Every week in the fall, NYPost.com’s Dylan Butler and Joseph Staszewski will attempt to prognosticate the coming Catholic High School Football League weekend.
RECORDS AFTER WEEK 5
Butler: 35-8 (8-1 in Week 5)
Staszewski: 33-10 (8-1 in Week 5)
Here’s Week 6:
St. Joseph by the Sea @ St. Francis Prep (Friday, 7:30 p.m.)
Staszewski: This one has blowout written all over it. St. Francis Prep is without a win and Sea had been an undefeated juggernaut so far. If Greg Manos’ Vikings did have a letdown after beating St. Anthony’s, it is not happening here. Lyle McCombs has distinguished himself as one of the top backs in the entire city and he should have another big day on the ground. SFP, which has hung tough in nearly all its games, finally meets a team just too talented. Pick: St. Joseph by the Sea
Butler: I can wax poetic about the winless heavy underdogs coming out with heavy hearts, dedicating the game to longtime St. Francis Prep coach Tom Finn, who died on Monday night after a six-month battle with cancer, and shocking the undefeated favorites to win the Class AAA title. But it’s not going to happen. Maybe against another team, but Sea is a driven senior-laden club and will roll to another workmanlike victory. Pick: St. Joseph by the Sea
Cardinal Hayes @ Christ the King (Saturday, 1:30 p.m.)
Staszewski: Jeramiah Kobena put on a show in Cardinal Hayes’ win over St. John the Baptist. The Syracuse-bound running back had a career-high 361 yards of total offense and six touchdowns in one of the best performances anyone has produced this season. The Royals won’t be able to stop him, plain and simple. Hayes has given up some points this season, so CK could stay close early if Terrel Hunt and Will Hunter run wild, but they won’t be able to match Kobena for 48 minutes. Pick: Cardinal Hayes
Butler: Christ the King gets one win and suddenly they’re going to be able to run with the most potent offensive in the AA-A? Even for a quarter this isn’t happening, Joe. Look for a Cardinal Hayes rout, which will set up a battle of undefeated teams next Friday night between the Cardinals and Archbishop Stepinac at Maritime. Consider this one my lock of the week. Pick: Cardinal Hayes
Bishop Ford @ Xavier (Saturday, 1:30 p.m.)
Staszewski: This is one of the more even matchups of the week. Ford is sliding a bit and Xavier is playing its best football of the season right now. The Knights defense has been solid all year and now its offense is starting to gel. It completely controlled the tempo during an impressive road win against St. Peter’s last week. Ford has big play potential in running back/wide receiver Steven Brown and halfback Devon Mitchell. The game won’t be too high scoring, but Xavier is playing too well right now to let this one slip away. Pick: Xavier
Butler: Chris Stevens knows a thing or two about football so when he tells me that his schedule was top-heavy, I believed him. Xavier took its medicine in losses to Xaverian and AA-A powerhouses Archbishop Stepinac and Cardinal Hayes, but the Knights are ready to make a run. That started last weekend on Staten Island against St. Peter’s and continues at Aviator Sports Complex Saturday. Pick: Xavier
St. John the Baptist @ Cardinal Spellman (Saturday, 1:30 p.m.)
Staszewski: This season is about next year for coach Dan Crane’s crew. He talked last week about reincorporating some of their old offense going forward. Senior wide receiver Dexter Lawrence is a playmaker and quarterback John Alba shows some promise. Christ the King ran all over the Pilots last week and St. John the Baptist has a dynamic multi-back attack. Derelle Hunter and company will have a field day. Pick: St. John the Baptist
Butler: The weather is feeling a bit like December and Christmas comes early for Baptist on Saturday. There are no guaranteed victories, but this is as close as it comes for the Cougars. It’s never a good sign when a team tries to scrap an offense midseason and that’s what first-year coach Dan Crane and the Pilots are looking to do. Should be another long, cold day for Spellman. Pick: St. John the Baptist
Kellenberg @ Holy Cross (Saturday, 1:30 p.m.)
Staszewski: It’s easy to see the Knights having a letdown in this matchup with St. Anthony’s on tap next week. We have seen it before when Cross didn’t play well in a loss to Holy Trinity at home after knocking off Iona Prep. Kellenberg has the potential for an explosive offense, but the Holy Cross secondary will prove too good for its passing game. St. Joseph by the Sea had great success on the ground against the Firebirds on the ground so look for Dean Marlowe to have a big day scrambling, which will set up everything else. Pick: Holy Cross
Butler: Holy Cross already had its letdown game and the Knights aren’t about to have a second. Kellenberg is dangerous offensively when quarterback Anthony Dilorenzo looks for the long bomb, but Tom Pugh’s squad will be ready. Offensively, senior running back Barrington Wallace is healthy again and could have a big day on the ground, and no one has been able to stop Marlowe this year. Kellenberg isn’t about to be the first. Pick: Holy Cross
St. Peter’s @ Archbishop Stepinac (Saturday, 7 p.m.)
Staszewski: I don’t know how you can pick again Stepinac here. The Crusaders will be feeding off the emotion and crowd at the ninth annual Joseph R. Riverso Memorial Night Game. They are undefeated and show no sign of slowing up. St. Peter’s will have its own emotion heading in as they try to rebound from a frustrating loss to Xavier last week. The Eagles explosive offense and running back Hakim Rice never got going. St. Peter’s will play better, but Stepinac will prevail. Pick: Archbishop Stepinac
Butler: It will be an emotional night and a large crowd is expected as the Stepinac football program remembers former player and assistant coach Joe Riverso, who was killed in the World Trade Center terrorist attacks. But that’s not the only reason why the Crusaders win. Undefeated, Stepinac has athletes on both sides of the ball and will come away victorious again in White Plains. Pick: Archbishop Stepinac
Monsignor Farrell @ Fordham Prep (Saturday, 8 p.m.)
Staszewski: This may be the toughest game to pick this week. Neither team has really distinguished themselves this season, but Farrell is better because of its stout defense. Joe Colucci and friends have come up with big plays and turnovers each week. The Rams have the home field and a much more dynamic offense, featuring speedster Bruce Grant and quarterback Brendan McGlynn. The contest will be back and forth, but the Lions will come up with a big stop late. Pick: Monsignor Farrell
Butler: Both teams will be fighting for a berth in the Class AAA playoffs and are fairly evenly matched. Yes, the Rams have Bruce Grant, who alone carried Fordham Prep to a 17-14 win against Kellenberg last week, but the Lions have a physical defense that includes Colucci and Siddiq Iddrisu. Farrell beat Xaverian a few weeks ago because they were bigger and stronger up front. The same will be true Saturday night. Pick: Monsignor Farrell
Mount St. Michael @ Xaverian (Sunday, 5:30 p.m.)
Staszewski: The Mountaineers earned their first win of the season with a thrilling comeback against St. Francis Prep. Gary Acquah broke out on the ground for two touchdowns and Mario Valentini’s club has some momentum going again the reeling Clippers. Xaverian has been mistake prone over the last few weeks, but they still run the ball well. Mount is not big up front so I’m putting my faith in Zach Kearney and the X-Men ‘srunning game. Pick: Xaverian
Butler: Mount got off a season-long schneid with an impressive come-from-behind win against St. Francis Prep last weekend and is facing a Xaverian team that has lost three consecutive games. But the Clippers are a bigger, stronger and let’s face it, better team, and they will bounce back here. Pick: Xaverian