By Jim Moyes
Local Sports Journal
This ‘ole’ announcer is so upset with his picks for the last couple of weeks that I’ve decided to head back home this weekend to get this problem fixed. After meeting with many of my ‘bird dog snoops’ in some of my favorite ‘watering holes’ I look for a perfect sweep this week:
l Holland West Ottawa at Grand Haven: Grand Haven is off to its poorest start in nearly a decade but the home town Bucs find a way to win in front of the home folks against the Panthers.
w Mona Shores at Kenowa Hills: Following Friday nights victory over the Knights the Sailors move one win away from moving into the playoffs.
w Muskegon at GR Union: If the Big Reds don’t treat this game like a Bye Week, they should have no trouble piling up some big numbers against the once mighty Redhawks who have not won more than three football games in a season in more then a decade.
l Reeths Puffer at Zeeland East: The Rockets must be at the top of their game against undefeated East. An upset win should boost the Rockets into the playoffs so I hope I’m wrong in going with East.
w Fremont at Spring Lake: The Packers have bounced back nicely after dropping their first two games of the season. However, this Laker team could very well be headed to an 8-1 record with their only blemish being a loss to a strong Mona Shores team.
w Fruitport at Grant: Nobody likes to be dubbed the best 0-6 team in the area, but that should be the case after Fruitport edges the winless Tigers. The Trojans after sputtering offensively to begin the season have talked 84 points in their last two resounding victories.
w Howard City at Ludington: The Orioles will also face a squad more than eager to capture their first victory of the season in Tri Co. Grant, as well as Howard City, will have to wait a week before one of those two winless squads will notch their first victory when they face off next against each other next week.
w Orchard View at Muskegon Catholic: These two local schools waited more than 30 years before renewing their rivalry that ended back in 1982 when they met last year. Two players who shined for their teams in ‘82’ and went on to perform in the NFL, Bobby Morse and Curtis Adams were the headliners at that time. MCC won easily then and will win easily on Friday night.
w Whitehall at Hart: Something good has to happen for one of these two winless WMC squads. A win for Whitehall dodges them from experiencing their first winless season since 1977.
w Montague at Mason Co. Central: Montague head coach Pat Collins cannot be pleased that his defense has given up an average of 32 points per game over their last four contests. Mason Co. scored no points last week against the Norsemen, a good sign for Cat fans.
w Ravenna at North Muskegon: The ‘ole’ announcer will be on hand for this game with some of my classmates from the NM class of ‘59’. The Norse have been a pleasant surprise to their fans this year with an impressive 4-1 start but Ravenna becomes the first of four tough opponents to finish the season. How can I pick against my alma mater?
l Shelby at Oakridge: Seats will be at a premium on Wolf Lake Road for this dandy that easily classified as this week’s game of the week. In a battle of the unbeatens with the winner a heavy favorite to be crowned WMC champs, how can one not pick Oakridge to win in front of their home folks in such a big game?
w Lakeview at Hesperia: The Panther’s heads are still spinning after dropping their first game of the season last week to rival Newaygo. Lakeview will keep Panther spirits down for yet another week.
w White Cloud at Holton: These two teams over the past two years have won but one game, that being a Holton win over a winless 2012 White Cloud team. Its deja vue as Holton again douses any WC hopes of a win in 2013.
w Muskegon Heights at Flushing: Another trip to the east side of the state for the Tigers doesn’t look any more promising for this week’s tilt against a much bigger Flushing team. Heights fans have begun the countdown to the start of basketball season.
w Kent City at GR Northpointe Christian: I lost the coin flip on Kent City’s first win of the season last week against Howard City. No coin flip needed here, Northpointe by seven.
l Baldwin at Onekama: Brandon Childress must be the real deal for Baldwin. This touchdown-passing machine lifts the Panthers to another victory in an aerial shootout in Onekama.
