Back in August, I told anyone who asked me that I thought Slippery Rock and Kutztown would play in the PSAC championship game this season.

Well, I would have if anyone asked me.

I'm not big on predictions, but if I had to place a bet back before the season started as to who would win their respective divisions in the PSAC, I can attest, right hand to the Lord above, that I'd have put my money on Slippery Rock and Kutztown.

I know you don't believe me and I'm OK with that. But looking back on it now, it all makes sense, doesn't it?

At the end of last season, Kutztown was the one PSAC team out of the four that made the playoffs that seemed that it would obviously be better in 2011 than it was in 2010. All the key pieces were back, and the Golden Bears added a few others, most notably speedy running back Robbie Frey, a transfer from UConn.

And honestly, if that debacle at Shippensburg hadn't happened in Week 5, we'd all be espousing on Kutztown's obvious greatness. That's because other than that 42-7 loss to the Red Raiders, Kutztown has had only one game settled by fewer than 10 points, and their average margin of victory has been 29 points.

So maybe Kutztown wasn't anywhere near its best against Shippensburg. But the Golden Bears have been good otherwise, and really that's no surprise. They have a top-notch quarterback, some great skill players, an experience line and a defense that has stepped up its play from last season.

As for Slippery Rock, I honestly believed adding Cody Endres would put The Rock over the top. Seriously. It was clear last season that George Mihalik's team had all the necessary parts except one -- a quarterback. And that cost them dearly when they stumbled in the second half of last season.

When Endres transferred from UConn in January, he immediately made The Rock a contender. But it wasn't so much what Slippery Rock was capable of that made me think they were the team to beat, but what the rest of the PSAC West was not capable of.

Let's face it: California is not an early-season team. The Vulcans, although easily the most talented team in the region, always take time to jell into a team. It doesn't seem to have happened this season until a few weeks ago, when they rallied back to beat Mercyhurst in overtime. As for the Lakers, you knew it was too good to continue. Sure, Mercyhurst was the best team in the PSAC last season, and the Lakers had many parts coming back this year. But for a program that had very little success over the years, it just didn't seem plausible to win it all again. And when Travis Rearick went down with a knee injury, the Lakers clearly weren' the same team.

So that leaves Kutztown and Slippery Rock staring down each other in the State Game.

I'm guessing it will come down to quarterback play, as most big games do. Morton has been in the playoffs before, and he has the Golden Bears playing their best at the right time. Endres struggled last week in a stunning loss to Gannon, but has a chance to redeem himself on Saturday.

But the Slippery Rock defense, which has been tough all year, can help Endres out by keeping Morton, Frey and the others in check. I'm sure the Slippery Rock defense is smarting after losing a 20-7 halftime lead to Gannon.

I give the clear advantage to Kutztown for two reasons: the Golden Bears are at home, where they are 4-0 this season, and the intangibles favor a Golden Bears team that is trying to build off last year's playoff run while Slippery Rock is just trying to shake off last week's mystifying loss.

No matter how it turns out, I'd like to say I predicted this -- if anyone had asked me.

MILESTONE FOR JACK: Saturday will mark an achievement for one of the PSAC's good guys, when Jack Benedict broadcasts his 450th IUP game as the Crimson Hawks take on West Chester.

Benedict, a Mount Pleasant native, came to Indiana in 1969, the year after the famous Boardwalk Bowl team, and he has called nearly every IUP football game since. He has missed a handful over the years, but he's seen everything from the old NAIA days to Owen Dougherty's tenure to IUP's heyday in the 1990s to Frank Cignetti's retirement, to Lou Tepper's brief stay to the arrival of the next Cignetti. Of Jack's 449 games so far, IUP has won 322 times.

And because I know Jack, I can tell you without certainty that there hasn't been a better guy for the job. Beyond the fact that he knows what he talks about, Jack has an obvious passion for what he does, and you can pick that up through the radio.

But as good as a broadcaster as Jack is, he's a better father, friend, husband and colleague.

Just ask anyone who knows Jack.

NICE MOVE: It's not often that you'd give kudos to someone for skipping a football game, but Clarion freshman Jared Davis had an awfully good reason not to suit up for the Golden Eagles' Oct. 22 game at Edinboro.

Davis, a freshman linebacker, was on a tight deadline to achieve Eagle Scout status -- all the requirements must be met before you turn 18, and his birthday was days away -- so he received permission from head coach Jay Foster to skip the game to finish a community service project.

Instead of dressing with his team, Davis and a group of volunteers went into Oakdale, a suburb of Pittsburgh, and painted about 20 picnic tables and benches outside a rehabilitation hospital.

"I'm busy, but I would not miss this," Davis told The Pittsburgh Trubune-Review. "It's a prestigious award."

It would be nice to think that all student-athletes would have this kind of attitude, but sadly they do not. So here's to Jared Davis, one of the good guys.

EARLY NODS: The PSAC will hand out is awards, as voted by the coaches, next week. But I'll give my take as to who should be honored for their efforts:

East Division
Offensive Player of the Year: Kevin Morton, QB, Kutztown. He's the most important player on the best team in the division. His 31 touchdown passes and 2,620 yards speak for themselves. Second place goes to Ray Wagner, who is putting up some ridiculous numbers for a bad team.

Defensive Player of the Year: Jarrett Pidgeon, LB, Bloomsburg. He's the QB of the Huskies' defense, and he has shined brightly this season, with 90 tackles. Give a nod to Kutztown's Alex DiNolfi (eight interceptions) and Brett Moss (11.5 sacks).

Rookie of the Year: Steven Laurino, QB, C.W. Post. It took him a few weeks to get his sea legs, but Laurino eventually became a duel threat for the surprising Pioneers. He rushed for 738 yards and passed for 1,656, and he accounted for 19 touchdowns.

Coach of the Year: Ray Monica, Kutztown. He should get this simply because he rallied the team after its 35-point loss to Shippensburg and the Golden Bears haven't slipped up since.

West Division
Offensive Player of the Year: Trevor Kennedy, WR, Mercyhurst. With video-game like statistics (1,930 all-purpose yards, 16 touchdowns), this should be an easy pick. Add to it that he had to adjust to a new QB halfway through the season, and it's that much more impressive. Second place goes to California's Thomas Mayo, who proved his three years at Concord were no fluke.

Defensive Player of the Year: Ian Wild, LB, Mercyhurst: Great student, great athlete, great kid. His 90 tackles leads the PSAC, which is amazing considering he's been playing with a nagging back injury. Give credit to Slippery Rock linebacker Zach Sheridan, the key cog in one of the nation's best defenses.

Rookie of the Year: Justin Caliste, WR, Gannon: Although he's a little guy, he paid big dividends for the Golden Knights, with a league-best 18.9 average and two touchdowns on punt returns. He'll be a headache for the rest of the PSAC the next three seasons.

Coach of the Year: Curt Cignetti, IUP. In his first season, he took a team coming off back-to-back sub-par seasons and changed the culture swiftly. The Crimson Hawks could finish 7-3, which is impressive considering they don't have the top-of-the-line talent they usually have.

POWER RANKINGS
1. Kutztown (9-1)
2. California (8-2)
3. Slippery Rock (8-2)
4. Bloomsburg (8-2)
5. IUP (6-3)
6. Edinboro (7-3)
7. C.W. Post (6-4)
8. West Chester (5-5)
9. Gannon (4-6)
10. Mercyhurst (4-6)
11. Shippensburg (6-4)
12. East Stroudsburg (2-8)
13. Clarion (2-8)
14. Millersville (3-7)
15. Cheyney (1-9)
16. Lock Haven (0-9)




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