It's cold and it's playoff time!!

This is my first post...

Football - Tonight I am covering the North Branch-Powers football game for the Tuscola County Advertiser, and forecasts for the game are calling for snow, with temperatures in the high 20's. I don't think I have a warm enough jacket, and I'm sure there will not be room in the press box. Oh well....

I've looked at both teams, Powers only briefly, but I have seen NB play twice.
First time I saw NB, they played Millington and they were terrible. Millington won that game, 34-14, but that was all the back in week three, and Broncos are a completely different team now.
I saw them again in week eight, when they played Frankenmuth, and they blew the Eagles out, 53-28.

'Muth was coming off of a four game win streak, so it's not as if the Eagles were an easy target for the Broncos; NB is just that good!
Their quarterback, Duncan Bone, has thrown for more than 1,000 yards and rushed for more than 1,000, while accounting for 31 td's (16 pass, 15 rush) so while everyone has been showering the Broncos' Brandin Friske with adulation reaching the level of a rock star, Bone has quietly put together a season worthy of All-State accolades.
Not that Friske hasn't earned his praise; Friske is one of those rare athletes that combines size and speed. He is the real deal. I interviewed him after the 'Muth game, and when I was talking to him, I had to look up to see his face, and I am just a hair taller than six feet!
Not only his Friske tall, but he is fast, and the NB coach has finally found ways to get him the ball. In the 'Muth game, he was moved to running back, and he responded by rushing for 122 yards and three td's.
Unless both of NB's stars have bad games, I just don't see Powers pulling this one out.

The Chargers lost their starting QB, Spencer Hickoff, in their last game. Hickoff was under center last year when Powers won the D4 state championship. Coach Pratt moved his talented RB Ronnie Lark to QB and the Chargers still have WR Lavell Lucas-Perry (who is signed to attend Arizona for Basketball); I just have a feeling that tonight will belong to the Broncos.
My pick: NB 41, Powers 28.

Girl's Basketball: The season is winding down, and Frankenmuth has put themselves in a great position to win the TVE crown. They have now won their last eight TVE games, and with one league game left to play, are 10-3 in the TVE, and tied with Garber for first. 'Muth just has to beat Bridgeport (which has yet to win a game this year) and the Eagles will be league champs! Hard to believe, since back on Sept. 28, the Eagles were 2-3 in league play. I covered them that night in NB...hey, since I saw them that night, they have not lost in the TVE. Coincident? I think not!!

Not one other hoops team in our area is going to win a league title. Lakers won the GTW....Sandusky is loaded and they are running away with the GTE...and Memphis wrapped up the NCTL with a 44-31 victory over Kingston Wednesday (my story about this game will be in Saturday's Advertiser.) I hope Kingston's talented center Allyson Crousore is ok...she hurt her knee, and all I can say is that it didn't look good.

District's start in two weeks...

I hope NB wins tonight...if not I don't know what we will do for next Saturday's paper.

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