8 Man League Breakdown Week 6
Northwest
The Northwest league title race could be one of the closest this year. Soroco and West Grand are the two favorites but you cannot count out Gilpin County, Plateau Valle or Rangely. West Grand got off to a good start with a 53 to 18 victory over Hayden. Soroco is off to an amazing start this year and kept that going with a 54 to 0 victory over Rangely. Gilpin County kept pace with the leaders with a 28 to 20 victory over Plateau Valley. There are two important games this week. The first is Plateau Valley at West Grand. Plateau Valley lost last week to Gilpin County 28 to 20 but played really well. Now Plateau Valley must rebound and try and upset West Grand. West Grand has rebounded well from their loss and pounded Hayden 53 to 18. Things get much tougher this week against a tough Plateau Valley team. West Grand needs a win to keep pace with the winner between Soroco and Gilpin County. I have West Grand with a 17 point victory. The big game features Soroco traveling to Gilpin County. Gilpin County grabbed an important victory last week and moved to 3-2. Gilpin County is trying to compete for a league title and for a playoff spot and a victory here would go a long way that won’t be easy though as they are playing a very good Soroco team. Soroco is having a great season they have 1 loss to #3 Norwood and have rolled by everyone else. What Soroco is missing is the strength of schedule so winning out might be very important to this team. I have Soroco winning by 28 here. The Northwest League is very interesting. Out of the two favorites Soroco might need the league title to get into the playoffs. West Grand on the other hand played a tougher non-league schedule so the league title won’t be as important. The Northwest might get three teams in it will just be depending where they sit come the first RPI.
Hayden at Rangely Plateau Valley at West Grand
#10 Soroco at Gilpin County
Plains
Week one of the Plains league opened with two blowouts one of them was a surprise and one of them was not. The other game went down to the wire and was a shootout and represented more of a basketball score than a football score. The two blowouts were Sedgwick County over Akron 46 to 8 and Merino over Caliche 49 to 0. The surprise blowout was Sedgwick County over Akron. Akron was expected to win that game and they came up very short and once again Sedgwick County is looking to be a very dangerous team but we will find out more this week. The shootout game was Dayspring Christian over Haxtun. The final score was Dayspring Christian 55 and Haxtun 53. This is now consecutive weeks that Dayspring Christian has allowed over 50 points. Dayspring Christian gets somewhat of a break this week when they host Caliche and they should move to 6-0 and 2-0 in league. There are two very big games this week once again. Well start with #4 Merino traveling to face their rival #9 Akron. Merino has been very impressive this season breaking 40 points in every game. Their defense has also been very impressive giving up 34 points thru 5 games. The only knock on Merino is their strength of schedule is very bad. They have two games against teams with winning records Gilpin County 3-2 and McClave 4-1. Neither are powerhouse teams and could only one of them end with a winning record or even in the playoffs. League is very important for this Merino team. Akron has played a very tough schedule and are going to have to rebound very quickly this week. Akron is on a tough 4 game stretch and if they can come out 2-2 they will finish in third place and more than likely a top 10 team come playoff time. This is a game that Akron has to win. I have Akron as the favorite due to their tougher schedule and I think they will come away with a 10 point victory over their rival. The other big game is #6 Sedgwick County traveling to #8 Haxtun. Both of these teams are 4-1 and fighting to win league and both teams loves to score points. Haxtun is averaging 50.4 points per game and Sedgwick County is averaging 48.4 points per game. Haxtun is a pass heavy offense throwing for 243 yards per game and they also run the ball well rushing for about 198.4 per game. They will have their offense tested this week by a very good Sedgwick County defense. Haxtun must get their defense on the right page this week. Their biggest weakness has been their defense so if they can get some stops they might be able to pull the upset. Sedgwick County has been on a mission this year to prove they were not just a one year team. They have proven they are good with a close loss to Perkins County NE the #2 team in Nebraska and also by dominating Akron last week. Once against Sedgwick County defense is the reason they are so good. They have 3 shutouts and 4 games with less than 10 points scored. Their defense will be tested by Haxtun but they have proven they can shut down a high powered offense like they did to Akron. Sedgwick County I feel will grab a key victory on their path to a league title and I have them winning by 21.
#4 Merino at #9 Akron #6 Sedgwick County at #8 Haxtun
Caliche at #2 Dayspring Christian
Central
The Central league is turning into a two team race but some of that could change this week if the underdogs can pull the upsets. Last week Pikes Peak Christian blew past Miami Yoder 63 to 6, Justice smashed Belleview Christian 42 to 12 and Rocky Mountain Lutheran beat South Park 36 to 8. Justice might have the easiest game this week as they travel to South Park. Justice is having a great season. They are looking to move to 4-1 and keep pace with the league winner. I don’t think they will have any problems with South Park and should win by more than 20 points. The more important game is Rocky Mountain Lutheran at Pikes Peak Christian. Rocky Mountain Lutheran is 2-3 and have two blowout losses so playing this game tough will be important. Rocky Mountain Lutheran needs a key win and this could be it. Pikes Peak Christian is on a roll this year. They can credit that to their defense posting four straight games with under 10 points scored. They have played a decent schedule with wins over Kiowa, Simla, and West Grand. Pikes Peak Christian is the favorite to win league and should only be challenged by Justice. I have Pikes Peak Christian winning by 30 points.
Belleview Christian at Miami Yoder Justice at South Park
Rocky Mountain Lutheran at #7 Pikes Peak Christian
Southern
The Southern league started about the way everyone thought. Hoehne, Fowler, and Simla all won their games. Those will probably end up being your final three come the end of the year. My guess is Hoehne in first, Simla in second, and Fowler in third. Fowler has not proven it can beat the better opponents with a blowout losses to some of the better teams. Hoehne shouldn’t be challenged by Fowler this weekend and should win by 28 points. I honestly don’t see anyone challenging Hoehne and they should win every game from here on by 20+ points. The real battle will be for second and third place. Simla has also smashed by the top teams with defeats to Akron (49), Haxtun (42), and Pikes Peak Christian (35). So the game between them and Fowler should be a good one. Of course Simla cannot afford to lose to Kiowa this week. The Southern League is in danger of only getting one team in and must hope a second place team emerges with only a loss to Hoehne and that should be Simla.
Custer County at Swink Fowler at #5 Hoehne
Simla at Kiowa
Southeast
This is the one league were I think anything can happen. Right now the league favorites have to be Holly and McClave both picked up very impressive victories last week. McClave pummeled an improved Las Animas team 56 to 0 and Holly smashed Wiley 40 to 13. This is the same Wiley team that had Haxtun on the ropes a few weeks ago. The other game was Granada surviving a close one against Springfield 46 to 42. In most years that decides the league title but this year that is only a small stepping stone for Granada. This week will tell us a lot more about this league. The Wiley at Las Animas game will be an elimination game for the loser. I don’t think the loser will have any chance at the playoffs or a league title. So there will be a lot on the line for this game. I have Wiley winning by 21 points. Springfield at Holly is another game that is somewhat of an elimination game. If Springfield loses that will drop them to 1-5 and more than likely out of the playoffs and unless something dramatic happens out of the league title race. Holly on the other hand is looking to pick up league win number 2 and keep pace with the winner of the Granada vs McClave game. Holly should win by 14 points and prove they are a legit team. The last game is Granada vs McClave. This game will tell us a bunch about McClave. McClave is out to prove that they are a legitimate team. They have a great win against Pikes Peak Christian and beating Granada would count as another one. Granada is in somewhat of a rebuilding mode but are still winning games. This would be a key victory for this young team and possibly set up a league title game against Holly next week. I have Granada pulling the upset by 7.
McClave at Granada Springfield at Holly
Wiley at Las Animas
Southwest
Well with Sargent getting a Forfeit win over Dove Creek due to injuries and eligibility they move to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in league and have their fate in their own hands from here on out. The other two games are Del Norte at Sanford in a battle of teams looking for their first win. Sanford should come out victorious as they played Mancos really well last week. One very important game this week is Mancos traveling to Norwood. Mancos scored 28 unanswered points in the second half to avoid the loss to Sanford and they cannot have a lapse like that against Norwood. Norwood made quick work of Del Norte last week and need the win to stay in second then hope that Mancos upsets Sargent. Norwood should beat Mancos but upsets happen. I have Norwood winning big against Mancos by 28 points. For Mancos to stay in this game they will need to score a ton of points which will be tough against a very physical Norwood team.
Dove Creek at #1 Sargent (Forfeit win for Sargent) Del Norte at Sanford
Mancos at #3 Norwood
Class 8 Man Player of the Week
8 Man Player of the week goes to Caleb Urwiller from Dayspring Christian who must have been very tired in their shootout win over Haxtun 55 to 53. Urwiller ran for 432 yards and 6 touchdowns and he did that all on 16 carries averaging 27 yards per carry.
6 Man League Schedule
I ran out of time this week to do a full breakdown of the league schedule so they will be quick and to the point. The biggest game is a non-league game between Stratton/Liberty and Cheyenne Wells this will tell us a ton for RPI and seeding come playoffs.
Central
Genoa-Hugo is in control of their destiny right now and get to see things sorted out this week and have a non-league game against Cheraw. Hanover should win and move to 2-2 this week. The game that matters is Cripple Creek at Elbert. Cripple Creek is looking to pull an upset victory and also get to 2-2 in league. That won’t be easy against a good Elbert team. Elbert is looking to keep pace with Genoa Hugo and make the game between them for the league title and possibly the only berth into the playoffs. Right now the Central league looks like a one team berth.
Hanover at Colorado D&B Cripple Creek at Elbert
East Central
The East Central race sorted itself out a little last week with Stratton/Liberty beating Arickaree/Woodlin. The league can nearly be decided this week when Arickaree/Woodlin faces off against Hi-Plains/Flagler. If Hi-Plains wins they keep pace with the league leader but a loss puts them in a tie with Arickaree/Woodlin. Otis is also looking to grab their first league win. They should against Idalia a loss would essentially eliminate them from the playoffs. The East Central should get four teams into the playoffs barring a huge upset by Idalia.
#8 Arickaree/Woodlin at Hi-Plains/Flagler Otis at Idalia
North
The North is all but done for Fleming they have the easier half of the teams left and should finish in first place. Peetz who is tied with Weldon Valley for second still has some work to do but they should take care of Prairie this weekend and stay one back of Fleming. Pawnee should make quick work of Longmont Christian and move to 3-2. Fleming like I said should beat Briggsdale this week. The big game is Weldon Valley at North Park. Weldon Valley beat last week and now will have to rebound quickly. Their opponent North Park was also beat last week and that was an upset win for Pawnee. This is a huge game for both teams. I think to get into the playoffs comfortably you need to finish in the top four and if you finish in fifth you will be sweating it out. I have North Park winning by 14.
Briggsdale at #3 Fleming Prairie at #9 Peetz
Pawnee at Longmont Christian Weldon Valley at North Park
Southeast
Monster game this week between Eads and Walsh. Walsh needs a key victory and there is no better place to get it than a league game. Eads need a win to keep pace with Kit Carson who should easily win this week. Cheyenne Wells is involved in a huge non-league game against Stratton/Liberty. Cheyenne Wells needs a few things to go in their favor to win league but right now are focusing on getting into the playoffs. The Southeast will get three teams in and more than likely a fourth.
#7 Eads at #10 Walsh Branson/Kim at #1 Kit Carson
Southwest
What a game last week between Cotopaxi and La Veta. Cotopaxi at one point was down 39 to 20 and came roaring back to win 54 to 51. That win puts Cotopaxi in the driver seat and makes the game against Sierra Grande huge. Cotopaxi should blow past Manzanola this week. The big game is between Sierra Grande and La Veta. Sierra Grande is looking for their key win of the season. They will have their hand full against a high scoring La Veta team. La Veta will look to bounce back this week and they should. La Veta is the highest passing team in 6 Man and will look to do the same again this week. I have La Veta winning by 14. The Southwest will get three teams in and that is probably it.
Mountain Valley at Primero #4 Cotopaxi at Manzanola
Sierra Grande at #6 La Veta
Non-League Gams
Cheraw at Genoa-Hugo #5 Cheyenne Wells at #2 Stratton/Liberty
MileHigh Prep Report 