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| With a TVL-Large title on the line, Holliston will host upstart Ashland in one of this weekend's most interesting games. |
Well, the final week of the MIAA Football regular season is upon us and editors Matt Feld and Joe Parello are here to make their picks for the top games across Massachusetts.
No fear, this will not be the final time we post picks for our top games of the week. We will post picks weekly throughout the postseason and into Super Bowl weekend.
Additionally, we will have our picks out for each of the Eastern. Mass sectionals out next week, and Central/Western Mass. sectionals the week following.
Heading into week seven, here are our two editors shake up in the standings. The Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox split the first two games, leaving both editors at 1-1. As a result, we elected to not add that result. Joe is slowly creeping his way back:
Feld: 43-13
Parello: 38-18
Now, for this week's picks!
No. 4 St John's Prep at Bridgewater-Raynham, Friday 7pm
Parello's Pick: B-R badly needs this win to lock down a playoff spot, but it's hard to see the Trojans beating a Prep squad playing this well.
20-10, St. John's Prep
Feld's Pick: Sneaky tough spot for the Prep as they make the long trip to Bridgewater to face a desperate Trojan team.. That said, I think the Eagles are playing like the best team in Div. 1 at the moment and they take that momentum into the postseason.
30-16, St. John's Prep
Wayland at No. 9 Lincoln-Sudbury, Friday 7pm
Parello's Pick: The Warriors ride quarterback Braden O'Connell's legs to a historic win, and carry some momentum into the postseason.
24-13, Lincoln-Sudbury
24-13, Lincoln-Sudbury
Feld's Pick: Wayland keeps it competitive for a half, but L-S is too big up front. Tom Lopez gets win No. 300.
32-14, Lincoln-Sudbury
No. 13 Mashpee at St. Mary's, Friday 7pm
Parello's Pick: St. Mary's won't make this easy on the Falcons, but I'm picking Mashpee to win every week until further notice... Or until Devaun Ford and Xavier Gonsalves are no longer on the roster.
30-20, Mashpee
30-20, Mashpee
Feld's Pick: The commute could certainly make an impact in this one, as Mashpee to St. Mary's is no easy ride. The Spartans are sure to be hungry after a disappointing loss to Archbishop Williams, but the Falcons seem to just know how to make the one extra play to get them over the top.
23-17, Mashpee
No. 24 Nashoba at Wachusett, Friday 7pm
Parello's Pick: Ask anybody in CMass how easy it is to win in Holden, and they'll tell you it's a big mountain to climb (some pun intended). The Mountaineers are tough enough to go toe-to-toe with Nashoba, and their early game success against St. John's show they aren't afraid of a big game. But, like Mashpee and Everett, betting on Nashoba has served me well this year, so I'll stick with it.
23-21, Nashoba
Feld's Pick: Defensive slugfest goes the Chieftains way as quarterback Sam Bolinsky makes a key play late.
16-10, Nashoba
Ashland at Holliston, Friday 7pm
Parello's Pick: Ashland is 6-0, enjoying all kinds of good vibes, and has the chance to knock Holliston from atop the TVL Large?... Heck yeah I'm picking the Clockers.
27-24, Ashland
Feld's Pick: Holliston uses its strong play up front to push them to a TVL Large title at home over a dangerous upstart Ashland team.
20-10, Holliston
Attleboro at Franklin, Friday 7pm
Parello's Pick: I've gone back and forth on this one, but something tells me the Panthers come out on top in this battle of underrated teams.
24-20, Franklin
Feld's Pick: This game has huge postseason implications for both teams. I think the Blue Bombardiers have flown under the radar for most of the season, and are starting to show how dangerous they can be in Div. 1 South. Play up front is the difference in this one as Attleboro uses its physicality to get a huge win.
24-14, Attleboro
North Attleboro at Canton, Friday 7pm
Parello's Pick: Who doesn't love a team of destiny? Well, if you're looking for one, surprising Canton just might be it this year, and I'll jump on the Bulldog bandwagon this week and say they snag a league crown to finish a perfect regular season.
17-10, Canton
17-10, Canton
Feld's Pick: Most years this probably is a game that is not on everyone's radar, but Canton is a sterling 6-0 and has a chance to win the Davenport outright with a win over North Attleboro. The Bulldogs are catching the Red Rocketeers in a bad spot, however, as North Attleboro is out to grab a huge bounce back win after a loss to Stoughton.
20-16, North Attleboro
No. 15 Springfield Central at Longmeadow, Friday 7pm
Parello's Pick: Springfield Central is on another level out west, man. The Golden Eagles seem to be Gillette-bound, and I don't see how even a good Lancer team can slow them down.
35-20, Springfield Central
Feld's Pick: Longmeadow's season has been impressive thus far, but Springfield Central is operating on another level. Are we sure that game week one versus Lincoln-Sudbury even happened? Golden Eagles continue to roll.
38-14, Springfield Central
Parello's Pick: Small-school CMass dominance will be on the line when these two perennial winners strap it up Friday night. While Littleton has more history at Gillette, my (theoretical) money is on Maynard, and dynamic dual-threat quarterback Tommy Smith.
28-24, Maynard
Feld's Pick: Huge game for these two small-school powerhouses out in Central Mass. Game goes down to the wire, but Tommy Smith continues his big season with a key play late.
21-20, Maynard
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