Week 2 Picks:  2003 NW Indiana High School Football

A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith

WEEK ONE (1) ANALYSIS:
Week one is always very difficult to pick because there's no true track record. West Side is probably better than Wallace and Rensselaer is clearly better than North Newton (What was I thinking??).  The Hammond loss is ominous. Look at their schedule. What games are they going to win? Chesterton outplayed Andrean (328 total yards and 20 first downs to 226 yards and 10 first downs) and gave the game away.  Lowell and Andrean will finish the season 1-0 against DAC foes and they'll brag about it but the truth is, they'd both be sub.-500 teams in the DAC. Portage is very, very strong.

2002 Regular season (9 weeks) 85 of 109,  77.9%
2002 Playoffs:   78 of 106,  73.5%
Final 2002 (15 weeks) 163 of 215, 75.9%
2003 (Week one) 8 of 12, 66.7%

WEEK TWO (2): Aug. 29, 2003

The first week featured some flukes and the second week features some awful mismatches. Andrean, Merrillville, Valparaiso, Portage, and Munster will beat Bishop Noll, Dunbar, Roosevelt, East Chicago, and Wirt by four touchdowns each. No point in even discussing those games. It's just a bad week locally. 

Statewide the matchups of note put superpower Ben Davis (1-0) on the bus to Penn (1-0).  And Summit city stars hit the pavement as Fort Wayne giants Bishop Luers and Snider go head-to-head.

(South Bend) Riley  28, Michigan City (1-0) 20
It's hard to pick a team that scores 60 points one week to lose at home the next week, but the Wolves truly only led weak Roosevelt 20-12 late in the second quarter. Riley killed themselves with penalties and fumbles at LC in a 34-7 week one loss.  Roosevelt threw three TD passes against MC, an alarming stat for the Wolves.

River Forest (1-0) 42, Lake Station (0-1) 7 
This game went to overtime last season but River Forest has too much offense. RF gained 374 yards last week on Whiting, a better team than Lake Station. The history of this rivalry says this game will be spirited and these teams scrimmaged on Aug. 16, so familiarity can close the talent gap. But, on a dry field, the Eagles simply can't defense their arch rivals.

Morton (1-0) 28, Gavit (1-0) 14 
Gavit's 28-point win over Hammond may say more about Hammond than it does Gavit. Morton laid 454 yards and 34 points on Clark in week one and QB Kevin Potchin threw for 4 TDs. Morton has the type of high-risk, multiple offense that can survive turnovers against lesser foes.  That's exactly what will happen here. Gavit's only hope is the Governors' overconfidence.

Wheeler (1-0) 27, North Newton (0-1) 21
North Newton lost 50-3 last week so if they come within seven points of Wheeler, that's a moral victory. The Spartans did gain 217 yards and 13 first downs in the 47-point home loss to Rensselaer, but four interceptions smoked their cause. Wheeler wasn't celebrating after they barely beat weak Wirt. The Troopers lit up the Bearcat pass defense for 12-of-20 for 197 yards and North Newton will be throwing.

Hammond (0-1) 50, Clark (0-1) 20
I'm not ready to accept that Hammond, a 42-14 loser to Gavit in week one, has no offense. Nobody can actually be as lame as they looked against average competition. Week one is often a fluke and I think Hammond will prove that against Clark, which gave up those 454 yards to Morton.

Highland (1-0) 35, Whiting (0-1) 7
Here's another game where Highland can only beat themselves. Whiting should gain some yards but they gave up 374 last week. This is one of those games where the Oilers, in theory, know they'll get hammered but supposedly, it prepares them for the state tournament. They've never reached the 1A state finals so it hasn't ever actually worked for them, but that's the theory.

Rensselaer (1-0) 28 , Kankakee Valley (0-1) 20
I thought I read where Rensselaer lost a lot of seniors from last year.  I guess I didn't read the part about how their 2002 JV was undefeated.  Munster smoked KV 48-0 in week one, but I still think the Kougars are improved and it will show this Friday.  But Rensselaer intercepted four passes last week and KV has to throw to win.

CROWN POINT (0-1) 23, Hobart (0-1) 13
Crown Point found their offense in the fourth quarter at Lowell and they'll be ready for the home opener at their new school. I still think Hobart will vie for first place in the LAC. They are playing 'up'....against schools twice their size. Give them time. More than two weeks... The Brickies' got beat by 40 at Portage last week and they are again in the wrong place at the wrong time.

LaPorte (0-1) 56, Elkhart Central (0-1) 37
Potentially an Arena-football classic. LaPorte was looking ahead to Penn when they got smoked 47-33 by the run-and-shoot offense of speed-oriented Central in the biggest upset of the 2002 state tournament. Powerful Memorial beat Central 21-7 last week as expected but LaPorte was shocked 28-3 by New Prairie. That game was fluke, but if the Slicers' offense doesn't kick in this week, they may have to move 2002-signal caller Kevin Brandy (now a WR) back to QB.

LOWELL (1-0) 35, Calumet (1-0) 14
Lowell is the better team, but they'll be looking ahead to the showdown with powerhouse Griffith in week three. Calumet gained 274 yards rushing last week against Horace Mann and they play down home, basic, 'run the quick boy behind the fat boy' football.  But you need to pass to beat Lowell.
The Red Devils are building one of their all-time best teams. The only question is whether is gets here this year or next year.

(Wilmette, Ill.) Loyola Academy (0-0) 27, LAKE CENTRAL (1-0) 16
Obviously, this is a tough game to figure with Loyola, a fancy pants, hoity-toity rich kid private school just opening the season this week. LC is coming off a strong opener so this game could be close. Loyola replaces two-time defending Illinois state champion Providence on the LC schedule so, at least, the Indians have a chance here. But Loyola, with 2,350 students, is Class 7A in Illinois. The Ramblers were only 3-6 last year but they play in the NFL-like Chicago Catholic League with superpowers Providence and Mount Carmel.  On most days, LC can't play in that league.  Nobody over here can.

Chesterton (0-1) 28, Griffith (1-0) 6
Griffith has a problem here and, in part, Andrean caused it.  Chesterton rolled up 330 yards against the 59ers and gave the game away with two key fumbles.  Note that Andean did not score a rushing TD against Chesterton and Griffith will have to. Trojan QB Ryan Kelley missed the second half last week with an injury. The Trojans have something to prove this Friday and they are very familiar with the Griffith option since they run a form of it.  I believe the Panthers will reach the semistate in 3A if they beat Andrean in October. But this will not be their night.

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Revised: June 08, 2004 .