Last week: 12-2 (86%)<\/p>\n
Season: 50-12 (81%)<\/p>\n
It takes a lot to get the Birdie\u2019s attention.<\/p>\n
One minute he is chirping about the Steelers\u2019 offensive woes, the next he is telling stories about golf shots he almost hit.<\/p>\n
In between, he is giving pizza reviews and buzzing about fall festivals he has been to in Penn Township and Mt. Pleasant, as well as his plans to attend the upcoming apple festival in Delmont.<\/p>\n
His dad jokes rarely land, like the Steelers on third down.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow \u2018bout them apples?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
When he is working, your favorite high school football expert is locked in on local teams. Occasionally, one will catch his eye.<\/p>\n
This year, he has taken a fancy to Monessen, a team that was not on his radar at the start of the season.<\/p>\n
The Greyhounds are 4-1 and back in the WPIAL Class A title conversation. Even after a 10-6 loss to unbeaten Burgettstown \u2014 one of only two losses for his yellowness last week \u2014 the Birdie likes the \u2018Hounds story.<\/p>\n
\u201cMonessen is a fun team to watch,\u201d Birdie said. \u201cThey\u2019re fast, physical and disciplined. That Rust Belt town is known for steel-making and small-town grit, which I admire. And a lot of famous people have come from there \u2014 actress Frances McDormand, rapper Coolio, boxer Michael Moore, race car owner Chip Ganassi, even grumpy Bill Belichick\u2019s dad, Steve Belichick. This week, I am an honorary Monessenite.\u201d<\/p>\n
Monessen earned its 700th win earlier in the season, then stunned No. 2 Fort Cherry to end the Rangers\u2019 37-game regular-season winning streak.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd they only have 20 dudes,\u201d Birdie said. \u201cWell, 19 dudes and one tough-as-nails girl who plays on the line. You go, girl. I am adding you to my list of famous people from your town.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Greyhounds have my attention and should have yours. We\u2019re all in this together.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, it\u2019s time for the Week 6 picks.<\/p>\n
Seneca Valley (2-2, 0-2) at Hempfield (2-3, 1-1): While neither team has been too impressive defensively, Hempfield is due to get some stops in front of the home crowd. This will be another close one for Sparty. Hempfield, 23-20<\/p>\n
Fox Chapel (1-4, 0-2) at Latrobe (3-2, 1-1): The Birdie likes this Latrobe offense. Not too flashy, but effective. And there is a quiet toughness to the defense. The Wildcats bounce back. Latrobe, 36-6<\/p>\n
Gateway (2-3, 0-1) at Franklin Regional (1-4, 1-1): Neighboring rivalry games usually make the Birdie overthink his approach. But with Franklin Regional still licking its wounds, he likes the Gators. Gateway, 27-14<\/p>\n
Belle Vernon (4-1, 1-0) at Derry (2-3, 0-1): This will be a dig-deep game on the grass. Uniforms will get dirty. Derry will have to throw to have a chance, but won\u2019t be able to match the Leopards\u2019 speed. Belle Vernon, 28-13<\/p>\n
Elizabeth Forward (5-0, 2-0) at Greensburg Salem (0-5, 0-2): Few teams have been able to slow Greensburg Salem\u2019s offense, but the Warriors will draw up a game plan to do just that. Elizabeth Forward, 43-13<\/p>\n
Waynesburg (4-1, 1-0) at Southmoreland (2-3, 1-1): The Birdie watched the film of Waynesburg\u2019s five-point loss to Elizabeth Forward and likes the Raiders\u2019 rushing attack. Waynesburg, 35-14<\/p>\n
Yough (0-5, 0-0) at Avonworth (4-1, 0-0): No team should have to drive 33 miles one way to play a conference game. The WPIAL needs to take it easy on Yough for a change. Avonworth, 59-0<\/p>\n
Ligonier Valley (5-0, 1-0) at Brownsville (0-5, 0-2): Yes, Ligonier Valley is going to be 6-0. The Rams have annihilated the Birdie\u2019s preseason prediction. \u201cYou\u2019re welcome, LV,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ll take a Beitel Burger, well done.\u201d Ligonier Valley, 58-7<\/p>\n
Monessen (4-0, 1-0) at Brentwood (1-4, 0-2): Monessen will leave no doubt as it moves to 5-1. The more this team believes in itself, the better it can be. You don\u2019t need depth when you have tradition. Just ask Jeannette. Monessen, 28-7<\/p>\n
Jeannette (4-1, 2-0) at Serra Catholic (2-3, 1-1): Jeannette is getting closer to 800 wins. Look for the Jayhawks to pile up big plays and run away with a conference victory. Jeannette, 30-13<\/p>\n
Leechburg (0-5, 0-2) at Greensburg Central Catholic (4-1, 1-0): Admittedly, the Birdie had his doubts about GCC, but he has been watching film and sees marked improvements each week. He is coming around. Leechburg is down and GCC will take full advantage. GCC, 42-14<\/p>\n
Freeport (4-1, 1-1) at Mt. Pleasant (3-2, 1-1): A couple of teams that like to run the ball \u2014 just what the Birdie ordered. Freeport will get a foothold early and control the line of scrimmage to win on the road. Freeport, 20-16<\/p>\n
Norwin (3-2) at North Hills (4-0): Norwin will get a strong road test against a stingy defense, but the Knights will show their offensive balance and nick the Indians. Norwin, 23-20<\/p>\n
Penn Hills (1-4) at Penn-Trafford (5-0): Hear that touchdown bell? It has already started ringing. It will be all Warriors. Penn-Trafford, 52-7<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Last week: 12-2 (86%) Season: 50-12 (81%) It takes a lot to get the Birdie\u2019s attention. One minute…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":866482,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[71],"tags":[427,99],"class_list":["post-866481","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-golf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/866481","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=866481"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/866481\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/866482"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=866481"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=866481"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=866481"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}