Monroe Dispatch - No Struggle, No Progress

Mr. Pickem Grissom's Football Predictions

Week 5 Nov. 6, 2020

Weekly Record: 11-1 Overall 56-16 Featured Games 3-5

Carroll Bulldogs (1-1) @ Wossman Wildcats (1-2)

For the first time in 3 weeks, the Wossman Wildcats will return to the field. After dealing with numerous Covid-19 issues that forced them to void games vs Edna Karr and Sterlington, a talented but inexperienced bunch of Wildcats will focus their sights on rival Carroll on Friday night. With a 1-2 record, Coach Mario Pollard's ball club is in need of a big win if they want to make a post-season appearance. Grissom's #3 ranked player, Jesse Booker has been phenomenal in the 3 games that he's played but due to the forfeitures not many people have seen the stud RB so far this year. Another issue that the 'Cats had to deal with was an injury to projected starting quarterback, Zay Wooten. The junior signal-caller was lost to a shoulder injury in a pre-season scrimmage to Neville, one week prior to their season opener. Wossman's lone win came versus Baker in week 1, but back-to-back losses to BTW (Shreveport LA) and Northwood (Shreveport LA) combined with the cancellations have placed them in the "out of sight, out of mind" category. This team is definitely talented enough to pull themselves out of the rut but with only 3 games left on the schedule they'll need to find a way to get a win on Friday.

Over on Renwick St, Carroll has experienced some of the same issues as their rivals. Since a week 3 win over Woodlawn (Baton Rouge LA), the 'Dogs have not touched the field due to similar covid-19 restrictions, but somehow they still sit at #3 in the 3A power rating projections. The high ranking comes as a bi-product of playing two hefty opponents. In their first game, coach Alex Washington's squad lost a thriller to Class 4A, Huntington, who currently sits at #6 in 4A with a 4-1 record and followed that with a huge win over 5A's #11 ranked team (Woodlawn). The 'Dawgs have also been out of sight, out of mind and no one really knows what to expect from a team with limited practice time, but if the implications can be based off their previous 2 games then this team will be hard to beat. Senior QB Tony Hollins was remarkable prior to the cancellations but may need to shake off some rust when he heads south to play a good Wossman defense.

The Bulldogs defense has been a key staple to their success under Washington and even though they've given up nearly 25ppg in 2020 their impact has been felt. The 'Dogs have managed to create 7 takeaways with a score in just 2 games. Defensive coordinator, Greg Boxley emphasizes aggressiveness and opportunity, and it has created an opportunistic mindset within his defenders that they should score just as much as opposing offenses. A season ago, the 'Dogs came away with timely stops against Wossman en route to a 29-8 home victory. However, this is a new year and a different venue. Booker was able to penetrate the Carroll defense to the tune of 150 yards on the ground, but it wasn't enough. Both teams loss a lot of key players to graduation and now with the constant threat of losing players to Covid-19 restrictions, knowing what team will be on the field is almost impossible. If both teams were fully healthy and this had been a regular year I would have given Wossman the edge, but as we all know this isn't a regular season. I don't think this young Carroll defense has what it takes to stop Booker so he should be able to carry the 'Cats into the 4th quarter. However, the Bulldogs have their highest ranking in quite some time and they're not quite ready to let it go. They'll bend but a late interception by DB Aeneas Roberts seals the deal and Carroll steals one on the road.

Carroll 20 Wossman 16

***Grissom's Star of The Game***

Tony Hollins: 15/23, 205 Yards, 2 TDs – 12 Carries, 100 Yards, 1 Td

Other Games:

5A

#4 West Monroe 28 Ouachita 13

#5 Ruston 30 Alexandria 14

West Ouachita 26 Pineville 21

4A

#7 Bastrop 37 Minden 34

Huntington 27 Franklin Parish 12

3A

#2 Union Parish 44 Green Oaks 21

Caldwell 26 Grant 23

2A

#1 Ferriday 58 #6 Mangham 30

Madison Parish 23 Vidalia 22

1A

#3 Oak Grove 60 Delhi 6

#9 St Fred's 17 Delta Charter 8

#10 OCS 58 Tensas 0

Cedar Creek 34 Sicily Island 12

Grissom's Top 10

Week 5

1 Ferriday Trojans (5-0)

2 Union Parish Farmers (5-0)

3 Oak Grove Tigers (5-0)

4 West Monroe Rebs (3-1)

5 Ruston Bearcats (4-1)

6 Mangham Dragons (5-0)

7 Bastrop Rams (4-1)

8 Neville Tigers (3-2)

9 St Fred's Warriors (4-1)

10 O.C.S. Eagles (4-1)

Just Missed It: Sterlington, West Ouachita, Carroll, General Trass, Rayville, Cedar Creek

Grissom's G.O.At. Of The Week

Week 5

(Offensive)

Da'minya Milligan

-Ferriday Trojans-

8 Carries, 272 Yards, 4 TDs

Grissom's G.O.At. Of The Week

Week 5

(Defensive)

Maurion Elam

-Neville Tigers-

5 Tackles, 3 Ints, 1 TD