Week 3 Predictions Part I

Grosse Ile/Riverview: These two cross-river rivals square off for the Colvin Cup at Riverview on Friday. The Pirates have owned the cup the last two seasons but GI is playing with confidence and feels like they have a great shot at bringing the cup back to the Island.

Even though Grosse Ile lost a heart breaker on a late 4th quarter FG to Jefferson last week. The Red Devils are feeling pretty good about themselves coming into the biggest game on their schedule this season. Dex Teen is averaging 125 ypg. but GI is far from a one man show. Robby White has been extremely effective at the QB position both throwing and running the ball. Cam Church has been another option for the Red Devils on the ground. John Korody and Adam Curtis have been leaders on defense along with Teen and Church.

Riverview can’t be happy with their 0-2 start. Even though they played a competitive game against SMCC the Pirates are still winless. Against the Falcons Riverview managed only 6 first downs and the running game produced little results. On the bright side, the Pirate defense was able to hold SMCC’s offensive machine to a respectable 17 points. QB Jason Kubica has been effective at times but must improve his passing accuracy. A consistent running game will help the young QB. Anthony Miller and Michael Kowalski have been outstanding for the Pirates and they will need those two to continue their excellent play.

This week’s game should be a barn burner. After two games these teams seem evenly matched on paper. If Riverview wants to retain the cup the Pirates will have to stop the tandem of Teen and Church from running the ball. If they can force GI’s young QB to have to win the game they should be in good shape. The Red Devils must do the same thing if they plan on taking the cup back across the bridge. They need to focus on stopping the running game of the Bucs. If they can force Riverview to have to throw the ball it will be to the Islanders advantage. This is virtually a pick’em game but I will give a slight edge based on two things; a veteran coach and a home field advantage. Riverview wins this game 21-20.

SMCC/Flat Rock: The Rams host SMCC at Middlestadt Field on Friday. The Falcons come to town with a 1-1 record while the Level Pebblers are winless on the 2009 season.

SMCC could easily be 2-0 at this point of the season. Their last second loss to Crockett Tech looks like a good loss after the Rockets beat Cass Tech this past week. The Falcons struggled a bit with a rebuilding Riverview program last week but the fact remains that they won the game. The Falcons continue to run the ball effectively with Howey, LaBeau and Lamour all gaining valuable yards. On defense the Catholics are led by LB TJ Lovell and DB Mike Pannone.

Flat Rock is coming off of a hard fought loss to Milan last week. The Rams did a good job of shutting down Joe Dunn from Milan and overall did an excellent job against the Big Red running game. The Rams had been woeful against Ida in week 1 but rebounded with a good effort against an excellent program. The Rams have had problems moving the football and putting it in the endzone. The Rams could use a simple passing game to loosen things up a little bit to give Joe Conner some running room.

This game looks like a potential blowout on paper. The SMCC running game versus the Flat Rock run defense. Don’t expect Coach Giarmo to throw a single pass this week. He will keep things simple and will probably look to get his senior FB Lovell involved in the offense a little more than he has been this season. Flat Rock needs to find a way to get the ball in the endzone. They must get the ball to their playmakers in space if they are to have a chance in this game. The Rams will be well prepared for SMCC but look for the team I picked to win the league to win this one 27-6.