YAIAA football power rankings, Week 5: Bulldogs, Canners and Eagles in a dead heat
So hard to choose a top team this week. I'd say any of one of three schools could make a strong case for the No. 1 spot. (You can probably tell which three from the title of the post.) You can see my pick after the jump, but please leave your own team of choice/justification in the comments.
Last week's rankings here.
A reminder of the process behind the rankings: Don’t think of these as a straight-on measure of which team is better in a head-to-head sense -- obviously, if that were the case, the top five would be loaded with Class AAA and AAAA teams most of the time. Instead, think of them as a gauge primarily of which team is playing the best, with record, quality of opponent(s), classification, etc., also factored in.
1. West York (2) -- It's not that Bermudian did anything to lose its hold on the top spot. It's just that the sum of the Bulldogs' four wins -- all against YAIAA Division I opponents, three against Class AAAA competition -- give them a slight edge, in my book. And West York (4-0) looked plenty powerful during a 44-0 bashing of Red Lion. The Bulldogs are a little banged-up right now, but they're one game -- at William Penn this Friday -- away from heading into the Division II schedule with an unblemished record.
2. Bermudian Springs (1) -- As mentioned before, hard to find any fault in the Eagles' 41-8 win over York County Tech. Bermudian is now 4-0 and continues to betray few -- if any -- obvious weaknesses. The Eagles now have a point differential of plus-109. That's second-best in the YAIAA, and just 18 points behind their neighbor and Division III rival, Biglerville. Hey, speaking of the Canners...
3. Biglerville (5) -- I think we can say with certainty that this Biglerville team is for real. After dominating three inferior opponents, the Canners (4-0) scored a headline-grabbing, 24-6 win over Littlestown last week. Lots of things to like about this team, including the excellent balance on offense. But here's one stat that goes a long way toward explaining Alex Ramos' team's hot start: They've only turned the ball over once through four games.
4. Central York (8) -- The Panthers (2-2) are the big movers this week, after their second straight win -- this one over Susquehannock. This team looks completely different than the one which lost its first two games, albeit against excellent competition. The offense -- and in particular, senior Marquis Fells -- is moving the ball and unleashing those big plays we all expected before the season.
5. Littlestown (4) -- One week after an emotional win against Delone Catholic, Littlestown came back down to earth against the Canners. Five turnovers certainly didn't help the Thunderbolts' (3-1) cause. Still, it's strange to see a Mike Lippy-coached team only score six points. Littlestown needs to bounce back quickly with a really intriguing matchup against York Catholic this week.
6. Delone Catholic (9) -- That's more like it from the Squires, who were dominant during the second half of a 42-12 win at York Suburban. Of course, an even bigger task awaits this week, when the Squires return to McSherrystown to host unbeaten Biglerville.
7. Northeastern (T-2) -- Raise your hand if you saw that loss to William Penn coming. Of course, turning the ball over seven times is a good way to lose a football game. Interested to see how the Bobcats (3-1) rebound this Friday at Spring Grove.
8. York Catholic (10) -- Victories over Fairfield and, more recently, Hanover have the Irish (2-2) back on track. Still waiting for that take-notice win though. Could it come this week against the Thunderbolts?
9. Dallastown (NR) -- Perhaps a strange choice here, considering the 1-3 record. But the Wildcats throttled Dover on Friday and were a whisper away from beating West York at home. This is a good team.
T-10. York Suburban (6) -- Tough night for the Trojans last Friday against the Squires. Strange to see Suburban's offense struggle as much as it did during the second half, when it only managed one first down.
T-10. Spring Grove (NR) -- Are the Rockets turning a corner? Two straight wins, including a 42-11 pasting of Kennard-Dale, hint that might be the case. But let's see how Russ Stoner's bunch fares against Northeastern this Friday.
T-10. South Western (NR) -- Never had a three-way tie before, but why not? Hard to really differentiate between these three. After two ugly losses to great teams, Mustangs (2-2) got back on track against the Colonials.
In the mix: Dover (2-2), William Penn (1-3)