It's absolutely amazing how fast some of these seasons fly by. Seems like we were just wondering about whether Liberty would win a big game this year as it entered its Week 0 showdown at Clovis West, and now the Patriots are about out of "big games" to win (they did beat Bakersfield, for the record, and are in pole position for the SEYL outright title). Seems like we were just wondering if any local team has what it takes to run the table (did anybody have Frontier in their last man standing pool?). We were just wondering who would win section titles.

OK, we're still working on that last one. The next few weeks are vitally important for seeding purposes in the playoffs. And yes, that obviously means the big games — Taft-Wasco in Division IV this week, Frontier-Stockdale in Divs. I and II in a couple of Fridays — but it also means the other games. You can't do what Bakersfield did last year and lose to a team you think you ought to beat — it cost the Drillers probably two seed lines and a home game in the quarterfinals. Any slip-up is a cause for a tougher matchup early in the playoffs, and so it hurts your chances at a section title. It's not quite college football, where teams are playing directly for their title hopes every week, but it does have an impact.

Before we get started on Week 7 predictions, a couple of notes out of Garces to pass along:

First, quarterback Blake Campbell broke his collarbone in the Rams' loss to Bakersfield last week, and though he actually continued to play with it (no one realized it was a break), he's now out for the remainder of the season. A big blow there to Garces, which had found some offensive balance with Campbell under center. Sophomore Phillip Anspach will get first crack at replacing Campbell.

Second, a bit of a breakthrough in the David Fanucchi resignation enigma. Neither Fanucchi nor the school has ever confirmed that the coach said he would resign at the end of the year, but now they don't have to. The school sent out a release yesterday saying it's started a statewide search for a football coach for 2010. Still nothing on the Garces website as of noon Wednesday, but you've got to think it's coming. So that's settled: David Fanucchi will not be the Rams' coach next year, at least not unless he somehow re-applies and gets the job, which seems highly unlikely.

Now on to the games. First, let's take a look at my predictive performance last week.

The good: Another solid week overall, with a better-than-75 percent winning percentage. Specifically, calling out Liberty mistakes as the reason in a defensive loss to Stockdale, taking Frontier easily over Ridgeview and picking East to get to 3-0 in the SEYL.

The bad: Missed by a lot on some margins. I thought Garces would give Bakersfield a better battle (the Rams did for a half), and I didn't think things would be so easy for Centennial and Taft, among others.

The ugly: I thought Delano could come up with a big victory at Porterville, but I underestimated the Panthers at home. Also missed for the second time this year on Golden Valley, this time against Highland. About time to think about a Bulldogs pick before too long.

Friday, Oct. 23
TAFT (5-1, 1-0 SSL) AT WASCO (5-1, 1-0) — No secrets here: These teams will run the ball like it's the new fad instead of the old one. The inner battle between Cody Shirreffs and Quentin Cheatham's rushing totals will be interesting, though Shirreffs gets a few more carries a game. It's also interesting to note that Taft hasn't been on the road since Week 0, when they lost a close one at Templeton. Can Wasco turn its magical non-league run into true contender status in the SSL, or will the Wildcats make next week's trip to Tehachapi a league-championship showdown? I'm leaning with Taft, because (a) the Wildcats are a bit bigger and have played more consistent defense and (b) these kids have played in some big games in the past couple of years; for Wasco, the pressure might be on a little bit in front of a big home crowd. This one ought to be a doozy, though.
Prediction: Taft 34, Wasco 28

STOCKDALE (5-1, 2-0 SWYL) AT RIDGEVIEW (5-2, 1-2) — It's been a nice turnaround season for Ridgeview in Dennis Manning's first year at the helm, but I don't think the Wolf Pack really call it a success unless there is an upset in league or a deep playoff run in Division III. We'll see about the latter, but here's a chance for the upset. Last year, Tyler Dogins was a beast on offense and defense, and he led Ridgeview to an upset on the road of Stockdale. But while this year's Ridgeview team is better, so is this year's Stockdale team. The guys I saw on the field after the Liberty win were so amped up that I don't see Stockdale slipping here, even without injured running back Malik Henderson.
Prediction: Stockdale 30, Ridgeview 14

FOOTHILL (1-5, 0-2 SEYL) AT BAKERSFIELD (4-2, 1-1) — I mention this up high because it's a chance, a good one, for the Drillers to get program victory No. 700. Now that total includes 12 rugby victories earned between 1910 and 1914, when the Central Valley played that sport instead of football out of concerns for violence. But both CalHiSports and Central Section historian Bob Barnett count those victories towards a team's total, so that's good enough for me. Maybe they can celebrate 700 again when they reach that in football-only wins. The first milestone should come rather easily against a Foothill team that could have turned a corner offensively in a close loss to East last week but one that shouldn't be able to keep up with the Drillers.
Prediction: Bakersfield 48, Foothill 7

GARCES (3-3, 2-1 SEYL) AT EAST (3-3, 3-0) — Now that the Blades have knocked off the three Division III teams in the SEYL, they get a chance to prove themselves further against the big boys. They might have to settle for those three wins, though; Garces will be a different kind of team defensively than East has seen in league play, and it will make Joe Pearson (Kern County's leading passer, by the way) and company work for their yardage. East's defense, then, will have to step up, and while the Rams will be without Blake Campbell, I think they've got plenty of firepower in that running game to force the Blades into catch-up mode. Once that happens, Garces can feast on some turnovers and pull away. East will get some shots in, but it won't be enough.
Prediction: Garces 37, East 20

CENTENNIAL (4-2, 1-1 SWYL) AT WEST (3-3, 2-1) — The blowout loss to Frontier a couple of weeks ago took some luster off of their position, but the Vikings certainly are still a factor in the SWYL. Think about what a great spot West would be in with a win here — 3-1 in the league with South up after a non-league game with Garces. A win against South would then put the Vikes in position for a league championship with an upset of Stockdale. It's a long way off, yes, but don't discredit this team just yet. However, Centennial has seen West's type of speed before — think Stockdale (didn't fare so well) and Bakersfield (fared reasonably well). I think they keep West's attack at bay, and I think the Centennial attack, which last week proved it could be a lot more than Cody Kessler, scores enough points for an important two-score win on the road.
Prediction: Centennial 31, West 21

MIRA MONTE (2-4, 2-0 SCSL) AT INDEPENDENCE (3-3, 2-0) — One of the better games of the weekend could be between these two new schools, who have each notched blowouts against fellow South Central Sequoia League members Kennedy and Tulare-Mission Oak over the past three weeks. It's a little difficult to gauge teams that are so young, but it's safe to say we'll see Mira Monte's Tim Harris a lot — he of the 261 yards and four TDs last week — against an athletic Independence defense that just needs to keep Harris at bay while its offense puts up some points. The Falcons have averaged 46 in their first two league games, and that plus a home-field edge will be enough here in a great game.
Prediction: Independence 31, Mira Monte 26

HIGHLAND (2-5) AT FRONTIER (6-0) — Last year this game, a 16-3 Highland win, showed off the best of what the defensive-minded Scots and the rest of a deep Southeast Yosemite League could be. This year, it'll show off the opposite. Frontier is leaps and bounds better, and the Scots have stumbled on some hard times with the loss of Anthony Johnson and Patrick Su'a to Fresno State over the past couple of years and now a one-game suspension of running back Alan Roy that contributed to a three-game losing streak to start SEYL play, with none of the games particularly close. Roy is back, but wins are going to be tough to come by for Highland against its back-loaded schedule. Give the Titans another big win.
Prediction: Frontier 44, Highland 6

LIBERTY (3-3, 2-0 SEYL) AT GOLDEN VALLEY (2-4, 1-2) — Bulldogs coach Erich Smith might have found a mix he likes after an offseason in which he lost almost all his key parts from last year either through graduation or attrition of some sort (injury, discipline, grades, transfers, you name it). For instance, senior Manuel Vargas has had his coming-out party in the past couple of weeks, rushing for 105 yards against East and 196 in a victory against Highland last week. But Liberty is a different animal than either of those teams, and Vargas and Golden Valley will probably find holes quite a bit smaller. The real question here for me is whether Liberty's offense can show some real signs of life against a defense that's been torched at times this year. The Pats have scored against teams before, but I think everyone over at Liberty would like to see a real feast.
Prediction: Liberty 38, Golden Valley 7

NORTH (1-5, 0-3 SWYL) AT SOUTH (4-2, 0-2) — After a promising 4-0 start, the Rebels have confirmed some fears, going up against a couple of great offenses and getting hammered to the tune of 98 points over the first six quarters. The good news is that with Stockdale and Centennial out of the way, South should be able to continue its march to a possible winning record and a decent seed in the Division III playoffs. North is having trouble holding on to the ball and getting first downs, much less scoring like either the Mustangs or the Golden Hawks can. Give South's offense a quarter or so to get going, then watch a couple of big plays put North in a hole that it can't climb out of.
Prediction: South 29, North 16

BAKERSFIELD CHRISTIAN (2-4, 0-1 SSL) AT TEHACHAPI (5-1, 1-0) — Tehachapi gave the best BCHS team in history all it could handle last year, nearly erasing a huge deficit and stunning the Eagles at home. This year's Warriors team isn't quite so veteran, but BCHS is merely a shell of what it was last year. Now up on the mountain, Tehachapi won't have trouble controlling the Eagles' passing game or ripping BCHS on the ground. The Eagles need to learn how to run and stop the run to get back on the winning track, but it won't happen this week. Tehachapi sets up next week's big game with Taft with ease.
Prediction: Tehachapi 41, Bakersfield Christian 9

SHAFTER (1-5, 0-1 SSL) AT ARVIN (1-5, 0-1) — Not to put too fine a point on it, but the loser of this game is going to going to find itself getting to know the SSL cellar, I'm afraid. Neither team has shown a propensity to even stick close to good teams. So who will get on the right track here? I'm tempted to call for an upset and pick the Generals, who have been showing signs of improvement in the past few weeks even as they lose. But the Bears have the benefit of recent history — they've handled Shafter easily the past few years — and the better win between the two, against Foothill. I think Arvin simply is a bit better at this point.
Prediction: Arvin 27, Shafter 21

SAN LUIS OBISPO-MISSION PREP (3-3, 1-0 ESL) AT McFARLAND (4-3, 1-0) — This is quite possibly the game of the year for McFarland, at least until the playoffs. The Cougars have been pretty good in their non-league season, a Division VI team beating a Division V and losing to two Division IVs. That alone should let you know they're capable of competing in the East Sierra League, which is five D-VI teams and D-V Mission Prep. If the Cougars can tame Mission Prep, they could very well win the league. So what to do? It will be close, one way or the other, and I'll give the nod to the home team. Cougars win a big one.
Prediction: McFarland 26, Mission Prep 23

PORTERVILLE-MONACHE (3-3, 2-1 EYL) AT CHAVEZ (4-3, 1-2) — Needing a win — or at least some points — in the worst way, the Titans got just what the doctor ordered last week with Porterville-Granite Hills on the schedule. They popped off a 49-0 victory after two straight shutout losses. In fact, if you take away that victory and a 33-0 win against Mira Monte in Week 0, Chavez has scored just 37 points in five games. That's not going to win you many games, even with a solid defense that has allowed only 28 points in six games against teams not named Tulare Union. Monache, though, can score a few points. If they get to 21, this one might be over.
Prediction: Monache 21, Chavez 13

DELANO (5-1, 1-1 EYL) AT PORTERVILLE-GRANITE HILLS (0-7, 0-3) — Here's a chance for the Tigers to get healthy after a bruising loss at Porterville and with a home date to take a shot at Tulare Union coming next week. The starters should be out by the start of the third quarter, and Delano should put up some big numbers. Granite Hills, by the way, has scored in exactly one game all year.
Prediction: Delano 55, Granite Hills 0

DESERT (1-5, 0-1 HDL) AT KERN VALLEY (5-1, 1-0) — At home for the fourth straight week, the Broncs shouldn't have much of a problem scoring in this one — they've scored 27 or more in five of their six games this year and Desert has given up 40 or more in each of the last three games. I don't see any reason to believe that will change — expect Kern Valley to gear up for a big trip to Bishop next week with a second straight High Desert victory.
Prediction: Kern Valley 42, Desert 17

ROSAMOND (1-5, 0-1 HDL) AT FRAZIER MOUNTAIN (5-1, 1-0) — Continuing with the undercard portion of the HDL schedule, the Falcons host the Roadrunners in an another apparent mismatch. It actually works out nicely for the High Desert this year: All three of the top teams, Frazier Mountain, Kern Valley and Bishop, should be 2-0 next week when they finally begin to duke it out amongst one another.
Prediction: Frazier Mountain 33, Rosamond 3

BISHOP (2-3, 1-0 HDL) AT CALIFORNIA CITY (0-5, 0-1) — Signs of progress for the Ravens last week in the form of a couple of touchdowns at Kern Valley last week, one of them even in the first half when KV likely had some starters left in the game. Cal City had scored just one TD in its first four games combined, garbage time or no. But any progress in terms of wins and losses will have to wait until Weeks 9 and 10, when Desert and Rosamond are the opponents. Bishop is too strong.
Prediction: Bishop 45, California City 14

APPLE VALLEY-GRANITE HILLS (5-1, 0-0 DSL) AT BURROUGHS (3-3, 0-1) — Few teams have played more close games than the Burros, who are 1-3 in games decided by eight points or fewer, including last week's 28-21 overtime loss to Barstow to open league play. I'm going to pick Burroughs again, simply because this ought to be another close one and luck is bound to change. It's also a must for Burroughs' playoff hopes. Backs against the wall, the Burros come through.
Prediction: Burroughs 23, Granite Hills 21

BORON (4-2, 1-0 DML) AT LUCERNE VALLEY (2-4, 0-1) — Three Bobcats backs — Reggie Heard, Leroy Taylor and DeAndre Golden — have at least 450 yards, six touchdowns and a run of 60 yards each. Those are pretty explosive stats. Here's a real prediction for you: Boron, as a team, will run for 450 yards, six touchdowns and have a long of at least 60 this week.
Prediction: Boron 56, Lucerne Valley 17

LANCASTER-DESERT CHRISTIAN (2-4, 1-0 DML) AT MOJAVE (4-1, 0-0) — Here's a scheduling quirk, thanks to Mammoth moving to 8-man football: Mojave had two straight bye weeks and hasn't played since Oct. 2. That's probably not a great position to be in — Larry Satterfield has had to find ways to keep his kids sharp — but Boron and Mojave are heads and shoulders above the rest of this league, and the Mustangs should show it in this, what could be a battle for second place but will end up a wipeout.
Prediction: Mojave 35, Desert Christian 13

MARICOPA (4-2, 1-1 CVL) AT ATASCADERO-NORTH COUNTY CHRISTIAN (0-6, 0-2) — A big win for the Indians against Shandon last week, and this now becomes a situation where Maricopa needs to root for the team it just played. Likely the only way it can win a Coast Valley League title is if Shandon beats Santa Maria-Valley Christian in the final game of the year to create a three-way tie. And oh yeah, Maricopa needs to continue to take care of its own business.
Prediction: Maricopa 37, North County Christian 19

IMMANUEL CHRISTIAN (4-2, 2-0 HLL) AT LONE PINE (1-4, 0-2) — Lone Pine is better than its record shows, with all four losses coming to teams at .500 or better, but this is a road game the Crusaders can win. That would guarantee a playoff spot for Immanuel Christian and set up a couple of showdowns in the final two weeks of the year with Big Pine and Trona for a Hi-Lo League title.
Prediction: Immanuel Christian 35, Lone Pine 30

Saturday, Oct. 24
ALPAUGH (0-4, 0-1 CSL) AT LIGHTHOUSE CHRISTIAN (2-4, 1-1) — There are no eight-man playoffs in the Central Section because there's just one league, though it's been split into two divisions this year. That's going to make motivation a bit of a concern for Lighthouse Christian and coach Tony Martinez. But something the Guardians can chase is a .500 record. They need to win three out of four to get there, and this looks like an easy first step.
Prediction: Lighthouse Christian 47, Alpaugh 15

Last week: 19-4 (.826)
This year: 114-37 (.755)