Hunter Norris takes first place in our local ESPN College Pick 'Em Contest

The third full week of college football has come and gone, and so has the third week of our local ESPN College Pick ‘Em Contest.

Hunter Norris, who was in second place last week moved into first place in the local standings this week. He picked eight out of 10 games correctly last Saturday, and has a two-point lead over the group.

Johnny Davis is in second place. Jeff Gunn and I are tied for third place. LaBarin Banks, who was in first place last week, was in fifth place when the dust settled on Saturday.

Bill Bolton and Jacob Ramer were tied for sixth place. Mark Peacock and Jonathan Turberville, who won the overall contest last year, were tied for eighth place overall. Rod Sims finished Saturday in tenth place.

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For those of you out there still playing, take heart. We’ve got 11 more weeks to go in the contest, so the thing is far from over. We’ve been playing this contest for over a decade now, and if anything is true it’s that this contest is a marathon, not a sprint. If you don’t do well one week, don’t worry, because the standings will be sure to change a lot as we move through the rest of the season. Only time will tell as to who will win this year’s local “Mr. Football” crown.

The varsity football teams at Hillcrest High School and Sparta Academy have gotten off to slow starts this season, but they could begin to turn things around starting tomorrow (Friday) night if they play their cards right.

Sparta travels to LaFayette to play winless Chambers Academy, and Hillcrest travels to Grove Hill to face Clarke County High School. Chambers is averaging less than three points a game this season, and they’re coming off a 60-point loss at Meadowview Christian. A win at LaFayette would springboard the Warriors into their Sept. 28 meeting with 1-4 Eastwood Christian of Montgomery. Eastwood is in their first year of football and should prove no match for a more experienced Sparta squad.

Clarke County is a different animal altogether, but I think Hillcrest will fair well against the Bulldogs. While they are 2-0 in region play, their record may be a little deceiving. They opened the season against a quality opponent, cross-county rival, Jackson, and were shutout, 30-0. They followed that game with a 19-0 win over Escambia County and a 33-14 win over Monroe County. Escambia and Monroe are both 1-2 overall, so it’s not like Clarke County’s wins came against the Denver Broncos. If the Jags can put together four quarters of good, no-mistake football, I feel confident in saying that they’re leave Grove Hill a winner tomorrow night.

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SEC football is in full swing, and this week’s slate of games will only raise the stakes. Here are my picks for this week’s round of SEC games.

I like Alabama over Florida Atlantic, Arkansas over Rutgers, LSU over Auburn, Ole Miss over Tulane, Mississippi State over South Alabama, Texas A&M over South Carolina State, Florida over Kentucky, Georgia over Vanderbilt, South Carolina over Missouri and Tennessee over Akron. Last week: 10-2. So far this season: 31-5.