Week 5: Time to talk league titles, playoffs

UPPER THUMB — Believe it or not, we’re already past the midpoint of the high school football season.

And that means it’s time to start talking league championships and possible playoff teams.

This week, instead of the usual Week 5 preview, we’re going to dive into the area’s three leagues and see which teams are headed up and which teams are headed down.

Here we go.

Greater Thumb East

Obviously, the big matchup Friday night takes place at Harbor Beach where the 3-1 Pirates host 4-0 Ubly in a battle of GTE unbeatens.

Because of the odd scheduling this season, this will be the Bearcats’ fourth GTE contest while it’s just the Pirates’ second league game.

Ubly, in fact, can clinch at least a share of the GTE championship with a victory. The Bearcats could then grab the outright title with a win over Brown City in Week 7.

Nevertheless, this game will be an excellent marker as to where these two teams stand.

The Pirates surprised a lot of people — including me, yes, — with their 31-7 shelling of Brown City last week.

In that game, Harbor Beach took advantage of five Brown City turnovers, scoring 31 unanswered over the final three quarters.

Defense ruled for the Pirates. They limited a decent Brown City running game to 117 yards on 44 carries. 

Offensively, quarterback Sean Sorenson was Harbor Beach’s main playmaker. Sorenson scored on runs of 3 and 5 yards, and tossed a 12-yard TD pass to Ryan Maurer and had a 54-yard scoring hook-up with Aaron Ginther. 

While the Pirates rushed for just 164 yards, Sorenson completed eight passes for 178 yards.

This is where, I think, Harbor Beach can take advantage against the Bearcats. 

Ubly, this year anyway, seems vulnerable against the pass. The Bearcats gave up nearly 200 yards via the pass against Sandusky in Week 2, though did improve the following week against a talented Marlette team.

If the Pirates are going to hang with the Bearcats, they must be able to throw the ball and loosen up the Ubly defense. 

I still think Ubly will eventually pull away from the Pirates late in the fourth quarter and win, but Harbor Beach — because of its defense — will hang around and make it tough.

The other interesting game in the GTE pits 2-2 Marlette visiting 2-2 Sandusky.

Both teams have been up and down this season, and both desperately need a win to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Both teams have solid offenses. The winner might have to get into the 40s.

The other GTE game this week is 2-2 Brown City at 0-4 Mayville. 

The Green Devils have been a hard team to figure out so far this season. They pushed Cass City to the limit in a 7-6 setback in Week 2, but then they were wiped out by Harbor Beach last week.

Greater Thumb West

The GTW has a pair of quality matchups this week.

At Cass City, the 3-1 Red Hawks host 4-0 Reese.

The question for the Red Hawks is can they bounce back from a tough overtime loss to Unionville-Sebewaing Area last week?

Cass City had that game in its grasp, but let the Patriots off the hook with some shoddy defense in the game’s final minute.

I expect them to be fired up because it’s Homecoming, but the Rockets have too much firepower on the offensive end.

What’s going on with Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port you ask? Well, I am not sure either.

After opening the season with a promising road victory at Carrollton, the Lakers have dropped three straight games, including last week’s disappointing 24-14 setback at home to Marlette.

Now, the 1-3 Lakers host dangerous Bay City All Saints (2-2) on Friday.

BCAS quarterback Drew Janer could have a field day against the Lakers’ defense. EPBP is big, but not that quick. If Janer gets by the front six, he’s probable gone.

The other GTW matchup pits 3-1 USA visiting 0-4 Bad Axe.

The Patriots will have the best athletes on the field, and should be able to handle the Hatchets.

USA’s improbable march will get a stern test in the coming weeks. The Patriots travel to Vassar next week, followed by the annual Pioneer Sugar Bowl with Reese at home in Week 7. They close out the season with Sandusky and Harbor Beach.

North Central Thumb League

The only NCTL game this week takes place at North Huron where the 1-3 Warriors host 0-3 Peck.

After a brutal schedule to start the season, North Huron gets a reprieve this week before heading north to Mio-Au Sable in Week 6. 

Non-league games this week include 2-2 Vassar at 1-3 Memphis, 4-0 Deckerville at 2-2 Saginaw Buena Vista, and 2-2 Kingston at 1-3 Arenac Eastern.

Of note, the Eagles are one of just eight undefeated teams in Class D. 

The ironic part about this is that Deckerville usually has a very high playoff point total. But this year, because the Eagles have played three NCTL teams, they rank last in the unbeatens with just 42.000 points. 

Here are my picks for the week. Last week, I was a so-so 12-3...

USA at Bad Axe – After consecutive hard-fought wins over EPBP and Cass City, the Patriots will get a little easier victory over Bad Axe.
SCORE: USA 40, Bad Axe 12

BCAS at EPBP – As much as I'd like to take the Lakers, they haven't shown me enough on offense.
SCORE: BCAS 28, EPBP 15

Reese at Cass City – Cass City will be ready to go on Homecoming, but the Rockets will spoil the party.
PICK: Reese 31, Cass City 20

Ubly at Harbor Beach – This is Harbor Beach's first home game of the season. It will be close at the half, but the Bearcats should pull away late.
SCORE: Ubly 34, Harbor Beach 15

Brown City at Mayville – A must-win for the Green Devils.
SCORE: Brown City 35, Mayville 8

Marlette at Sandusky – A very intriguing matchup. The Redskins will win a shootout.
SCORE: Sandusky 45, Marlette 35

Peck at North Huron – North Huron's Homecoming will be a victory.
SCORE: North Huron 40, Peck 18

Vassar at Memphis – The Vulcans will take out their frustrations on the Yellowjackets.
SCORE: Vassar 50, Memphis 12

Deckerville at Saginaw Buena Vista – BV is better than it has been in the past, but not THAT better.
SCORE: Deckerville 48, Saginaw BV 8

Kingston at Arenac Eastern – Arenac Eastern's three losses have been by a combined score of 136-6. Kingston steals one on the road.
SCORE: Kingston 21, Arenac Eastern 16

Bowling Green at Michigan – Let's hope the Wolverines put this one away quicker than they did against UMass.
SCORE: Michigan 40, Bowling Green 20

Northern Colorado at Michigan State – Letdown Alert. A big win. A recovering coach. MSU better be aware.
SCORE: Michigan State 31, Northern Colorado 17

Central Michigan at Northwestern – The Wildcats are a pretty good team.
SCORE: Northwestern 28, CMU 10

Alabama at Arkansas – Probably the Tide's toughest test of the season. I think Arkansas can win, and it might hold a lead for a while, but Alabama is good. Real good.
SCORE: Alabama 31, Arkansas 22

Lions at Vikings – What better way for Brett Favre to get back into the groove than to go up against the Lions pitiful secondary. Favre might get sacked 7 times, but I bet he throws for over 300 yards.
SCORE: Vikings 28, Lions 14

MSU tickets go to...

MODIFIED...

Congrats to Fletch Lives, who was a nifty 17-3 overall this past week and is the winner of the Week 4 Tribune Sports Blog Football Contest.
Fletch Lives gets 2 tickets to this Saturday's football game between Northern Colorado and Michigan State at noon at Spartan Stadium.
Fletch Lives missed just Northwood vs. Northern Michigan, Iowa vs. Arizona and Harbor Beach vs. Brown City.
Fletch Lives, email me at mbogan@hearstnp.com and we will see what we can do to get you those tickets.

Here are the overall standings through Week 4. We have several people using Anon as a screen name... Please pick another name so we know who is who!!

OVERALL STANDINGS
NCTL Alum 221
dan gentner 212
Horseshoe 202
JEH34 200
Chiuk Czlek 199
coachestake 198
twocentsworth 193
rockefeller 192
willowrun 192
DA Green 187
thumbtailgater 183
spartyon 173
Fan77 181
halfwayed 178
oldtymer75 176
gary hunkins 174
jillms22 171
brad 162
justchimingin 155
kellen bickel 153
peter 145
dan rutkowski 144
john woycik 141
james harris 139
budman_48413 129
chadwingert 124
Lakers65 103
Jesus 100
Fletch Lives 90
epbp92 80
Bossick 65
kentzebra 65
anon 2 64
anon 4 60
anon 6 58
anon 1 57
anon 3 57
Thumbdude 54
anon 5 50
anon 7 50
papa smurf 53
jcreguer 50
shane o'connor 49
kbechtel 46
pure thumb 29
Braylonisnumberone 23
EagleDad#2 18
jymcheck 17
bodeen 17

Thanks to everyone who plays. And thanks for your patience on the standings. It's not hard to do, but it does take some time.

Week 5 Blog Football Contest

Here are the games for Week 5 of the Tribune Sports Blog Football Contest...

Last week's winner is upcoming. That person gets 2 tickets to this Saturday's MSU game against Northern Colorado. That is a $100 value. Thanks to my Sparty connection for the tickets.
I owe ya.

To this week's games...

2 pointers
USA at Bad Axe
Brown City at Mayville
Peck at North Huron
Vassar at Memphis
Deckerville at Saginaw BV
Kingston at Arenac Eastern
Bowling Green at Michigan
Northern Colorado at Michigan State
Central Michigan at Northwestern
Eastern Michigan at Ohio State

5 pointers
Reese at Cass City
Alabama at Arkansas
South Carolina at Auburn
Oregon State at Boise State
West Virginia at LSU

10 pointers
BCAS at EPBP
Ubly at Harbor Beach
Marlette at Sandusky
SVSU at Northwood
Lions at Vikings


TIE BREAK – Ubly at Harbor Beach total points

Friday Night FINALS

Here are the updated standings and scores from Friday night.

GREATER THUMB WEST

Team W L W L PF PA

USA 3 0 3 1 75 77

Reese 2 0 4 0 159 40

Vassar 2 1 2 2 105 75

Cass City 1 1 3 1 123 54

BCAS 1 2 2 2 119  99

EPBP 0 2 1 3 36 63

Bad Axe 0 3 0 4 14 214

GREATER THUMB EAST

Team W L W L PF PA

Ubly 3 0 4 0 147 42

H. Beach 1 0 3 1 112 62

Marlette 1 1 2 2 74 96

Sandusky 1 1 2 2 165 92

Brown City 0 1 2 2 116 71

Mayville 0 3 0 4 44 191

NORTH CENTRAL THUMB

Team W L W L PF PA

Deckerville 3 0 4 0 184 36

Kingston 1 1 2 2 105 122

North Huron 0 1 1 3 92 166

Memphis 0 1 1 3 63 159

Peck 0 1 0 3 18 120

8-MAN

Team W L W L PF PA

CPS 1 0 3 0 158 48

A-Fairgrove 2 0 2 2 100 102

Owen-Gage 0 1 1 3 110   154

FRIDAY’S RESULTS

GTW

BCAS 51, Bad Axe 8

USA 27, Cass City 21 OT

Reese 41, Vassar 20

GTE

Harbor Beach 31, Brown City 7

Ubly 46, Mayville 6

NCTL

Deckerville 44, North Huron 23

NON-LEAGUE

Marlette 24, EPBP 14

Sandusky 61, Memphis 0

Au Gres 32, Kingston 6

8-MAN

A-Fairgrove 54, Owen-Gage 28

CPS at E. Washtenaw, INC

NEXT FRIDAY’S GAMES

GTW

USA at Bad Axe

BCAS at EPBP

Reese at Cass City

GTE

Ubly at Harbor Beach

Brown City at Mayville

Marlette at Sandusky

NCTL

Peck at North Huron

NON-LEAGUE

Vassar at Memphis

Deckerville at Saginaw Buena Vista

Kingston at Arenac Eastern

8-MAN

CPS at A-Fairgrove

Jackson Da Vinci at Owen-Gage

Week 4: USA, CC emerge as GTW title contenders

SEBEWAING — Reese and Vassar were supposed to contend for the Greater Thumb West championship this season. 

And they are.

Unionville-Sebewaing Area and Cass City?

Not so much.

Cass City came into the 2010 campaign off a disappointing 3-6 season, hired a new head coach, and had plenty of question marks on both sides of the ball.

No matter, the Red Hawks are 3-0 overall and are ranked No. 2 — behind the Rockets — in the GTW in both offense and defense.

Meanwhile, the Patriots endured a 2-7 mark in 2009 and a 1-8 record in 2008 — their worst stretch since 1992-92 — and had just 14 players on their 2010 preseason roster.

No matter, the Patriots are off to a 2-1 start, including a surprising come-from-behind 21-6 win over Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port last week, putting them 2-0 in the GTW.

The two league unbeatens go head-to-head here Friday night in an important GTW matchup.

For USA coach Jason Beagle, it’s another chance to make a winning statement to all the doubters.

“After the last couple of years, these guys have every reason to be down,” Beagle said. “But they have never hung their heads or shied away from what we’ve asked them to do. We have preached to the kids that we can’t control things that are not in our control. We have 14 guys, we have a tough schedule, we have this, we have that..

“But we’re just going to buckle it up and do what we can do.”

What USA does best is get the ball to do-it-all Tim Canfield. USA’s senior co-captain is one of several players who rarely leaves the field. He did plenty of damage last week against the Lakers, rushing for 112 yards and one score. His 60-yard punt return for a touchdown — his second special teams score this season — sparked USA’s fourth-quarter comeback against the Lakers.

“We put a lot of stuff on his shoulders and he’s stepped up for us,” said Beagle.

After running a form of the spread for the last few seasons, USA has gone back to a more traditional offense, hoping to use Canfield’s hard-nosed, open-field ability that way.

“We have gone back to a fundamental running game, but we’re still looking for chances to spring him,” Beagle said. “Tim, in the open field, is tough to catch and bring down.”

Like most opponents, Cass City probably figures it can wear down the Patriots as the game progresses.

The Red Hawks have a 23-player roster, including up to five or six capable tailbacks to put the pressure on the USA defense.

Last week against Bad Axe, the Red Hawks  rushed for 548 yards on 49 carries — good for a flashy 11.1 per carry average — in their 61-0 pounding of the Hatchets.

Alex Varney led the way, rushing for 259 yards and four TDs. He got plenty of help from Austin Osentoski, who had 112 yards and two scores. In all, five different players scored at least once for the Red Hawks.

Beagle knows his team will get a stiff challenge from the Red Hawks. He also knows they might be looking past his undermanned USA squad, considering they host Reese for Homecoming the following week.

Nevertheless, the Patriots will be prepared, especially when it comes to conditioning and playing a full four quarters.

 “Even on game weeks, Monday and Tuesday we run their legs off,” Beagle said. “We know they have to be out there all night.

“There are teams that have 18 or 20 guys on the roster and they play 14 of them. We have 14 guys on the roster and we play 14. There is not a guy on the sideline who is not a good varsity player.”

Here is the Thumb Sportswriters Top 10 Poll...

School Record Pts. LW

1. Millington (3)   3-0 48 -

2. Reese (2)   3-0 47 -

3. Ubly     3-0 40 -

4. Deckerville   3-0 33 - 

5. Cass City   3-0 26 -

6. North Branch   2-1 21 -

7. Vassar   2-1 19 -

8. Cros-Lex   2-1 17 -

9. Caro   2-1 10 -

9. (tie) USA   2-1 10 -

(First place votes in parentheses)

Also receiving votes: Harbor Beach - 2 pts., Brown City - 1 pt.,  Kingston - 1 pt.

A team voted first nets 10 points, second earns nine points, etc. The Thumb Sportswriters Association Poll is voted on by: Chad Wingert - Sports Editor of the Tuscola County Advertiser, Paul Adams - Sports writer for the Huron Daily Tribune, Christian Selich - Sports commentator for Mix 92.1, Eddie Fury of Thumb Tailgater Sports and Rick Glaza - Sports voice of Cruise 102.1

Tribune Power Poll...

The Week 3 Power Poll for the GTC and NCTL as voted on by the Tribune sports staff. The power poll will run each week during the season in the Huron Daily Tribune. 

1. Reese

2. Ubly

3. Deckerville

4. Cass City

5. Vassar

6. Brown City

7. Harbor Beach

8. USA

9. Sandusky

10. EPBP

11. Kingston

12. Marlette

13. BCAS

14. Memphis

15. North Huron

16. Peck

17. Mayville

18. Bad Axe

MY PICKS FOR THIS WEEK...

Bad Axe at BCAS – BCAS QB Drew Janer will run wild.

SCORE: BCAS 41, Bad Axe 6

Cass City at USA – I think Cass City's offensive depth at tailback will wear down the Patriots.

It will not be easy, though.

SCORE: Cass City 26, USA 18

Vassar at Reese – The Rockets seem to be getting better as the year goes on.

SCORE: Reese 33, Vassar 13

Harbor Beach at Brown City – As much as I like the way Harbor Beach has rebounded this season, Brown City is too strong for the Pirates to pull off the mini upset.

SCORE: Brown City 28, Harbor Beach 13

Mayville at Ubly – Enough said.

SCORE: Ubly 50, Mayville 6

North Huron at Deckerville – The Warriors will hang around for a half, but the Eagles have way too much offensive firepower.

SCORE: Deckerville 41, North Huron 16

Marlette at EPBP – Can the Lakers rebound from last week's disappointing loss to USA?

I am not so sure.

SCORE: Marlette 26, EPBP 22

Sandusky at Memphis – The Redskins make it 2 in a row after an 0-2 start.

SCORE: Sandusky 35, Memphis 6

Kingston at Au Gres – Au Gres has not won yet.

SCORE: Kingston 22, Au Gres 12

Owen-Gage at A-Fairgrove – Anyone know the status of Owen-Gage's Hunter Champagne?

If he plays, the Bulldogs have a chance. If he doesn't...

SCORE: A-Fairgrove 44, Owen-Gage 22

CPS at E. Washtenaw – CPS looks like a pretty good 8-man team.

SCORE: CPS 50, E. Washtenaw 20

U-Mass at Michigan – Robinson should have another field day.

SCORE: Michigan 35, U-Mass 13

Notre Dame at Michigan State – Ah, the old night game at Spartan Stadium. MSU never loses at home at night, right?

SCORE: Michigan State 24, Notre Dame 20

CMU at EMU – The Chips aren't as good as they have been in the past, but EMU is just as bad.

And I'm an EMU alum, though I hate admitting it...

SCORE: CMU 33, EMU 20

Eagles at Lions – Is there any team in professional sports which has more bad luck than the Lions?

They had a chance if Kevin Kolb was playing. 

But a Michael Vick vs. Shaun Hill matchup is no match at all.

SCORE: Eagles 30, Lions 20

Who else dares to put their rep on the line?

USA takes 5-game marathon vs. EPBP

Here's a volleyball recap from Tuesday night.

Also, some photos from the USA-EPBP match. 

Click on the photos and they will enlarge...

SEBEWAING — Karen Smith’s first trip back to Unionville-Sebewaing Area as an opponent was a heartbreaking one.

Smith, a former USA coach who is now running the Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port volleyball program, saw her Lakers battle with the Patriots in an exciting Greater Thumb West match here Tuesday night. 

In the end, USA rallied for a grueling 26-24, 22-25, 25-20, 23-25, 16-14 victory over the Lakers.

“We just couldn't finish tonight,” Smith said. “We took early leads in most of the games, and then left the back door open for them.

“It was a very exciting — and frustrating — (match).” 

For the night, Erika Matteson had 19 kills, nine digs and four blocks for the Lakers while Erin Albrecht added 10 kills and eight digs, Ashlyn Albrecht 12 kills and five blocks, Brooklyn Foy 31 assists, Gala Shivley four assists and Kacy Shetler eight digs.

ROUNDUP

North Huron 

sweeps Port Hope

KINDE — North Huron earned its first North Central Thumb League victory of the year, defeating Port Hope (25-15, 25-13, 25-22).

Sara Clancy had 17 kills and two aces to lead the Warriors while Hanna Selaty added 14 digs and seven kills, Amanda Navock 15 assists, three kills and three aces, Ashley Case 15 digs, three aces and three kills, Karlie Goretski four kills and two digs, Clara Yaroch six digs and five assists, Haley Moore four digs and Katie Knoblock three assists.

North Huron is 1-1 in league play. 

CPS falls to Memphis

MEMPHIS — Memphis picked up a 25-13, 25-18, 25-17 NCTL  win over Carsonville-Port Sanilac on Tuesday.

Brooke Alexander had four digs, three kills and two aces for CPS while Emily Kelly had four kills, four digs and three aces, and Kelsey Jones five digs and one ace.

Eagles off to nice start

CASEVILLE — The Caseville volleyball team is off to a fine start to the season.

Earlier, the Eagles rallied from way back to earn a thrilling 25-27, 21-25, 25-15, 25-17, 16-14 win over North Huron.

Rebecca Janke had 12 points, seven aces and 10 kills for the Eagles while Heather Nowak added 24 kills, 16 points and five aces, Haley Buckey 10 points, 29 digs and one ace, and Kelsey Redwantz 12 points.

“The entire team’s determination — combined with Rebecca Janke’s on-court leadership — were critical in our come-from-behind win,” said Caseville  coach David Watts.

On Monday, the Eagles picked up a 25-11, 25-11, 25-9 non-league win over Saginaw Arts and Science.

For the Eagles, Natasha Simmons had 19 points and four aces while Veronica Sauer had six kills and four blocks, and Taylor King four kills and two blocks.

The Eagles are in action this Thursday night at Owendale-Gagetown.

ATTENTION COACHES: All coaches are reminded that the Tribune’s new deadline to print is 6 a.m. That means results need to be into the Tribune office by 5 a.m. for publication that day. Otherwise, results will appear in the the following day’s paper. 

Brooklyn Foy serves for the Lakers.

Gala Shivley saves the ball for the Lakers.

USA’s Andrea Vermeersch (5) goes high in the air for a kill against EPBP’s Erika Matteson (2) and Erin Albrecht.  

Erika Matteson finds a hole for a kill between USA's Mackenzie Treiber and Miranda Fuerst.

Justine Swartzendruber (6) battles with Samantha Eisengruber (4).

Guess which team won the point by the reaction of the USA bench!

Brooklyn Foy and USA's Jessica Gremel battle at the net.

Miranda Fuerst tips the ball over Justine Swartzendruber.

Samantha Eisengruber spikes over Erika Matteson and Rebecca Schember.

And the winners are...

OK, we have our winners finally for Weeks 2 and 3 of the Tribune Sports Blog Football Contest.
For Week 2, none other than Eddie Fury is the winner, going a nifty 18-2.

For Week 3, Peter, DaGreen and NCTLAlum all tied with 80 points, all 3 going 17-3.
But in the tiebreaker, Peter comes away with the victory.

Now, I am going to offer Eddie Fury 2 tickets to the Northern Colorado at Michigan State game slated for Sept. 25. He can take them, or 20 bucks.
If Eddie does not want the tickets, I will offer them to Peter. He can then take them or 20 bucks.

If the tickets are still available, they WILL go to the winner of Week 4 because the game is Sept. 25 at Spartan Stadium.
Thanks for your patience.

The overall standings are coming...
Eddie and Peter please email me at mbogan@hearstnp.com and let me know what you want!