Back...my trials and tribulations are gone...so the DSR is back!
The old DSR started to get stale. Honestly, it had more to do with the lack of great teams, and great games early on that killed it...ranking teams based on merit became too difficult with fewer and fewer great teams and great early games.
So we flipped the script. Now, we are straight up stealing from college football. Every week we will now release our top six teams, based on a weighted rating system...see the link at the bottom. We then, for show, give you teams 5 and 6.
Next, like a college playoff, we square up the top four teams. Team 1 plays team 4, team 2 plays team 3.
This gives us something other than a basic line up of teams...Now, we see real possible match ups and can envision the games being played by what we know about each team. Based on week 1, I love it. There are two match ups I'd fly home from DC to see...But still would not pay NFHS. That place keeps screwing me over.
So, without further ado, here goes the DSR reboot:
Sixth Seed: Stevenson (average ranking 7.7)
Fifth Seed: Batavia (6.0)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fourth Seed: Brother Rice (4.0)
vs---
One Seed: Lincoln Way East (1.1)
Two Seed: Nazareth (2.7)
vs---
Three Seed Homwood Flossmoor (3.5)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For a first edition, man, this is more intriguing than I thought it might!
Looking first at the Naz/HF match-up: Man, this might be the most interesting game I could have put together.
The Naz defense is rumored to be lights out...from a talent perspective, the eyes tell you that is exactly the case. The record, 4-0...is as good as it can be, but the schedule has not done Naz any justice analytically. Luthern North is 1-3, and their only win is against a 1-3 team. Lake Zurich has just been brutal this year. They typically vaunted defense has given up 56 points and the offense has only scored 50. This year, you can't blame Naz, these should have been two good match ups.
Luckily, Naz gets Benet this week. I think we finally get a real test...whether the game looks that way when it is over is another story. Never the less, Benet is a quality opponent who has put up 104 points - a little over 20 a game. They are going to need at least that to beat Naz. Say Naz maine south's Benet...does this bump them to number 1? Unlike LW East, they have star power - which IMO, makes a critical difference.
With regard to HF...wait a minute. How do we go a second longer without mentioning that Naz and HF both played Luthern North in back to back weeks? Naz: 20-6; HF 34-14. Good lord. This makes this match up truly one we deserve.
What's a better win? Naz's week 1 or HF's week 2?
HF has been rolling. As Naz got a down LZ, HF got a down Brook. The result? HF 29-0 (remember, Naz over LZ 25-0).
As far as I am concerned, Naz gets the nod this week...it has to be their year, right?
-------
In comes LWE with the one seed, a place they have seen plenty of times in the DSR. Ok, here is how I see this team. First of all, with 73,000 students in the school, and a roster that include 19 QBs, they are very deep. There is no super star on the team, but for Coach Zvonar...mad respect if you read this. Evaluating LWE so far comes down to this...they have been dominate, they have made very few mistakes, they look a lot like teams from years past, but....hmmm ... I have to ask, what happens if they match up with a team like Naz? A team with an outstanding looking defense and a few superstars. I guess, the real trouble I see with LWE is hypothetical for now, but can they get back in a game they are losing by 10 or 14? I don't have that question with any other of the top 4 teams. Is that a weakness? Very interested in LWE vs LWW this week...
Brother Rice WTF? Quick - answer - prior to Rice's 35-3 handling of Loyola, when was the last time Rambler got anywhere close to being maine southed? I really have no clue. Rice's offense has looked dynamic as always, as they have put up 34 points per, and the D has been a great surprise, at least to me, giving up 8 points per. Personally, I think the 4 spot is too poor a ranking. Rice has the best win of the four bowl teams...is it just that we don't trust them? And if that is the case, what are we doing ranking HF ahead of them...oh well....
So there we have it:
LWE vs RICE
NAZ vs HF
I'd love to hear your take on whether we got the 4 right, whether the next two in got hosed, but most importantly, given these match ups...who wins.
Link to the votes:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1bePQ1UTtKZU_wpT8YluIVZgumroVU7EP16TgJXPc_Ug/edit?usp=sharing
The old DSR started to get stale. Honestly, it had more to do with the lack of great teams, and great games early on that killed it...ranking teams based on merit became too difficult with fewer and fewer great teams and great early games.
So we flipped the script. Now, we are straight up stealing from college football. Every week we will now release our top six teams, based on a weighted rating system...see the link at the bottom. We then, for show, give you teams 5 and 6.
Next, like a college playoff, we square up the top four teams. Team 1 plays team 4, team 2 plays team 3.
This gives us something other than a basic line up of teams...Now, we see real possible match ups and can envision the games being played by what we know about each team. Based on week 1, I love it. There are two match ups I'd fly home from DC to see...But still would not pay NFHS. That place keeps screwing me over.
So, without further ado, here goes the DSR reboot:
Sixth Seed: Stevenson (average ranking 7.7)
Fifth Seed: Batavia (6.0)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fourth Seed: Brother Rice (4.0)
vs---
One Seed: Lincoln Way East (1.1)
Two Seed: Nazareth (2.7)
vs---
Three Seed Homwood Flossmoor (3.5)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For a first edition, man, this is more intriguing than I thought it might!
Looking first at the Naz/HF match-up: Man, this might be the most interesting game I could have put together.
The Naz defense is rumored to be lights out...from a talent perspective, the eyes tell you that is exactly the case. The record, 4-0...is as good as it can be, but the schedule has not done Naz any justice analytically. Luthern North is 1-3, and their only win is against a 1-3 team. Lake Zurich has just been brutal this year. They typically vaunted defense has given up 56 points and the offense has only scored 50. This year, you can't blame Naz, these should have been two good match ups.
Luckily, Naz gets Benet this week. I think we finally get a real test...whether the game looks that way when it is over is another story. Never the less, Benet is a quality opponent who has put up 104 points - a little over 20 a game. They are going to need at least that to beat Naz. Say Naz maine south's Benet...does this bump them to number 1? Unlike LW East, they have star power - which IMO, makes a critical difference.
With regard to HF...wait a minute. How do we go a second longer without mentioning that Naz and HF both played Luthern North in back to back weeks? Naz: 20-6; HF 34-14. Good lord. This makes this match up truly one we deserve.
What's a better win? Naz's week 1 or HF's week 2?
HF has been rolling. As Naz got a down LZ, HF got a down Brook. The result? HF 29-0 (remember, Naz over LZ 25-0).
As far as I am concerned, Naz gets the nod this week...it has to be their year, right?
-------
In comes LWE with the one seed, a place they have seen plenty of times in the DSR. Ok, here is how I see this team. First of all, with 73,000 students in the school, and a roster that include 19 QBs, they are very deep. There is no super star on the team, but for Coach Zvonar...mad respect if you read this. Evaluating LWE so far comes down to this...they have been dominate, they have made very few mistakes, they look a lot like teams from years past, but....hmmm ... I have to ask, what happens if they match up with a team like Naz? A team with an outstanding looking defense and a few superstars. I guess, the real trouble I see with LWE is hypothetical for now, but can they get back in a game they are losing by 10 or 14? I don't have that question with any other of the top 4 teams. Is that a weakness? Very interested in LWE vs LWW this week...
Brother Rice WTF? Quick - answer - prior to Rice's 35-3 handling of Loyola, when was the last time Rambler got anywhere close to being maine southed? I really have no clue. Rice's offense has looked dynamic as always, as they have put up 34 points per, and the D has been a great surprise, at least to me, giving up 8 points per. Personally, I think the 4 spot is too poor a ranking. Rice has the best win of the four bowl teams...is it just that we don't trust them? And if that is the case, what are we doing ranking HF ahead of them...oh well....
So there we have it:
LWE vs RICE
NAZ vs HF
I'd love to hear your take on whether we got the 4 right, whether the next two in got hosed, but most importantly, given these match ups...who wins.
Link to the votes:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1bePQ1UTtKZU_wpT8YluIVZgumroVU7EP16TgJXPc_Ug/edit?usp=sharing
