By the time you read this, the funeral for little Charlotte will have taken place. I have never had children or experienced the loss of children so I cannot truly know how Joe and Stephanie feel. I think anything that I could possibly say to them would be a feeble attempt at consoling them. I just hope they know that we all care about them.

Memorials can be made in Charlotte's name to Cook Children's Hospital in Ft Worth or the Ronald McDonald House of Ft Worth.

With one week to go things have generally played out how expected. Texas A&M-Commerce and Midwestern State are still in great shape for the playoffs while everyone else trying to finish the season strong.

Last Week's Predictions

Eastern New Mexico 45, Panhandle State 21
West Texas 28, Angelo State 14
Texas A&M-Commerce 55, UT Permian Basin 24
Midwestern State 35, Tarleton State 27
Texas A&M-Kingsville 45, Western New Mexico 10

Actual Results

Eastern New Mexico 53, Panhandle State 10
Angelo State 28, West Texas 7
Texas A&M-Commerce 58, UT Permian Basin 21
Midwestern State 21, Tarleton State 16
Texas A&M-Kingsville 28, Western New Mexico 13

I finished at .800 again for the week. Take away Angelo State games and I'd be perfect picking the LSC!

Super Region 4 Results of Note



Grand Valley 62, Saginaw Valley 56
Midwestern State 21, Tarleton State 16
Southwest Baptist 54, Central State34
Texas A&M-Commerce 58, UT Permian Basin 21
Colorado Mines 42, Adams State 7
Truman State 23, St. Josephs 3
Ashland 56, Walsh 0
Ferris State 41, Hillsdale 20
Colorado Mesa 48, South Dakota Mines 38
Ohio Dominican 28, Wayne State 17

Wayne State was the only team that lost, causing them to fall out of the regional rankings. Again, there is no shame in a loss to ODU but Wayne has simply proven that they cannot beat a top team. They were replaced by CSU Pueblo. Earlier in the year, CSUP lost a game on what looked like a horrible call on video. It would be interesting to see where they stood if not for that call.

This Week's Regional Rankings

1. Grand Valley 10-0

2. Midwestern State 8-1

3. Southwest Baptist 9-1

4. Texas A&M-Commerce 8-1

5. Truman State 8-2

6. Ferris State 8-2

7. Colorado Mesa 8-2

8. Colorado Mines 8-2

9. Ashland 8-2

10. CSU Pueblo 7-3


Brandon's Super Region 4

1. Grand Valley 10-0
2. Midwestern State 8-1
3. Texas A&M-Commerce 8-1
4. Ferris State 8-2
5. Ashland 8-2
6. Colorado Mines 8-2
7. Truman State 8-2
8. Southwest Baptist 9-1
9. CSU Pueblo 7-3
10. Colorado Mesa 8-2

Looking Ahead in SR4

1. Grand Valley10-0 10-0

Wins of Note: Ohio Dominican 24-21, Ferris State 35-23, Truman 41-3, Saginaw Valley 62-56
Losses of Note: None
Remaining Schedule: Wayne State (Mich.)

Saginaw gave the Lakers a much better game than I predicted. Some say they gave the game away.

Although they have shown they might not be as strong on defense as they are on offense, the Lakers keep winning and there is no reason to believe that won't happen this week as well.

Predicted Finish: 11-0

2. Midwestern State 8-1 8-1

Wins of Note: Truman State 31-19, Texas A&M-Kingsville 32-30, Texas A&M-Commerce 26-25
Losses of Note: West Texas 35-27
Remaining Schedule: Eastern New Mexico

MSU just keeps finding ways to win. A team like that can be very dangerous in the playoffs. They will finish with only a single loss.

Predicted Finish: 9-1

3. Southwest Baptist 9-1 9-1

Wins of Note: Eastern New Mexico 49-35, Tarleton State 31-28, McKendree35-7
Losses of Note: Truman State 26-16
Remaining Schedule: Lincoln (Mo.)

SBU will beat Lincoln. The only important aspect of this game is how badly Lincoln's record will hurt the Bearcats.

Predicted Finish: 10-1

4. Texas A&M-Commerce8-1 8-1

Wins of Note: Delta State 40-28, Texas A&M-Kingsville 38-36, West Texas 36-0
Losses of Note: Midwestern State 26-25
Remaining Schedule: Tarleton State

TAMUC's best hope in moving up is a Wayne State upset of Grand Valley.

Predicted Finish: 9-1

5. Truman State8-2 8-2

Wins of Note: Southwest Baptist 26-16
Losses of Note: Midwestern State 31-19, Grand Valley 41-3
Remaining Schedule: McKendree

The Bulldogs moved up one spot this week after moving up two last week. They will get a boost in the SOS by playing McKendree but that's a double edge sword. McKendree could pull off the upset.

Predicted Finish: 9-2

6. Ferris State8-2 8-2

Wins of Note: Ohio Dominican 41-0, Wayne State 42-20
Losses of Note: Ashland 39-31, Grand Valley 35-23
Remaining Schedule: Saginaw Valley

Ferris moved from outside looking in to fairly firmly in the playoffs this week, moving up two spots. After the way they challenged the Lakers, SVSU looks like a much more dangerous team than it appeared two weeks ago. I'll stick with my original prediction, however, that FSU wins out.

Predicted Finish: 9-2

7. Colorado Mesa7-2 7-2

Wins of Note: Western State 34-14, Colorado Mines 41-40, CSU-Pueblo 20-19
Losses of Note: Black Hills 48-34, Dixie State 38-31
Remaining Schedule: Azusa Pacific

The Mavericks moved up two spots this week but they face a real challenge against Azusa Pacific. I think APU will be too much for Mesa this week.

Predicted Finish: 8-3

8. Colorado Mines7-2 7-2

Wins of Note: CSU-Pueblo 57-21, Azusa Pacific 27-23, SD Mines 56-28
Losses of Note: Black Hills 48-34, Dixie State 38-31
Remaining Schedule: Black Hills

It will be very interesting to see which one of these RMAC teams gets in. It's very possible that CSM will be in and CMU will be out. I am going to amend my previous predictions, giving CSM a win over Black Hills, and finish 9-2 overall.

Predicted Finish: 9-2

9. Ashland 7-2 7-2

Wins of Note: Wayne State (Mich.) 36-25, Ferris State 39-31
Losses of Note: Upset by Tiffin 35-32, Upset by Michigan Tech 24-21
Remaining Schedule: Ohio Dominican

Ashland is a very good football team that very well could have been a playoff team in other regions. It's an indictment of the system that they appear to be on the outside looking in, especially if they finish the season with a win over ODU.

Predicted Finish: 9-2

10. CSU-Pueblo 7-3 7-3
Wins of Note: None
Losses of Note: Colorado Mines 57-21, Colorado Mesa 20-19
Remaining Schedule: Chadron State

Where would CSUP be ranked if not for the blown call in the loss to Mesa? They very well could be where Mesa is right now. They'll roll against Chadron then bemoan the bad call all offseason long.

Predicted Finish: 8-3

If my predictions are correct, it could look something like this at the end of the season:

1. Grand Valley 11-0
2. Midwestern State 9-1
3. Texas A&M-Commerce 9-1
4. Southwest Baptist 10-1
5. Truman State 9-2
6. Ferris State 9-2
7. Colorado Mines 9-2
8. Ashland 9-2
9. Colorado Mesa 8-3
10. CSU-Pueblo 8-3

In comparison, this is what Bob Eblen wrote in his national column?

1. Grand Valley
2. Midwestern State
3. Texas A&M-Commerce
4. Southwest Baptist
5. Ferris State
6. Colorado Mines
7. Ashland


As far as the Lone Star Conference is concerned, we see it the same way. The only difference is that Midwestern would be hosting Colorado Mines in my scenario and Ashland in Bob's scenario while Commerce would be hosting Ferris in my scenario and Colorado Mines in Bob's. When comparing mine to Bob's, I could definitely see a switch with Truman and Ferris State. This would prevent an all-GLVC 4/5 first round game and send Truman to Commerce and Ferris to Southwest Baptist.

LSC Standings

Midwestern State 7-1 8-1
Texas A&M-Commerce 7-1 8-1
Texas A&M-Kingsville 5-3 7-3
Eastern New Mexico 5-3 6-4
Tarleton State 5-3 5-5
West Texas A&M 4-4 5-5
Angelo State 3-5 4-6
Western New Mexico 3-5 3-7
Oklahoma Panhandle State 1-7 2-8
UT Permian Basin 0-8 2-8

This Week in the LSC

West Texas A&M at Western New Mexico 1pm

Buffs salvage a winning season. WT 31 WNMU 24

Eastern New Mexico at Midwestern State 1pm

Midwestern State again finds a way to pull out a victory. MSU 28 ENMU 24

Texas A&M-Kingsville at Panhandle State 1pm

Javelinas roll to finish off a season the marks the beginning of a turnaround for the program. TAMUK 48 OPSU 10

Tarleton State at Texas A&M-Commerce 4pm

The Texans are obviously good enough to pose a challenge but the Lions defense will keep this one from being in doubt in the 4th. TAMUC 37 TSU 17

UT Permian Basin at Angelo State 6pm

A 5-6 record looks a lot better than a 4-7 record and that's all the Rams have to play for now. They will be too much for the first year UTPB team. ASU 34 UTPB 20

NCAA Selection Show

Remember, you can find out if MSU and TAMUC make the playoffs an who they're playing Sunday afternoon at 4:00. We will provide the link on the D2Football.com home page.

Feedback

If you want to ask a question or provide feedback, feel free. You can send me a personal message on the board if you are a member. If you aren't, my email address is (first name).(last name)@d2football.com.