Week 8: The Less Said The Better…If You Want To Be Right

Week 8 of the high school football season brings us some of the matchups we’ve wanted to see since Week 1…St. Henry vs. Minster, Coldwater vs. Anna, and London vs. Jon Alder.  And judging from last week, the less you write about each the better the chance you have in getting the outcome right.

I put a lot of time into the Week 7 picks, they were that challenging…perhaps the toughest so far this year.

And I needed a good week.  Going into the week I had connected on 59 of 72 games through the first six (about 81%).  And it’s been a tough year, which I like.  This is not the predictable high school football that we had in the past, even five years ago…for a variety of reasons to be saved for another column, another day.

But I came out of Week 7, for the third straight week, a mite short, getting just 9 of the 12 games correct, making me 68 of 84 (still respectable), but it could have been oh so better.  Because the three I missed…Piqua-Fairborn, Anna-Minster, and Urbana-Jonathan Alder…I missed by a single point in each.

Piqua blew a commanding lead to lose to Fairborn, 36-35.  Anna scored late to clip unbeaten Minster, 14-13, and Urbana came back late to beat Jonathan Alder 28-27.  Which only proves that you play the games because the unexpected can happen, does happen, and that’s what makes it interesting.

Otherwise, just read about the games on the Friday ‘Picks’ page and go to bed early.  The sleep will do you good.

As always the Friday Night ‘Picks’ Page is sponsored by the Orthopedic Associates of Southwest Ohio, with nine offices in southwest Ohio for your convenience and peace of mind.  If and when you need their services, the excellent reputation of the OASWO doctors make your experience a healing one right from the initial phone call.  We’re proud to represent them on Press Pros Magazine, and satisfied that your experience will be as good as our own.  The Orthopedic Associates of Southwest Ohio, sponsors of the Friday ‘Picks’ page on Press Pros.

It will be another challenging week of picks, and short and sweet.  There are fewer climactic matchups, so fewer to pick.  And apparently the less I write about each the more time, and face, I save.  So we’ll start this week with….

Urbana @ Kenton Ridge…At 5-2, Urbana is becoming the biggest surprise in area football this season, playing in the Central Buckeye Conference.  Already with quality wins over Mechanicsburg, Graham, and Jonathan Alder, the Hillclimbers simply play with a personality that matches the logo on their practice shirts.  Their approach to football is ‘relentless’.  But you don’t win games with words, you win with deeds, skill, and leadership, and Urbana has a unique example at this point with quarterback and Ohio State baseball recruit Grady Lantz.  The stats say enough, but here’s the bottom line.  The ‘Climbers make plays.  At 6-1 Kenton Ridge is in the midst of their best overall year in a while.  But, they haven’t played the meat of the CBC, the Londons, Urbanas, and Jonathan Alder.  That changes this week.  Actually KR has played Graham, on opening week, and lost that game 34-24. But I’m picking Urbana because they’re more battle-tested…and I’m picking them by a score.

London @ Jonathan Alder…London is 5-2, Alder is 6-1, but the Pioneers are playing without standout wide receiver Trey Bentley who’s out with a foot injury.  London is a running team, Alder is a more balanced attack, but the loss of Bentley is going to change the dynamic of the game, despite all the coach-speak you might hear about next man up.  It might, in fact, but I’m not a believer of coach-speak until after it happens…if it happens.  London will run the ball, milk the clock, and shorten the game.  They’re good enough to score first, and if they do they’ll force Alder to play catch-up with its run game.  Another thing…London won this game 38-0 last year.  So the overall confidence factor favors them.  I like London again, by two scores.

Troy @ Sidney…Closer to the home office, I pick this game more for the sake of what Troy’s doing than that of Sidney.  The Trojans are 6-1 and ranked #4 in Region 8 this week.  Sidney is 1-6 and you have to look pretty hard to find them on Joe Eitel.  But the motivation for Troy is to not look beyond the Yellow Jackets to next week when they meet Tipp City for the conference title, and both with be 7-1.  Trojans might be good, but they’re in no position to take Sidney for granted.  And I don’t expect them to.   I would expect another big night by their running game, possibly Casey Anderson, and possibly a running clock.  Trojans should win…by four scores or more.

Tipp @ Greenville…The afore-mentioned Tipp Red Devils need this game to keep pace with Troy, and that shouldn’t be a problem.  Greenville is 2-5 and it’s not a strong 2-5, either.  Some games are played with a running clock;  and this one will be played with a running bus, as well.  But, you have to play the game.  The Red Devils are healthy as you can be on Week 8 and will take care of business, comfortably.

Fort Loramie @ Columbus Grove…Loramie has had a good year at 5-2, with that banner win over Anna in Week 2.  But their two losses have come against teams that simply had the physical advantage, Minster and LCC.  Grove is that kind of team, playing at home, and their lone loss is to LCC, 13-6.  Otherwise, the Bulldogs have more than taken care of business.   This is too much for Loramie at this stage, and with Allen East and Bluffton yet to come.  Columbus Grove by three scores.

Marion Local @ New Bremen…For all the outside-the-area readers from northwest and northeast Ohio, here is your weekly look at 7-0 Marion Local.  And I’m betting that more people around the state are paying attention than those in Mercer County because they want to know…how good are the Flyers compared to the past?  And what are our chances if we have to play them in the post-season?  So hello, Wayne County Conference, and Hopewell-Loudon.  New Bremen is 3-4 and the Cardinals have played some better teams tough already – St. Henry last week before losing to the Redskins, 21-16.  And they have some history to look back on.  But while this Marion team is smaller than teams in the past, they’re improving at a fast clip with each passing game.  6’6″ quarterback Brennen Hess is their ‘hoss’, and he has that familiar compliment of running backs (Cam Griesdorn) and receivers (Max Ranly) that make Marion’s balance so tough to defend.  At home New Bremen will play with a lot f pride, but Marion plays for keeps.  Their last loss to New Bremen came in 2020, the regional final, and a game Marion fans well remember.  But Marion will win this one…by three scores.

St. Henry @ Minster…Minster has been the surprise of the MAC this year on the positive side, but I’m not so sure why.  They’re well-coached, they have athletes, and they’re quickly becoming known for being that kind of physical team that won them two state titles, and one against Kirtland!  The ‘Cats balance has been a plus for them all year, and it will play a part in the outcome of this game.  The same can be said for St. Henry, now that the Redskins (4-3) are back healthy as a unit and hitting on more of their eight cylinders.  Both like to run and control the line of scrimmage and the clock.  But I guarantee the passing game will have something to do with who wins.  Is this the toughest pick of the week?  Yes.  And based on gut, I think Minster recovers from their Anna hangover last week and plays like they played against Coldwater.  St. Henry has played the tougher teams in the league so far – Versailles (win), Marion (loss), and Anna (win) – but Seth Whiting will have the ‘Cats prepared for the challenge of the final three weeks – when they play the same teams.  At home, and coming off a loss, I won’t be surprised if Minster finds that extra gear and pulls this off like they’ve done all year…I pick the ‘Cats by a score.

Anna @ Coldwater…4-3 Anna did themselves a lot of good last week with their surprise, and thrilling win over Minster.  For confidence sake, the Rockets come out of that game believing that they are still as good as people like us believed they were before the season.  They have skills, and they have quarterback Logan Ziegenbusch.  But what remains to be seen is whether than can do that two weeks in a row.  It will be tough to beat Coldwater, in Coldwater, with the Cavs having a full complement of their skill players – Karsyn Homan, Braxton Taylor, Derek Dues, and Karter Freed.  That said, Ziegenbusch is the most dynamic player in the MAC conference, and there were times in last week’s win over Versailles when the Cavaliers looked highly vulnerable at the hands of Tigers quarterback Blake Monnin…who can play a bit like Ziegenbusch.  Toughness will be a factor, and Karsyn Homan plays with it on every snap.  At home, it’s hard not to pick Coldwater.  I think they win this game…by as much as two scores.