We are more than halfway through the football season; some things have fallen into place, there are some things undecided but as I stated before the year kicked off, I thought our local teams were going to be in great shape come November.
In the 1A bracket, my top two teams before the season were Wilson Prep (2-4) and Robbinsville (3-4). They are sitting in the Maxpreps’ poll at No. 3 and No. 2 respectively.
In 2A, I had Tarboro, Tarboro, and Tarboro. I put Murphy as the one to face them in the championship. Tarboro (5-1) is ranked No. 1 and Murphy (4-2) is sitting at the eighth position. Currently in the 3A rankings, the teams I chose were Shelby (5-1) and James Kenan (4-1). Shelby is ranked first while James Kenan is in the third position.
As for the local teams, I chose Whiteville (5-0) as a sleeper in the 3A playoffs and to win the Southeastern Conference title. Nobody is sleeping on them now, as they are ranked No. 10 and if things hold pace, the Pack will have a first round bye and a second-round home playoff game.
South Columbus (4-2) is in the 24th place and would have a home first round game at Vinegar Hill. In the 2A Classification, In the 2A classification, I put East Bladen (5-2) as a sleeper. Nobody is sleeping on the Eagles now, either, as they may have the best running back duo in the state.
The Eagles are sitting at No. 16 in the 2A polls and would receive a bye and home second round game if the playoffs started today. West Columbus (2-4) is ranked 26 in the 2A polls and would have a home first round game. As for the 1A playoffs, East Columbus (3-4) are in the 15 slot in the rankings. They would have a home playoff game.
I would not be surprised if the Gators are not in the 2A Eastern Championship for a shot to got to the state championship.
There is a lot of football still to play. We still have Whiteville hosting South Columbus in the final week. East Bladen must avoid an upset as they are in the driver’s seat for the Carolina Conference title after downing North Duplin 40-35. West Columbus has some games they can use to improve their playoff position. East Columbus needs to get polished for its playoff run.
It looking like it going to be a great ending to the regular season and wonderful playoffs for football coaches, players, fans, and sports reporters moving through October and into November.
