It’s not everyday you get to wake up and say to yourself, “Self…I’m playing the #2 in the country today.” It’s also not a common occurrence either that you play at a school nicknamed for a creature that was known in Greek Mythology as ‘the Hounds of Zeus’.  That’s pretty dang cool if you ask me, but since you’re either not asking or bored already I’ll move on. Margaret Thatcher once said, “You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.”

Now I dig reading ‘The Far Side’ a little more than ol’ Maggie Thatch, but I felt like it was completely appropriate for the task at hand as the Gryphons take on mighty Armwood in a battle for 1st-place in the notorious District 8-6A.

Sickles is 4-0 overall, and 1-0 in the district and by many, well okay ALL accounts not supposed to be in this position this early after losing key elements to a talented squad last year. All accounts except for those hailing from the Gryphons Program who have generated a nice little buzz out in Citrus Park. I’m guessing there’s more than a few people from both schools that remember the pregame *cough* fanfare that Sickles provided at Armwood in the 1st Round of the playoffs last year. The Hawks certainly had the last laugh that night and will expect more of the same tonight. This game could get real weird (or fun) however you choose to see it if some things happen. Let me explain.

There’s really no effective way to measure the amount of confidence that Sickles possesses coming into this game other than their win/loss record which speaks for itself. They’re undefeated, and they’ve earned it to this point. They’ve done it against nearly identical competition (except for Gorman of course) as Armwood has. They’re averaging 33 points a game against said ‘like’ opponents. Now comes the easy ERR hard ERRR fun part.

I don’t believe for one second that the Gryphons are even  remotely intimidated by Armwood. The chips on their shoulders  are as large as Armwood’s O-Line. I doubt they even will feel their  own bodies through the 1st quarter they will be so hyped up. I  believe that Sickles will execute on offense. They will get pressure  on Darryl Richardson and will bottle up Matt Jones initially.  Notice I said initially. There’s an inevitable sequence of plays that  gets played out against teams of the Hawks caliber week-in and  out. It’s usually the 3-5 plays that get you beat when you had a  chance to shock the world.

I expect Armwood to be much sharper on offense than last week  although I do expect a little sluggishness due to Sickles being  ready to play and the Hawks trying to patiently wait for a chink in  the armor to develop. It’s not a singular battle with them. It’s a  siege on multiple fronts with the running game with Matt Jones or  dealing with Bailey and Sneed in the passing game. Their physicality isn’t the issue, it’s the length of it that’s what causes little mistakes by other teams that are just not ready for it.

Sounds like a broken record , but all of the cliches about getting a good push up front, staying disciplined in the secondary and so on apply to this game for Sickles. On offense they will have to remain patient and stick to what they set out to do even when it may seem like what they’re doing isn’t working. If that happens, Armwood has them right where they want them which is doubting themselves. They will smell blood. The Gryphons will have to improve on their sack-count if they want to take some of the pressure off of the DB’s. Armwood racked up 8 against Brandon while Sickles tallied zero.

Nate Mills will be in good shape if he can connect early and get a rhythm with both of his 6-3 170lb WR’s. Even thought the ground game is their bread & butter, they will need to diversify. Those receivers must play physical and not get caught up in stupid penalties. Again, that sequence of events thing. It can even include penalties. Not just plays.

If Sickles can put hats-on-hats their FB Jared O’Donoghue is a tough runner and can set up some nice things with the play action as well. There’s only one part of the game that worries me, and that’s the moment when Sickles’ momentum is stonewalled (which will happen at some point) and how they react. What happens if Sickles goes down on the scoreboard early due to a mistake they’ve made?

Don’t know if Sickles wants a shootout, but I wouldn’t put anything past Head Coach Brian Turner and his Staff.  I know for a fact it’s been hard for some folks to not pick an upset over the Hawks this week, but I just can’t do it. I believe in this Sickles team. So much that I believe it’s their spot in the playoffs to lose. I also believe that Armwood is still the best team in this area, and no matter how ugly it may look, they will still find a way to win.

Still, IF this thing were to go into the 4th Quarter expect the stories to be really interesting come Friday Morning. Trust me it will have gotten weird if all those in attendance were to witness the many battles won for this to have happened.  I really cannot see a blowout this time by any means, but still the Hawks find a way to get it done. Like all of the good ones do. The battle for 2nd place in 8-6A rages.

Prediction: Armwood 26  Sickles 17