FOOTBALL
Division 1
1 Middletown
2 Smyrna
3 Salesianum
4 Hodgson
5 Dover
6 Sussex Tech
7 Sussex Central
8 St. Georges
9 Appoquinimink
10 Cape Henlopen
Is it as simple as Middletown or Smyrna? Well, the good news is we'll have a clearer answer by the end of last year. The bad news (for Middletown fans) is that last year's Week 1 meant nothing in Week 13... Smyrna's won 3 straight, and even without Will Knight, there is a lot to like in the run game with RB Stephen Whaley, and especially on their offensive line, but the quarterback edge (when healthy) edges Middletown with Drew Fry, wouldn't shock me if I'm immediately switching them next week... That said, Hodgson's close call in the Flight A championship (21-7 at Middletown) showed they were getting closer, so the gap may not be as big as it's been... Don't let missing the playoffs fool you, Salesianum was, at worst, the 4th best team last year, but their scheduling challenges caught up to them (plus a bad loss to a struggling Father Judge squad), they must replace QB Zach Gwynn, and every team on their schedule could be .500 and better... Hodgson and Dover are young - but experienced and explosive - the potential is there for both to step into that next level, especially with returning quarterbacks in Jordan Magee (Dover) and C.J. Henry (Hodgson)... The biggest mysteries are the rest of Flight A, who will be that third team fighting for enough points to sneak into the tournament?... I wouldn't pencil in a Championship Harvest Bowl 3 just yet, but it has to be the preseason choice.
GAME TO WATCH: Middletown at Smyrna (Friday, 7:00) - We begin where we ended, again. How will Smyrna look in their first post-Henderson/Knight game, they beat Irvington (NJ) last year without Knight, so there should be great confidence, although their answer to a struggling QB last year was to put Knight in the Wildcat in the state championship game, so QB remains a question (although it could always be answered very quickly in a strong direction). Middletown loses a lot of leadership with Kedrick Whitehead's graduation that can't be underestimated... An intriguing match-up to see if both are rebuilding or reloading at areas of traditional strength. (Also, Sussex Central at Hodgson Saturday at 10:30 could go a very long way towards sorting out the lower half of the Division 1 bracket)
Division 1
1 Middletown
2 Smyrna
3 Salesianum
4 Hodgson
5 Dover
6 Sussex Tech
7 Sussex Central
8 St. Georges
9 Appoquinimink
10 Cape Henlopen
Is it as simple as Middletown or Smyrna? Well, the good news is we'll have a clearer answer by the end of last year. The bad news (for Middletown fans) is that last year's Week 1 meant nothing in Week 13... Smyrna's won 3 straight, and even without Will Knight, there is a lot to like in the run game with RB Stephen Whaley, and especially on their offensive line, but the quarterback edge (when healthy) edges Middletown with Drew Fry, wouldn't shock me if I'm immediately switching them next week... That said, Hodgson's close call in the Flight A championship (21-7 at Middletown) showed they were getting closer, so the gap may not be as big as it's been... Don't let missing the playoffs fool you, Salesianum was, at worst, the 4th best team last year, but their scheduling challenges caught up to them (plus a bad loss to a struggling Father Judge squad), they must replace QB Zach Gwynn, and every team on their schedule could be .500 and better... Hodgson and Dover are young - but experienced and explosive - the potential is there for both to step into that next level, especially with returning quarterbacks in Jordan Magee (Dover) and C.J. Henry (Hodgson)... The biggest mysteries are the rest of Flight A, who will be that third team fighting for enough points to sneak into the tournament?... I wouldn't pencil in a Championship Harvest Bowl 3 just yet, but it has to be the preseason choice.
GAME TO WATCH: Middletown at Smyrna (Friday, 7:00) - We begin where we ended, again. How will Smyrna look in their first post-Henderson/Knight game, they beat Irvington (NJ) last year without Knight, so there should be great confidence, although their answer to a struggling QB last year was to put Knight in the Wildcat in the state championship game, so QB remains a question (although it could always be answered very quickly in a strong direction). Middletown loses a lot of leadership with Kedrick Whitehead's graduation that can't be underestimated... An intriguing match-up to see if both are rebuilding or reloading at areas of traditional strength. (Also, Sussex Central at Hodgson Saturday at 10:30 could go a very long way towards sorting out the lower half of the Division 1 bracket)
