Mike Bradley's Round One Playoff Picks

1A:

-Friday Games:

#1 Colonel Richardson (6-3) hosting #8 Washington (0-8)-6pm-The Colonels are back-to-back 1A Bayside Champs who so far have matched the great success of last season. They should have no problem at home against a winless Jags squad who scored their first points of the season just last week against Arcadia (VA).

#6 Kent County (2-7) at #3 Perryville (5-4)-7pm-The Trojans have played good ball in the last month but it will be a tall order to defeat a Panthers squad on the road that has some good wins and a few close losses to some good teams as well. The Trojans are battle tested but going with Perryville in this one.

-Saturday Game:

#7 Snow Hill (2-7) at #2 Green Street Academy (5-3)-1pm-The Eagles have a long trip to Baltimore City and while they are capable of scoring a fair number of points in a game, they have struggled defensively all year. Green Street for a 1A has some quality wins over private school Severn, Harford Tech and Southern-AA (who defeated 3A Bennett 33-13). Going with GSA in this one.

2A/1A:

Friday Games:

#5 Cambridge-SD (4-5) at #4 Elkton (4-5)-7pm-The Vikings were runners up for the 2nd straight year for the Bayside 1A Championship. They are battle tested and have experience from last season winning a playoff game (at Parkside) and hanging with Harford Tech on the road last year. The Elks have had a bad season per their standards although they have lost to several good teams this year. In part using Rising Sun's game against Elkton and RS's win over Kent County in Week 1 and the KC-Cambridge-SD matchup you can get a little bit of an idea how this game may go. I like the Elks at home in that atmosphere just as battle tested and having scored about 50 more points this season than the Vikings pulling it out. Cambridge-SD has a chance.

#6 Parkside (3-6) at #3 Fallston (3-6)-6pm-The Rams ended a 6-game winning streak last week over Kent County after a tough stretch of games against the top end of the 2A East. The Cougars despite their losing record started out hot and ran into a buzzsaw but they lost some competitive games to some very good teams. The Ram's defense has been an issue most of the season and the Cougars can score some points. Parkside will need to either win in a shootout or play keep away with long sustaining drives. They have a chance, but I am leaning with the home team whose defense has been good at times this season including the last two weeks.

2A:

-Friday Games:

#1 Kent Island (8-1) hosting #8 North Harford (3-6)-6pm-The Bucs are the #1 seed in the 2A East, winners of the Bayside 3A/2A Championship and have won 8 in a row. If they continue to do what they do best this shouldn't be too much of contest at home. It's tough to think they will be in any trouble on Friday night. Bucs win and advance.

#2 Easton (7-2) hosting #7 North Caroline (3-6)-6pm-We are told this is Easton's first home playoff game since 1993 (I think Warrior games may have still aired on 96-7 WCEI at that time) The Warriors have had a very good season and are one of the best in the Conference with one of the best QBs and a nice set of skill players at his disposal. The defense has played well at times. North Caroline is young, going through growing pains this season and has not been able to settle in at the QB position. You're not quite sure what Bulldog team you will get from week to week. I do however expect that they will play a better game than earlier in the season when they lost at Easton 33-20 and had TOs, snap issues, and poor field position. However, the Warriors will take care of business at home.

#4 Queen Anne's (7-2) hosting #5 Wicomico (6-3)-6pm-This is a rematch of a game played just a few Thursday night's ago in Salisbury with QA winning 35-28. Despite their loss last week, Lions RB KJ Smothers still had over 200 yards rushing and 2 TDs. He has still not been limited for 4 quarters and that might not be possible for any team to do in the Bayside. That however continues to loom for any defense he plays. The Indians lost 3 games by an average of 7.6 points per game. Playing a 4-quarter game has been a challenge for them as the season has gone on. The talent is there, and they are very capable of winning this game with Darius Foreman, Malique Leatherbury, Malakai Johnson and others. They have to be scheme disciplined especially on defense in order to win. The Lions were called out by their Head Coach last week for effort in the 2nd half in their loss to Kent Island. While I still get concerned if Smothers is contained or stopped about them making enough plays elsewhere, I think this Lions team who will be playing at home with a great playoff atmosphere will be fired up to play their best game of the season. The front seven defensively is still an issue for this team and at this point I am not really sure if it will get a lot better. If they don't make some improvement, they will be in for a shootout again. If that is the case the game could go either way. Penalties and Special Teams will definitely be a factor and the Kickers will play a part in this one for sure. The Indians have the advantage on STs. The Indians are plenty talented and capable. Many would say they are due to get a signature win and if they win no one should be surprised. However, I will go with the Lions because they are home, Smothers has been unstoppable and because they were called out after coming off a bad loss to their archrivals in Kent Island that they will want to turn the page from. Even then I only give them a very slight edge...This is our Overtime Live-Preston Ford "Friday Night Lights Game of the Week" on 94-3 WINX-FM, forevermidshore.com and the Forever Radio App

#3 Stephen Decatur (7-2) hosting #6 C.M. Wright (6-3)-6pm-The Seahawks program has quickly restored a winning tradition and culture in Berlin. Decatur will be going up against a stingy defense (15.8 ppg allowed) but conversely against an offense that averages just 13 points per game. The Mustangs lack that signature win this season and have not fared well against good opponents despite their overall record. Decatur is battled tested and does have quality wins on their resume. The home atmosphere will be a help as well. The Seahawks need to continue their consistency on offense but even then, they shouldn't be concerned about their opponent scoring a lot of points even if it's a low scoring game. Decatur should be able to take care of business and advance.

3A:

-Friday Game:

#7 James M. Bennett (0-9) at #2 Chesapeake-AA (7-2)-6:30pm-The Cougars are simply the better team and they are at home. The Clippers are still winless however this will provide good experience for Bennett.

Last Week: 7-0

Regular Season: 61-6

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