clearfield, who will be in the expanded Big 8 next year 37-22 and West Perry 27-22. Philipsburg lost for the first time last week against Huntingdon 34-16 with Geof Kozak (see above) doing everything except selling tickets or playing in the band at halftime. Indian Valley coach Gawen Stoker has produced winners anywhere he has coached in District VI.
The picks: Miller Indian Valley, John Harlow Indian Valley, Kerry Naylor Indian Valley, Kerry Webster Philipsburg-Osceola, Chris Lash Philipsburg-Osceola, Mike Blaska Philipsburg-Osceola.
Chestnut Ridge at Glendale: Chestnut Ridge lost to Bishop Guilfoyle in the season opener to dash hopes for ICC gold, but still has District VI-A playoffs and a winning season among their goals. John Kutz is attempting to turn the long slide at Glendale around, but has had little success or luck this year.
The picks: Miller Chestnut Ridge, John Harlow Chestnut Ridge, Kerry Naylor Chestnut Ridge, Kerry Webster Chestnut Ridge, Chris Lash Chestnut Ridge, Mike Blaska Chestnut Ridge.
Moshannon Valley at Everett: Tough pick III. With not a loss between them, these two schools are pointing toward ICC titles in their respective divisions Everett (Southern) edged Bellwood-Antis by always being in the right place with the right people. Moshannon Valley (Mountain) has been running over everybody thus far, but their schedule, in the first four weeks has been questionable. Whoever wins, this should be a big test.
The picks: Miller Moshannon Valley, John Harlow Everett, Kerry Naylor Everett, Kerry Webster Moshannon Valley, Chris Lash Everett, Mike Blaska Everett.
Pitt at Texas A & M: Was Pitt bitten by the preseason hype last weekend at Toledo? The Panthers, ranked in the top 10 for the first time in 20 years, quickly proved to be overrated. In last year’s Texas A & M game at Heinz Field, turnovers were Pitt’s biggest problem. A & M will be well rested after playing last Thursday night, hanging tough against Virginia Tech. The question remains, are they able to turn on the burners after idling against the soft competition of the early season, including Toledo?
The picks: Miller Pitt 24-21, John Harlow Pitt 17-14, Kerry Naylor Pitt 24-21, Kerry Webster Pitt 24-17, Chris Lash Pitt 30-24, Mike Blaska Pitt 24-17.
Minnesota at Penn State: Is Minnesota going to be able to maintain their high-powered offense against Big 10 teams like they did against the likes of early-season foes in 40-point wins over Tulsa, Troy State, Ohio University and Louisiana-Lafayette? Will Penn State receivers catch the ball this week? The Nittany Lions rushing defense ranks last in the Big 10. Joe Paterno will coach in his 600th game at Penn State since coming to PSU as an assistant in 1950.
The picks: Miller Penn State 27-24, John Harlow Minnesota 21-10, Kerry Naylor Penn State 17-10, Kerry Webster Penns State 32-24, Chris Lash Minnesota 28-13, Mike Blaska Penn State 31-20.
Tennessee at Steelers: Will the Steelers defense continue to play like they did against the Bengals? Pittsburgh needs “the Bus” to run like he did in the second half on Sunday to take some of the pressure off Tommy Maddox and give the defense some time on the sideline. Titans’ quarterback Steve McNair is always a handful for any defense-as big as a running back and as elusive when linemen are trying to chase him down. This should be a real test for Pittsburgh.
The picks: Miller Steelers 35-28, John Harlow Tennessee 21-17, Kerry Naylor Steelers 31-24, Kerry Webster Tennessee 21-17 (no, he didn’t check with John before making his selection), Chris Lash Steelers 31-24, Mike Blaska Sreelers 34-31 (in OT).
Thank you Eleanor Feltenberger for consenting to be our guest picker for Week 4.
Good Sports: Tyrone Area grad Josh Gurekovich, is beginning his first season as an athletic assistant with the Westminster men’s and women’s swimming programs. Gurekovich is a 1999 Westminster grad who was a four-year member of the Titan swim team, earning All-America honors and twice qualifying for the national meet.
Although the Juniata College football team dropped a 23-18 decision to Delaware Valley in MAC action, B-A grad Matt Garner had 10 tackles, his third straight game in double figures in tackles for the Eagles. Juniata running back Craig Moshier of Coudersport tied a school record with 40 carries for 185 yards as Juniata came from 20 points behind (23-3)in the third quarter to fall just short in a comeback attempt.
