Was There Ever Any Doubt?

The DeMatha Stags refused to lose and came away with the 2008 WCAC Football Championship against incredible odds.  The Stags proved that they were willing to leave it all out there on the field.

The DeMatha defense played their hearts out in the first quarter by holding Good Counsel to a measly field goal attempt that doinked off of the right upright after turning the ball over on a fumble deep in their own territory.  Good Counsel's only score came early in the second quarter on a run by speed demon, Caleb Porzel and the Stags were down 7-0, but at least they weren't down 21-0 like the first game.

Deno Campbell is an absolute genius.  Jeremiah Mathis, Patrick Goulden, Emmanuel McPhearson, and Tommy Chroniger on the defense were all great, again, but I saw #57 Ikichi Nnawuba putting it down on Good Counsel's center all night long.  Nnawuba was blowing guys off of the ball and causing havoc, and hitting guys before they got started!  Soon after the start of the second quarter it became obvious that all that work would pay off.

Jelani Jenkins looked tired.  Caleb Porzel lost a step or two because Stags were putting hats on him.  The entire Stag defense looked so charged, starting with that goal line stand at the beginning of the game (twice) and guys were flying to the ball and gang tackling.  Nobody can claim to hold Good Counsel in back to back goal line stands like that this year.  By the time we got the safety, I knew it was a done deal, even though were still down 7-2.

Scoring Summary

Standout senior Jelani Jenkins felt the same: “It was a shocker,” Jenkins said of the safety. “They got the momentum after that.”  Maybe I was the one that needed to see that safety, because some of the DeMatha players said they had it all in the bag the whole time.  "We thought we were going to win the moment we stepped on the field," DeMatha running back Aaron Conaway added. "We have the blue shoes that never lose, and we're DeMatha. You can't beat us." 

Head Coach Bill McGregor deserves every accolade that we can give him, as well.  I am so proud of this bunch of Stags because they took their lumps and learned.  DeMatha did exactly what I knew they could do: they beat up Caleb Porzel and wore Jelani Jenkins out on defense rendering him ineffective on offense.  What a fantastic win.  34-7 is a major can of whoop ass, to be putting on a team that usually scores at least 42 points a game.   The final score is even more staggering when you consider that DeMatha lost 42-21 to Good Counsel just weeks ago on national television.

“We play big in big games. We’re 32-4 in playoff games,” said McGregor. “We just wanted to be the WCAC football champion. It was a long, hard road. Things didn’t look so good after that first game. We were scratching our heads, thinking we’ve just got to go back to the drawing board. I think to a man, we dedicated our season.”

I know there will be people saying that it was close, but it wasn't.  The Stag defense picked the best time of the year to play at their best.  They were all in the backfield and chasing guys down like they stole something.  The penalties were limited and the Stags were disciplined through the end despite the fact that the referees tried to give Good Counsel some hope.

Midway through the third quarter DeMatha started to pull away and make it totally official with the help of a strong ground game.  Senior Aaron Conaway carried the ball eleven times, all in the second half, for 101 yards.  Time continued to wane while DeMatha continued to pound the ball with steady runs and it became apparent to everyone that Good Counsel was headed towards another loss in the championship.  “It’s really never their year,” Conaway said. “It’s always DeMatha’s.”

Tough loss for the Falcons, and they were classy all the way, but....  Amazing game for the Stags.  And yes, I mean Power Memorial type of amazing...  If you call yourself a Stag and you weren't there, then you missed one for the ages.  Nobody thought that we would win and instead of fulfilling expectations, we dominated.  

First Team All WCAC, and MVP candidate, quarterback Tommy Chroniger had this to say:  "We're back and we're not going away.  It's been six years in a row that we've won the championship, and I'm pretty sure that we'll be back here again next year."

GO STAAAAAAGS!

A Giant Comparison

Our kicker/punter, Michael Branthover, is such a weapon it's not even funny anymore.  This kid is a sophomore and he changes the nature of the game.  (And I mean, on the level that Kenny Tate could change the game when he was a sophomore.)  He had awesome punts that bailed DeMatha out, time after time...  And if it were not for the fact that our guys couldn't seem to block point-after attempts, he could have been perfect.

John Moylan must be telling this kid something extra, because the way he was kicking the ball tonight was definitely the difference.   People talk about punter Jeff Feagles for the Super Bowl champion New York Giants for his uncanny ability to drive receiving teams back with his leg.  Well Branthover pinned the Falcons within the five a couple of times and had Caleb Porzel back-peddling and looking rather silly.

Think about it... Branthover is a kicker/punter.  It's not supposed to happen like that.  Besides, comparing a high school kicker/punter to an NFL Super Bowl Champion and Pro Bowler is a pretty giant comparison.  But it isn't just Brathover that draws a parallel to the New York Giants.  The entire team seemed to mimic the Giants with their win over a previously undefeated and vaunted team: I'll give three reasons why this comparison isn't crazy talk. 

1.  Branthover - Feagles... maybe not close in ability, but definitely close in value to their respective teams.  The only thing is that Michael Branthover was considerably more valuable in the Stag championship win than Feagles was in the Super Bowl.  Branthover could have easily been named the MVP of the game.

2.  Tommy Chroniger did enough to give the DeMatha Stags the win and managed the process masterfully.  Eli wasn't spectacular but he did just enough, too.  Take away the fumble on the first possession and Tommy is flat out awesome.  Like Bill said, "...Tommy [Chroniger] didn't want to come off the field. He played linebacker, safety, everything. He's really the heart and soul of this team." 

3.  Mathis, Goulden and Nnawuba held it down on the line and the Giants also rely heavily on getting pressure with a strong front.  Not only did they effectively stop the run of two dynamic backs, but they were effective most of the time in the pass rush.  There are college and professional teams that aren't able to master this tour de force.

The Giants and Patriots split last year, if you recall, and there was still lingering speculation that the Patriots were the better team despite losing that one game.  Loyal Patriot fans point to the win over the Giants in the regular season to illustrate their point.  To those that are of that mind set, I have only one thing to say: I beg to differ. 

I think that the Giants are a better team than the Patriots, and when it mattered most they did, in fact, prove it.  The key phrase is when it mattered most.  While the overall records of both teams may lend credence to arguments that the New England Patriots could still be considered better, there is nothing ambiguous about the Giants' Super Bowl win and the audacious rings that they sport. 

As for DeMatha and Good Counsel, the same rules apply, there is nothing ambiguous about guys hoisting up a championship trophy and six fingers.  (I mean, come on.  The Stags needed two hands, man.)  Winning the championship means that you are better, if only due to the fact that you are winning when it matters the most.

New England still has one of the most talented teams that the NFL has ever been seen and Good Counsel can always take credit for fielding the most talented player in the league this year in Jelani Jenkins.  (And, quietly, that is saying a lot because I could make a good case for Tom Chroniger being a more valuable asset as a two-way player.)  The only thing is Tommy didn't play both ways all year long like Jelani did -probably because Bill knew that would eventually wear him out...  Let's just say that Tommy versus Jelani is debatable.  (See below.)

As for the Falcons being better that the DeMatha Stags: no way.  I don't know what those guys are going to do about it, and I don't care either.  But the bottom line is that nobody said that October 2nd was going to be the deciding factor for league championship.  Sure, it was broadcast on ESPN2, but it was just a regular season game.  I think some of the Falcons bought into that win and thought that it was a coronation, but the coronation for the WCAC happened to be played on November 22nd.

There can be no doubt that the DeMatha Stags are the best football team in the WCAC in 2008.

Who Is the MVP of the WCAC?  Making a Case for Tommy

There is a controversy brewing in the metropolitan area these days.  The controversy stems from the fact that Jelani Jenkins is the undisputed best player in the WCAC, but Tom Chroniger should be named the MVP of the league.

Championship experience shouldn't be discounted but I don't believe that the show would be anything near the final product if you take Tommy out of the Stag equation.  Good Counsel could have done almost the exact same thing as they did this year anyway, with or without Jelani.  Didn't Good Counsel get all the way to the title, only to lose, last year, the year before that, and the year before that, too?

While that effort is commendable and the Good Counsel Falcons should take pride in their accomplishments, one cannot forget that the Stags actually won all those games, though.  And if you start throwing in the fact that Tommy was on the team last year, too... And the year before that... 

The most valuable guy is Tommy Chroniger.  Four football titles in four years, for one player is kind of hard to argue with, given the fact that Jelani Jenkins hasn't won shit.  If the WCAC had a Heisman Trophy, he could definitely claim that but MVP of the league should go to the guy that was truly most valuable. 

Jenkins didn't make the Falcons any more special, he just made a bigger name for himself.  Jenkins is bigger than the Falcons.  The Falcons are more like Jelani's Most Valuable Team.  Good Counsel has fared the same with or without Jenkins: they have been destined for second place for a minute now.  After all, what is one less running back when you have Caleb "I scored the only (2) touchdowns for Good Counsel in the last two championship games" Porzel?  According to the Washington Post, Jelani didn't even lead the Falcons in tackles at linebacker: That distinction belongs to Chris Pitsenberger. 

I know that there are going to be groans because I'm stating the obvious: just because you happened to be a highly recruited athlete, it doesn't mean that you are helping your team the most.  As much as I want to root for Jelani because he is truly a great kid, the cold hard facts indicate that he isn't nearly as valuable to his team for all of his God-given natural ability as people think he is.  Meanwhile Tommy Chroniger led the DeMatha Stags and the WCAC with 30 touchdowns and played both sides of the ball in the championship game. 

The Biggest Adjustment

You can't make a serious argument that Good Counsel is better than DeMatha this year.  Even if you wanted to add the scores from the two games in which the teams played this year, you will find that DeMatha is leading by six (6) points, 55-49.  With that being said, DeMatha made up some serious ground against a Good Counsel team that was averaging over five touchdowns a game. 

Clearly, the biggest adjustment was made on the defensive side of the ball, starting with switching from a 4-3, to a 3-3-5.  Defensive Coordinator and Assistant Head Coach Deno Campbell also didn't take any chances, and he put his best players on the field even if that meant playing two ways.  Emmanuel McPherson, Michael Milburn, and Tom Chroniger all went the extra mile and performed wonderfully.

Good Counsel was confused straight out of the gate by the 3-3-5 with 8 players in the box.  The new 3-3-5 scheme prevented Caleb from getting outside, while also providing enough pressure inside to hold Jelani at bay, as well as their quarterback, Tyler Campbell, from completing crucial throws .  The fact that Good Counsel never made proper adjustments, even after halftime, goes to show you that DeMatha has a bit of an advantage in the coaching department.

I'm not saying that Bob Milloy isn't a good coach, because he is.  I am saying that DeMatha has better coaches, though.  DeMatha also had the advantage in the offensive line department:  #77 Pete deSouza, #79 Calvin McDowney, and #78 Shane Johnson are all above 300 pounds and bullied the undersize line of Good Counsel all night long.  (All of them received All WCAC honors, as well.)  Now that I think about it, the offensive line could have been my fourth comparison point to the champion New York Giants...  Simply incredible that those guys are in high school, and there was simply no adjustment for such tremendous size.

Straight from the DeMatha Express and Director of Development Tom Ponton

My cousin asked me a few years ago what the secret was to our success.  I told him how Bill McGregor was willing to take phone calls from college coaches on Christmas Day when another high school coach had cussed out the colleges for calling him at that time.  I also told him about Bill McGregor calling me one New Year's when I told him that my sister's neighbor, John Thomas '94, was interested in coming to DeMatha, even though he lived near Dulles Airport.  My cousin's response, "You guys are crazy.  I just don't want a win that badly."

Finally, when Kenny Roy '73 was inducted into the DeMatha Hall of Fame, he recalled a basketball game in which DeMatha was losing by something like 5 points with 12 seconds to go.  "Morgan called a timeout," Kenny said. "He told us, 'We got 'em right where we want 'em.'  I looked at the scoreboard and said to myself, 'What game is he watching'?"  It was then Kenny gave us this quote, which he said he learned in high school:  "At DeMatha, we never lose a game -- we just run out of time."

We didn't run out of time on November 22nd!

Dr. Cornell West will hold a speaking engagement on the famed U Street in Washington D.C., at the restaurant Busboys & Poets.  Dr. West is scheduled to give a talk about his new book Hope on a Tightrope, tomorrow (Friday, November 21) at 6:30.

You should know by now to bring a dictionary, a thesaurus, and at least one or two books for Cornell to sign.  The bottom line is that this brother is deep, and that half the time you can't even understand him.

http://www.democracynow.org/2008/11/19/stream

Click the link above and witness the intellectual fitness.  Dr. West says there is no such thing as "post-racial" and that you racists need to stop saying that bullshit.  It's not fooling anyone.  Dr. West says that just because he's a champion of Barack Obama, it doesn't mean that he won't hold him to a high standard for recycling Clinton era appointees.  Seriously, this is the best interview I've seen in a while.

The DeMatha Stags are in the WCAC football championship game for the eighth consecutive year in a row –a record.  The DeMatha Stags have won the championship the last five years in a row, and will go for another record of six consecutive championship wins. The only thing standing in the way of DeMatha is the undefeated, highly ranked Good Counsel Falcons that previously beat the Stags 42-21 on national television (ESPN2) on October 2^nd.

Did I mention that the Good Counsel Falcons are hopping mad at the fact that they lost the championship game to DeMatha the last five years in a row? Did I mention that Good Counsel has never won a WCAC football championship in their sorry school’s existence?  I must admit, that none of these facts bodes well for the defending champion DeMatha Stags even if you consider that they love to defy expectations. The odds on the Stags have never been longer, and DeMatha lacks the star power it had just last season. Kenny Tate and Nick Rivers are kicking ass in college and otherwise long gone.   Although Tom Chroniger remains under center from last year's squad and was unanimously voted the best quarterback in the WCAC by the coaches, he has endured criticism for using his legs when having a tough time throwing the ball to receivers.

Instead of relying on just one or two players, this year DeMatha has concentrated on team ball. More Stags had to come into their own this year and regular student athletes took the place of blue chippers and exceeded expectations.  A solid defense led by Jeremiah Mathis and Patrick Goulden has kept the Stags in most games, and has been complimented by the likes of Marcus Coker with a smashing rushing attack. None of the DeMatha players has a name that rings bells with recruiters like Good Counsel’s best players Jelani Jenkins or Caleb Porzel, yet, but the mere fact that they are getting a second chance to make names for themselves speaks volumes about their perseverance. 

Everybody knows that Jenkins and Porzel can put up big numbers.  Both of those guys score more ways than one –and mostly in the same game.  It is going to take an extraordinary team effort to match that dynamic duo.  Jelani is the biggest challenge because he's obviously bent on staying on the field and racking up numbers in touchdowns and take-aways.  He's everybody's All American and such a good kid, and as you can tell from his interview linked above, he is very hard to root against.  With that being said, his strength might be his weakness if the Stags can somehow wear him down.  (Maybe scoring all those points both ways has taken a toll?)  It has been a long season, even if the Jelani and the Falcons haven't had much competition, Stags included. 

Caleb is going to gas you in the open field and dazzle you on special teams.  If the Stags can hit him before he gets going, maybe they can knock him out of being a factor.  We couldn't exactly stop the run against Gilman or Good Counsel in the beginning of the season.  We lost those games and learned.  Deno's defense* was eventually able to prove that they are able to stop one guy if they key on him (Idreis Augustus?), but the question is still out there whether or not the Stags can stop two.  And the Falcons still have ways to beat you even if you somehow miraculously manage to hold down their stars. 

This game is charged with suspense of epic proportions. What is really at stake here? Let’s start with the coveted WCAC championship in football. Back in the day, almost the entire league was comprised of all-male institutions, but these days the schools that turned coed have something extra to prove. Good Counsel turned coed in the early nineties and the Stags have been making them their bitches ever since. Well they made them their bitches before that, too, but the fact remains that DeMatha is the last bastion of all-boys catholic school in Prince George's County, Maryland and the Falcons are notorious Montgomery County haters.

Speaking of Maryland, another thing at stake is the mythical Maryland football championship. Because Good Counsel is undefeated and all of the public schools usually cancel themselves out, the winner of the WCAC could make a claim as the best in Maryland. DeMatha already has two losses and probably would not be considered as the best in the state even with a win over Good Counsel, but it would be nice to play spoiler for a change. The Good Counsel Falcons have been atop the Washington Post rankings going on nine weeks now, and as of today, DeMatha isn’t even in the top ten in the metropolitan area.

Perfect seasons are hard to come by, and even DeMatha has only done it three times. Leading from virtually wire to wire in the Washington Post’s poll is also a difficult feat and DeMatha has only done it once. Didn’t the Giants beat the Patriots last year in the Super Bowl? Didn't Ray J bang this chick out like no tomorrow, on film, before Reggie Bush started claiming it?  Don’t look now, but the Deno and the DeMatha Stags' defense shut out Saint Johns 20-0 in the semifinals and the Stags could use a little redemption. Good Counsel is still chugging along after their 45-6 win over McNamara, all unsuspecting like, and riper than a catholic school girl during her first week away at college…

Straight from Tom Ponton, DeMatha Director of Development:

1.  The varsity football team plays this SATURDAY (Nov. 22) at 7pm versus Good Counsel at the Navy Stadium in Annapolis for the WCAC Title.  DeMatha is the visiting team on the GOLD side.
2.  The game will be televised live on (Comcast Cable) channel CN 8.  However, do not watch from home -- we need you there to support the Stags!  The game will also be web cast.
3.  Check our newly designed web site (http://www.dematha.org) or go to http://clix.to/ussportsnetworklive

I'm thinking history is on our side here and that the Stags could win this thing 6-0 in the greatest upset that DeMatha football has ever had.  (Saint Johns?)  I said it before, but quietly, it would draw comparisons to Power Memorial if the Stags were to win next Saturday.

Go Stags!

Make history.

*Deno Campbell has been Head Coach Bill McGregor's defense coordinator going on two decades.

Well I was perusing the cool black gossip site and came across some new photos of Brandy's music video...

Ooohh... look at the artist without very many clothes.  Check the detail of the garter and teddy set.

And so now, I must ask: can you guess the stylist?

I'm laughing so hard inside, that I can barely take it anymore.  I have to share this with the world.

Dante, please forgive me for lifting it.  Lysa and Belinda...  wow.  Retro-fabulous!

So the story goes that my man Dante hooked up the this appearance for Old Dirty Bastard and at the last minute they needed some extras...  Why not?

Straight from Dante's Blog: Today’s the 4th anniversary of Dirty’s passing. Cat was a trip, I actually hooked this up my friend was a booker on the short lived Jon Stewart show and was a ODB fan. I got my 3 awesome friends the infamous uber stylist Lysa Cooper , her side kick DJ Belinda Becker and my friends ex wife Tequana and they put together a little Supremes like back up dance routine and off to the races we went. This was a fun ass day and Jon Stewart was super cool he smoked a little weed with me and the girls after the show and told us how much he loved ODB. He was cool as fuck and this was a great great day Dirty had his kids running around, my publicist at the label was super psyched and I knew Dirty was gonna blow….Thanks Lysa I don’t know if I ever have for putting those outfits and routines together and of course Dirty wherever your soul may lie much much love!

In the last regular season game of 2008, the entire WCAC was on the same page and kept it very real.  No upsets, and no surprises.

One could make that argument for the entire season, too, since the top four teams haven’t changed one bit despite the recent pushes forward by the Virginia schools. The WCAC championship will be decided from the same pool of teams as last year except in markedly different order.

Good Counsel guaranteed the top spot with a 44-0 rout of Archbishop Carroll. One has to wonder if any team has even come close to the Falcons this season because aside from putting up at least 42 points on everybody in the league, their defense has only allowed nine points in the last 4 games.

The second seed in the WCAC belongs to the defending champion DeMatha Stags, who beat fourth-seeded McNamara 42-7. This was a big confidence booster for the Stags who needed a solid display on both sides of the ball going into the playoffs as an underdog for the first time in five years.

Bishop O’Connell managed to stop their recently resurgent rivals, Paul VI, 16-0 for the seventh year in a row. The O’Connell Knights ended their miracle season with a win despite missing out on a playoff spot when they lost to McNamara last week in overtime last week.

The third seed in the playoffs this year belongs to the Saint Johns College High School Cadets and they managed to beat Gonzaga 27-14 in their 80^th meeting: the oldest (Yawn.) rivalry of two catholic schools in the country. 

Dandini’s 2008 WCAC Week 11 Power Rankings*

The WCAC Playoffs schedule begins Friday, November 14^th when Good Counsel (1) plays McNamara (4), and DeMatha (2) plays Saint Johns (4) in their second meetings this  year.  All of the other teams in the WCAC are concentrating on basketball theses days, and their football seasons are over.

As for everyone else, this week only marks the end of the beginning.  Let's all say a silent prayer that the DeMatha Stags can win their sixth WCAC championship in row.  I've written it many times at this point it I also believe that it is worth repeating: if the Stags are able to win the championship game on November 22nd, it will be the biggest upset in DeMatha football history.  GO STAGS!

Who said that I could never admit what I was wrong?  Mark your calendars people because I realize today that I have grossly underestimated white people in America.  I am a son of Norman Cooper, after all, and he taught me to expect the worst from white folks.  I'm also the great grandson of Theodore Giles and he wouldn't have believed a black president was possible, either.  Hell, even moments after the election I had to rub my eyes before heralding the brand new day.  Thank God for newspapers!

Of Course none of this is an excuse for saying that Barack wasn't black enough, or calling him the "milquetoast candidate."  You've got to hand it to me, though: when I'm wrong, I'm usually wrong on all fronts and this was no exception.  Barack was clearly influenced just enough by his father (pictured below) and ultimately the black community.  Barack is clearly a cool dude, too, as he grew up body surfing in Hawaii.  He definitely deserves all the props, and I wish the brother well.  No matter race, political affiliation, or sex, if you call yourself an American then Barack Obama is the President for us all!

America certainly came up with his election on November 4, 2008.  For once, we're ahead of the curve on world race relations.  Would France or England have the courage to have a Negro on the set?  Wow!

Long live Barack Obama, and I hope that he holds it down for a long time to come!

It's officially getting real in the WCAC.  It has been an outstanding football season so far and it can only get better if you are lucky enough to be one of the teams on the verge of competing for the title.  It is feast of famine time in November.  One of the ways you can look at it is through the scores today: two of the league games were blow-outs and the other two were really close.

Only four teams get to make it to the playoffs though so this week was mixed bag, of sorts, when it came to results: historical favorites didn't matter and recent trends continued.  Of course there is a certain amount of trepidation among coaches that are victims of recent trends, but also limited assurances for those coaches that are able to understand how difficult of a league that they are coaching in.

DeMatha Coach Bill McGregor summed up some of the coaches doubts after the win against sudden WCAC contender Bishop O'Connell last week when he said, "It was a great win for us and it's nice to know we're in the postseason."  In the following breath, McGregor said that the win "doesn't change our mentality though, and we can't take anything for granted."  Both of these quotes bode well for the Stags, and they are preparing to make a run for their sixth WCAC title in a row. 

The DeMatha Stags locked up the second seed in the WCAC playoffs with a monster win over Saint Johns College, 34-6.  The DeMatha Stags are almost completely set on their course to face the Good Counsel Falcons in another championship showdown in a couple of weeks.

Good Counsel utterly destroyed Gonzaga 45-0 and the Falcons have me wondering if anybody's defense is good enough to limit them to under 30 points in a game.  Interestingly enough, Gonzaga came into this game a known loser and somehow emerges to vie for a spot in the three-way tie developing for the fourth playoff position!

In what was supposed to be a coming of age, if not a coronation, for the Bishop O'Connell Knights they were beaten in an offensive shootout 36-35 by Bishop McNamara.  The Mustangs are now in a position to clinch the fourth and final playoff spot even if they lose to DeMatha next week, provided that Paul VI and Gonzaga are also unable to secure a victory.  (McNamara's win over Bishop O'Connell was immensely important to the playoff picture.)

But Paul VI certainly has the edge in the momentum department after their 34-0 blowout of Archbishop Carroll.  Paul VI junior running back Idreis Augustus carried the ball 20 times and had four touchdowns while proving that he is one of the best backs in the WCAC for the second year in a row.

Dandini’s 2008 WCAC Week 10 Power Rankings*

There is an apparent log jam between the 2-4 teams and Bishop McNamara for the final WCAC playoff spot.  Bishop McNamara plays DeMatha in the final regular season game next week, and they have traditional played the Stags tough.  Bishop McNamara controls their own destiny and could end all of the speculation with a win.  The following scenarios are explored with the assumption that the Mustangs will not win against the Stags next week, however: 

Mathematically speaking there will be at least two teams with a 3-4 conference record if McNamara loses to the Stags, but because the Mustangs already have wins over Paul VI and Bishop O'Connell this season, McNamara only has to worry if Gonzaga should beat Saint Johns in their final contest.

Should Gonzaga pull the upset over Saint Johns, there would be a third 3-4 team added to the mix.  As a result of the Purple Eagles notching a win against McNamara earlier this season, and losing to both Paul VI and Bishop O'Connell, all possible hell would have proverbially broken loose in the WCAC.

I think that it would go to a tie-breaker of points scored or some other arbitrary method for determining the fourth spot.

*Bold ranked teams have clinched a birth in the WCAC playoffs.