Week 4 picks: 2A West’s parity makes it tough, and fun

The top two-thirds of the Class 2A West Conference was going to be filled with parity — we knew this, more or less, last November.

After two weeks of conference play, trying to distinguish between the top six teams in that conference is tougher than a $2 steak.

Games between Big Piney, Cokeville, Lovell, Lyman, Mountain View and Thermopolis have been the kinds of games that can swing on a single play.

Just look at these scores from six teams through two weeks of conference play: 14-12, 16-0, 23-13, 12-9, 12-7. That kind of parity is rare, especially among so many teams. And it makes the conference a blast to follow.

Big Piney, Mountain View and Lyman have started conference play 2-0; Thermopolis is at 1-1, and Cokeville and Lovell 0-2.

(Pinedale and Kemmerer are also in the 2A West mix, but their starts have been less auspicious, less a part of the parity defining the relationships among the other six.)

This week, we’ll likely get two more close games in showdowns between these schools, as Lyman faces Big Piney and Thermopolis meets Lovell.

The rub in all of this, of course, is that only four of these teams can make the playoffs.

And in a season with hundreds of plays for every team, just one can make the difference between being a part of the postseason and being apart from it.

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Here are some other Week 4 games that look as delicious as a Genoise cake:

Cheyenne East and Sheridan each have one loss in Class 4A play, and they can ill afford another and hope to maintain any hopes of home-field advantage past the first round. This one will be big — and competitive. …

Cody and Powell will get together for the Big Horn Brawl. For the first time since 1936, both teams enter the game undefeated, a side effect from the game usually being played much later in the season. Both are 3-0, and Powell has the added benefit of a week off after last week’s game with Douglas was canceled. As the conference opener for both teams, this game also sets the standard for the rest of the conference to follow. …

Star Valley and Jackson also have a great 3A West rivalry, and their meeting Friday in the shadows of the Tetons will be telling. Are Jackson’s fast start and Star Valley’s slow start trends or flukes? …

Worland looked great last week in beating Green River; I’m curious to see if the Warriors can keep the momentum going against 3A East preseason fave Lander in Fremont County. …

After two weeks, six of the eight teams in the 2A East have at least one loss. The only two without a loss? Upton-Sundance and Torrington. I figured U-S would be in the mix this year, but I thought a junior-heavy Torrington team might be a year away. Clearly, Torrington’s young guys have met the challenge. I’m eager to see how they match up Friday in Goshen County. …

Lingle and Lusk won their games last week by a combined 114-16. They’ll meet this week, and something has to give. …

Even though Meeteetse is undefeated, the Longhorns will be the underdogs when they play Burlington on Friday. The Huskies have had a much tougher schedule so far and gave top-ranked Farson its biggest test of the season two weeks ago in a 31-24 loss. …

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On to the picks. Bolded teams are the ones that I think will win. But the teams that aren’t bolded still deserve orange slices after the game.

Thursday
Class 1A nine-man
Shoshoni at Wind River
Friday
Class 4A
Campbell County at Thunder Basin
Cheyenne Central at Cheyenne South
Cheyenne East at Sheridan
Kelly Walsh at Laramie
Rock Springs at Natrona
Class 3A
Buffalo at Rawlins
Cody at Powell
Douglas at Riverton
Green River at Evanston
Star Valley at Jackson
Worland at Lander
Class 2A
Big Horn at Burns
Glenrock at Wheatland
Lyman at Big Piney
Newcastle at Tongue River
Pinedale at Cokeville
Thermopolis at Lovell
Upton-Sundance at Torrington
Class 1A nine-man
Lingle at Lusk
Moorcroft at Wright
Rocky Mountain at Greybull
Southeast at Pine Bluffs
Class 1A six-man
Burlington at Meeteetse
Hanna at Guernsey-Sunrise
Hulett at Kaycee
Saturday
Class 2A
Kemmerer at Mountain View
Class 1A nine-man
Saratoga at Riverside
Class 1A six-man
Farson at Ten Sleep
NSI at Midwest
Snake River at Dubois
Interclass
Encampment at Natrona sophs

For a full schedule including kickoff times, as well as results from past weeks, go here. Click on “Week 4” on the top of the page for this week’s schedule.

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Here are the results of my picks from last week and this season:

Last week: 25-7 (78 percent). This season: 89-26 (77 percent). 

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–patrick