Week 8 Brain Dump

Here’s what I “think” now that the 2010 football regular season has ended…

• Blaine is the team to beat in Section 7AAAAA and I just don’t see any team beating them.  But that’s why they play the games.  They have a bye the first week and will play the winner of the St. Francis @ Forest Lake game.
• This season has not been kind to Anoka but they have a 2-game winning streak heading into the post-season and open on the road against rival Andover.  In their regular season matchup Anoka led 17-14 in the 4th quarter but Andover scored two touchdowns, one on an interception that was returned for a touchdown just over three minutes remaining, to win the game 27-17.  Anoka is the 7th seed in the Section but anything is possible.
• Coon Rapids rebounded from a road loss at Osseo by scoring 21 4th quarter points at home to pull away from Maple Grove for a 28-6 victory.  The Cardinals finished the regular season 5-3 which was good enough for the #3 Section seed.  Their opponent will be the Centennial Cougars, a team that knocked them out of the playoffs a year ago and went on to win the Section championship. But this is not the same Centennial team.  They are 3-5 and are ahead of only Park Center and Robbinsdale Armstrong in points allowed (24.9) this season.  Coon Rapids has a much improved defense (17.9 points allowed per game) and they are unbeaten at home which is where this game will be played.  Time for some payback!
• Two straight losses at Coon Rapids and Blaine after a 5-0 start had the Andover Huskies on the ropes but in their season finale against Osseo they finally seemed to find themselves offensively.  Quarterback Tyler Finnes (Sr) stepped up with a monster game on the ground and made some some big throws in leading them to a 29-26 victory over the Orioles who were unbeaten in the conference at the time.  If they can get that kind of production from Finnes they might end up meeting Blaine in the Section championship.

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Results from Week 8 (home team in bold):
– Andover over Osseo, 29-26
– Anoka over Park Center, 35-3
– (3) Blaine over Robbinsdale Armstrong, 35-6
– Centennial over Champlin Park, 27-13
– Coon Rapids over Maple Grove, 28-6

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Northwest Suburban Conference Standings (Final)

School	Conf	Overall	Pts For	Pts Agst	Streak
Blaine	8-0	8-0	293	86	W8
Osseo	6-1	6-2	242	115	L1
Andover	6-2	6-2	208	161	W1
Coon Rapids	5-3	5-3	171	143	W1
Centennial	3-4	3-5	177	199	W1
Champlin Park	3-5	3-5	145	184	L4
Maple Grove	3-5	3-5	97	181	L1
Anoka	2-6	2-6	179	237	W2
Robbinsdale Armstrong	2-6	2-6	80	168	L1
Park Center	1-7	1-7	98	244	L3

Week Seven Brain Dump

Here’s what I “think” after the seventh week of the 2010 football season…

• Anoka finally broke through!  After some early competitive games this season the Tornadoes looked lost but found a way to stop the bleeding with a thrilling road victory at Centennial.  A win over Park Center to end the regular season and a first round playoff matchup with Andover or Coon Rapids might not look so impossible.
• What a difference a year makes for the Andover Huskies.  Blaine may have put the nail in their coffin last Friday with the 45-14 blowout.  Andover doesn’t have much speed outside and now that they’re without the services of their starting running back the only weapon they appear to have is quarterback Tyler Finnes (Sr).
• Blaine proved last Friday just how much better they are then the second tier teams in the Northwest Suburban Conference this season.  Osseo is also unbeaten but they are in a different section for the playoffs so unless Blaine completely melts down or has a few players go down to injury it’s almost a forgone conclusion that they will represent Section 7AAAAA in the State Tournament.
• Coon Rapids is 4-3 on the season, which is respectable, but they are 1-3 against quality teams and that is not.  There only quality win was against a banged up Andover team which doesn’t look so impressive now that Blaine has whipped them.  A win this week at home over Maple Grove and a loss by Andover at home against Osseo however, clinches the #2 seed in the Section 7AAAAA Playoffs and that is something to be proud of.  It would give them two playoff games at home where they are currently unbeaten (3-0).

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Results from Week 7 (home team in bold):
– Anoka over Centennial, 28-27
– (5) Blaine over Andover, 45-14
– Maple Grove over Champlin Park, 17-7
– Osseo over Coon Rapids, 20-14
– Robbinsdale Armstrong over Park Center, 24-7

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Northwest Suburban Conference Standings (after week 7)

School	Conf	Overall	Pts For	Pts Agst	Streak
Blaine	7-0	7-0	258	80	W7
Osseo	6-0	6-1	216	86	W5
Andover	5-2	5-2	179	135	L2
Coon Rapids	4-3	4-3	143	137	L1
Champlin Park	3-4	3-4	132	157	L3
Maple Grove	3-4	3-4	91	153	W2
Centennial	2-4	2-5	150	186	L1
Robbinsdale Armstrong	2-5	2-5	74	133	w1
Anoka	1-6	1-6	144	234	W1
Park Center	1-6	1-6	95	209	L2



Week Six Brain Dump

Here’s what I “think” after the sixth week of the 2010 football season…

• Anoka just can’t catch a break this season.  They continue to find ways to lose games.  Maple Grove, which came in with the lowest scoring offense in the conference averaging just under 8 points a game (7.8), almost matched their total for the entire season when they put up 35 on the Tornadoes.
• Taking into consideration how they’d lost the previous two games the upset win this week by Coon Rapids over Andover might have been the biggest win in Jon Young’s brief history as head coach there.  They are 4-2 overall right now but just 1-2 against quality opponents.  This week they hit the road for another quality opponent  in Osseo (5-1).
• Two things happened last Friday that in my opinion set the stage for an Andover loss at Coon Rapids… (1) They lost one of their starting defensive lineman (#75 – Thomas Anderson (Sr)) early in the 3rd quarter.  Prior to that Andover had done a good job of limiting the Cardinals rushing attack.  (2) A ridiculous call on the field of a fumble when Andover’s wide receiver (#5 – Jake Wagner (Sr)) was clearly down.  That fumble call gave Coon Rapids the ball deep in Andover territory with the game still tied 7-7 in the 4th quarter.  Andover doesn’t have a lot of time to get over that loss as they travel to Blaine for their much anticipated matchup with the Bengals.  They’d better come out ready to play in that game or it will be over by halftime.
• Blaine just keeps rolling.  They have the highest scoring offense in the conference and have given up the fewest points.  Their game at home against Andover this week lost some of its luster after Andover’s loss at Coon Rapids but it should be Blaine’s last real test before the playoffs begin.

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Results from Week 6 (home team in bold):
– (6) Blaine over Park Center, 35-3
– Centennial over Robbinsdale Armstrong, 7-3
– Coon Rapids over (7) Andover, 21-7
– Maple Grove over Anoka, 35-31
– Osseo over Champlin Park, 33-17

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Northwest Suburban Conference Standings (after week 6)

School	Conf	Overall	Pts For	Pts Agst	Streak
Blaine	6-0	6-0	213	66	W6
Osseo	5-0	5-1	196	72	W4
Andover	5-1	5-1	165	90	L1
Coon Rapids	4-2	4-2	129	117	W1
Champlin Park	3-3	3-3	125	140	L2
Centennial	2-3	2-4	123	158	W1
Maple Grove	2-4	2-4	74	146	W1
Park Center	1-5	1-5	88	185	L1
Robbinsdale Armstrong	1-5	1-5	50	126	L1
Anoka	0-6	0-6	116	207	L6



Week Five Brain Dump

Here’s what I “think” after the fifth week of the 2010 football season…

• A lot of “experts” were predicting a Champlin Park victory over Andover and losing Michael Sales definitely hurt, but the Huskies are a really good team.  They not only beat the Rebels, they completely shut them down.  They don’t throw the ball around like they did last year but they have a solid running game to go along with a strong defense.  They get Blaine in two weeks.
• Anoka’s long season just got longer with another loss to Osseo.  Long lived the “Wing-T”!
• I didn’t think Blaine would lose to Coon Rapids.  A writer from the StarTribune predicted a close 27-20 victory, which I found quite generous to the Cardinals.  Blaine is the class of the conference and they made it look extremely easy against Coon Rapids.  They have a lot of skill on offense and are very well coached on defense.  Besides Andover head coach Rich Wilkie I’m not sure there is a better coach in this conference at demanding from his players and preparing them to be successful than Bengals head coach Shannon Gerrety.
• What a difference a week makes for Coon Rapids.  Last week they were riding high even after letting the game slip away at Champlin Park.  They were 3-1 and had a lot of people convinced they were a team on the rise and a possible conference challenger.  It took less than a half against Blaine to realize that wasn’t reality.  With the exception of a touchdown drive to open the game the Cardinals looked overmatched and underprepared.  To be a quality team you’ve got to be able to limit the damage, make adjustments and remain calm in adverse situations.  That has been an issue for Coon Rapids over the years and it reared its ugly head last Friday against Blaine.  Another big game this week as unbeaten Andover comes to town for homecoming.

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Results from Week 5 (home team in bold):
– (5) Blaine over Coon Rapids, 42-7
– (7) Andover over Champlin Park, 28-0
– Osseo over Anoka, 51-22
– Park Center over Centennial, 35-28
– Robbinsdale Armstrong over Maple Grove, 14-7

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Northwest Suburban Conference Standings (after week 5)

School	Conf	Overall	Pts For	Pts Agst	Streak
Andover	5-0	5-0	158	69	W5
Blaine	5-0	5-0	178	63	W5
Osseo	4-0	4-1	163	55	W3
Champlin Park	3-2	3-2	108	107	L1
Coon Rapids	3-2	3-2	108	110	L2
Centennial	1-3	1-4	116	155	L2
Park Center	1-4	1-4	85	150	W1
Robbinsdale Armstrong	1-4	1-4	47	119	W1
Maple Grove	1-4	1-4	39	115	L1
Anoka	0-5	0-5	85	172	L5



Week Four Brain Dump

Here’s what I “think” after the fourth week of the 2010 football season…

• Coon Rapids has more skill on offense then they had a year ago but most importantly they have a much improved defense.  Defense has consistently been an issue for the Cardinals over the years and it is the main reason they are 3-1 this season.  If they’d stayed aggressive until the final whistle against Champlin Park they would have won that game.  For some reason the Cardinals always seem to find a way to lose games.  Fixing that will lift them into the top tier of the conference.
• Blaine showed their superiority once again this past week by dominating Centennial.  They still have Osseo and Andover on their schedule but I’m not sure their is a team in this conference that can beat them.
• Anoka competed this week which was good to see.  If they keep competing they will pull themselves out of the conference cellar.
• It might not have been spectacular but a win is a win.  Andover is still unbeaten (4-0) and they welcome their biggest challenge of the season to date this week as the Champlin Park Rebels visit Husky Stadium.  If they win that game they should go into the Blaine game (October 15th) still unbeaten.

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Results from Week 4 (home team in bold):
– Andover over Anoka, 28-14
– Blaine over Centennial, 36-6
– Champlin Park over Coon Rapids, 29-28 (2OT)
– Maple Grove over Park Center, 19-12
– Osseo over Robbinsdale Armstrong, 36-0

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Northwest Suburban Conference Standings (after week 4)

School	Conf	Overall	Pts For	Pts Agst	Streak
Andover	4-0	4-0	130	69	W4
Blaine	4-0	4-0	136	56	W4
Osseo	3-0	3-1	112	33	W2
Champlin Park	3-1	3-1	108	79	W1
Coon Rapids	3-1	3-1	101	68	L1
Centennial	1-2	1-3	88	120	L1
Maple Grove	1-3	1-3	32	101	W1
Anoka	0-4	0-4	63	121	L4
Park Center	0-4	0-4	50	122	L4
Robbinsdale Armstrong	0-4	0-4	33	112	L4



Week Three Brain Dump

Here’s what I “think” after the third week of the 2010 football season…

• Anoka is bad.  I thought they might be decent this season after their opening game against Blaine but the wheels have come completely off offensively.  It might be a long season for them.
• Andover doesn’t have the offensive firepower around quarterback Tyler Finnes that they had a season ago but Finnes is still pretty good.  I’m not sure they can win the conference but he will keep them in competition to the end.
• Blaine showed their weaknesses last week against Champlin Park but had a big enough cushion to hold on for the victory.  The Bengals struggle defending the pass and if you can keep Kline in the pocket you can slow their offense down.  I still think they are the team to beat in the conference.
• Coon Rapids is 3-0.  I don’t remember the last time they started a season that way.  Sure they’ve played the weaker teams in the conference but they still won the games.  Something they didn’t always do last season (i.e. Park Center).  Antonio Ford returned and combined with Mo Ward to rush for almost 200 yards.  They get Champlin Park this week and will certainly go into that game as the underdog.  If they can run the ball effectively and stay close going into the fourth quarter they might just pull off the upset.

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Results from Week 3 (home team in bold):
– Andover over Robbinsdale Armstrong, 28-14
– Blaine over Champlin Park, 28-21
– Centennial over Maple Grove, 21-7
– Coon Rapids over Anoka, 23-7
– Osseo over Park Center, 35-6

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Northwest Suburban Conference Standings (after week 3)

School	Conf	Overall	Pts For	Pts Agst	Streak
Andover	3-0	3-0	103	52	W3
Blaine	3-0	3-0	100	50	W3
Coon Rapids	3-0	3-0	73	39	W3
Osseo	2-0	2-1	76	33	W1
Champlin Park	2-1	2-1	79	51	L1
Centennial	1-1	1-2	82	84	W1
Anoka	0-3	0-3	46	95	L3
Maple Grove	0-3	0-3	13	89	L3
Park Center	0-3	0-3	38	103	L3
Robbinsdale Armstrong	0-3	0-3	33	76	L3

Week Two Brain Dump

Here’s what I “think” after the second week of the 2010 football season…

• Anoka took a step back this week .  After showing some signs of life on offense in their first game they were pretty much shut down by Champlin Park.  Weather may have contributed but they also struggled to keep their composure.  This weeks game at Coon Rapids will be a big one for them.
• Andover struggled to put away Park Center until late but I still think they are the second best team in the conference.  Champlin Park is right on their tail though.
• Blaine has dominated their first two opponents and appears to be the class of the conference.  They get their toughest opponent to date next Friday when Champlin Park comes to Bengal Stadium.
• Another win against a weak opponent puts Coon Rapids at 2-0.  The wins haven’t been pretty but they are wins.  Mo Ward (Jr) has had a tremendous start to the 2010 season rushing for 314 yards in the two games.  Just how good are they?  We’ll find out soon as their schedule starts to get a little tougher this week.

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Results from Week 2 (home team in bold):
– Andover over Park Center, 34-12
– Champlin Park over Anoka, 26-16
– Blaine over Maple Grove, 27-6
– Hopkins over Centennial, 36-25
– Coon Rapids over Robbinsdale Armstrong, 16-12
– Minnetonka over Osseo, 27-0

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Northwest Suburban Conference Standings (after week 2)

School	Record (Overall)	Pts Scored	Pts Allowed	Streak
Andover	2-0 (2-0)	75	38	W2
Blaine	2-0 (2-0)	72	29	W2
Champlin Park	2-0 (2-0)	58	23	W2
Coon Rapids	2-0 (2-0)	50	32	W2
Osseo	1-0 (1-1)	41	27	L1
Anoka	0-2 (0-2)	39	72	L2
Centennial	0-1 (0-2)	61	77	L2
Maple Grove	0-2 (0-2)	6	68	L2
Park Center	0-2 (0-2)	32	68	L2
Robbinsdale Armstrong	0-2 (0-2)	19	48	L2

Week One Brain Dump

Here’s what I “think” after the first week of the 2010 football season…

• Blaine has a lot of offensive skill around arguably the best dual-threat quarterback in the state in Eric Kline and should compete for another Conference championship.
• Andover will go as far as Tyler Finnes can take them and should be a lot of fun to watch this season.
• Anoka will be a better team by the end of the season than what they showed against Blaine.
• There’s been a lot of “Antonio Ford” hype coming out of Coon Rapids but the running back we should be talking about is Mo Ward (Jr). Ward actually played in the first game and rushed for 150 yards and 3 touchdowns.

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Northwest Suburban Conference Standings (after week 1)

School	Wins	Losses	Pts Scored	Pts Allowed	Streak
Andover	1	0	41	26	W1
Blaine	1	0	45	23	W1
Champlin Park	1	0	32	7	W1
Coon Rapids	1	0	34	20	W1
Osseo	1	0	41	0	W1
Anoka	0	1	23	45	L1
Centennial	0	1	26	41	L1
Maple Grove	0	1	0	41	L1
Park Center	0	1	20	34	L1
Robbinsdale Armstrong	0	1	7	32	L1