Ford makes his big move in Grid Picks race

We all knew he wouldn’t go away.

He sat back in the pack, scheming and plotting his picks.

In Week 8, Bob “Photo” Ford — the 2017 Grid Picks Cup Champion — finished with a perfect, 15-0 record. He joins Yours Truly and Bad Brad Hurley in a three-way tie, just one game back of co- leaders, Hot Rod Heckman and Handy Andy Steinmetz.

A jam in the lot; JC stirs the pot

Just two games separate six pickers going into Week 9. With last week’s record of 14-1, Justin “The Voice” Carlucci is back in the title hunt.

“I just want to be sure I beat McCall,” he said with a smirk.

Right now, that seems like a lock as he holds a nine-game advantage over the Bossman, who held his ground and didn’t slip into the Pundit Pit where Sam “The Hangman” Matta can’t yet find his way out.

Chuck “Good Luck” Hixson had bad luck in Week 8 and took the worst hit with a 9-6 mark.

Playoff pressure

Mid-October means high school football teams are battling to make the playoffs. This week, Jim Thorpe visits Tamaqua in a showcase matchup with what amounts to be a playoff game before the real deal. The winner most likely gets in the playoffs, while the loser is probably out. The game features Mark Rosenberger’s Red Swarm defense against Sam Bonner’s multiple-threat offense, led by quarterback Brayden Knoblauch.

The Raiders have a bevy of receivers that can catch and run when they’re not handing the rock to breakaway running back Nate Boyle. Tamaqua has lost to Thorpe the last three seasons in very close games, and their seniors are primed for revenge.

Ford and Hurley might just get to sit in the king’s throne if the Red, White, and Blue prevail. That would most likely mean that hard-running CJ Selby piles up the yards and finds paydirt at the end of Olympian drives.

Great implications

With only five of the 15 games being unanimous picks, expect a shuffle of the faces at the top of this page after Week 9. In fact, the staff is split right down the middle with Notre Dame at Saucon Valley, and Palisades at Pen Argyl.

Heckman likes Notre Dame, as I do, but Steinmetz, Ford, and Hurley picked the Panthers to upend ND at home. This is a target game where something has to give in the standings. Steinmetz and Hurley also chose Pen Argyl over Palisades, another matchup that will have first-place implications depending upon who wins and who loses.

The Line Mountain at Tri Valley, and Parkland versus Easton games, could also shuffle the deck of pickers as we jockey for position.

Down the stretch we come

Next week will mark the end of the regular season. With the playoffs following, at least four more weeks remain in the Grid Picks, but it’s not too early to take a look at the race for the Cup.

From the bottom up, Matta, McCall and now Hixson are all behind enough where they could finish inside the dreaded Pundit Pit. Ironically, Matta and McCall have been around the game of football since what seems like the leather helmet days, so one would think they’d be wiser than their records show.

A couple of 14 or 15-win weeks will let these three bottom dwellers breathe easier, and could propel them right back into the middle of the pack.

The top six include two past Cup winners. I’d say Heckman, Hurley, and Ford are all 3-1 favorites to wear the crown. Yours Truly is proud to be in the mix with these proven veterans, especially after fighting to stay out of the Pit the last two seasons.

Steinmetz is throwing Hail Mary passes this week. He has four disagreements on the docket with Heckman and me. Safe to say that somebody will be shaking his head come Sunday morning.

The real dark horse is Carlucci. He admits he’s always been a front-runner early in seasons, but then fades at the finish line. Yet he’s creeping up now, and could find himself in the top three going into Week 10.

October football and the leaves are falling fast. Stay tuned to see which pickers fall fast, too.