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MOCO Football Week One Preview and Predictions
by Marc Bastow 9/2/2010

Week One for Montgomery County football opens up with a number of now-traditional matchups, and has typically produced some memorable games. Last year's first week produced a Seneca Valley vs Clarksburg contest ending on a last-play pick-six return for the Coyotes by Andrew Veith, a perhaps somewhat surprising win by Churchill over Gaithersburg, and a fairly easy win for Rockville over Walter Johnson. Why rehash the past? Because I believe these rematches are three of the most critical games of the first week of 2010. So let's take a look (NOTE: MCM Top 10 ranking in italics): 

The 2010 Montgomery County high school football season starts tomorrow night as a full slate of games kicks off around the county. Tomorrow MoCoSportsFan will preview three crucial week-one match-ups, and provide predictions for the entire schedule. Before we get to that, however, time to compare Top 10 lists from around the county.

After spending hours of time studying the tape with Gruden, it's time to unveil the MoCoSportsFan Montgomery County Monday (MCM) Top 10. Ok; it's fair to say the "Gruden" part is a bit of a stretch, but after spending time with coaches, players, other media people who cover the county, and watching my fair share of practices, I feel strongly enough about the picks to get the season rolling.

It's been a difficult transition period over the last two years for the Kennedy Cavaliers football program. The Cavaliers went 18-5 in 2007-2008 under Gunnard Twyner, but the talent level has ebbed in the past few years, leading to consecutive 2-8 seasons under coach Randolph Warren. The simple fact is that the Cavaliers play in a brutal (3A West) division, having to face the likes of Seneca Valley, Damascus, and Quince Orchard every year, and don't have the athletic pool of talent available to fill the field. Warren's teams are competitive in every game, however, and this year's squad will be no different, as I found out speaking with Coach Warren via email for Two-A-Day's...

Today's Two-A-Day's focus on perennial Montgomery County football power Seneca Valley, and Richard Montgomery, a program searching for a way to reclaim some past glory to one of the county's oldest programs. Seneca's Fred Kim welcomes back a staggering number (19) of starters from last year's "rebuilding" squad focused in on another championship, while Richard Montgomery's Neal Owens begins his tenor trying to make believers out of players returning from a winless season. With the differences in the programs clear and set, here is what we found out while talking to Seneca's Fred Kim at practice, and with RM's Neal on the air at the gameday coach's show.

 

 

Taking a break from the Two-A-Day's scouting, which picks up tomorrow at Seneca Valley and Richard Montgomery, and piggy-backing on Friday's "What We've Learned One Week Into the Football Season", I think it might be time to provide a sneak peak into the Preseason Top Ten Picks...

 

 

After a great late-season run last year that led them to a 4A regional semifinal, Paint Branch coach Mike Nesmith and his team are looking to build on the momentum and make a push for another playoff run towards a state championship. MoCoSportsFan Two-A-Day's caught up with Nesmith on the gamedaymd all-access coach's show to talk about the upcoming season. 

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