Protime Predictions by Phil: It’s week 4! Can Protime get back on the winning track?
Tagged under: Gameday Hub, News, Protime Predictions
Phil Myers | October 1, 2020
2020 has not been a good year. All you high school aficionados know that. All the coaches and players know that. This on again, off again, on again season has kids, parents, and coaches constantly on alert and on edge. The worrying of whether there is going to be a game this week or if fans can attend and so on has caused a few premature gray hairs and stomach ulcers. (Protime has heard that stores have sold a lot of Grecian Formula and Pepcid.)
Protime has had his own reasons for 2020 being a bummer of a year and not all are football related. In fact, over the course of the next few weeks he will recount his adventures or mis-adventures that has befallen him this year. Mrs. Protime can only shake her head and wonder if Protime is all there on occasion.
But, as far as predicting high school football games goes Protime appears to have not lost that ability as he was correct in 19 of 23 games last week, which brings his 2020 record to 61-11 for a whopping 84.7% accuracy rate. This week is loaded with big games and more teams playing their initial game of the year. The Savvy Soothsayer will now unveil his picks. Good luck to all.
Dallas 3-0 @ Lake-Lehman 3-0 – Big game in District 2 this week pits the Dallas Mountaineers against the Black Knights of Lake-Lehman. QB R.J. Wren leads the Dallas offense with 355 yards passing and 6 TDs. Ben Fife is a prime target as he has 185 yards receiving and has snagged 3 of those TD passes. For the Black Knights it’s QB Ethan Adams showing the way with 572 yards throwing and 9 scoring passes. Ryan Eiden has 11 receptions for 204 yards and also has 3 rushing scores. A coin flip is a must for this game. The tail means the ‘Eers win 28-21.
New Brighton 3-0 @ Beaver Falls 3-0 – We have Lions and Tigers, but no bears in this ballgame. (Unless one counts grouchy fans in the stands.) The Lions of New Brighton have Nya Greene in the backfield offensively and the Lion Pride swarms to the ball defensively. The Tigers counter with Syracuse recruit Josh Hough who has 575 yards rushing on only 23 carries. That’s 25 yards per, folks. Oh, by the way, he has 8 TDs. Sharing the honors with Mr. Hough is Shileak Livingston who has 358 yards and 6 touchdowns on the ground. Protime says Beaver Falls by fourteen, 35-21.
Danville 3-0 @ Montoursville 3-0 – Heard from a very important man that this game is a toss-up. It is the Ironmen’s passing game vs. the Warrior ground attack. Danville has a superb quarterback in Kayden Riley (736 yards passing and 10 TDs). He also has a trio of wideouts that can make life miserable for defenses. Jagger Dressler, Ian Pershing, and Carson Pershing have caught all 10 TD passes among themselves and have accounted for 674 of the 736 passing yards. Montoursville is led by Rocco Pulizzi and his 648 yards on the ground and 9 TDs. QB Maddix Dalena can sling it though as evidenced by his 369 yards and 5 TD tosses. Protime’s crystal ball says the Warriors win 38-34.
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart 3-0 @ Rochester 3-0 – OLSH is exciting to watch with passing attack and finding ways to get Jaymar Pearson the ball. Jaymar has found the end zone 10 times this year. QB Nehemiah Azeem has flung the ball for 492 yards and 3 TDs. He has rushed for 3 more scores. Rochester’s Rams do what their nickname suggests. They like to ram the ball down their opponents’ throats, and in doing so eat up time on the clock. Denny Robinson is the featured back and has compiled 8 touchdowns in running for almost 500 yards. His compadre, Rashawn Reed, has 257 rushing yards. Maybe a bit of an upset predicted by Protime here. Rams 32 Chargers 26.
Bethlehem Catholic 1-0 @ Nazareth 1-0 – This is a tough one to figure because both teams are good. Too bad D-11 opted out of the PIAA playoffs. These two squads could’ve made some real noise this year. Beca was led by RB Rahmel Terry last week with his 100 yards rushing and 2 TDs. The Golden Hawks’ quarterback, Jared Richardson, had 190 yards passing with 2 TD tosses. He also scrambled for another. The Eagles are building on their championship run of a year ago behind QB Matt Bugbee who doubles as the place kicker. He booted 2 field goals last week and hammered 6 kickoffs into the end zone. RB Tyler Rohn and WR Jaiden Cabrera are two others to keep an eye on. The Eagles win the battle of the birds 17-14.
Steelton-Highspire 1-0 @ Middletown 1-0 – Can’t get much bigger in Central Pa as the Steamrollers roll into Middletown to take on the Blue Raiders. D-1 prospect Mehki Flowers scored 3 times last week and for Steel High to be successful they have to get him the ball. But the top story was Freshman quarterback Alex Erby’s performance. He pitched the pigskin for 208 yards and 4 touchdowns! Mid-town is led by the dynamic duo of Tymir Jackson and Tajae Broadie. Jackson rushed for 195 yards and a score last week and Broadie ran a kickoff back for a TD and caught 6 passes one of which went to the house. Protime’s crystal ball says the home team wins 42-40 in a very exciting game.
Tyrone 2-0 @ Bald Eagle Area 1-1 – John Franco looks like he is steering the Golden Eagles back into the team they were in yesteryear when he successfully coached there the first time. RB Damon Gripp has 200 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns to date, while QB Brandon Lucas has tossed the pigskin for 4 TDs. BEA has really turned its program around the past few years under Jesse Nagle’s guidance. The Bald Eagles are led by WR Owen Irvin who has 7 catches for 200 yards. QB Garrett Burns has thrown for over 400 yards. When Eagles battle in 2020, it is the Golden ones who win 14-10.
North Schuylkill 3-0 @ Jim Thorpe 3-0 – Protime’s stat guy says stats are foggy in this battle of unbeatens. The Spartans are led offensively by QB Jake Hall who appears to have 5 TD passes. WR Tanner Walcavage is a top target and Josh Chowansky can score on the ground or receiving. The Olympians are led by two running backs. C.J. Selby and Dom Madera have at least 2 TDs apiece. Jim Thorpe’s defense is known as the Red Swarm. They will have to bring their ‘A’ game for the Spartans. Protime forecasts North Schuylkill to win 22-13.
California 2-0 @ Avella 3-0 – Two teams who usually aren’t talked about in the A classification in D-7 have a shootout scheduled for this Friday. The Cal Trojans are a horse of a different color with Jaedan Zuzak in the back field. He toted the agate for 234 yards and five TDs last week and has 8 scores in just two games. On the other side, the Eagles of Avella are soaring in large part because of the arm of QB K.J. Rush. The Eagle signal caller has thrown for 436 yards and 5 TDs this year. Rush has also rushed for 3 more tallies. Protime flipped his faithful coin and the Trojans will be the victors by a score of 27 -20.
Tussey Mountain 3-0 @ Glendale 1-2 – Protime is making the journey to his in-laws’ old area stomping grounds to witness 2 teams he has never seen before. The Titans have RB Kayden Lucko to show the way offensively with his 444 yards and 5 TDs so far. Defensively, they are titanic animals with Chad Morningstar (who had 20 tackles last week, 9 for a loss) and Aaron Day. Glendale is better than their record as the scheduling gods had them play Northern Bedford and Bellwood-Antis back to back early in the season. QB Garrett Misiura has accounted for all the Viking scoring with 3 TD tosses plus a rushing score. One of his favorite wide receivers is Baine Seilhamer. Protime sees it this way, Tussey 26 Glendale 13.
The Others:
Mechanicsburg 27 Shippensburg 21 – Protime got to know some of the Wildcats doing player previews this summer, but the Greyhounds prove to be a worthy opponent and test the ‘Cats.
St. Marys 28 Ridgway 24 – Battle of unbeatens up in District 9 finds the Flying Dutch (not squirrels) swooping past the Elkers.
Central Cambria 33 Penn Cambria 21 – In a battle of Cambrias, the Red Devils go to 4-0 by bewitching the Panthers and then sending them home with loss #2.
Owen J. Roberts 20 Methacton 14 – The Wildcats scratch their way to a hard-fought victory over the Warriors down in District 1.
Hickory 30 Grove City 20 – This is the second time these two have met. The Hornets won the first contest and are undefeated. This time the Eagles come closer, but Hickory goes to 4-0.
South Williamsport 17 Northwest Area 13 – In an intriguing match-up of law enforcement mascots. The Mounties prove to be slightly better than the Rangers. (Protime has not always thought this to be true though.)
Altoona 23 Hollidaysburg 14 – A rivalry game in the home city of the Horseshoe Curve finds the Mountain Lions clawing out the win over the Golden Tigers.
Cedar Cliff 35 Hershey 28 – Both teams come into the contest 1-0. The Colts have a little more kick in the end than the Trojans.
LaSalle 31 Delaware Valley 24 – Tough first game for the Warriors. Tough second game for the Explorers, but they win this battle.
Brookville 40 Moniteau 20 – Protime learned his lesson last week, don’t pick against the Blue Raiders. Moniteau’s Warriors suffer the loss to an undefeated Brookville squad that is on fire offensively this year.
North Penn 17 Neshaminy 10 – As North Penn fans like to say, ‘it’s Knight time.’ The N.P. Knights have a close one though with the Redskins from Neshaminy.
Notre Dame Green Pond 37 Palmerton 27 – NDGP is having a fine year to date and the Crusaders march on defeating the Blue Bombers. (Love that Palmerton nickname by the way.)
Plum 34 Highlands 17 – Plum’s Mustangs are catching people’s eye now as they remain undefeated in kicking the Golden Rams.
Northern York 22 West Perry 21 – The Polar Bears (another favorite nickname) give the W.P. Mustangs the cold shoulder with a narrow win.
Peters Township 20 Upper St. Clair 16 – Another huge game in D-7 features the Indians tomahawking the Panthers to garner the win.
Erie McDowell 38 Erie 20 – The Trojans win one for their teammate, Johnny Heubel, who was seriously injured last week. Keep those prayers up for the young man. The Royals are the unlucky ones to play McDowell in their ‘Dedication to Johnny’ game.
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