Pallone's State Championship Picks

Here are my eight state championship picks!   Division 1 - Belleville   Tap Tap. I love you, Cal, but Belleville is incredible. The Tigers have faced much stronger competition throughout the postseason, and I think they are battle-tested enough to win against Cal. On top of that, their talent is simply better, and they have more experience under the bright lights. I don't think Belleville is comparable to anyone Cal has played this season, and Belleville is surely the most well-rounded team the Scots will have faced. Even with all the controversy surrounding the Belleville program, I say they repeat.   Division 2 - De La Salle   Even though De La Salle has had the easiest path to the finals out of any of the 16 teams, I'm picking them to repeat. DLS is an emerging powerhouse with an insanely dedicated team and coaching staff. The amount of talent coming in with the coaching staff they have is pretty incredible, and this is one of the most well-rounded teams in the state. Major credit to FHC as they've won multiple playoff games as the underdog, but I think De La Salle earns another ring.   Division 3 - Muskegon   This one might ruffle some feathers, but hear me out. Muskegon has consistently improved all season. Sure, they got trampled by DLS earlier this season, but now, I argue they'd give them a run for their money. Muskegon is very well-rounded and still particularly young. This program has one of the best offensive lines in the state, and they have what it takes to hang with King in the trenches. In addition, I think King is slightly worse than they were last season. I expect this game to be a shootout, and I expect Muskegon to come out on top.   Division 4 - South Christian   Man, this one's tough! I love what Goodrich has done this season, and they've been surprising week after week. But I believe South Christian is the better team here. The Sailors were the team that won the OK-Gold, and the team that broke Catholic Central's 40+ game win streak. Having seen this team in person, I know this squad is special and insanely hungry for a championship. I not at all be surprised of Goodrich won this one, though!   Division 5 - Gladwin   Another really tough one. I've actually gone back and forth here a few times, but I think this Gladwin senior class is special. Sure, Frankenmuth has been here before, but Gladwin has been dominating and proved everyone wrong after winning the weak Jack Pine league. They just beat a Catholic Central team that is always very well-rounded and has one of the best passing offenses in D5.   Division 6 - West Catholic   I think West Catholic will win in a blowout. Playing in the OK-Blue, they consistently faced programs with a much larger student body, and mostly, they dominated. Their only loss was against a Fruitport team that heavily relies on heaving it downfield at all costs, and I do attribute part of that loss to luck. West Catholic is extremely well-trained, and they dominate in the trenches. I don't think Negaunee has faced a team as physically well put together as West Catholic, and they aren't ready for [player_tooltip player_id='300689' first='Tim' last='Kloska'].   Division 7 - St. Francis   This will be a good game. St. Francis and Lumen Cristi met earlier in the season, where St. Francis won by a touchdown. Generally, TCSF is an insanely good, tall, athletic team that has beaten down some good teams. Most notably, they won against Detroit Country Day, a D5 semifinalist, 45-20.   Division 8 - Ubly   Both Ubly and Whiteford have beat down every team they've faced, but I've got Ubly in this one. This is hard because I'm mostly unfamiliar with the D8 scene, but on paper, it looks like Ubly is the better team.

Here are my eight state championship picks!