Predicted Finish: Big VIII, Baseline, Southwestern

[King Marques I]

Big VIII
1. Centennial
2. Norco
3. Santiago
4. Roosevelt
5. King
6. Corona

Predicting Centennial to win and Norco to finish second may be the biggest no brainer in this thread. The real race here is between Santiago and Roosevelt for third. I give the nod to Santiago for no other reason than I have ties there. I miss the days when finishing third or fourth meant you were in the playoffs or out. That would make the Santiago/Roosevelt match-up on October 12 a high stakes game. Alas, both teams will make the playoffs either way. King and Corona will battle for the bottom. Will either coach be back next year?

Baseline
1. Upland
2. Etiwanda
3. Rancho Cucamonga
4. Los Osos
5. Damien
6. Chino Hills

The Baseline League is probably the toughest in the IE top to bottom. I am confident Upland will win the league. I am not confident of anything else. It is my feeling that any team from 2-6 can beat any other team from 2-6 on any given night. I would be surprised if a team other than Upland finishes with at least 4 wins. Look for there to be some sort of standings tie between 2 or more league rivals. But I have to rank them 2-6, and so I have.

Southwestern
1. Vista Murrieta
2. Murrieta Valley
3. Chaparral
4. Temecula Valley
5. Murrieta Mesa
6. Great Oak

Vista Murrieta has played one of the toughest schedule of any team in the IE. Their 3-2 record is actually better than it looks. I can not see Murrieta Valley beating them, though the Nighthawks too have played a tough schedule, But it is possible. I like VM's chances, but not as much as Centennial or Upland. 3-6 could be any combination of teams. Chaparral is undefeated and has a tough win against Yucaipa, but the other four games were cupcakes and they did not exactly route them. I am high on Temecula Valley, but I am not sure if it's because of what they've done on the field or how I feel about them. Murrieta Mesa beat the weak teams on their schedule and lost to the good ones. Look for that to continue into league play. Great Oak? Well they have only scored 33 points in five games and 20 of those were against King. If they're better than I think, we will know right away as they open league play with Temecula followed my Mesa.

 

[div5prep]

Whats bad about a lot of leagues today is that there are so many games that are not competitive at all. Look at the big 8 this week, there may not be a game closer than a 40 pt margin..........That can not be a good thing.

 

[Lights0ut]

"King and Corona will battle for the bottom. Will either coach be back next year?"

kinda seems like a no brainer, buuuuttttt...

 

[takedwnmachine]

That would make the Santiago/Roosevelt match-up on October 12 a high stakes game. Alas, both teams will make the playoffs either way.

Not sure this accurate. Yes, only three teams in Div. III will not make the playoffs but for the loser of this game you have to find three other teams that are not in the top 3 (or 2 for smaller leagues) in order for a wild card 4th place team to get in.

 

[King Marques I]

Not sure this accurate. Yes, only three teams in Div. III will not make the playoffs but for the loser of this game you have to find three other teams that are not in the top 3 (or 2 for smaller leagues) in order for a wild card 4th place team to get in.

Point taken and accepted.
At a casual glance and projecting things out, the loser of Santiago/Roosevelt could be in a field of anywhere from four to six teams searching for those last spots.

 

[settheedge]

I was high on TV but now I'm left wondering. The Paloma Valley game was horrible. TV's defense has major issues at DB and LB that can not be overcome by scheme. Maybe they get Great Oak. Rest of the league.........NO WAY!!!

 

[takedwnmachine]

Point taken and accepted.
At a casual glance and projecting things out, the loser of Santiago/Roosevelt could be in a field of anywhere from four to six teams searching for those last spots.

Of course there are other teams in deep leagues such as Capo Valley currently number one in DIII who is about to face a really tough league stretch starting with Mission Viejo. They could find themselves out top 3 of league along with other teams in strong leagues such as Etiwanda, Charter Oak, and El Toro. However, I think most the teams in this division will be play off eligible.