{"id":121480,"date":"2019-08-18T21:19:11","date_gmt":"2019-08-19T02:19:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thevwindependent.com\/news\/?p=121480"},"modified":"2019-08-18T21:19:17","modified_gmt":"2019-08-19T02:19:17","slug":"monday-mailbag-august-19-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/2019\/08\/18\/monday-mailbag-august-19-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"Monday Mailbag: August 19, 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

SCOTT TRUXELL\/<\/strong>independent sports editor<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This week\u2019s Monday Mailbag doesn\u2019t have many questions per se, but it does include thoughts on last week\u2019s VW independent preseason NWC and WBL football predictions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: I disagree with your pick of Van Wert finishing fourth in the WBL. St. Marys and Wapakoneta lost a lot to graduation. This is Van Wert\u2019s year. Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: I agree that the Roughriders and the Redskins lost a lot to graduation. The majority of teams lost some fine talent to graduation, including Van Wert. But until someone is able to knock St. Marys Memorial and\/or Wapakoneta from the top spot, it\u2019s tough to pick against them.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, it\u2019s truly difficult to predict what\u2019s going to happen because it seems like the WBL should be very balanced this season. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As far as the Cougars, the cupboard isn\u2019t exactly bare and if they can stay healthy, it should be another fun season for the players, coaches and fans.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Sorry, but you\u2019re wrong about Van Wert. There\u2019s no way this team will finish fourth in the WBL. Go Cougs! Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

A: Time will tell, and I hope they do finish higher than fourth.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think coach Keith Recker and the Cougars turned the corner last season and Van Wert should be very competitive this season and should win their fair share of games.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I pointed out in the predictions feature, it won\u2019t be shocking to see a tie for the league title and\/or a tie for second or third place. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Here\u2019s how your WBL picks should have looked: 1) Van Wert 2) Wapakoneta 3) Elida 4) St. Marys 5) O-G 6) Shawnee 7) Kenton 8) Celina 9) Defiance 10) Bath. Name withheld upon request <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: If the Cougars run the table or lose just one WBL game, you\u2019re right.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s a big jump for Elida, but they do have some nice players back. As I said in the feature, they need to play better defensively this season.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have a tough time seeing St. Marys Memorial finishing fourth, but it\u2019s possible. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: I saw your NWC and WBL picks and I think they seem fairly reasonable. I do wish you would have picked Van Wert higher though. Fourth place seems too low. Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: I\u2019m glad you enjoyed the predictions.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I pointed out to Scott Alan during Saturday morning\u2019s WERT Sports Wrap show, I made the picks with my mind, not my heart. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s nothing personal or anything like that, it\u2019s just a prediction based on the information I have about the team and the other teams. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Your pick of Ottawa-Glandorf to finish third seems a little odd. Can you explain your thinking? Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: Call it a hunch, but I think the Titans are primed for a return to the upper half of the Western Buckeye League this season. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like I mentioned in the predictions, O-G dealt with a lot of injuries last season, which led to some younger kids getting valuable varsity experience.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Titans took their lumps at times last year, but it should pay off this season.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: It\u2019ll be interesting to see how accurate your football picks are once the season is complete. Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: It sure will be and don\u2019t worry, I\u2019ll post a side-by-side comparison of WBL and NWC predictions and actual final standings once the regular season is complete. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: I\u2019m not so sure I agree with your pick of Spencerville over Columbus Grove for the NWC football championship. Grove has a lot of talent coming back and should be considered the clear favorite. Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: Believe me, when making these selections, the same thing kept popping up in my head. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it\u2019s all said and done, Columbus Grove may indeed finish as outright NWC champions. Personally, I think whichever team wins the Week No. 8 matchup between the two teams will win the title.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As for my pick of Spencerville, it\u2019s just a gut feeling. But the Bearcats and the Bulldogs seem to be the main two NWC championship contenders this season.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: What is your prediction for Crestview in terms of wins and losses this season? Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: As much as I\u2019d like to say 10 during the regular season, I think a realistic number is seven, with a toss up or two along the way. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I said in the predictions, despite the loss of some fine athletes to graduation, head coach Jared Owens and his staff will have the Knights ready to go this season.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have a question or thoughts for next week\u2019s Monday Mailbag, email it to sports@thevwindependent.com<\/a>. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SCOTT TRUXELL\/independent sports editor This week\u2019s Monday Mailbag doesn\u2019t have many questions per se, but it does include thoughts on last week\u2019s VW independent preseason NWC and WBL football predictions. Q: I disagree with your pick of Van Wert finishing fourth in the WBL. St. Marys and Wapakoneta lost a lot to graduation. This is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-121480","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sports"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-02 15:38:47","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121480","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=121480"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121480\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=121480"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=121480"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=121480"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}