2023 Midseason OAA Rundown

We're about at the midway point of the 2023 regular season, and we're beginning to see the true contenders of each league. The first few weeks of the season served as great out-of-league games, followed by the past two weeks of interleague games. From the Red to the Gold, there are some trends that I'd love to talk about!   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Red</h2>   <figure class="wp-block-table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Rank</td><td>W-L</td><td>League W-L</td><td>PF-PA (League)</td></tr><tr><td>T1. Lake Orion</td><td>4-0</td><td>2-0</td><td>55-27</td></tr><tr><td>T1. Clarkston</td><td>2-2</td><td>2-0</td><td>42-17</td></tr><tr><td>T3. Rochester Adams</td><td>3-1</td><td>1-1</td><td>40-35</td></tr><tr><td>T3. West Bloomfield</td><td>3-1</td><td>1-1</td><td>53-50</td></tr><tr><td>T5. Oxford</td><td>1-3</td><td>0-2</td><td>21-71</td></tr><tr><td>T5. Stoney Creek</td><td>1-3</td><td>0-2</td><td>43-54</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>   The Red is once again looking like an insanely fun league to watch!   Lake Orion sits atop of the Red with a league-best 4-0 record with a league record of 2-0, having just defeated the preseason favorite, West Bloomfield. The Dragons have something really special brewing with several senior players stepping up to the plate. The next three weeks have Lake Orion facing off against both Adams and Clarkston, and right now, it's hard to bet against the Dragons. Lake Orion has an incredible opportunity to win the OAA Red and this could be an incredibly dangerous team heading into the postseason.   Clarkston seems to be facing some adjustments after their large 2023 senior class. Their week 1 loss against Northville was a shocker, as they weren't able to move the ball against a rowdy defense. The very next week, they narrowly fell to an awesome Southfield A&T team that was coming off a win against Cass Tech. They then crushed Adams 28-7, then had a questionable performance against Stoney Creek, winning 14-10. The Wolves have an incredibly high ceiling as they normally do, but games against Northville and Stoney may show some wrinkles. It's going to be fun to watch Clarkston the next few weeks as they face Oxford, West Bloomfield, then Lake Orion.   Adams mirrors Clarkston in that they have some growing pains after a great 2023 class, yet this team still has a very high ceiling. The Highlanders began the season with a few decent wins against St. Mary's and rival Rochester, followed by a 28-7 loss to Clarkston. Last week, this team bounced back with a 32-7 victory against Oxford. The jury is not out on Adams quite yet. Ceiling? They finish the season 7-2 with a great playoff seed. Floor? 5-4 while still being a dangerous team in the postseason.   West Blooomfield is still the most talented team in the OAA on paper. The high-end talent is extremely apparent, and most weeks have one or two players taking over. Week 1 against Chippewa Valley saw the receiving core take off with some huge performances while [player_tooltip player_id='249012' first='Reqez' last='Nance'] threw an amazing game with a game-winning drive. Week 2 saw WB win big against a great Groves team, then last week had them with a shocking loss to Lake Orion. The league is 100% still in reach for WB, but they'll have to string together some good performances against several playoff teams.   Stoney Creek's record doesn't quite reflect their performances. They have largely proven that they belong in the Red, but have not been able to take that next step. The past two weeks have been especially frustrating for this team as they narrowly fell to West Bloomfield 40-33 then last week to Clarkston 14-10. A few plays here and there, and Stoney is looking at being tied for 1st in the league.   Oxford is the odd one out in the Red, and they unfortunately have been for a minute now. The first two league games have not been all to competitive, as they fell to Lake Orion 38-14 then to Adams 32-7. I am confident that Oxford will one day return to prominence in the Red, but for now, they remain at the bottom of the table.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">White</h2>   <figure class="wp-block-table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Rank</td><td>W-L</td><td>League W-L</td><td>PF-PA (League)</td></tr><tr><td>1. Southfield A&T</td><td>4-0</td><td>2-0</td><td>76-63</td></tr><tr><td>T2. Groves</td><td>2-2</td><td>1-1</td><td>61-49</td></tr><tr><td>T2. Harper Woods</td><td>2-2</td><td>1-1</td><td>84-60</td></tr><tr><td>T2. Farmington</td><td>1-3</td><td>1-1</td><td>28-45</td></tr><tr><td>T2. Rochester</td><td>1-3</td><td>1-1</td><td>47-70</td></tr><tr><td>6. Bloomfield Hills</td><td>0-4</td><td>0-2</td><td>33-42</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>   A&T has proven that they're the most skilled team in the White yet again. With a Mr. Football candidate in [player_tooltip player_id='77216' first='Isaiah' last='Marshall'] plus a few awesome defensive pieces, a lot of folks are saying this could be A&T's year. Every game has been a 1-possesion contest, but they've also faced staunch competition with Cass Tech, Clarkston, Harper Woods, and Groves. All signs point to A&T winning the White, and this team should head into the postseason with 1 loss at most.   Groves continues to impress as a legit contender in Division 2. I wouldn't say it last year, but this year this team has a legitimate shot to go to Ford Field with De La Salle taking a step back. Last week's loss to A&T does sting quite a bit, but they've got a great opportunity to win out, defeat their rival (Seaholm) twice, and make another deep playoff run.   Harper Woods has looked like a solid team this season. Sometimes in year's past it seemed like Harper Woods couldn't quite live up to the hype, but this season may be different. The one-score loss to A&T has to leave people with some optimism, and the win against Stoney Creek looks great when you look at the big picture. Groves, Roseville, and Clarkston are three games that have to be highlighted on the remaining schedule. If Harper Woods can win the majority of those games, they'll be an incredibly dangerous team in the playoffs.   Farmington is taking their lumps in the White after being promoted from the Blue. This is still a solid squad, but the loss to Groves followed by a narrow win to Bloomfield Hills doesn't give a lot of optimism moving forward. The goal moving forward should be to make the postseason and to win a game in the postseason, which I believe is very doable.   Bloomfield Hills looks outmatched in the White. The most difficult stretch of the season is yet to come, as they are about to embark on a brutal stretch against Harper Woods, A&T, Groves, and Adams. The first four weeks saw Bloomfield hills facing significant losses against Seaholm and Stoney Creek, while being competitive but still falling to Farmington and Rochester. Hopefully Bloomfield Hills can pick up a win, but as it stands now, it doesn't seem incredibly likely.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Blue</h2>   <figure class="wp-block-table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Rank</td><td>W-L</td><td>League W-L</td><td>PF-PA (League)</td></tr><tr><td>1. Oak Park</td><td>2-2</td><td>2-0</td><td>58-45</td></tr><tr><td>2. Seaholm</td><td>3-1</td><td>1-0</td><td>56-20</td></tr><tr><td>3. North Farmington</td><td>1-3</td><td>1-1</td><td>42-63</td></tr><tr><td>4. Troy</td><td>3-1</td><td>0-1</td><td>21-28</td></tr><tr><td>5. Troy Athens</td><td>1-3</td><td>0-2</td><td>31-52</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>   Oak Park remains as one of the more inconsistent teams in the state. So far, they've been fine. With 1-possesstion wins versus Athens as well as Troy, Oak Park proves they can win close games, but frankly, I expected more decisive victories. Their 37-0 loss to Oxford is especially worrisome, but we've seen in years past that Oak Park could turn it on at any point.   Seaholm should win the Blue when it's all said and done. Are The Maples as good as they were last season? I'm leaning no, but I still think this team has a similar ceiling. The Veer has been working well with dominant victories against North Farmington, Berkley, and Bloomfield Hills, with a loss against an improved UD Jesuit team. I expect the Maples to win decisively against both Athens and Troy. The last three weeks of the season will be the most telling, as they face off against a currently undefeated Avondale team, the likely league championship versus Oak Park, then the biggest game of the season at home against Groves. Still a high ceiling for this team, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it plays out.   North Farmington is one of the more peculiar teams in the OAA. Frankly, it's hard to know how good The Radiers are at this moment. They began the season facing off against two incredible programs with Caledonia and Groves, fell to Seaholm, and just had a nice 2-score win over Athens. If I had to guess, I'd say North Farmington stays at the #3 spot in the white while finishing the season with 3 to 5 wins. Games against Troy, Oak Park, Oxford, and Bloomfield Hills will be decisive games in order to make the postseason.   Troy still look like Troy. They have a seemingly great 3-1 record, but pull back the curtain, you see the three wins are against teams with a combined 2-10 record. Still, last week's 1-score loss to Oak Park could be cause for optimism, and this should still be a playoff team in Division 1. Once in the playoffs, it's hard to think they can compete with any OAA Red or MAC Red team in the first round.   Athens has had a few tough breaks thus far, though they could easily string together some wins down the stretch. They've unfortunately fallen to both Fraser and Oak Park by one score, and they were outmatched by North Farmington last week. The goal for the rest of the season should be to make the postseason, which is not too far fetched!   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Gold</h2>   <figure class="wp-block-table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Rank</td><td>W-L</td><td>League W-L</td><td>PF-PA (League)</td></tr><tr><td>1. Avondale</td><td>4-0</td><td>2-0</td><td>72-12</td></tr><tr><td>2. Royal Oak</td><td>2-2</td><td>1-0</td><td>40-14</td></tr><tr><td>3. Ferndale</td><td>1-3</td><td>1-1</td><td>14-37</td></tr><tr><td>4. Berkley</td><td>0-4</td><td>0-1</td><td>0-35</td></tr><tr><td>5. Pontiac</td><td>2-2</td><td>0-2</td><td>14-42</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>     The Gold has been a messy league so far. Other than Avondale, every team has had some highs and truly low lows.   Starting with Avondale, all signs point to them winning the Gold. Quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='216986' first='Tyler' last='Herzog'] alongside several over seniors are leading this team into the postseason. It's their league to lose at this point, and unless something extraordinary happens with one of the other teams, The Jackets should have this in the bag.   Royal Oak still looks like a rebuilding program that is in need of some change. The Ravens are coming off a big-ish win against Pontiac, and they also defeated 0-4 Taylor a few weeks ago. Other games include a 21-0 loss to Troy, and a 35-7 loss to Holly. It's going to be interesting to see what Royal Oak is able to do with their league schedule ahead. If they can string together wins against other league opponents, they can find something to build off of heading into next season.   Ferndale came into the season with a new coaching staff, some new facilities, and high expectations after winning the Gold last season. After last week's 37-12 loss to Avondale, an OAA Gold repeat seems very unlikely. Hopefully Ferndale can do some good things moving forward, as they have a few great opportunities against Oak Park, Groves, and Lake Shore.   Berkley has been disappointing. This is usually a solid program with semi-consistent playoff appearances, but it doesn't seem like anything is going for The Bears this season. This team has yet to score a single point all season despite having a few offensive players that I know worked hard this offseason.   Pontiac started the season with a shocking 52-22 upset of Bishop Foley, but they've since fallen back into their old ways. I had hoped this was a corner being turned for the Pheonix, but after a forfeit to Ferndale and a 40-14 loss to Royal Oak, things don't seem great.

We're about at the midway point of the 2023 regular season, and we're beginning to see the true contenders of each league. The first few weeks of the season served as great out-of-league games, followed by the past two weeks of interleague games. From the Red to the Gold, there are some trends that I'd love to talk about!