How The News voted: Week 10

Every week of the football season, nine voters rate Western New York's best teams from 1 to 10 in the large and small school polls (published in the Sidelines of each Tuesday's Scholastic Spotlight). The News has one vote in each poll.

Here's how we filled out our ballot in the preseason and Weeks One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight and Nine.

Note -- this week marks the penultimate poll. These are the last rankings until the season is over -- the final rankings will be part of our All-Western New York issue in December. 

With that in mind -- and especially after my ballot hardly changed at all -- we'll look at what possible movement there could be between now and then.

1. Orchard Park (10-0) [last week: 1] - If they surpass what they did last year and advance to the state final, it would seem they'd have this spot sewn up. ... 

2. Sweet Home (10-0) [2] - However, not so fast my friends. A Sweet Home win over Aquinas -- not only a defending champion but regarded by two prominent national polls (ESPNRise and Yahoo!Rivals) as the best team in the state -- would be huge. The top two spots in this poll are dependent upon how far the current No. 1 and No. 2 go ... and it's possible they could bring a third team into the equation ...

3. Canisius (6-3) [3] - This is a long shot (especially since it looks like other pollsters don't have the Crusaders as high as I do), but the Aquinas measuring stick is there, as it has in previous years. Canisius had a close call with Aquinas, so if the Little Irish beat Sweet Home and it's not close, the argument could be made that the Crusaders move up. If OP also should get upended, the Crusaders could campaign for this poll's Oval Office. This whole scenario, of course, rests on Canisius beating St. Francis on Friday night.

4. North Tonawanda (9-1) [4] - Same spot I had them last week. They'd move up my chart if St. Francis beats Canisius.

5. Lancaster (7-2) [5] - Why they're here: Loss at OP, loss in playoffs at NT. Clear No. 2 in AA South, clear No. 3 in AA (ahead of Kenmore West).

6. Kenmore West (6-3) [6] - Why they're here: Two losses to OP, one loss at NT, and the playoff win over Jamestown earns it some street cred in AA South's neighborhood. But not on other pollsters' ballots, it appears.

7. Iroquois (8-2) [7] - Why they're here: Loss at home to Clarence in Week Eight, loss to Sweet Home at The Ralph. If they didn't lose to Clarence, they'd be No. 5 on this ballot.

8. Grand Island (7-2) [8] - Loss at home to Sweet Home, close loss in playoffs to Iroquois tucks them right behind the Chiefs.

9. St. Francis (3-6) [9] - Record against WNY: 3-1 with a 10-point loss to our No. 3 team. Very surprising second-half letdown to St. Joe's makes me want to penalize them, but I think they still have to be ahead of Riverside, for now, based on the Aquinas comparison (St. Francis played them much closer), and there's noone else worthy of the top 10.

10. Riverside (8-1) [10] - Almost moved them up this week. If the Frontiers charge to the Harvard Cup title, they certainly will. How far? They could crack the top five. Only loss was a big one, but came to a great team in Aquinas.

Second-and-five: Our next best are Frontier, Clarence, West Seneca East, Williamsville South, Grover Cleveland. If Grover (or Hutch-Tech or McKinley, for that matter) wins the Cup, they can crack the top 10 -- otherwise, the top 10 are the top 10, with final shuffling to come.

Small schools

1. Lackawanna (10-0) [1] - We like the Class B champs as No. 1, the Class C champs as No. 2 and the Class D champs as No. 3. We think they are three outstanding teams, and we certainly thing a round-robin tournament of the three would be a lot of fun, but based on what we saw this past weekend, there's not enough evidence to get them out of alphabetical order. From here on in, the top three's placement will depend in large part on how far they go and how they do it.

2. Southwestern (10-0) [2] - See No. 1.

3. Maple Grove (10-0) [4] - See Nos. 1 and 2.

4. Fredonia (8-2) [3] - Why they're here: two losses to Lackawanna. No great shame there. 

5. Alden (8-1) [5] - Why they're here: loss in playoffs to Fredonia.

6. Silver Creek (8-2) [6] - Why they're here: two losses to Southwestern.

7. Cleveland Hill (8-1) [7] - Why they're here: loss in playoffs to Silver Creek.

8. Clymer (9-1) [8] - Why they're here: one loss to Maple Grove. Tough to move them any higher this late since that D final was over so early.

9. Depew (6-3) [9] - Lost to Alden, Lancaster and in playoffs to Lackawanna.

10. Cardinal O'Hara (6-4) [10] - A fourth straight title would have them finish with a flourish, and would move them up at least a couple of spots.

And our second-and-5: East Aurora, Portville, Randolph, Maryvale, Allegany-Limestone.

Don't like what you're reading? The comment space is below. Also, visit here Wednesday for a live chat with yours truly at 7 p.m.

---Keith McShea

Comments

[footballfan]

wow 30 years ago??? your really going back that far? how bout the future having op be ranked number one in the state and number 9 in the east? Thats sad your bring that up..its only cuz a team finally beat orchard park and its like the superbowl playing them but 30 years ago lets get real

[MGFootballFan]

go 'head and talk bold dundee fan -- you're just giving our boys extra incentive to play well, not that they need it-- no doubt our boys respect your program as they have every opponent they've faced -- not sure what you smoke there in dundee land but surely you've been on your own boards --sectionV.talksback.com has plenty of people blasting you; and take a look at your stats from the avon matchup -- not all that impressed; 6-3 avon almost ended your season; so if you're as good as you say you are, bring your A game this time -- and don't you worry mr dundee, we've got plenty of people in section6 that are rooting MG on-- just as we are rooting all our section 6 boys on to rule not only section 5 -- but the whole dang state!!

[Chaut_Co]

Dundee-fan
Section 5 D ruled section 6 D????? they lost at least 5 in row(98-02). And most of those were pretty bad. Then in 05 Randolph won big over the section 5 team they played so maybe of late. Im not going to call a winner because i havn't seen you guys play but i'll be shocked if you hold MG under 20 pts. This Mg team is the best D team that 6 has produced since 05 and last year was the worse D team we produced in a long time. Hope you're DBs come to play if not it's going to be a long day.

[Dundee-fan]

Not only has Maple Grove not beat section 5 yet, they won't. Class D section 5 isn't your typical class D. We can play or beat all of the C's and B's. And the bigger competition knows it. Talk to the people from Geneva,Bath,Leroy and others and they will tell you that good football knows no class sizes in section 5. Maple Grove will have no answer to our rushing attack. They will not be able to dominate offensively like they did in lowly section 6. We know Walton is king and they will be until they get knocked off by us.Maple Grove wouldn't have a shot against the likes of Walton.40-7 Dundee. I'll give maple grove a late td when our seconds are in the game.I'm not bragging I'm just saying for a fact that section 5 rules H.S/football against section 6 especially the D class.One other thing, our section sticks together unlike you 6ers that blast each other all day long.

[Bob]

MG has not beaten Section V yet. Let's not anoint them yet..........

[Chaut_CO]

But back to my argument all i was saying was that MG wouldn't blow out Lackawana. I agree that new spread offenses take emphasis off the size off the line which a larger schools usually have larger lines and places more on the athletes. this would give smaller schools a better chance of beating larger schools. I would still take the good larger schools over the good smaller schools.

[Chaut_CO]

HSfan
Despite what people from MG might think there is intelligent life forms outside their disctict yes i understand all those simple midget football terms you used. I'm just commenting on what tim said about MG blowing out lackawana. A huge part of MG game is just having better athletes if they played a team like lackawana who it looks like it has equal if not better athletes then MG, so then they would have to go switch things up. I know you probably know this because you are a football guru but as a coach you take away what the other team does best and for MG thats chuck the ball down the field. Personally id use the Old Bobby Bowden method and find out how tough Secky really is, he could be really tough but who knows i've only seen him get hit hard once. How many other screen packages have you analyzed? I am just wondering because you called Mg's the best. I havn't really seen where MG has ran that many screens.

[Redskn54]

RedSkn54, Get to the stadium at this point of the year and you will be ranked and loved by the football gods! Good old Lenny has a chair waiting for Him amongst those gods to watch over and protect His beloved SKINS!! Enjoy the year you had redskn 54 and good luck in your future endeavors!

Posted by: R U notentertained

I have learned more this season than any of the other 10 i have played and this year was the first i havnt started. I have greatly enjoyed this season and thanks for the luck. from experience i believe we will be successful next year.

[DEPfb]

Thats not saying much coach. Jamestown is weak. They lost to Wheatfield. Any team last weak at the Ralph would beat Wheatfield, any team. they are bad.

[Fran]

In theory anyone can beat anyone if the circumstances are right. Could Southwestern beat Jamestown? Sure they could. But which Jamestown? The one that beat Frontier or the one that lost to Niagara Wheatfield? I wouldn't like Southwestern's chances against Frontier.
I guess it's fun to imagine what would happen in these games, but the reality is that the classes were set up for good reason. C's and D's would almost always lose to AA's and A's

[Redskn54]

It's been so long that Lancaster has been there, that they probably forgot how to get to the Ralph.

Posted by: Bob Wiley

It doesnt make much sense seing that we got there last year and were oh-so-close tko getting there this year

[coach]

falconer was a C school in 1970 and OP was a large A school.Tim has a point. With the introduction of wide open spread offenses, great little teams like Maple Grove or Southwestern could compete with the likes of AA schools. Come on. Everyone who has seen SW and Jamestown play know SW would easily beat them this year. That "Because we're bigger,we're better" attitude is a thing of the past. Again like someone stated awhile ago. I would take a 210 pound athlete over a 260 lb letter winner any day. I love that statement.

[Tim]

sure it does. 1970 was not that long ago. Especially in recent years with the introduction of a spread offense there is less of a reliance on bull line play. Listen, good football is good football. There is way too much of an emphasis of enrollments. Its 11 on 11.
Where it comes into play the most is injuries. There is a lot less depth with small schools. How did a tiny C school go up to OP and beat a very Large power? Especially in a day of pure physical line play and lack of spread offenses. You guys have to come to your senses and admit that you just might be wrong.

[Bob Wiley]

It's been so long that Lancaster has been there, that they probably forgot how to get to the Ralph.

[Fran]

Tim
This was discussed a while back on this blog. It seems that in 1971 Orchard Park was not the giant district it is now. I don't know exact numbers but I would guess they would have been a "B" size school, or maybe the lower end of "A". They were probably still bigger than Falconer, but not so much as they would be today.

[john op]

in 1863 OP played a non league game against the Washington Redskins and won that game 34-10, that does not prove that small schools should play large school though, it just shows that every dog has its day

[Tim]

interesting article about Maple Grove's and Southwestern's coaches

http://www.post-journal.com/page/content.detail/id/516402.html?nav=5019

[john]

tim i believe in 1843 op played a non league game against the Washington Redskins and they won 34-21, but that doesnt not prove anything on how different size programs can compete

[Tim]

I was told something the other day that I have to share. In 1970 or 1971 the Falconer Falcons played a non-league game at Orchard Park against a really good Quaker team and beat OP 21-13 i believe. I find that very interesting.For all of you that say a D or a c size school cant compete with the big boys is just plain crazy football is football whether it is 2008 1978 or 1928 small schools can compete with large schools.I'd like to hear some thoughts

[HSfan]

Hey, Chaut_co, do you really think linemen from Lackawana could catch Chris Secky?
And, do you really believe if a team put pressure on Secky that the patterns and play calling would be the same?
Sounds like you don't know much about MG, or football at all. MG would change based on what the defense gives.
MG has the best screen package in WNY, and some of the fastest running backs in WNY.
And, if you don't aleady know, Secky can throw on the run - left or right, and by the way he uses his left hand on options and shovel passes.
If you don't understand these terms - google them.

[R U notentertained]

RedSkn54, Get to the stadium at this point of the year and you will be ranked and loved by the football gods! Good old Lenny has a chair waiting for Him amongst those gods to watch over and protect His beloved SKINS!! Enjoy the year you had redskn 54 and good luck in your future endeavors!

[cheekwar]

omg,will all this small school talk please stop, no one cares about MG and other's---boring!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Redskn54]

I dont know how it makes sense that in the overall poll Iroquois is above Lancaster. I mean theres nothing that can be done about that now but they lost to Clarence by a fairly large margin and obviously Lancaster beat Clarence

[poolman]

will you stop with your small school talk

[Chaut_CO]

Tim
You are crazy, Lackawana probably has better athletes then MG which would take away many parts of their game. Secky wouldn't be able to drop back have time to read a book then throw the ball to caporale who just runs straight down the field and gets open. I've came to this conclusion over recennt weeks either D is vastly overrated or MG is the best D team this section has ever seen and is going to walk through the state. Im sorry "VERY GOOD" teams do not get beat like MG beat Clymer, Randolph, and Portville. they beat them all 30+. I doubt in 05 MG would have consider themselves very good when Randolph beat them 34-8 or whatever it was. So either MG is that good or the rest of D is not. I'm not saying that MG isn't great im questioning how good the rest of D is. The next two weeks will tell the story. After watching the two this weekend i would give MG the two spot and SW the three. But no way does MG go over lackawana. But LETS GO section six 5-0 this weekend.

[Gator]

Rankings and polls are meaningless...Maple Grove knows the game....Just like Randolph and Clymer knew when they were section 6 champs...Class D teams have to win the state championship to even be considered to top the polls.....Polls and rankings are for entertainment purposes only...The goal for all teams is to win a state championship, not to lead the polls...Maple Grove plays a fine Dundee team Friday and a win moves them one step closer to their goal....As far as Rankings,Polls,Connolly cup,Trench trophy, "News" player of the year,Coach of the year, and whatever other post season accolades are handed out, they are really insignificant, compared to a State Title...I do agree that sportsmanship has to be considered when making all*star teams, because if sportsmanship was not a qualification, the all*star teams would be a joke.
I hope all section 6 teams win this weekend...especially MG and SW... Wouldn't that be special, 5 wins for section 6?...

[fbfan]

I have seen a lot of talk about maple grove should be ranked higher than SW because of relative opponents and how they each beat them in the past years. I however would like to pose the question, why isnt SW ahead of Lakawanna since they beat them twice just last year, and both teams returned most of their players.

[HSfan]

The rankings are correct as listed.
Each team can now go out beyond Section VI and prove what they got.
Good luck to ALL Section VI teams in the Far West Regionals, I know you will do us all proud!

[Fran]

There is one big hole in your dissertation. Clymer was a large, slow, and uninspired. I am reserving judgement on MG since that was the first time I have seen them. but I will be there this weekend rooting them on. And if they are half as good as they seemed against Clymer, then you should get your wish to have them ranked higher.

[Tim]

What games did you watch this past weekend?
Maple grove still ranked third is a slap in the face.
I talked to many non-affiliated football fans at the "Ralph" and most of them were in "Shock and Awe" describing MG's victory. Clymer was a very large,athletic, fast bunch of athletes that MG dominated.
Most were in agreement that they had to be the best small school in WNY. Most I said, because there were two guys adamant that Southwestern would win, come to find out one was from West Ellicot and the other from Jamestown, and wanted to see MG lose for some selfish reason. Maple Grove would do to SW and Lackawanna like they did to Clymer. They would dominate every aspect of the game. But yes, I know and they are only a D school. When they beat a good team you people say that the team stunk.Randolp, Portville and Clymer are very good teams people, VERY GOOD.
Dundee dad, you have no idea what's in store for your team.
I will have my radio on full blast cheering MG on over Dundee. I cant believe all of western ny isn't pulling for MG. I am and I'm not even from there. Good luck Friday Dundee, luck is what you will need to stay in the game. Leroy, Southwestern just might upset you. I would like OP,SH and Lackwanna to represent section 6 with victories,good luck.