I’m watching baseball right now. Consider these picks my final correspondence until one of three things happens: a. the Red Sox win the World Series, b. the Yankees win or c. the Yankees beat the Red Sox, advance to the World Series, play St. Louis and we get two weeks of listening to FOX broadcaster Tim McCarver talking about how Albert Pujols and Derek Jeter hug orphans before every game.

If scenario ‘A’ plays out, I’ll be the happy guy running shirtless down Spring Street in Jeffersonville. If the outcome is scenario ‘B’ I’ll be the shirtless guy crying along Spring Street in Jeffersonville. If ‘C’ happens please remember to send me postcards as I’m serving my 25-to-life sentence at one of Indiana’s finest penitentiaries

Here’s the picks.



Columbus East vs. Jeffersonville

My tune rarely changes from year to year and it very rarely has needed to.

I’m basically convinced that you could load the Olympians on a team bus, drive north on Interstate 65 to Lucas Oil Stadium, show video propoganda on the bus, convincing them that they are about the play the Indianapolis Colts in a Hoosier Hills Conference game, and then watch the Olympians dissect the home team with surgical precision.

East doesn’t lose HHC games. That’s not hyperbole, it’s 100 percent confirmed and notarized fact.

The Olympians presently boast a conference win streak of 19 games. Let me put it in leyman’s terms for you — that’s a lot of stinking conference wins in a row.

So, that’s the bad news for Jeff.

But, if you’re an optimist and insist on searching for the positives, or the chinks in the Columbus East armor ,feel free to note the fact that the closest margin of victory in that stretch is 25 points (42-17), and that only came two weeks ago against Floyd Central, and also the fewest points Columbus East has scored in a game during that stretch came last weekend against Madison (granted the O’s held the Cubs scoreless and won the game 34-0, but you’re looking for reason for optimism if you’re any HHC foe right now).

Perhaps the biggest reason for this is the fact that Columbus East has had a player named Kiel starting at quarterback since Woodrow Wilson sat in the Oval Office — that’s a historic fact, look it up if you need to — and each one has played progressively better than the one before him.

Last year’s Kiel was Dusty. He’s now at IU, where he’s a redshirt freshman for the Hoosiers. Before Dusty came Drew — he’s currently the starting signal caller at Southern Illinois University. Currently, the QB at East is Gunner, the only Kiel to start at the position as a sophomore. By 2026, the Olympians will be starting Antwaan Randle Kiel — who throws like Peyton Manning, runs like Tim Tebow and dates supermodels like Tom Brady.

So needless to say, the safe bet right now is not the Red Devils. No offense or disrepect intended in that statement whatsoever, it’s just Columbus East does not lose.

Columbus East 37, Jeffersonville 20



New Albany-Seymour

New Albany nation probably circled this game against the Owls as their “last resort game.”

The “last resort game” is the one that comes when you’re team is struggling and you begin to wonder when that next win is going to come. You stay optimistic from week to week, but you also say to yourself, “Well, if nothing else we always have that game against (insert whichever opponent you’ve tabbed as your last resort).”

So through seven losses to start the season, which as stated in prior weeks seem to be coming in every way imaginable, New Albany had hoped that this game against struggling Seymour would be a last-gasp effort for a regular season win.

Now, Seymour is throwing a wrench in those plans.

The Owls, who went winless in their first five games of the year, have posted back-to-back wins against Brownstown Central and Jennings County. Neither one of those was a win most pundits would have predicted prior to kickoff.

The last three games in this series have been thrilling. There was a 38-35 game in 2006. A 42-35 overtime affair won by Seymour in ’07, and last year’s 48-41 triple-overtime Bulldog win at Buerk Field.

This week will be equally thrilling. You know why?

Because the Bulldogs are going to get off the snide this week. New Albany is going to win.

That’s right, this is still the week, Bulldog fans.

New Albany 27, Seymour 22



Floyd Central-Jennings County

Here’s teams that started strong, hit rough patches and then went in decidely different directions match up.

The Highlanders began 4-0, lost back-to-back games, only to rebound for an impressive 35-28 home win over Bedford North Lawrence last weekend at Ron Weigleb Stadium.

Jennings has struggled since starting 2-1, dropping its last four games.

The improved play of sophomore quarterback Garrett Shanks has Floyd optimistic it can overcome the loss of veteran starter Max Guenther. Beating Bedford last week shows Floyd can compete with the top teams in its conference. This week the Highlanders continue to build momentum headed into the postseason.

Jennings has a chance to rebound its season, but Floyd has been tough at home this year — expect that to be the case yet again.

Floyd Central 27, Jennings County 16



Charlestown-North Harrison

Charlestown won two weeks ago scoring only two field goals. Charlestown won last week scoring just one touchdown. For its next trick, the Pirates will do something that I don’t know has ever done before.

Win a game scoring only safeties.

(Note: the win still clinches another outright Mid-Southern Conference, reiterating my belief that I’m 100 percent on the Pirate bandwagon).

Charlestown 8, North Harrison 0

(Editor’s note: I don’t believe this for one second, Charlestown will actually club the Cougars this week.)



Providence-Evansville Central

No one will ever accuse Providence of ducking anybody and this week serves as another example as the Pioneers host Evansville Central — making this the fourth time Providence has faced an opponent from Class 4A or 5A this season.

The teams nearly mirror one another from a numbers standpoint. Central is 4-3, same as Providence. Central has a four-point win over Evansivlle Bosse, the Pioneers own a two-point win over the Bulldogs. Central averages 25 points per game, the Pioneers 24.

So I’ll resort back to my scientific manner of picking Providence games this season. Every Providence win has been followed by a Pioneer loss and every Providence loss has been followed by a win. Last week, the Pioneers won, meaning this week the schedule suggest a loss on the horizon.

Evansville Central 24, Providence 20



Clarksville-Crawford County

As odd as it sounds to say that a team played well in a 31-7 loss, that could actually be considered the case after the Generals fell to Brownstown last weekend.

The easy pick last week for that game was Brownstown would simply stifle Clarksville. The Braves came in off a loss to a rival (Seymour) and were ready to destroy anyone in its path.

Clarksville actually was in position to post a win. At intermission the score was still tight, but second half turnovers helped the game get out of hand.

That shouldn’t be an issue with Crawford County this weekend. The Wolfpack are simply struggling right now — 0-7 overall and they’ve been outscored in their last two games 103-0. In fact, Crawford has been shut out three straight weeks.

The Generals roll in this one.

Clarksville 36, Crawford County 8