Picks:
Harrison at Jasper
Harrison did give a 1Q scare against Reitz last week, until Reitz quickly took over the game. Jasper, on the other hand, struggled the entire night against Memorial and couldn’t get the offense going. However, Reitz did run for around 430 yards against Harrison and I expect Jasper will do the same thing and run the ball. Give me the Wildcats by 4 scores.
Castle at Mater Dei
Castle earned a hard fought defensive victory against North last week in a 14-11 slugfest. While MD blew out Central after 1.5 quarters last Friday. Castle was limited with the ball against North having only 21 offensive plays and didn’t even touch the ball in the 2Q. So it’s a little hard to judge their offense so far (Played better in the 2H). However, I think this game will be different for Castle and we will see more offense from them. I also see Mater Dei making this game more of a fight compared to last season’s matchup. I’ll take the Knights by 2 scores in this one.
Reitz at Lincoln
Reitz moved the ball extremely well against Harrison without QB Davies in the game and racked up around 430 rushing yards and 49 points. Lincoln opened up an impressive victory against Bosse by winning 46-8 in a game that I thought would be somewhat closer. Looks like Lincoln moved one of their top receivers from last year to QB this season. Both teams did lose a lot from graduation from last season, so this will be an interesting game. I’m guessing it will be similar to the 2022 game in terms of closeness. I’ll take the Panthers by a score in this one, although they are missing their starting FB/LB.
Central at Bosse
Central is coming off a blowout loss to Mater Dei and didn’t appear the hottest. Bosse, is also coming off a blowout loss to Lincoln too and struggled the entire game. Central is still looking for their first win since 2021 and Bosse is trying to sustain the success from last year without Wagner. I have a strong feeling this could either be a blowout from one of the teams or a slugfest of a game. I think Central may have some speed as an advantage. I’ll take the Bears by 3 points and HC Artis gets his first victory.
Game of the Week
Memorial at North
Memorial is coming off an impressive victory against Jasper by forcing a running clock and blowing out the Wildcats in a battle of contenders. As Memorial dropped around 400 total offensive yards against Jasper and moved the ball at ease. The Tiger Defense also stiffened up against Jasper and allowing under 200 yards in offense (this includes the backups). North, even though they lost, looked pretty good defensively against Castle only allowing 7 offensive points (Castle had a pick 6) and allowing 123 total yards. However, North’s Offensive couldn’t do much in the RZ against Castle’s D and couldn’t run the ball. One major positive on the offensive side is the passing game, as that helped North moved the ball a little bit. Also, North has the biggest OL/DL in SIAC, with multiple players above 6’2 280. This series has been pretty equal the last 4 years and Memorial is looking for their first win at North since 2018. North has won the last 2 games at Bundrant Stadium with a blowout and a shutout against Memorial. Maybe I’m biased, but I’ll take the Tigers by 10.
