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Best Bets: Week 3

East Central RB Josh Ringer (photo by: Sandy Mahoney / X: @InMotionBy Sandy)

Let’s just get this question out of the way now. What is going on in the Greater Miami Conference? Middletown finds itself on top of the conference, along with Princeton, while Lakota West, Colerain, Lakota East, and Fairfield are all 0-2. Hamilton, one week after being blanked by city rival Badin, comes back in Week 2 and shuts out Lakota East on the road. Two weeks in and it’s setting up to be a wild ride in the GMC this season.

St. Xavier is 2-0 after starting 0-2 last year. La Salle appears to have turned a corner after beating up on Colerain and narrowly losing to a good Northmont team, while Moeller and Elder also find themselves at 1-1. In the ECC, all the usual suspects find themselves at 2-0 while several Northern Kentucky teams are appearing to be state title contenders.

We’ve already learned a lot after two weeks of the 2023 season, but there’s still eight weeks left. A lot can change and many teams will improve throughout the season. Lakota West won’t finish 0-10 and Moeller may not lose another game on its schedule.

What excitement will Week 3 bring? Here are this week’s Best Bets.

LEBANON AT #9 ANDERSON
This could be an under-the-radar matchup in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference this week. Lebanon, a team that lost five one-score (or less) games in 2022, nearly knocked off one of the best offenses in the region by taking Milford down to the wire last week. In last year’s contest between Lebanon and Anderson, it took a field goal at the horn for the Raptors to avoid the upset. One year later, we’re back and the Warriors appear to be out for blood.

In order to do so though, they will have to take down an offense in Anderson that, despite losing Griffin Scalf to graduation, has reloaded, not rebuilt. The Raptors are 2-0 for the first time since 2018, which is not a total surprise when you look at what they’ve done the first two weeks. They outscored South Oldham (KY) and Loveland a combined 92-29 behind the new gunslinger under center in Justice Burnam. The junior quarterback has already amassed 647 yards and nine touchdowns through the air this season. Oh, and he hasn’t turned the ball over. Anderson can also run the ball, racking up 260 rushing yards in last week’s win over Loveland.

The Warriors have a young quarterback starting for the first time as well in Luke Faler. The sophomore, however, has played like a senior at times the first two games. In Week 1 against Springboro, Faler threw for a respectable 156 yards and a touchdown. He followed that up with a breakout performance in Week 2 against Milford, throwing for 272 yards and three touchdowns. His demise, however, came in the form of two crucial interceptions. Helping Faler are a couple of experienced pass catchers, senior Kyle Koch and Lukas Roddy, who both had 100+ receiving yards in Week 2.

The key in this game for Anderson will be defense. It’s almost always been the Raptors’ achilles heel. Last season, the Raptors gave up 462, by far the most in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference. Seth Wake has awoken this season, leading the Raptor defense with 16 total tackles. Walnut Hills transfer TJ Nelson has also been a force on the defensive side of the ball with 14 total tackles.

For Lebanon, you have to avoid turnovers. Lebanon turned the ball over twice last week against Milford. You can’t do that if you’re hoping to keep up with a high-octane offense like Anderson.

Anderson gets the edge in this one, but don’t be shocked if Lebanon pulls off the massive upset. Based on past history, it’s only a matter of time.

#4 MOELLER AT #8 EAST CENTRAL
This is always one of the most anticipated interstate matchups every year. Two powerhouses playing each other with state title aspirations, what can be better than that? This series has been nearly even with Moeller taking the last two meetings after East Central won the first one in 2020. Can East Central tie the series up in 2023?

Not surprisingly, the Trojans are off to a hot 2-0 start with a pair of 42-7 wins. The star so far has been running back Josh Ringer, who is continuing his dominance on the ground. So far in 2023, Ringer has rushed for 342 yards and eight touchdowns. He also has a receiving touchdown that went for 29 yards.

Moeller, however, has a stud running back of their own in Michigan commit Jordan Marshall, who has also tallied a couple of 100+ yard games. Despite being a little dinged up, Marshall has two rushes that have gone for 75-yard scores. Marshall also has two receiving scores to go with his four rushing scores.

The big question will be which Crusaders’ defense shows up against East Central? Will it be the defense that gave up 49 points to Ben Davis or will it be the defense that shut out Bishop Dwenger? Ben Davis racked up 508 yards of total offense, including over 200 of those on the ground. The following week, however, the Crusaders only allowed 163 yards of total offense. East Central can run and East Central can score.

No matter how this game turns out, it will be a good test for both teams en route to their state title runs. This game is truly a toss-up, but the very slight edge goes to Moeller.

#7 LAKOTA WEST AT #18 FAIRFIELD
Friday night against Fairfield will be the game where we find out who Lakota West really is. Are the Firebirds a young team that has incredible potential to grow throughout the season after playing difficult team after difficult team after difficult team? Or is this truly a rebuilding year for Tom Bolden and Lakota West? 

Despite being 0-2 as well, Fairfield will not be a cakewalk for Lakota West. Look at what Talon Fisher did in Week 1 against Wayne. Fisher threw for 245 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing for 144 yards and three touchdowns. The dud against Sycamore is a bit head scratching, but it’s not quite time to sound the alarm on the Indians. A win over Lakota West could be just the game the team needs to instill a sense of momentum going into the rest of the GMC schedule.

Lakota West, meanwhile, still has been unable to find a groove on offense. Quarterback Jackson Smith has thrown four interceptions and no touchdowns. In fact, the entire offense has yet to score a touchdown. The defense has been doing its part to keep the Firebirds in play throughout the game, only allowing 10 points to St. Xavier and 18 points to Princeton, both teams that can score some points in large amounts.

If Lakota West wants to compete for a GMC title, this is the game it needs to get back into alignment. If the Firebirds can’t score a touchdown or several in order to beat an 0-2 Fairfield team, we could see a new champion of the GMC for the first time since 2019.

As for this game’s best bet, look squarely at the quarterback position. Talon Fisher is a proven talent both through the air and on the ground. Expect him to pressure the Lakota West defense, which gave up 31 points to Fairfield last year. Fairfield with the edge.

#23 COOPER AT RYLE
The Battle of Union is shaping up to be an exciting one as the Cooper Jaguars have perhaps their best opportunity to knock off the Ryle Raiders for the first time since 2015.

Cooper is coming in 2-0 after back-to-back dominating performances over Bardstown and Henry Clay. Having outscored their opponents 77-16, the Jaguars have their sights set on something bigger down the line, and a win over Ryle could be just the juice they need to get through the toughest part of their schedule with some momentum.

Ryle, meanwhile, is coming into this matchup 1-1, with the only loss coming to a difficult Covington Catholic team who looks the part of the best team in Northern Kentucky. The Raiders responded with a convincing 28-7 win over Conner in Week 2. Also on Ryle’s side is history, having taken this rivalry game each of the last seven seasons.

Cooper has the edge, but expect an all-out battle for bragging rights in Union.

GAME OF THE WEEK
Make sure to check out the COMPLETE PREVIEW for this week’s featured game on the Blitz 5 Tour,  No. 21 Lakota East at No. 3 Princeton.

Here are some other games for teams ranked inside the Blitz 5 Top 25:

OHIO
West Clermont at No. 1 Winton Woods

No. 2 St. Xavier at McCallie (TN)

Springboro at No. 5 Elder

Lima Senior at No. 6 Withrow

No. 10 Milford at Loveland

Dupont Manuel (KY) at No. 12 Taft

Walnut Hills at No. 13 Kings

No. 14 Mason at No. 20 Hamilton

No. 15 Mount Healthy at Wilmington

No. 16 Middletown at No. 25 Sycamore

Fairmont at No. 17 La Salle

Edgewood at No. 19 Badin

Tri-Valley at No. 24 Clinton-Massie

KENTUCKY
No. 11 Covington Catholic at Simon Kenton

No. 22 Beechwood at Dixie Heights

 

 

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