SEMI-FINAL PLAYOFFS
#3 Sussex Tech 10-1 at #2 Middletown 8-2
Sussex Tech knocked off the defending State Champions in Salesianum 33-27 last Friday night. Now the Ravens will look to knock out Middletown. Xavier Drummond returned the opening kickoff for a TD last week against Sallies and the Ravens played a near perfect 1st half against Salesianum. Sussex Tech led 33-7 last week and had to hold on in the final minutes to clinch the win. If they get a chance to put away Middletown this week they better do it. Although Middletown is young they play very solid defense and they can control the clock with a grind it out run game led by Datillo and Brew. The Cavs have been to 4 straight championship games and beating them at Middletown will not be easy. The combination of Drummond, Kane and Griffin gets it done for the Ravens in this one.
Sussex Tech 30 Middletown 21
#7 Hodgson 8-3 at #1 St. Georges 11-0
Hodgson proved last week that seeding means next to nothing in the DII playoffs as they knocked off previously unbeaten Lake Forest 22-13. Ray Jones is the real deal for Hodgson and he plays a major role on offense and defense. He's the type of player that even if you know he's getting the ball he is tough to stop. St. Georges has 2 very similar players to Jones in Taronn and Keyjuan Selby. All 3 of those guys can take the ball to the house on any play. This game is a rematch from the regular season when St. Georges knocked off Hodgson 50-30. The regular season game was close at halftime with the Hawks ahead 12-8. The 2nd half was a different story with St. Georges scoring 38 points and rolling up 383 yards rushing. I've got to believe that this game will be much closer and you will see a better defensive effort from both sides. Hodgson must limit their turnovers and penalties. I'm going with the Hawks. They still remember last year when they got blasted in the Championship game and they seem to have a very opportunistic defense along with the Selby's.
St. Georges 28 Hodgson 22
#5 St. Mark's 8-3 at #1 William Penn 10-0
This game is another rematch from the regular season where the Colonials dominated the Spartans 24-0 in the opening game for both teams. The difference though will be St. Mark's has QB Matt Williams for this game as he missed week 1 due to injury. That should open up some running lanes for the Spartan run game and obviously help the passing game. WR Dalton Ziemba had a huge game last week as the Spartans defeated Concord 35-28 in the 1st round of the playoffs. Ziemba caught 2 TD passes in the win. The key in this game will be defense and William Penn has a very good one. The Colonial defense only allowed 9 points per game this season and shut out 4 opponents including St. Mark's. Most teams scored on William Penn when their starters were out of the game and they had the game well in hand. The Spartan defense is allowing 24 points per game and 3 out of the last 4 opponents have scored at least 28 points. I've got to go with the #1 ranked Colonials in this one. They have a rested Reggie Carroll and the better defense.
William Penn 28 St. Mark's 17
#4 Laurel 9-2 vs. #3 Friends 11-0 at Caravel
Both of these teams are coming off surprising wins last week as Friends proved that they belong by knocking out Archmere 41-27 and Laurel outlasted Caravel 25-20. Friends made it to the state semifinals back in 2008 and were eliminated by eventual champion Milford. Laurel finished just 2-8 last season and this year they find themselves playing for a spot in the championship game. Laurel has the more athletic team and Auguste has had some huge games this season for them. With Friends you get a very well coached disciplined team with senior James Carney leading the way. Friends is dangerous because they really have nothing to lose in this game and anything they do is icing on the cake at this point. The pressure is on Laurel but I think they are too talented to lose this one.
Laurel 33 Friends 20
Last week 4-2
Season 140-31
#3 Sussex Tech 10-1 at #2 Middletown 8-2
Sussex Tech knocked off the defending State Champions in Salesianum 33-27 last Friday night. Now the Ravens will look to knock out Middletown. Xavier Drummond returned the opening kickoff for a TD last week against Sallies and the Ravens played a near perfect 1st half against Salesianum. Sussex Tech led 33-7 last week and had to hold on in the final minutes to clinch the win. If they get a chance to put away Middletown this week they better do it. Although Middletown is young they play very solid defense and they can control the clock with a grind it out run game led by Datillo and Brew. The Cavs have been to 4 straight championship games and beating them at Middletown will not be easy. The combination of Drummond, Kane and Griffin gets it done for the Ravens in this one.
Sussex Tech 30 Middletown 21
#7 Hodgson 8-3 at #1 St. Georges 11-0
Hodgson proved last week that seeding means next to nothing in the DII playoffs as they knocked off previously unbeaten Lake Forest 22-13. Ray Jones is the real deal for Hodgson and he plays a major role on offense and defense. He's the type of player that even if you know he's getting the ball he is tough to stop. St. Georges has 2 very similar players to Jones in Taronn and Keyjuan Selby. All 3 of those guys can take the ball to the house on any play. This game is a rematch from the regular season when St. Georges knocked off Hodgson 50-30. The regular season game was close at halftime with the Hawks ahead 12-8. The 2nd half was a different story with St. Georges scoring 38 points and rolling up 383 yards rushing. I've got to believe that this game will be much closer and you will see a better defensive effort from both sides. Hodgson must limit their turnovers and penalties. I'm going with the Hawks. They still remember last year when they got blasted in the Championship game and they seem to have a very opportunistic defense along with the Selby's.
St. Georges 28 Hodgson 22
#5 St. Mark's 8-3 at #1 William Penn 10-0
This game is another rematch from the regular season where the Colonials dominated the Spartans 24-0 in the opening game for both teams. The difference though will be St. Mark's has QB Matt Williams for this game as he missed week 1 due to injury. That should open up some running lanes for the Spartan run game and obviously help the passing game. WR Dalton Ziemba had a huge game last week as the Spartans defeated Concord 35-28 in the 1st round of the playoffs. Ziemba caught 2 TD passes in the win. The key in this game will be defense and William Penn has a very good one. The Colonial defense only allowed 9 points per game this season and shut out 4 opponents including St. Mark's. Most teams scored on William Penn when their starters were out of the game and they had the game well in hand. The Spartan defense is allowing 24 points per game and 3 out of the last 4 opponents have scored at least 28 points. I've got to go with the #1 ranked Colonials in this one. They have a rested Reggie Carroll and the better defense.
William Penn 28 St. Mark's 17
#4 Laurel 9-2 vs. #3 Friends 11-0 at Caravel
Both of these teams are coming off surprising wins last week as Friends proved that they belong by knocking out Archmere 41-27 and Laurel outlasted Caravel 25-20. Friends made it to the state semifinals back in 2008 and were eliminated by eventual champion Milford. Laurel finished just 2-8 last season and this year they find themselves playing for a spot in the championship game. Laurel has the more athletic team and Auguste has had some huge games this season for them. With Friends you get a very well coached disciplined team with senior James Carney leading the way. Friends is dangerous because they really have nothing to lose in this game and anything they do is icing on the cake at this point. The pressure is on Laurel but I think they are too talented to lose this one.
Laurel 33 Friends 20
Last week 4-2
Season 140-31
