Week 6 provides clarity in YAIAA division races (column)
There's officially a front-runner in every YAIAA division.
Week 6 provided great clarity for those wondering who the team to beat is in each division, as each division featured a matchup of teams unbeaten in division play battling for first place. Now there are only five teams remaining with unblemished division records.
As we get ready for the homestretch of the football season, lets take a look at how each division title race is shaking out:
Division I
In the driver's seat: Red Lion (6-0 overall, 3-0) — after a 42-13 win against South Western.
The Lions look like the best team in the league, winning every game so far this season by more than 20 points. In the past two weeks, they've beaten Northeastern and South Western by a total of 50 points. They still have games against Spring Grove, Central York and Dallastown on the schedule, but they appear to be rolling.
Still in the mix: Dallastown (5-1, 2-1), Central York (4-2, 2-1), Spring Grove (4-2, 2-1), South Western (3-3, 2-1).
There's a logjam of teams sitting right behind Red Lion, but that will thin out next week when Spring Grove hosts Central York and Dallastown hosts South Western. Wins next week will be key to stay in the division race because Red Lion doesn't look like it will lose more than once, if at all.
Northeastern (4-2, 1-2) likely won't get back into the division title race, but it certainly could continue to play spoiler the way it did Friday night in a win against Dallastown.
Division II
In the driver's seat: Eastern York (3-3 overall, 3-0) — after a 31-13 win against Gettysburg.
The Golden Knights have certainly flipped the switch after an 0-3 start to the season, decisively beating West York, Dover and Gettysburg to move into first place. The toughest tests are out of the way, so if Eastern York can avoid stumbling against Susquehannock (1-5, 0-2) or Kennard-Dale (0-6, 0-3), they'll be a win against York Suburban away from a title.
Still in the mix: York Suburban (4-2, 2-0), Gettysburg (3-3, 2-1), West York (1-5, 1-1).
York Suburban, the defending division champion, is the only one of these teams with a serious shot of winning the division title outright. The Trojans have won four straight games since an 0-2 start, but so far they have only beaten the division's bottom-dwellers. If York Suburban can stay hot, it could set up a winner-take-all rivalry game at Eastern York in Week 10.
Division III
In the driver's seat: York Catholic (5-1 overall, 3-0) — after a 29-20 win against Littlestown.
The Fighting Irish aren't the only 3-0 team in this division, but they're sitting in this position because they've already gotten two of the toughest divisional opponents — Delone Catholic and Littlestown — out of the way. The schedule gets easier from here, and they host Bermudian Springs in Week 8.
Still in the mix: Bermudian Springs (5-1, 3-0), Littlestown (5-1, 2-1).
The Eagles are the other 3-0 team in this division, and they'll really get a chance to prove how much of a contender they are in the next three weeks with games against Delone Catholic, York Catholic and Littlestown. An undefeated run through those games will put the Eagles back on top of this division after a down year last fall.