Week 4 picks

Every year for the past three years, this has been the 3A game for which everyone breaks out their cherry-flavored Mr. Sketch marker to mark it on the calendar.

On one side is Buffalo, 3A’s old team to beat, the hallmark of the classification throughout the mid-2000s, the program that won 27 games in a row and two state titles from 2004-06.

On the other side is Douglas, 3A’s new team to beat, the squad that has won the past two state titles and is riding its own current winning streak of 23 games.

When they meet at 7 p.m. Friday in Douglas, it promises to be another rock ’em-sock ’em round in a rivalry that’s grown to incredibly competitive levels the past few years.

All you really have to do is look at the state championship games the past seven years. One of these two teams has played in a state title game each of those seven years. Each team has won twice. Buffalo has lost three other title games, Douglas one. Yet the only time they played each other in the title game was in 2008, the game in which Douglas officially usurped control of the classification from the Bison.

Since then, the Bison have been fighting to wrest that control back from the Bearcats. And Friday is yet another chance to do just that — and based on how the Bison have started the season, there’s no reason to think they can’t do just that. Buffalo has whomped on Worland (41-0), Lander (41-6) and Powell (36-0) in its nonconference slate, and faces its most critical conference game of the season in the league opener.

Unfortunately for Buffalo, the only team that has been consistently more impressive than itself is Douglas. The Bearcats walloped three foes of their own — Belle Fourche, S.D. (38-6), Jackson (70-14) and Star Valley (40-6) — to serve notice that they, too, will be a tough team to beat this fall.

Something has to give Friday night. The winner likely wins the conference, the loser likely takes second. That’s a huge deal, because, most likely, it means one of these teams has to go on the road in the semifinals, something that helped keep Buffalo out of last year’s 3A championship game.

But more than just playoff seeding, this game will determine which 3A team the other ones look to as their model of the team they wish to become. These two teams have set the pace out of the gate in 2010, but only one gets to be the role model — the one, when it comes to wins and losses and the score on the scoreboard at the end of the game, that everyone else wants to be.

Obviously, both programs stand on their own merits. Both Douglas and Buffalo have plenty of which to be proud. Both programs have established themselves as perennial contenders and, more than that, as programs others want to emulate off the field, as well.

But you can’t deny the fact that a victory on Friday, for either squad, becomes a huge point in the season, as well as in the program.

It’s that way every year.

That’s why it’s so fun.

(Oh, you want a pick? Douglas.)

Here are the rest of this week’s picks, with projected winners in bold:

Thursday
Interclass
Kaycee JV at Hulett: After a week off, the Red Devils have their first chance to show off their new six-man game to the home fans. 3 p.m.

Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne East at Cheyenne Central: East has had the attention, but don’t underestimate the Indians. They are eager to dish out a little revenge for last year’s Capital Bowl. Nevertheless, I’ll take the T-Birds. Doctor, heal thyself, I guess. 5 p.m.
Gillette at Sheridan: Whatwhatwhat? Yep, I am picking the Camels over the unbeaten Broncs in what I see as a bit of an upset. Gillette has just been really, really impressive over the past three weeks and the Broncs have been fortunate to win a couple of recent games. That, plus the rivalry and revenge factors, have me calling for the Camels. 7 p.m.
Green River at Natrona: Talk about a trap game. If the Mustangs aren’t focused and serious this week, the Wolves have what it takes to pull the upset. Don’t let the records fool you. Of course, if NC IS focused and serious, the ‘Stangs could win by 40. 7 p.m.
Kelly Walsh at Rock Springs: It’s hard to believe, but by the time we play everything out, this game could end up being for a playoff spot. I’ll go with the Tigers, but only because they’re at home. 7 p.m.
Laramie at Evanston: Here’s a number for you: From 1933 (the beginning of this Web site) to 2009, Laramie gave up 50 or more points in a game just 10 times. In the past three weeks, it’s happened three times. Maybe four after the Red Devils get through with the Plainsmen. 7 p.m.
Class 3A
Lander at Cody: How impressive was Cody’s victory over Torrington last week? Well, the Broncs are now my favorites to win the West. Impressive enough? 7 p.m.
Powell at Jackson: After last week, Powell will probably have some frustration to take out on the Broncs. 7 p.m.
Rawlins at Riverton: Riverton has the historical edge in this series. More than that, Riverton has shown it is capable of giving any team on its schedule a hard-fought game. 7 p.m.
Wheatland at Torrington: The East has its two clear-cut favorites. But after that, it gets really, really interesting. It’s going to be fun watching that play out this season — and it starts with this big rivalry game. 7 p.m.
Worland at Star Valley: The more I think about it, the more I think this is an absolutely huge game. Then I realize, hey, it’s the 3A West. They’re always all big, all the time. It’s the parity that makes it fun. 6 p.m.
Class 2A
Burns at Tongue River: You know when you get a rock in your shoe, and you think you can ignore it, but then after awhile you notice that you just can’t stop thinking about it and you have to do something about it? Yeah, Tongue River’s kind of at that point. You can’t ignore the Eagles anymore. 3 p.m.
Glenrock at Big Horn: This is the first of two huge games in a row for the Rams (vs. Thermopolis next week, in Big Horn (my bad for posting the game in Thermop in my original post)). It’s put up or shut up time, and I believe the Rams will put up. 1 p.m.
Greybull at Pinedale: The Wranglers have been impressive the past two weeks, and they’ll be a tough team to beat at home. But I also know the Buffs are tough to beat, no matter where they play. 7 p.m.
Lyman at Big Piney: The Punchers’ quick start got derailed last week. How they bounce back against a tough Eagles team will tell us a lot about them. 4 p.m.
Moorcroft at Thermopolis: Thermopolis has scored 167 points in four games this fall. Moorcroft has scored 12 in three. Math favors the Bobcats. 7 p.m.
Mountain View at Lovell: This will be a better game than you think — but the Bulldogs, at home, will be ready for the Buffs. 7 p.m.
Wright at Newcastle: I just can’t put my finger on this game. I’ll go with the Panthers because I think Wright has more potential than what we’ve seen so far, and if they can’t get it moving now, they’re in a tough situation from here on out. More to lose, I guess…. 7 p.m.
Class 1A 11-man
Burlington at Riverside: The 1A 11-man West is always a fun conference to watch come together. This game will play a big part in deciding which teams go to the playoffs and which teams stay at home. 7 p.m.
Cokeville at Shoshoni: Lately, it hasn’t seemed to matter who, where, or when the Panthers play. They just win. 2 p.m.
Dubois at Saratoga: Sorry, there is no more room on the Dubois bandwagon. 3:30 p.m.
Lusk at Lingle: This is a game that a lot of people — mostly people in Lusk — have been pointing to since the end of last season. Lingle has what it takes to keep it close and maybe even win it, but Lusk has looked really sharp in the early goings this fall. 7:30 p.m.
Pine Bluffs at Southeast: The Cyclones have dominated this series recently, winning 15 of the past 16 matchups. But this year might be Pine’s best chance for a while — not only to beat the Cyclones, but to do some damage in the playoffs, as well. 7:30 p.m.
Upton at Sundance: The Bulldogs are better than what they showed last week. They should get back on track against the Bobcats. 3 p.m.
Wind River at Rocky Mountain: Two good teams. Should be a fantastic game. Playoff seeding, etc. Don’t know which one to pick. Flipped a coin and it went Grizzly-side up — although it spun on its edge for a long time, too. The coin couldn’t decide, either. 2 p.m.

Saturday
Class 2A
Wyoming Indian at Kemmerer: Both teams are eager to pick up their first win of the season. Because it’s in The Pit, I’ll go with the Rangers, but don’t be surprised if the Chiefs keep it close for awhile…. 1 p.m.
Class 1A six-man
Hanna at Guernsey-Sunrise: Don’t let last week’s loss to Kaycee fool you — Hanna will be a team to reckon with in six-man this year. The Vikings will find that out the hard way. 3 p.m.
Kaycee at Ten Sleep: Can’t wait for this one. This is one of those games that should be one of those classic six-man games that comes right down to the final moments. Whoever has the ball last may win it. 1 p.m.
Midwest at Farson: The Oilers manhandled the Pronghorns by 77 last year. I don’t see that happening this year, but I still think Midwest gets the win in this one. 2:30 p.m.
Snake River at Meeteetse: Holy cow, did I just pick every single road team to win in the six-man classification this week? I guess I did…. Oh, that, and Snake River is good. 1 p.m.

Off: Normative Services.

While the schedule isn’t quite as chock full of big games as it was last week, it is interesting to note now that 3A is into its conference swing that every team on the schedule (except Hulett and NSI) is playing a conference game this week. And that’s the way it will be from here to Week 8 when we wrap this bad boy up. So that means every game on the schedule is a big one — especially for those teams who have aspirations of playoff berths and making the trip to Laramie in mid-November. What games sticks out to you on that schedule this week? Are my picks on target or did I go astray somewhere? Post a comment below and let me know what you think.

(Now updated with correct Star Valley kickoff time.)

–patrick