Written Wednesday September 25th at 7:45 AM
Here are the pickers and the picks for week four.
SANDY DUNES: Sammy Taormina, host of OAA Now, blogger and host of Between Taorminas, and Last Three Brain Cells on Orion Neighborhood Television.
TIM: Tim English, writer, and blogger-Lake Orion 1996 Alumni.
COTTER: Sean Cotter, Walled Lake Western video coordinator, and North Farmington boys basketball scouter.
KEITH: Keith Dunlap, writer works as a free lance writer for the MHSAA.
SCOTT: Scott Burnstein, writer for MIPrepZone and State Champs.
SANDY DUNES: 37-18
TIM: 38-17
COTTER: 43-12
KEITH: 39-16
SCOTT: 39-16
Here are the Picks:
1. Adams at 7. Lake Orion: These are two teams that are no strangers to one another. Lake Orion won 35-0 at Adams last season but the Highlanders are a much different team this season behind the play of Ryland Watters, Matteo Humbert, and Leonard Tillison and not to mention the veer offense they run. Adams has been really impressive especially keeping the ball for most of the fourth quarter in their wins over West Bloomfield 21-14 two weeks ago and Clarkston 28-10 last week. This should be the Highlanders toughest road game of the season heading to Lake Orion to take on a Dragons squad that has a ton of questions and injuries after a 21-18 loss to Oxford last week. The biggest question for Coach Chris Bell is will TR Hill play??? It is unknown if he will be available for this game. Lake Orion is going to need to be more dynamic after what happened last week, they are more than capable of scoring in bunches. Whoever wins the time possession battle wins this game. This should be a really interesting matchup in Dragon Country.
SANDY DUNES: LAKE ORION 21, ADAMS 14.
TIM: ADAMS 42, LAKE ORION 21.
COTTER: ADAMS 24, LAKE ORION 14.
KEITH: LAKE ORION 28, ADAMS 20.
SCOTT: ADAMS 31, LAKE ORION 27.
Harper Woods at 2. Groves: This is basically the White title game between Harper Woods and Groves. Groves has won the last two meetings over Harper Woods by a combined 11 points which included a 20-12 win in Wayne County last season. The Falcons have been on a mission ever since beating West Bloomfield 28-13 two weeks ago. Groves has outscored both Rochester and Stoney Creek by a combined 69-13 including a 35-7 win at Rochester last week. The Pioneers have had issues defensively allowing 125 points this season. They have not been the same defense which has to drive Coach Rob Oden nuts. Harper Woods needed a last second touchdown to win 28-21 over Stoney Creek last week. They need their quarterback Nate Rocheleau back in the worst way. This will not be an easy game for the Pioneers, they could be in some trouble especially with the way the Falcons are playing right now.
SANDY DUNES: GROVES 35, HARPER WOODS 21.
TIM: GROVES 49, HARPER WOODS 7.
COTTER: GROVES 35, HARPER WOODS 12.
KEITH: GROVES 28, HARPER WOODS 21.
SCOTT: GROVES 34, HARPER WOODS 20.
3. Seaholm at 9. Farmington: This could be the game that decides the Blue crown between Seaholm and Farmington. Farmington beat Seaholm 39-21 in 2022 which both teams shared the Blue. Farmington went to the White and had a rough season finishing at 2-7. The Falcons have had a ton of success since coming to the Blue besides the 20-7 loss to North Farmington two weeks ago. Farmington had no issues with Troy Athens winning 36-10 last week. The Maples have been rolling behind a brand new roster. Seaholm has been dominant but they were tested winning 28-18 over Oak Park last week. The Maples have a brutal schedule to close the season so this is a must win for Coach Jim DeWald's team especially with what's coming up. This should be a really interesting game at Falcon Field and for the good folks at Farmington TV-10.
SANDY DUNES: FARMINGTON 24, SEAHOLM 21.
TIM: SEAHOLM 35, FARMINGTON 28.
COTTER: SEAHOLM 21, FARMINGTON 14.
KEITH: SEAHOLM 30, FARMINGTON 16.
SCOTT: SEAHOLM 33, FARMINGTON 24.
4. West Bloomfield at 6. Clarkston: These are two rivals that know each other really well meeting twice last season. Clarkston beat West Bloomfield 44-36 in the regular season but West Bloomfield beat Clarkston 20-17 in the regional finals after blocking a field goal. The Lakers had a happy homecoming blowing out Southfield Arts and Tech 44-0 last week behind a stout defense that forced multiple picks and turnovers. It's the Wolves homecoming and they announced they will be going with the blue out this week. Clarkston lost 28-10 to Adams last week but this is still a really good and talented team with a ton of proven players. I've called out the Wolves uniforms on my podcast, they need to bring the road look they wore against Belleville back, the new road uniforms are really awful, please see the Uniform Grade article on that. I've asked the Lakers to paint their helmets to green. Either way this should be a really interesting game despite my displeasure of the uniform looks.
SANDY DUNES: WEST BLOOMFIELD 31, CLARKSTON 28.
TIM: CLARKSTON 28, WEST BLOOMFIELD 21.
COTTER: CLARKSTON 31, WEST BLOOMFIELD 21.
KEITH: CLARKSTON 20, WEST BLOOMFIELD 17.
SCOTT: WEST BLOOMFIELD 26, CLARKSTON 23.
5. Oxford at Rochester: This is the first meeting since 2021 between the two schools when Oxford won 33-14 over Rochester. The Wildcats are riding high after their emotional 21-18 win over Lake Orion last week but Oxford has to be careful of a game Rochester squad and it's Rochester's homecoming this week. The Falcons have been up and down. In their two wins they have outscored their opponents by a combined 71-21 but in their losses they have been outscored 63-7. It's night and day when describing Coach Eric Vernon's team. The battle at running back is very interesting between Jack Lower and Luke Johnson. This game could be very interesting, a rout, or a shocker no one knows.
SANDY DUNES: OXFORD 42, ROCHESTER 7.
TIM: OXFORD 42, ROCHESTER 35.
COTTER: OXFORD 38, ROCHESTER 7.
KEITH: OXFORD 21, ROCHESTER 20.
SCOTT: OXFORD 30, ROCHESTER 17.
Avondale at 8. Ferndale: These are two teams that know each other extremely well. They have split the last two meetings but Avondale got the best of Ferndale winning 37-12 last season. The Yellow Jackets started the season at 0-2 after losses to Cedar Springs and Seaholm but have outscored their last two opponents by a combined 75-13 including a 41-0 win over Pontiac last week. The Eagles have been a different team since beating North Farmington 20-12 in week two. They have been rolling behind their senior heavy team which they have outscored their three opponents by a combined 85-32 which included a 30-20 win over Berkley last week. This should be a really interesting matchup of two teams that run different styles clashing for the Gold crown.
SANDY DUNES: AVONDALE 24, FERNDALE 21.
TIM: AVONDALE 35, FERNDALE 21.
COTTER: AVONDALE 21, FERNDALE 20.
KEITH: FERNDALE 27, AVONDALE 24.
SCOTT: FERNDALE 32, AVONDALE 31.
10. North Farmington at Troy Athens: It's homecoming week at Troy Athens and the Red Hawks have really struggled defensively. They have allowed 60 points in the last two weeks including a 36-10 loss to Farmington. This can not make Principal Vernon Burden too happy seeing this stat. The Raiders have been red hot since beating Farmington 20-7 two weeks ago. North Farmington has relied a ton on Terrance James and Duke Blanch which they have had big games in the past two weeks including a 49-14 win over Bloomfield Hills last week. This could be a really tough homecoming for the Red Hawks if they can't get their defense figured out.
SANDY DUNES: NORTH FARMINGTON 35, TROY ATHENS 7.
TIM: NORTH FARMINGTON 49, TROY ATHENS 14.
COTTER: NORTH FARMINGTON 34, TROY ATHENS 7.
KEITH: NORTH FARMINGTON 21, TROY ATHENS 17.
SCOTT: TROY ATHENS 28, NORTH FARMINGTON 24.
Southfield Arts and Tech at Stoney Creek: This is the first meeting since 2021 when Stoney Creek won 21-14 over Southfield Arts and Tech in Southfield. These are two teams with new coaches and have seem to be making some progress despite their records. The Cougars played much better despite falling 28-21 to Harper Woods last week. Sam Fogler had two touchdowns against the Pioneers. Stoney Creek will have to deal with a Warriors team that has been just awful in the last three weeks. Southfield Arts and Tech has been outscored 125-16 in that stretch including a 44-0 loss to West Bloomfield last week. The Cougars could be starting to turn the corner under new Coach Rick Powell which could be a great sign if they want to make a postseason push.
SANDY DUNES: STONEY CREEK 35, SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 0.
TIM: STONEY CREEK 35, SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 7.
COTTER: STONEY CREEK 34, SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 6.
KEITH: STONEY CREEK 17, SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 14.
SCOTT: STONEY CREEK 27, SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 23.
Oak Park at Troy: It's homecoming at Troy this week. This is a rematch of a 28-21 Oak Park win over Troy last season. The Colts started the season at 2-0 but they have had recent losses to Lake Orion and Pontiac Notre Dame Prep by a combined 84-28 including a 52-28 loss to Pontiac Notre Dame Prep last week. The Knights have been around 500 this season with their record along with the points scored and points allowed. Oak Park fell 28-18 to Seaholm last week. This should be a really interesting matchup between two teams that have postseason aspirations.
SANDY DUNES: TROY 31, OAK PARK 21.
TIM: TROY 42, OAK PARK 21.
COTTER: TROY 21, OAK PARK 12.
KEITH: OAK PARK 13, TROY 12.
SCOTT: TROY 28, OAK PARK 26.
Bloomfield Hills at Pontiac: This is the first meeting between the two schools since 2021 when Bloomfield Hills beat Pontiac 41-6. These are two teams that are allowing the most points this season. The Phoenix have allowed 117 points while scoring 46 points which included a 41-0 loss to Avondale last week. The Blackhawks are worse allowing 163 points while scoring 21 points with the most being 14 points in a 49-14 loss to North Farmington last week. Someone is going to get a win this week.
SANDY DUNES: PONTIAC 20, BLOOMFIELD HILLS 14.
TIM: BLOOMFIELD HILLS 28, PONTIAC 21.
COTTER: BLOOMFIELD HILLS 28, PONTIAC 12.
KEITH: BLOOMFIELD HILLS 35, PONTIAC 13.
SCOTT: BLOOMFIELD HILLS 25, PONTIAC 15.
Royal Oak at Berkley: The Battle of Woodward is back and its Berkley homecoming this week. These are two 1-3 teams that are trying to make a push into the postseason. The team from Catalpa Drive has won six of the last ten meetings over the team from Lexington Blvd. The Ravens are coming off a 26-7 win over Livonia Clarenceville and has the Battle of Woodward trophy after a 37-0 rout of Berkley last season. The Bears had a rough 30-20 loss to Ferndale last week but they have played much better scoring 55 points in the last two weeks. This should be a really interesting game.
SANDY DUNES: BERKLEY 35, ROYAL OAK 7.
TIM: BERKLEY 28, ROYAL OAK 0.
COTTER: BERKLEY 28, ROYAL OAK 7.
KEITH: ROYAL OAK 24, BERKLEY 23.
SCOTT: BERKLEY 24, ROYAL OAK 20.
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