A midseason points checkup

By Sheldon Shealer

It's easy to get tied up in the numbers game that surrounds high school football. But rather than dwell weekly on the MPSSAA points standings, here's a midseason check-up that should hold you over until the real crunch in a few weeks.

In each of the state's four classifications, the four region champions plus the next four highest rated teams advance to postseason play. The standings are determined by a point average, which takes the number of points accumulated divided by the number of games played. Teams collect points only for defeated opponents' classification (win points) and number of victories (bonus points).

Class 4A

The most intriguing race is taking place in the East Region with four 5-1 teams -- Broadneck, Old Mill, Meade and Westminster. Of those teams, Broadneck has the easiest remaining schedule -- but hardly guaranteed wins. Old Mill and Meade have a head-to-head meeting remaining, and Westminster must face Urbana. Frederick, at 4-1, remains an outside contender in this region. Damascus is running away with the West title and Roosevelt is comfortably in first in the South. The North is a two-horse race between Patterson and Woodlawn.

The skinny -- Roosevelt, Damascus, Bowie, Broadneck are good bets at this time. Meade, Old Mill, Patterson, Woodlawn and Largo remain in solid playoff contention. Westminster, Sherwood, Frederick and Northwestern-PG are in position to make a run at the postseason.

Class 3A

Could it be a Seneca Valley vs. Urbana final? Well, that's jumping the gun, but those two are running 1-2 in the West Region and the overall 3A race. At this point, six teams remain undefeated and it's possible that five could finish the regular season without a loss. The East Region is down to only two teams in the running -- Annapolis and Gwynn Park. The Patuxent vs. Calvert winner likely will be the South Region champ. The North Region title might come down to the Week 10 clash between Randallstown and Milford Mill.

The skinny -- Seneca Valley and Urbana are comfortable among the state's Top 8. Annapolis, Gwynn Park, Calvert, Patuxent, Richard Montgomery and the North Region champ could fill out the field. Paint Branch and Westlake are very much in the running.

Class 2A

Even with Edmondson out of the picture, it looks like Hereford still cannot catch a break in the North Region point standings. Hereford has won 27 straight regular-season games, but it looks like once again they will open the postseason on the road -- this time thanks to City College. City has collected so many points with its 6-0 start that only two teams in the state -- Roosevelt and Seneca Valley -- rate higher. The East is a three team race with Joppatowne, Wicomico and Easton. Although the MPSSAA points listing rates Wicomico ninth with a 5-1 record, the teams is actually 6-0 and should be somewhere between Nos. 5 and 7. The West is down to two teams who will not face each other -- Glenelg and Middletown. The South region might not put a team among the Top 8 -- but of course will get at least one rep which will be either Potomac or Wheaton.

The skinny -- The best bets to lock up playoff spots are Hereford and Middletown. Both will be heavy favorites in their remaining games. However, that might not be good enough for either team to earn regional titles and home field playoff games. City, Joppatowne, Glenelg and Eastern Tech are sitting in good position. Look for Wicomico, Easton and/or Centennial to make a push for a playoff spot. There are several teams with two losses that might not have enough points on the board to make the playoffs, but could play spoiler in the next few weeks. Heading that list is Poly, which finishes the season with City.

Class 1A

Talk about the wild, wild West. Four West Region teams -- Allegany, Boonsboro, Smithsburg and Westmar -- hold the Nos. 4 through 7 spots. There are no undefeated teams remaining in Class 1A. Forest Park and Dunbar -- both in the South Region -- hold down the Nos. 1 and 2 positions overall thanks to schedules that include 3A and 4A opponents. Their game against each other will be their only contest against a 1A public school. Elkton, the defending champion, has all but clinched the North Region title. Kent County and Snow Hill are battling for the East Region crown.

The skinny -- Elkton, despite being No. 3 overall, might be the closest thing to a sure bet in the 1A playoff picture. Look for Dunbar to slide with upcoming games with City, Gilman and a season-ending showdown with Forest Park. Forest Park likely will emerge as the South Region champ. Allegany has the edge in the West Region, but Boonsboro and Smithsburg still have big bonus-point opportunities remaining on the schedule. Westmar will be battling uphill to catch the other West region frontrunners, unless, of course, Westmar can defeat Allegany next week. The Kent County vs. Snow Hill winner likely will represent the East Region. North East-Cecil, Cambridge-S.D. and Bohemia Manor need some help but could be a contender come Week 10.

TOP PERFORMANCES

Brad Stonesifer, Francis Scott Key. The running back returns to the Top Performances list with his Carroll County-record six touchdown performance in FSK's 42-34 victory over South Hagerstown. Stonesifer had five rushing touchdowns and 241 yards, and he caught two passes for 65 yards and a touchdown.

In the same game, South Hagerstown's Domonique Richmond completed 22-of-37 passes for 296 yards and three touchdowns.

Amazingly, a third Top Performance came on the same night in another MVAL game as Smithsburg's Dustin Seir rushed for 303 yards and four touchdowns in the Leopards' 39-15 victory over Williamsport. Seir now holds two of the state's Top 5 rushing performances this season.

Terry Caulley, Patuxent. The star running back who has committed to UConn rushed for a school record 272 yards and five touchdowns in a 56-14 victory over Northern Calvert.

IN CASE YOU WHERE WONDERING

Brad Stonesifer's six touchdowns in a game was a Carroll County record and was one shy of the state mark of seven -- set in 1992 and matched five times since.

STREAK BUSTERS

Dunbar's seven-game win streak ended in a 16-14 loss to Carver. ... St. Mary's-AA had a seven-game win streak ended in a 28-14 loss to McDonogh. ... Archbishop Curley's six-game win streak was ended in a 16-13 loss to Boys' Latin. ... Chesapeake-BC ended a nine-game losing streak with a 54-0 victory over Sparrows Point. ... Arundel snapped and eight-game losing streak and in the process gave Chuck Markiewicz his first victory at his alma mater with a 35-20 victory over Chesapeake-AA. ... Beall ended a six-game losing streak with a 30-12 victory over Hampshire (W.Va.).

AROUND THE STATE (Week 6 Notes)

Flowers won its first game as a varsity program, dealing Oxon Hill a 14-6 defeat last week. ... Parkdale played its first home game under the lights in the program's 34-year history on Friday, and defeated High Point, 28-20. To avoid a scheduling conflict with DeMatha -- which also uses the field -- the schools split the cost to rent lights and allow Parkdale to play Friday night. DeMatha used the field Saturday afternoon. The Friday night game drew about twice as many spectators as Parkdale's afternoon contests, and now other P.G. County schools are considering renting lights. Right now, only three P.G. schools have lighted football fields. ... Pikesville senior Reggie Dean has returned all five his his interceptions this year for touchdowns. ... Walt Whitman junior and back-up receiver Brett Fleisher is a key role in the motion picture "Hearts in Atlantis," which is now showing nationally. In four quarters last week, Largo nearly matched its entire scoring output of the previous five games. Largo defeated Northwestern-PG, 26-7. Before the game, Largo had scored 27 points in its previous five contests. Three times, Largo had scored only once, but won the contest. ... Forest Park and Westlake have shut out their last three opponents. ...

LOOKING AHEAD

No. 16 Gaithersburg at No. 7 Damascus, Friday. A Damascus victory would also secure the Class 4A West region title for the first-time 4A school. Gaithersburg must win to keep alive its playoff hopes.

Snow Hill at Kent County, Friday. Both teams are 4-2 and battling for the Class 1A East region title. The winner will have the upper hand for an automatic playoff berth.

Frederick at Westminster, Friday. Both teams have only one loss and have yet to face league power Urbana, but the winner of this showdown is very much in the 4A playoff picture. Look for a lot of offense in this CMC meeting. The teams have combined for 354 in the 11 games they have played this year.

Dunbar at City College, Friday. City College is currently No. 1 in the 2A playoff points race, Dunbar is No. 2 among 1A schools. To the winner goes a boatload of points. To the loser, a fall in the standings.