Division 1 Regional Finals Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The district finals went (mostly) as expected. One large upset, a good few blowouts, and a few close games, the District Finals were fun to follow. Teams that I thought could possibly make a dark horse run like Saline, Grandville, and Eisenhower are out, and only eight teams stand in the D1 pool now. Looking at these final eight teams alongside regional matchups, we should be in store for an extremely competitive weekend. Here are my updated D1 rankings alongside thoughts on all four regional finals matchups! </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Rankings</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"ordered":true} --> <ol><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Belleville</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Rockford</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Davison</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>West Bloomfield</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Southfield A&amp;T</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Chippewa Valley</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Northville</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Clarkston</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ol> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Region 1</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#2 Rockford vs. #3 Davison </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rockford silenced crosstown rival Grandville 49-28 in the District Finals, while Davison escaped Grand Blanc 24-17.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is one of those matchups that was highly anticipated immediately after the bracket came out. Rockford has been on cruise control practically all season, sporting decisive victories against several of Michigan's top teams. Shoutout to Senior RB Ryan Ahern for his 190-yard and 4TD performance. QB [player_tooltip player_id='1122536' first='Drake' last='Irwin'] was also a steady game manager, while the defense made a few big stops. Rockford is still set in stone as my #2 team in the entire state. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Davison won the district title, but they allowed Grand Blanc to keep it close. The Cardinals went up 14-0, but let Grand Blanc cut the deficit down to 4 at the half. They're going to have to play mistake-free and efficient football if they want to defeat Rockford, as I strongly believe this game will be their biggest test yet. [player_tooltip player_id='80934' first='Carter' last='Herriman'] and the rest of the front 7 need to limit rushing lanes and force the Rams offense to throw the ball downfield, while the offense needs to win at the line of scrimmage while getting the ball out to their playmakers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>My prediction: Rockford wins 31-21</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Region 2</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#1 Belleville vs. #7 Northville</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Belleville shot down any semblance of upset with a dominant 65-15 victory over Saline. On the other side, Northville impressed, beating Detroit Catholic Central 24-17. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Belleville took care of Saline like they were a middle school team. I haven't been able to watch too much film, but the score alongside some highlights paint the picture pretty well I think. [player_tooltip player_id='247690' first='Bryce' last='Underwood'] showed the world why he's considered the top QB prospect in the country, throwing for over 300 yards, 4TDs, on 84% completion. The defense came to play as well, shutting down the high-powered Saline offense. It doesn't get any more "statement win" than this.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Northville has had an incredible season, and they've reached a new high as they defeated a great Catholic Central team. Big performances by several upperclassmen continue to make the difference in these tight games. Now, they're set to face the #1 team in Michigan, and a team they lost to 42-0 earlier in the season. I'd give them a fighting chance against most surviving teams, but Belleville? Probably not.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>My prediction: Belleville wins 52-8</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Region 3</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#4 West Bloomfield vs. #8 Clarkston</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Earlier this season, Clarkston defeated West Bloomfield 44-36. This game is a doozy.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>West Bloomfield pulled away against Utica Eisenhower in what was a bit of a statement game for them. The past couple years have not been to kind to West Bloomfield in the postseason, but this year may be different. The defense showing up like they did last weekend is extremely impressive, and they'll need to play well to beat a red-hot Clarkston team that beat them earlier this season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Wow. The Wolves knocked off the top team in Oakland County in what was an instant classic. Turnovers, big plays, special teams, you name it, that game had it. When the dust settled, Clarkston emerged victorious. What a season it's been for Clarkston, who I thought was a toss-up against Romeo in the 1st round, and now they find themselves 1 win away from the semifinals. The offense seems to have really found its legs, while players like [player_tooltip player_id='253268' first='Desman' last='Stephens II'] are stepping up defensively. They will head into West Bloomfield as the underdogs, but this is a team playing their best football and anything can happen. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>My Prediction: West Bloomfield wins 42-40</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Region 4</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#6 Chippewa Valley vs. #5 Southfield A&amp;T</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is set to be a great matchup between two high-powered offenses. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Chippewa Valley has taken care of business two straight and are riding high into the regional finals. Though, A&amp;T will be a tougher test than both Stevenson and Dakota. QB [player_tooltip player_id='248811' first='Andrew' last='Schuster'] has proven he's a near-elite QB over the past few seasons, while the weapons of this offense has gelled like never before. Last week against Dakota was a great primer before facing an on-par defense against A&amp;T. The CV defense will need to find ways to get stops though as they're going up against one of the best passing attacks in the state. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A&amp;T handled Cass Tech with relative ease it looked like. Sure, the score was relatively close in the end, but I thought it was apparent that Southfield was the better team through all four quarters. I know that Seniors like [player_tooltip player_id='77216' first='Isaiah' last='Marshall'], [player_tooltip player_id='1036563' first='Reggie' last='Gardner'], and [player_tooltip player_id='247706' first='Tashi' last='Braceful'] are going to do everything in their power to make a state title run this season. It's probably going to be a close game, but I give a slight edge to A&amp;T.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>My Prediction: Southfield A&amp;T wins 35-28</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->