Burlington-Waterford rivalry showdown Thursday night on My24
After one week of Southern Lakes Conference action, it’s clear the eight-team league is deep and talented.
There are no more easy victories, and just about every team is capable of winning on any given night.
It’s still early in the season, with Week 4 upon us, but a clear-cut favorite has yet to be crowned.
Right now, the Wilmot Panthers are staking their claim after a hard-fought victory over five-time defending conference champion Waterford last week.
Kicker Jeff Shoopman kicked a game-winning with less than 2 minutes to play to beat the Wolverines, 10-7.
Waterford and Wilmot both didn’t play their best football, and Waterford coach Adam Bakken is looking for a better effort Thursday in prime time against rival Burlington.
Bakken said this is a big game for his boys, and Burlington coach Steve Tenhagen acknowledged the game is big but the Demons aren’t getting caught up in the hype.
It seems hard not to get overly amped for this one, as the two teams will play in prime time on live television on channel My24.
Union Grove, led by star quarterback Matt Nelson, is off to a 3-0 start, along with Lake Geneva Badger.
Also, Delavan-Darien has displayed a ton of firepower in two victories.
In other football news, unranked Wisconsin pulled off a Herculean upset of No. 5 LSU in front of a packed house at Lambeau Field.
The 16-14 win catapulted the Badgers to No. 10 in the latest Associated Press poll. The Wisconsin defense is strong, and it was a big win, but No. 10 is a bit overrated.
With a murderer’s row four-week stretch that includes games at Michigan State, at Michigan, at home against Ohio State and at Iowa, Wisconsin has a tough road, especially with first-year starting quarterback Bart Houston.
Up in Green Bay, the Packers open the season this weekend at Jacksonville.
With the shocking news of the release of three-time Pro Bowl guard Josh Sitton, who was only 30 and had one more year on his contract, the Packers are immediately a worse football team.
Lane Taylor is decent, but simply can’t fill Sitton’s shoes.
To add insult to injury, Sitton signed with the Chicago Bears.
With the return of Jordy Nelson and the season-ending injury to Minnesota starting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, Green Bay should have a cake walk to the NFC North title.
But the lack of offensive line talent could hurt the running game, which will be needed to advance to the Super Bowl.
NFL kickoff is Thursday night, so get your fantasy lineups set, lay back, relax and prepare for an epic weekend of pigskin perfection.
PREDICTIONS
Last week: 4-1
Season: 10-6
(all games Friday 7 p.m. unless noted)
Game of the Week
Burlington (1-2, 0-1 SLC) at Waterford (2-1, 0-1), Thursday
A game both coaches and players gear up for and pin on their calendars at the beginning of each season, you aren’t passionate about football if you can’t get jacked for this battle.
Waterford is coming off a seven-point performance and allowed as many points (10) in one game as it had in the previous two games combined.
Burlington, which is young at the skill positions, showed resilience down 24-14 and almost came back to beat Division 1 Badger, but a late jump pass on the goal line was denied.
Putting up 20 points on the solid Lake Geneva defense was a good sign, and the fully healthy Grant Tully showed his explosiveness on the offensive side of the ball with two touchdowns and more than 100 receiving yards.
Under the bright lights of live television and a vocal home crowd, I expect Waterford to bounce back.
PREDICTION: Waterford 21, Burlington 14
Delavan-Darien (2-1, 1-0) at Union Grove (3-0, 1-0)
This is a game made for the fans, as plenty of fireworks should be on display.
The Comets are averaging 27 points per game and put up 23 in one quarter to overcome a 34-12 fourth-quarter deficit and knock off Elkhorn last week.
Delavan quarterback Jake Benzing leads the SLC with 896 passing yards, and receiver Mike Alder is one of the top pass-catchers in the state with 340 yards.
The Broncos counter with Matt Nelson, who is third in the league in passing (407 yards) and second in rushing (331).
Holden Whybark is a talented receiver for the Broncos, and he is able to trump most defensive backs at 6-foot-4.
Whichever team can come up with a fourth-quarter stop will win, but if you like scoring, come to this game.
PREDICTION: Union Grove 45, Delavan-Darien 40
Other area predictions
Catholic Central 38, Whitefish Bay Dominican 7
Lake Geneva Badger 40, Westosha Central 14
Wilmot 27, Elkhorn 17
-
-
-
-
-