By Kevin Askeland
MaxPreps.com
Perennial state championship contenders meet in Alabama and Oklahoma this week while Rock Hill, S.C., and Scottsdale, Ariz., will each be home to a state champion this year. One of the highlights of this week’s 10 Games to Watch, however, might be a small-schools battle between two of the top running backs in the country, Jeremiah Young of Steelton-Highspire and Zach Barket of Schuylkill Haven.
The prediction records after 13 weeks find MaxPreps Projections in first place at 102-28, followed by Mitch Stephens at 101-29. Jason Hickman is next at 97-33, followed by Steve Spiewak at 95-35 and Kevin Askeland at 91-39. Here’s a look at this week’s top 10 games.
South Pointe (Rock Hill, S.C.) vs. Northwestern (Rock Hill, S.C.)
The city of Rock Hill will be home to at least one state champion this year with South Pointe squaring off against Northwestern for the Class AAAA Division II championship this weekend at Clemson’s Memorial Stadium. South Pointe boasts a rugged defense, led by defensive backs DeVonte Holloman and Pat Burris. The Stallions have relinquished just 87 points in a building a 14-0 record. That’s just over one touchdown per game. The game features two of South Carolina’s top quarterbacks. Northwestern’s sophomore QB Justin Worley has eye-popping stats that include 288 completions in 499 attempts for 3,434 yards and 48 touchdowns. South Pointe’s Stephon Gilmore is a option quarterback for the Stallions, rushing for 1,142 yards and 20 touchdowns and throwing for 1,702 yards and 13 scores.
Mitch Stephens: South Pointe 27, Northwestern 14
Jason Hickman: South Pointe 24, Northwestern 14
Steve Spiewak: South Pointe 28, Northwestern 21
Kevin Askeland: South Pointe 35, Northwestern 31
MaxPreps Projection: South Pointe 28, Northwestern 21
Allen (Texas) vs. Trinity (Euless, Texas)
Trinity’s quest for a second straight state title continues this week with Allen standing in the way of a trip to the Texas 5A Division 1 championship game. Allen knocked off previously unbeaten Permian 28-22 last week with backup quarterback Tucker Carter throwing for 199 yards and two touchdowns in the win. After relatively close playoff wins over Plano (42-35) and Flower Mound Marcus (24-10), Trinity blew away Arlington in the quarterfinals last week 48-14. Denarius McGhee threw for 178 yards in the win while Damien Hart led the rushing attack with 117 yards on 10 carries.
Mitch Stephens: Trinity 28, Allen 21
Jason Hickman: Allen 28, Trinity 21
Steve Spiewak: Allen 24, Trinity 21
Kevin Askeland: Trinity 42, Allen 35
MaxPreps Projection: Trinity 24, Allen 22
Prattville (Ala.) vs. Hoover (Ala.)
Two programs that have combined for six state championships in this century meet for the Alabama 6A championship when Prattville takes on Hoover at Legion Field on Saturday afternoon. The two teams are both 12-1 on the season with losses to out-of-state teams. Prattville fell to St. Xavier in the season opener in Ohio while Hoover fell to Camden County of Georgia early in the season. The Lions and Bucs have met in the state finals three times with Prattville defeating Hoover in 2006 and Hoover edging the Lions 22-7 in 2004. Prattville is looking to win its third straight championship, its first under head coach Jamey DuBose.
Mitch Stephens: Prattville 33, Hoover 28
Jason Hickman: Prattville 21, Hoover 14
Steve Spiewak: Prattville 28, Hoover 10
Kevin Askeland: Prattville 24, Hoover 19
MaxPreps Projection: Prattville 28, Hoover 14
Steelton-Highspire (Steelton, Pa.) vs. Schuylkill Haven (Pa.)
The small-schools clash between Steelton-Highspire and Schuylkill Haven will be an historic one considering that it features two of the top three rushers in state history. The state’s all-time leading rusher, Jeremiah Young of the Steamrollers, has 8,858 career yards while Zach Barket of Schuylkill Haven is No. 3 all-time with 8,211. Barket leads the country in rushing with 4,042 yards and he is also the leading scorer with 64 touchdowns. Young has run for 2,643 yards this year with 31 touchdowns. Last week he had 352 yards in a quarterfinal victory over Bishop McCort. Steelton-Highspire has the state’s longest current win streak at 23 in a row.
Mitch Stephens: Schuylkill Haven 31, Steelton-Highspire 28
Jason Hickman: Steelton-Highspire 36, Schuylkill Haven 34
Steve Spiewak: Steelton-HIghspire 30, Schuylkill Haven 20
Kevin Askeland: Steelton-Highspire 32, Schuylkill Haven 28
MaxPreps Projection: Schuylkill Haven 28, Steelton-Highspire 27
Bellarmine Prep (San Jose, Calif.) vs. Valley Christian (San Jose, Calif.)
A California state bowl bid is on the line when San Jose rivals Bellarmine Prep and Valley Christian meet, but the two teams will be vying for berths in different divisions. Bellarmine Prep is a Division 1 school at the state level while Valley Christian is a Div. 2 team. The Bells rank second in Northern California behind De La Salle in the bowl rankings while the Warriors are No. 1 in Division 2. Bellarmine needed three touchdowns and 268 rushing yards on 41 carries from Usua Amana in a 25-7 win over Serra in the Central Coast Section Open Division semifinals. Valley Christian overcame a 20-3 deficit against top-seeded Oak Grove to win 23-20.
Mitch Stephens: Bellarmine Prep 28, Valley Christian 20
Jason Hickman: Bellarmine Prep 20, Valley Christian 16
Steve Spiewak: Bellarmine Prep 31, Valley Christian 28
Kevin Askeland: Bellarmine Prep 28, Valley Christian 24
MaxPreps Projection: Bellarmine Prep 22, Valley Christian 17
Union (Tulsa, Okla.) vs. Jenks (Okla.)
It shouldn’t be any surprise that Union and Jenks are meeting for the Class 6A final in Oklahoma. Afterall, the two teams have combined for the last 12 state championships at that level and they’ve met in the final seven times. According to the Tulsa World News, winning the annual rivalry game during the regular season doesn’t always translate to a win during the playoffs. Last year Jenks lost in the regular season but won the state finals 42-24. This year, Jenks is in the same situation after losing 24-17 during the second week of the season. Union is the top-ranked team in Oklahoma this year and is averaging 56 points during the postseason. Chase Boyce leads the passing attack for Union with 2,072 yards and 20 scores. Sawyer Kollmorgen is the leading passer for Jenks with 1,252 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Mitch Stephens: Union 28, Jenks 24
Jason Hickman: Union 14, Jenks 10
Steve Spiewak: Union 38, Jenks 35
Kevin Askeland: Jenks 30, Union 28
MaxPreps Projection: Union 27, Jenks 22
Meridian (Miss.) vs. South Panola (Batesville, Miss.)
South Panola nearly saw its win streak – now at a national best 89 games in a row – come to an end last week in the Mississippi 5A state semifinals, but the Tigers managed to hold on for a 24-21 win ove Madison Central. This week, the Tigers take on Meridian, which is 13-1 on the season. South Panola will have standout linebacker David Conner back in the lineup this week. The senior defender was injured in last week’s semifinal game, but will be back this week according to the Jackson Clarion Ledger. The Tigers will need Conner in order to stop Meridian’s Tyler Russell, who has thrown for 3,041 yards and 39 touchdowns on the season.
Mitch Stephens: South Panola 28, Meridian 27
Jason Hickman: Meridian 21, South Panola 20
Steve Spiewak: South Panola 28, Meridian 21
Kevin Askeland: South Panola 24, Meridian 20
MaxPreps Projection: South Panola 24, Meridian 22
Union (Vancouver, Wash.) vs. Bellevue (Wash.)
Despite being involved in an accident that saw the team bus flip over, Bellevue came through with no problems in beating Capital 28-6 last week in the Washington 3A semifinals. Bellevue is a perennial state champion under coach Butch Goncharoff, winning five state titles. Peter Nguyen is Bellevue’s leading rusher with 1,218 yards and 16 touchdowns, but seven other rushers have gained at least 178 yards on the season with four players over 500 yards.
Mitch Stephens: Bellevue 34, Union 21
Jason Hickman: Union 20, Bellevue 14
Steve Spiewak: Bellevue 28, Union 17
Kevin Askeland: Bellevue 30, Union 20
MaxPreps Projection: Bellevue 31, Union 17
Armwood (Seffner, Fla.) vs. Plant (Tampa, Fla.)
It’s back to the beginning for Tampa area rivals Armwood and Plant in the Florida 4A quarterfinals. Armwood handed Plant its only loss of the season, 9-2, shutting down All-American candidate Aaron Murray by limiting him to just 149 yards passing and no touchdowns in the first game of the season. Plant has won 11 straight games since then, but this time there won’t be any Aaron Murray as the star quarterback injured his leg in mid-season and was lost for the season. In his place, Phillip Ely hasn’t missed a beat. In winning six straight games as a starter, Ely has thrown for 1,609 yards and 17 touchdowns. Armwood has been particularly stingy on defense this year, posting six shutouts and allowing just 76 points in posting a 12-0 record.
Mitch Stephens: Armwood 17, Plant 14
Jason Hickman: Armwood 28, Plant 7
Steve Spiewak: Armwood 28, Plant 7
Kevin Askeland: Armwood 21, Plant 7
MaxPreps Projection: Armwood 28, Plant 17
Saguaro (Scottsdale, Ariz.) vs. Chaparral (Scottsdale, Ariz.)
Scottsdale rivals Squaro and Chaparral meet for the Arizona Class 4A Division 1 final Saturday afternoon at Sun Devil Stadium. Saguaro (13-0) is the two-time defending state champion with a 32-game win streak while Chaparral last won a title in 2002 and is 22-4 in the past year with three losses to Saguaro. Beau Burton leads an explosive Saguaro offense, rushing for 2,269 yards and 28 touchdowns on the season. Cole Rarrick complements Burton behind center with 1,557 yards passing and 17 touchdowns. Meanwhile linebackers Ben Bisgard and Max Smith lead the defense with 144 and 68 tackles respectively. Chaparral’s offense has been equally effective with Spencer Stone throwing for 2,335 yards and 20 touchdowns and Dwayne Garrett rushing for 1,924 yards and 27 scores.
Mitch Stephens: Saguaro 21, Chaparral 20
Jason Hickman: Saguaro 31, Chaparral 21
Steve Spiewak: Saguaro 24, Chaparral 17
Kevin Askeland: Saguaro 30, Chaparral 14
MaxPreps Projection: Saguaro 24, Chaparral 17
