By Mitchell Boatman
LocalSportsJournal.com

Hello again, everyone. It’s such a pleasure to be back with you for the second time this season, after another win in the LSJ Gridiron Picks.

I claimed my second win — as many as the other six pickers have combined, mind you — with a sparkling 13-0 performance last week.

That included picking the Fremont Packers to end a 17-game losing streak, which they did in a big way with a 42-26 victory over Chippewa Hills.

I wasn’t the only picker who was perfect last week, though. LSJ Editor Steve Gunn also pulled off the feat, despite coming into the week with the worst overall record for the season. Steve has a tendency to pick some upsets the rest of us aren’t brave enough to, but showed last week he can have a great week when he wants to.

Our tiebreaker this week was total points in the Hesperia versus Holton rivalry match, and it was as close as that game was. The Panthers held on for a 21-14 win for a total of 35 points. I just edged Steve, predicting 38 total points to his 30. 

For the season overall, I hold the lead with a 48-8 record. The closest to me is Nate Thompson at 46-10. Despite not winning a week so far, Nate has been consistent to stay in the hunt.

Jason Goorman and Steve sit just behind Nate at 44-12, followed by Dave Hart at 43-13.

Bringing up the rear so far are Andrew Johnson and Aaron Poling at 41-15. Aaron gets a pass, with this being his first year in the picks. But come on, Andrew, you’re better than that!

For this week, I like Whitehall to top Montague in the always intense Battle of the Bell rivalry. The Vikings haven’t allowed a touchdown all year and haven’t beat the Wildcats since 2014. I expect both of those streaks to end Friday night in a back-and-forth battle.

In other games this week I like Muskegon to top Zeeland West in a battle of state-ranked schools, I’ll look to Fruitport to get back on track after a pair of defeats, and I’m taking Shelby, which has yet to score this season, to not only get on the scoreboard, but in the win column as well. 

Check out our full grid of picks below (click on it twice to see full size) and come back to LocalSportsJournal.com Friday night for coverage of local football action, and to see how we did!

WEEK 4 RESULTS: Mitch Boatman 13-0, Steve Gunn 13-0, Nate Thompson 12-1, Jason Goorman 12-1, Dave Hart 9-4, Andrew Johnson 9-4, Aaron Poling 9-4.

OVERALL STANDINGS: Boatman 48-8, Thompson 46-10, Gunn 44-12, Goorman 44-12, Hart 43-13, Johnson 41-15, Poling 41-15.