Pigskin Pick’Em: Week No. 8

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports

Where has the time gone? It’s already Week No. 8 of a seemingly lightning fast football season. As we head down the home stretch, some teams are still fighting for a conference or league title or at least share of one. Others are fighting for higher playoff seeding or just a playoff spot period. A handful of games on this week’s schedule, including Van Wert at Ottawa-Glandorf, could help secure a home playoff game in the opening round.

For the third straight week, I went 16-3 (84.2 percent), which takes my overall season record to 118-39 (75.1 percent), still notably short of my stated goal of at least 80 percent correct picks. 19 more games are on this week’s Pigskin Pick’Em slate, including one that will be played tonight.

Games of the Week

Parkway (2-5) at Fort Recovery (2-5)

Parkway snapped a five game losing streak with a 23-7 win over Delphos St. John’s. Two of Fort Recovery’s losses have come by scores of 28-21, while another loss was by one, 29-28 to Anna, a team that upended previously undefeated Minster last Friday. The other losses have come to Coldwater and Marion Local. I do believe Parkway is improving and the Panthers are becoming more competitive, but I think Fort Recovery is the favorite in this one. I wouldn’t be shocked if Parkway wins but I’m going with the Indians.

The pick: Fort Recovery

St. Henry (4-3) at Minster (6-1)

Is this the game of the week in the MAC? It could be. These two state ranked teams appear to be pretty evenly matched. It is fair to note that all three of St. Henry’s losses have come to teams with a combined record of 21-0 (Celina, Archbold, Marion Local). Minster has a couple of quality wins (Fort Loramie, Coldwater), but the Wildcats were upset by Anna 14-13 last week. I feel like I should pick Minster in this one but something is telling me St. Henry is the correct pick. It really should be a great game, probably on the low-scoring side. I’ll go with the Redskins in a close one.

The pick: St. Henry

Tinora (3-4) at Wayne Trace (5-2)

Never mind Tinora’s 3-4 record. Two of the losses came to Liberty Center (7-0) and Archbold (7-0). There was another loss to Ostego, a Division IV team, and to Fairview, 28-26. The Rams had Fairview on the ropes, but the Apaches pulled out the win on the game’s final play. Having said that, Tinora hasn’t beaten a team with a winning record. Wayne Trace is on a bit of a roll right now and a win would help the Raiders in terms of playoff seeding. Honestly, I think this game is a tossup and one could argue Tinora is actually a slight favorite. However, I’m going with the Raiders at home in this one.

The pick: Wayne Trace

Bluffton (6-1) at Crestview (2-5)

There’s no way to sugarcoat this – Crestview has played a tough schedule with the likes of Paulding, Minster, Wayne Trace Fort Loramie etc – but with all due respect to those teams, this week might be the most challenging one yet. On top of that, the next two Fridays are loaded as well, with games against Columbus Grove and Lima Central Catholic. But the focus is this week’s game against the Pirates. Simply put, I don’t think the Knights have the firepower to keep up on the scoreboard in this one. To be fair, a lot of teams are in the same boat. I just don’t see the Pirates losing this one.

The pick: Bluffton

Van Wert (4-3) at Ottawa-Glandorf (7-0)

How will Van Wert respond after last Friday’s heartbreaking loss to St. Marys Memorial? Ottawa-Glandorf’s defense has given up seven points or less four times this year – will the Titans be able to contain Van Wert’s high powered offense? There are several storylines here and all are valid. I’ll rule out one of them – O-G won’t overlook Van Wert a week ahead of a matchup against currently undefeated Celina. Recent history indicates this will be a close game. This is where I’m at – the Cougars are going to have to play mistake-free ball this week to win this and that’s a tall order against a team that has made very few mistakes. Do I think Van Wert can bounce back and win this game? Yes, I do. However, I’m predicting the Titans will remain undefeated going into next week’s game against Celina.

The pick: Ottawa-Glandorf

Best of the Rest

GMC

Edgerton at Paulding: Paulding

Fairview at Antwerp: Fairview

Hicksville at Ayersville: Ayersville

MAC

Anna at Coldwater: Coldwater

Marion Local at New Bremen: Marion Local

Versailles at Delphos St. John’s: Versailles

NWC

Allen East at Spencerville: Allen East

Delphos Jefferson at Lima Central Catholic: Lima Central Catholic

Fort Loramie at Columbus Grove: Columbus Grove

TCL

Lima Sr. at Toledo Bowsher (Thursday): Lima Sr.

WBL

Bath at Celina: Celina

Elida at Defiance: Elida

St. Marys Memorial at Shawnee: St. Marys Memorial

Wapakoneta at Kenton: Wapakoneta