Week Two Picks.

Written Tuesday August 28th at 1:00 PM

Welcome to the 2018 OAA football season. We will pick games this season with my good friends in the media this season, here are the pickers for the season. Anthony Taormina-Host Between Taorminas and History Now on ONTV, Scott Burnstein-State Champs insider, Oakland Press sports writer, Keith Dunlap-Detroit Free Press sports writer, Dan Stickradt-North Oakland Sports, sports writer, and Sean Cotter-Farmington video coordinator. Anyway good luck everyone this season.

DUNES 11-6

TRAIN 10-7

DUNLAP 8-9

STICK 12-5

BURNEY 10-7

COTTER 11-6

1. Oak Park at 7. Groves

This will be an interesting matchup between the Knights and the Falcons. Oak Park beat Groves last season and is coming into this matchup red hot after beating Utica Eisenhower 31-13 last week. The Falcons need to get back on track especially defensibly where they allowed 39 points in a 39-28 loss to West Bloomfield in Beverly Hills. Got to wonder where Groves mindset is at.

DUNES: OAK PARK 24, GROVES 21

TRAIN: OAK PARK 27, GROVES 24

DUNLAP: OAK PARK 27, GROVES 17

STICK: OAK PARK 33, GROVES 14

BURNEY: OAK PARK 28, GROVES 21

COTTER: OAK PARK 38, GROVES 7

2. West Bloomfield at 5. Clarkston

This is a State Finals rematch in which the Wolves beat the Lakers 3-2 but both teams are different this time around. West Bloomfield won 39-28 in Beverly Hills last week over Groves. Clarkston survived Grandville 12-9 at Michigan last week. This could be a doozy this week on Flemings Lake Road.

DUNES: WEST BLOOMFIELD 42, CLARKSTON 12

TRAIN: WEST BLOOMFIELD 28, CLARKSTON 7      

DUNLAP: CLARKSTON 17, WEST BLOOMFIELD 16

STICK: WEST BLOOMFIELD 21, CLARKSTON 14

BURNEY: WEST BLOOMFIELD 24, CLARKSTON 23

COTTER: WEST BLOOMFIELD 21, CLARKSTON 14

9. Seaholm at 3. Ferndale

I’m very surprised that no one is talking about how big this matchup is between the Eagles and the Maples. Arguably these are the two hottest teams in the league with what they did last week on their home fields. Ferndale destroyed Fraser 62-0 while Seaholm destroyed Troy Athens 41-7. This will be an exciting matchup to say the least in Ferndale.

DUNES: FERNDALE 28, SEAHOLM 21

TRAIN: FERNDALE 28, SEAHOLM 24

DUNLAP: SEAHOLM 21, FERNDALE 20

STICK: FERNDALE 27, SEAHOLM 21

BURNEY: FERNDALE 27, SEAHOLM 26

COTTER: FERNDALE 20, SEAHOLM 14

4. Harrison at Troy Athens

The Red Hawks enter their new division on their heels a bit after losing 41-7 last week at Seaholm. The Hawks destroyed North Farmington 41-0 on their home field last week. This is the first meeting between Harrison and Troy Athens since 2006. I wonder if there are any risk takers thinking possible upset here???

DUNES: HARRISON 49, TROY ATHENS 0

TRAIN: HARRISON 42, TROY ATHENS 0

DUNLAP: HARRISON 42, TROY ATHENS 7

STICK: HARRISON 35, TROY ATHENS 7

BURNEY: HARRISON 33, TROY ATHENS 20

COTTER: HARRISON 42, TROY ATHENS 0

6. Adams at Bloomfield Hills

The Blackhawks are starting to roll again after beating Utica 39-14 last week at home. This week will bring a much tougher matchup for Bloomfield Hills as they take on a Highlanders team that left Rochester with a bit of a bad taste in their mouths. Adams escaped Rochester with a double overtime 28-27 victory. Last season, the Highlanders put 54 against the Blackhawks at Bloomfield Hills, wonder how the encore would be.

DUNES: ADAMS 42, BLOOMFIELD HILLS 7

TRAIN: ADAMS 28, BLOOMFIELD HILLS 24

DUNLAP: ADAMS 24, BLOOMFIELD HILLS 17

STICK: ADAMS 24, BLOOMFIELD HILLS 14

BURNEY: ADAMS 21, BLOOMFIELD HILLS 17

COTTER: ADAMS 28, BLOOMFIELD HILLS 14

Warren Fitzgerald at 8. Avondale

The Yellow Jackets are off to a great start winning 31-13 at Troy last week. Now Avondale will be at home to take on a Warren Fitzgerald team that has had success lately. The Spartans also won last week over Warren Lincoln 40-20. This will be a matchup of two high scoring teams, defense could be optional in this one.

DUNES: AVONDALE 52, WARREN FITZGERALD 45

TRAIN: AVONDALE 24, WARREN FITZGERALD 21

DUNLAP: AVONDALE 28, WARREN FITZGERALD 18

STICK: AVONDALE 24, WARREN FITZGERALD 21

BURNEY: AVONDALE 31, WARREN FITZGERALD 22

COTTER: AVONDALE 35, WARREN FITZGERALD 28

10. Oxford at Lake Orion

This battle for the Double O Trophy will be interesting. The Wildcats are riding high after beating Romeo 24-21 last week. The Dragons fell to a very good Lapeer team 17-7 at Michigan last week. Whoever wins the time of possession battle will win this game on the new football field of Lake Orion.

DUNES: LAKE ORION 31, OXFORD 17

TRAIN: LAKE ORION 14, OXFORD 7

DUNLAP: LAKE ORION 23, OXFORD 20

STICK: LAKE ORION 21, OXFORD 20

BURNEY: LAKE ORION 18, OXFORD 16

COTTER: LAKE ORION 21, OXFORD 17

Southfield Arts and Tech at Rochester

Both teams are coming into this game with disappointing outcomes. The Falcons lost a heartbreaker in double overtime to Adams 28-27. The Warriors had a very disappointing outcome at Wayne State where they were embarrassed by Davison 28-6. Whomever wins this game should be back on track and the team who falls to 0-2 is in deep trouble.

DUNES: ROCHESTER 35, SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 32

TRAIN: SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 24, ROCHESTER 7

DUNLAP: ROCHESTER 24, SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 17

STICK: ROCHESTER 21, SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 19

BURNEY: SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 32, ROCHESTER 25

COTTER: ROCHESTER 21, SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH 14

Stoney Creek at Troy

This is an interesting matchup considering last season was a low scoring game between the two teams but one team has a new coaching staff in Stoney Creek but there were upsides surrounding them. The Cougars found a line and running game against Utica Ford beating them 24-5 but it was the defense that was huge in allowing five points. The Colts took a big step back as they lost 31-13 to Avondale at home. Troy needs to fix both sides of the football and with the schedule coming up for them, they need this game badly.

DUNES: STONEY CREEK 20, TROY 17

TRAIN: STONEY CREEK 14, TROY 13

DUNLAP: TROY 27, STONEY CREEK 13

STICK: TROY 14, STONEY CREEK 13

BURNEY: TROY 22, STONEY CREEK 21

COTTER: STONEY CREEK 17, TROY 10

Pontiac at Berkley

This will be an interesting matchup between the Phoenix and the Bears at Hurley Field along with the first game for new coach Sean Shields. Pontiac is coming off a 28-8 win over Detroit Consortium at Wisner Stadium. Berkley lost 37-21 to Farmington last week. If depth becomes a factor, got to favor the Bears but who knows what if the Phoenix win again???

DUNES: PONTIAC 21, BERKLEY 14

TRAIN: BERKLEY 28, PONTIAC 7

DUNLAP: BERKLEY 35, PONTIAC 6

STICK: BERKLEY 14, PONTIAC 7

BURNEY: BERKLEY 24, PONTIAC 22

COTTER: BERKLEY 42, PONTIAC 6

Hazel Park at North Farmington

The Vikings are off to a good start in their final season in the OAA after beating Detroit University Prep 50-14 last week in Hazel Park. The Raiders were blown out 41-0 at Harrison last week. North Farmington should be ready to go this week being that it will be their home opener in Farmington Hills.

DUNES: NORTH FARMINGTON 24, HAZEL PARK 14

TRAIN: NORTH FARMINGTON 35, HAZEL PARK 14

DUNLAP: NORTH FARMINGTON 17, HAZEL PARK 13

STICK: HAZEL PARK 14, NORTH FARMINGTON 13

BURNEY: HAZEL PARK 17, NORTH FARMINGTON 16

COTTER: NORTH FARMINGTON 21, HAZEL PARK 12

Royal Oak at Farmington

The Falcons whom started the season on a high note had a 37-21 home win over Berkley last week. The Ravens lost a disappointing 21-9 outcome to St. Clair Shores Lakeview in Macomb County. Royal Oak beat Farmington last season, could there be a different outcome, it’s possible.

DUNES: FARMINGTON 38, ROYAL OAK 14

TRAIN: FARMINGTON 28, ROYAL OAK 14

DUNLAP: FARMINGTON 31, ROYAL OAK 24

STICK: ROYAL OAK 21, FARMINGTON 14

BURNEY: FARMINGTON 34, ROYAL OAK 30

COTTER: FARMINGTON 35, ROYAL OAK 14