Pace Picks Up In Second Round

Ok, we have gotten rid of all the teams that should not have made the playoffs and we head on to the second round.  Six teams from our area are still alive and there is a real good chance five of the six finish football this week if they don't play great football on Friday night. Have had two weeks in a row of great guessing going 13-1 in high school games and was 6-1 last week.  Stand on the year at 77-21

The only team playing this Friday carrying a favorite label is Tarboro in the 1-AA bracket.  They are conference champs and are the three seed going up against Louisburg a second place squad in their league and are sixth.  Louisburg has scored 48 or more points in five straight games so Chris Lee has them humming on offense.  When you consider the teams played in the non conference play Jeff Craddock has his Vikings right where he wants them.  Just maybe around the state other folks are looking past Tarboro because they haven't beaten everybody his year.  The Vikings play another Thanksgiving Friday 34-27 over Louisburg.

North Edgecombe is the five seed and must travel to the four seed Southside.  Both teams are 9-3 and this game is a tossup and when ever any game is a tossup you have better pick the home team.  North Edgecombe will have to play at a superior level to win this one on the road.  Southside 26 North Edgecombe 18.

The 2-AA bracket has two other teams with 9-3 records as SouthWest Edgecombe travels to Jacksonville to play Northside.  Northside has won seven straight games  and here we go with another game that if I was laying odds Northside is about a three and a half point favorite.  Once again a road game in a close one take the home team.  Northside 34 SWE 27

Fike host Northern Guilford  and both teams are 11-1.  Both have one loss and both were second in their conference.  Fike's lone loss was a shootout with Southern Nash 42-35 while Northern lost in a shootout 32-28 to unbeaten Eastern Alamance.  I think Fike had a better team last year that the way this squad turned out even though they lost only once.  Northern Guilford in a tossup game takes this one and I am going against in a tossup picking the home team.

Southern Nash and Eastern Wayne  meet in Stanhope. EW 9-2 and Southern 9-3.  Here is how I look at this one.  Rose crushed Rocky Mount in non conference play and Eastern Wayne beat Rose by 40.  EW two losses are to New Bern and who beats New Bern and D H Conley 4-A school on the road.  Eastern Wayne wins at Firebird country  35-26.

Rocky Mount's second round game is about 30 miles further down I-85 over last week's game.  They face the top 3-A tem in the east bracket.  Rocky Mount proved last week they are capable.  Southern has score at least 35 in every game this year.    Rocky Mount will have to slow them down to stay in this one.  If you look back I have gotten Rocky Mount's game wrong more than any other team this year.  Gryphon fans shout because there is hope I'm picking Southern 35-28.

If these predictions hold true only Tarboro will be left next week.  Need all our locals teams to pick it up and keep this area alive in every level of the playoffs.  Pulling for all of our teams!!!!!

There is a small matter of a football game tonight in Durham as Carolina travels Duke.  Duke lost last week and still clings to first in the division.  Carolina needs one of their last two games to get to six wins.  Duke has the best coaching staff in the ACC.  The amount of points that Carolina gives up you wonder about their coaching this far into the Fedora era at Carolina..  Carolina can put points on the board but Duke has shown they can when they need to. I think Carolina will out score Duke 44-30.