As is the tradition here in the Muskegon area, there are an abundance of good, exciting football teams to watch any given week.
There are the Whitehall Vikings, who have looked unstoppable this year. Ditto for Mona Shores, notwithstanding an early loss to Rockford. Fruitport, Reeths-Puffer and Hart are all enjoying resurgent campaigns, and that’s just to mention a few.
Unfortunately three of our exciting teams – Muskegon, North Muskegon and Ludington – won’t be playing this week as scheduled.
Muskegon’s game against Holland was canceled early in the season when the Dutch opted to end their campaign after Week 4 due to a lack of upperclassmen.
This week Holton forfeited to 6-1 North Muskegon, and Orchard View, back after a year of not having a team, is canceling for the second straight week, leaving Ludington without a game.
That’s not meant to be a shot at any of those schools. Player health and safety are extremely importan,t and if a team doesn’t have enough players, that’s that. But hopefully the local teams that are struggling to compete can get healthy and back on the field and see some increased player participation very soon.
Luckily for us, there are still plenty of great games happening this Friday. Mona Shores and Reeths-Puffer will meet in an annual rivalry showdown, Fruitport will look to keep its win streak going at Hamilton, and old rivals Ravenna and Oakridge will battle in a WMC crossover game.
Here’s who I think will come out on top in Week 8. Be sure to visit MuskegonSports.com on Friday night and Saturday morning to see who won and how.
[1]Whitehall (7-0) at Fremont (4-3) – Fremont is having its best season in years, but at this point, Whitehall could be playing the Detroit Lions and I’d still pick the Vikings. Speaking of which, are Whitehall fans making Ford Field plans yet?
Fruitport (5-2) at Hamilton (2-5) – After an uneven start to the year, the Trojans have found their groove. I expect a fourth straight win Friday night. Six wins would be the most for Fruitport since an 8-2 season in 2012.
Grand Haven (1-6) at Grandville (5-2) – Grand Haven has had a tough time in the gauntlet of the O-K Red. It doesn’t get any easier this week against Grandville.
Hesperia (1-6) at Hart (5-2) – It’s been a season to remember thus far for the Pirates. They should handle Hesperia and reach the six-win mark for the first time since 1992.
White Pigeon (4-3) at Kent City (6-1) – The Eagles took their first loss last week, but they’ll get back on track against Coach Gropp’s alma mater this week.
Mason County Central (2-5) at Shelby (2-5) – Both teams come in with two wins, over the same two schools. Mason County Central had a bigger margin of victory, though, so I’ll take the Spartans.
Mona Shores (6-1) at Reeths-Puffer (5-2) – The Rockets have a lot of talent and have played well this year. But this Mona Shores team has been absolutely rolling since its narrow Week 2 loss to unbeaten Rockford and can clinch at least a share of the O-K Green title this week.
Montague (3-4) at Manistee (4-3) – It’s been an unusually down year for the Wildcats, who have made the playoffs in 20 of the last 21 seasons. With the playoff point system, Montague can still make the cut – they’re currently 20th in Division 6 for 36 spots. A win on Friday will help the cause.
Muskegon Catholic (5-2) at Centreville (6-1) – The Crusaders might be the underdog record-wise in this game, but MCC pulled out a 16-12 win over Schoolcraft two weeks ago, and Schoolcraft handed Centreville its only loss, 22-2 in Week 2. I’ll ride with MCC to make it five straight wins.
Carson City Crystal (6-1) at Muskegon Heights (0-7) – This game was a playoff matchup a year ago, and a pretty good one at that. Unfortunately for the Tigers, these programs are headed in opposite directions this year.
Ravenna (5-2) at Oakridge (6-1) – With last week’s game being a forfeit win, the Eagles haven’t been able to take the field since a lopsided loss to Whitehall. Expect Oakridge to come out determined to put together a good performance.
Spring Lake (2-5) at Hudsonville Unity Christian (5-2) – Spring Lake had a nice comeback win against Hamilton last week, but Unity Christian has looked like its powerful self lately after a slow start to the year.
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