Week 3 High School picks: Do I have the prescription for success?

FROM KEITH GROLLER

A little under the weather. Have my bi-annual "Change of Seasons" cold. Felt like we went from the heart of summer to winter this week and I never adjust well to the temperature change.

Tired of spending a fortune at CVS on stuff that never works, I went to the doc this morning and got me a prescription.

Hopefully, it will do more than stop my coughing and sniffling. Maybe it will produce a winning weekend for yours truly.

Last week wasn't bad. Boosted by my stop at Kelly's Irish Pub, I went 18-5 last week and am now 35-13 on the season.

As for my own personal top 10, I have a surprise at the top: I am going with Nazareth.

Never say I don't admit it when I am wrong. I was wrong about Nazareth.

When the Lehigh Valley Conference was formed a decade ago, I thought the school made a mistake coming to the LVC and thought the Blue Eagles would have been better served staying in the MVC.

However, across the board, Nazareth has had tremendous success in the LVC. They may linger behind Parkland and Emmaus in some sports, sports that -- sadly -- only parents seem to care about.

But in the sports that generally create the most interest -- football, baseball, basketball, wrestling and I will throw in a sport I like, softball -- the Blue Eagles have been about as consistently good as anybody, although I do see a major drop in boys basketball this winter.

Anyway, here's my Top 10:

1. Nazareth

2. Liberty

3. Whitehall

4. Parkland

5. Easton

6. Freedom

7. Central Catholic

8. Stroudsburg

9. Pen Argyl

10. Northern Lehigh

And now the picks:

FRIDAY NIGHT

Whitehall 63, Dieruff 0 ... Once more with feeling, stop this madness ASD (and no, I don't mean the frequent commenter on this blog).

Freedom 49, Allen 7 ... Ok, a second time with feeling, stop this madness ASD!

Easton 33, Northampton 13 ...Finally, the Red Rovers get one in the friendly confines of Cottingham.

Parkland 34, Emmaus 14 ... I will be at this one and am eager to see for myself a Jim Morgans-coached team that is not running the Wing-T.

Nazareth 35, Liberty 28 ... In the Blue Eagles offense I trust. My buddy the Weave is going with his Blue Eagles, 41-38.

Catasauqua 28, Palisades 14 ... At least I don't have to go to a school board meeting where Tom Falzone is fighting to save or regain his job.

Northern Lehigh 42, Saucon Valley 13 ... Another pleasant trip south for the Bulldogs.

Palmerton 28, Salisbury 7 ... Where have you gone Ed Hedes? Thought I'd see you at the Pigs game on Thursday night.

Bangor 27, Southern Lehigh 20 ... Game of the night in the Colonial. After dealing with the Dean Smiths, Rollie Massiminos and Gene Keadys over the years, Scags can certainly handle the pressure of a big night in Bangor.

Northwestern 33, Wilson 13 ... Always a festive atmosphere in New Tripoli. Nice to see the Snyder brothers -- Brett and Josh -- at Lehigh on Saturday.

Honesdale 21, ES North 7 ... Gonna be a cold one in the Poconos.

Scranton 28, ES South 20 .. Glad I didn't have Kenny Rogers tickets for the Bloomsburg Fair.

Marian Catholic 33, Mahanoy Area 20 ... At least these Colts can score.

North Schuylkill 34, Jim Thorpe 7 ...At least the fall foliage in Jim Thorpe will soon be a sight to see.

Pennsbury 21, Pocono Mountain West 14 ... Whoever arranged this matchup certainly wasn't worried about conserving gas mileage.

Wyoming Valley West 33, Pleasant Valley 21... A tip of the cap to Duke Helm who gives us all some great facts each week. He says the Bears' Rob Getz now holds the school record for receptions (82) and reception yardage (1,040) for a career. Getz (27 total TDs) is only 1 touchdownbehind career leader Chris Jacobs who had 28 TDs from 1996-98.

Shenandoah Valley 20, Tamaqua 14 ... Very nice gesture of Tamaqua to put the late Joe Plasko, a good writer and an even better person, into its Hall of Fame. Well deserved.

Stroudsburg 28, Williamsport 21 ... Still haven't gotten to Williamsport for the Little League World Series yet. That, and a trip to Hawaii, remain high on my bucket list although Williamsport and Maui don't have much in common so I understand.

Wallenpaupack 28, Pocono Mountain East 14 ... Watch out for the deer crossiing the road on this trip between schools.

SATURDAY

Pen Argyl 49, Notre Dame 7 ... Haven't heard from my friend, Pen Argyl principal John Smith, in a long time.

Central Catholic 49, Becahi 20 ... Despite their flaws, I still think the Vikings will be the last local team standing in December. Lose this one, and I will rethink that position.

Pius X 34, Schuylkill Valley 28 ... It's a shame the Royals aren't in a league because they are fun to watch with all of their offensive weapons and Phil Stambaugh at the controls.

Enjoy your weekend everybody!

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