Top Week 5 Games in the OAA

We're heading into the regular season midseason point and things are starting to pick up in the OAA. When I think of Michigan High School Football, The OAA is one of the first conferences to come to mind. With a couple dozen teams spanning four leagues, this conference never fails to provide excellent competition, fireworks, and championship contending playoff programs. This week, I have four games highlighted in the OAA. Here's a detailed analysis!   Adams @ West Bloomfield   This is the game to watch in the OAA! This is the one team that has given West Bloomfield the most fits in the Red. At it stands today, Adams is on an outstanding 3-game winning streak against the Lakers; a feat that no OAA team can even touch. Both teams are 3-1 with losses against league opponetns; so it's safe to say that this game holds major league championship implications.   West Bloomfield needs to play a balanced, turnover-free game. This is the more talented squad on paper. Offensively, [player_tooltip player_id='249012' first='Reqez' last='Nance'] needs to get in a rhythm early, and he can't hold onto the ball for as long as he sometimes does against this team. I'm also looking for Nance to spread the ball evenly between his elite receiving core. I have great faith in the O-Line and receivers, but Adams usually coaches an outstanding game on defense and they're good at making the QB uncomfortable. Defensively, West Bloomfield needs to play gap-disciplined defense and they need to make sure to get off to a good start. This means a few 3-and-outs to ensure good stamina and longevity for the defense. When it does come down to long-yardage situations, they need to mark up [player_tooltip player_id='248962' first='Brady' last='Prieskorn'] and they can't underestimate the throwing ability of [player_tooltip player_id='566987' first='Ryland' last='Watters'].   Adams has the blueprint to take down West Bloomfield, as demonstrated over the past couple years. Offensively, they just have to keep doing their thing with the Veer. Read, Run, Pitch, with the occasional pass attempt to keep the defense on its toes. I actually like what I've seen from [player_tooltip player_id='566987' first='Ryland' last='Watters'] throwing the football, so Adams could convert some chunk plays over the air. Defensively, it's all about pressure. The D Line needs to get home, contain the elusive QB in the pocket, and make him uncomfortable. With a healthy amount of blitz packages and consistent pressure, West Bloomfield usually makes some mistakes.   Stoney Creek @ Lake Orion   If you look at this game from a quick glance you may put Lake Orion as the heavy favorites. Not so fast. Yes, The Dragons come in as the favorites to win this football game, as they sport a 4-0 record with wins against West Bloomfield and Harper Woods. Stoney Creek sits at 1-3, though they have 1-possesstion losses against both West Bloomfield and Clarkston. In other words; this game will be a fight.   Lake Orion has been humming, and much of that is due to a very productive offense. Headlining this group is [player_tooltip player_id='253269' first='Billy' last='Roberson II'], a bellcow running back with 7 Division 1 offers, and a player who had 7.6 YPC last season. He's a 3-down back with well-rounded athleticism, vision, contact balance, and speed. The rest of the offense has been clicking as well. Dominic Novak has been an excellent outside receiver demonstrating exceptional effort after the catch. Stoney tends to bring it at the line of scrimmage, so a balanced attack could be key for Lake Orion. Defensively Lake Orion needs to play like they did last week against West Bloomfield. Although they're going up against a much different scheme, LO needs to stay home, play physical, and they can't afford to give up chunk plays. If they can stop the run, things will go well.   Stoney has a lot on their plate for this one. Both offensively and defensively, they need to win at the line of scrimmage. Their rushing attack will be paramount. A line led by [player_tooltip player_id='227296' first='Jacob' last='Kropchak'] and other great linemen should ensure more wins than losses. Defensively, they again need to win the line of scrimmage. Guys like Adam Bazzi and Brandon Dobbs Jr will be key in stopping the run, locking down the middle of the field, and perhaps applying pressure on blitz packages.   North Farmington @ Troy   This is a great measuring stick matchup for two teams working on getting taking the next step. Troy sits at 3-1, though their strength of schedule leaves a lot to be desired. North Farmington is the opposite, sitting at 1-3 with one of the toughest schedules in the entire OAA.   North Farmington needs to stick to their gameplan and get something going on both sides. Facing Caledonia, Groves, and Seaholm provides a lot of physicality and hard competition, so now they'll be able to really execute what works. Against a Troy defense that's a whole lot worse than Caledonia (absolutey no debate there), the offense should be a lot more comfortable. Quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='253290' first='Ryan' last='Shelby'] will be the X-Factor in this one.   Troy's schedule starts to pick up here. Last week, they lost by a score to Oak Park, by far their hardest opponent to date. Defensively, they need to get consistent pressure and win at the line of scrimmage. If they can do that, turnovers will likely be forced. Offensively, the O-line needs to establish themselves early. I'm looking forward to the potential matchup between rising star T [player_tooltip player_id='899503' first='Lucas' last='Tic'] against North Farmington's Brendan Rice.   Oak Park @ Avondale   This is a phenomenal matchup that I can't wait to see the result of. Especially for Avondale, this is a measuring stick matchup.   Avondale has done very well through four weeks, sporting a 4-0 record. 2-0 in league play, the Jackets look like the obvious best team in the Gold. The offense returns a lot of great pieces, including Senior QB [player_tooltip player_id='216986' first='Tyler' last='Herzog'], Slot [player_tooltip player_id='188032' first='Eric' last='Christoff'], RB [player_tooltip player_id='216988' first='Myles' last='Moore'], and other skill players. Oak Park should bring it a bit more at the line of scrimmage, so good O-Line play will be paramount. Defensively, it looks like Avondale has improved significantly. Frankly, the defense was bad last season. Now, they've only given up 36 points though four games with a noticeably better scheme. I am worried about the overall physicality of this team as a whole, and it might set them back against the better teams on the schedule.   Oak Park needs a good game here. Sitting at 2-2 and with an unsuccessful 2022 season, the Knights aren't the feared squad that I knew when I was in high school. There is still plenty of talent on this team, and they should win this game on paper. Winning at the line of scimmage is going to be a key factor in this game in addition to making sure Avondale's QB (Herzog) stays in the pocket and isn't able to scramble and extend the play.

We're heading into the regular season midseason point and things are starting to pick up in the OAA. When I think of Michigan High School Football, The OAA is one of the first conferences to come to mind. With a couple dozen teams spanning four leagues, this conference never fails to provide excellent competition, fireworks, and championship contending playoff programs. This week, I have four games highlighted in the OAA. Here's a detailed analysis!