Back to the grind, ladies and gentlemen. High school football kicks off tonight (Friday), and your favorite gridiron guru is primed and pumped to start with a perfect week. Here's what the Shadster sees happening in tonight's games.
Edgewood at Aberdeen. New Eagles skipper Johnny Brooks will start with a Route 40 match-up, as Aberdeen hosts the Rams. I'm betting the Eagles pull out the stops and pick up a win. The pick: Aberdeen tops Edgewood, 21-20.
Elkton at Havre de Grace. The Warriors, with Greg Long at the helm in the wake of Brooks' departure, will not have a tuneup match in week one, as they'll have to deal with Cecil County's strongest squad. The pick: Havre de Grace takes it, 28-14.
Joppatowne at Harford Tech. The Mariners have this one in the bag. The pick: Joppatowne beats Tech, 33-10.
North Harford at Hereford. Taking on a tough opponent in the season-opener are the Hawks, saying "we're ready to stomp everyone's guts out." The pick: North Harford wins, 24-17.
Northwestern at Bel Air. The pick: Northwestern wins, 30-20.
Kent County at Perryville. This is a tough one to pick, but I'm going with the Panthers. The pick: Perryville wins, 14-10.
Chesapeake-Baltimore County at Patterson Mill. The pick: Huskies win, 14-13.
C. Milton Wright at Rising Sun. The pick: Rising Sun takes it, 21-14.
Shad's all-time record
1,691 wins, 666 losses, 71.8 percent