Following the Week 8 results, it certainly appears that the quest for the Bob Ford Memorial Grid Picks Cup is now down to a five-man race.

“Hot” Rod Heckman still holds a two-game lead over Sam “The Man” Matta and “Bad” Brad Hurley, who are tied for second place.

Pat “The Mat” Matsinko” had the week’s best record, and the season’s best record thus far. His 14-1 mark lifted him past Yours Truly into fourth place, three games off the lead.

“My goal each year is just to stay in contention until the postseason games begin ….” he said. “Hopefully, I’m still in a good position by the time we get there and have a chance down the stretch.”

Matsinko is well aware of how challenging it will be to defeat the front-runners. “Rod, Brad, and Sam will all still be in the mix, and maybe someone else will make his move,” he said.

Hey, Pat. I’m hoping that someone you’re talking about will be Yours Truly. My 12-3 record kept me barely in contention at four games behind Heckman.

With four weeks left in the picks’ season that will include two weeks of playoff predictions, the “also rans” can now be identified beginning with Mike “Hurricane” Haines, who is in sixth place and seven games off the pace, all the way down to Kyle “The Rook” Magda, who could’ve just claimed permanent residency of the Pundit Pit at 19 games behind Heckman after a 9-6 week.

The line on Week 9

I predict this week’s picks will jumble our standings again. Northern Lehigh, at 7-1, would be a heavy favorite against Jim Thorpe, but the 3-5 Olympians are no pushover, as they strive to play in the postseason.

Both teams can score through the run or pass. The Bulldogs have a 99-9 edge over their opponents in first quarters this year, and yet this game could be much closer than the records would suggest come the final 12 minutes. The ‘Dawgs are the consensus pick, but Yours Truly, Matta, and Matsinko are pulling for the upset.

Lehighton, with its struggles this season, hosts 3-5 Saucon Valley. The unanimous choice is the Panthers take down the Tribe in this one.

Speaking of unanimous picks, Tri-Valley over Marian, Northwestern to defeat Wilson, Pen Argyl to knock off Panther Valley, and Pleasant Valley to get back on the winning track with a win against Pocono Mountain West are all up across the board.

Other games that will have no bearing on the standings because everyone has picked the same winners will have Mahanoy Area over Nativity and Nazareth to win against Whitehall.

Spartans battle Crimson Tide

My pick for the Out of Area Game of the Week is Southern Lehigh vs. Pottsville.

The Spartans come into this game with a sparkling 7-1 record, while the Tide are at 4-4. On paper, it might appear this may be an easy win for Southern Lehigh, but the Tide holds quality wins over Saucon Valley and Bangor.

The consensus pick is Southern Lehigh, but Yours Truly, Kyle Magda, and Emmett McCall like the Tide to upset the Spartans.

Playing the name game

Can Heckman hold his lead into Week 10? Will Matta man-up and regain first? Can Hurley walk his trash talk and get to the front of the pack, and can Yours Truly hang in by the nose of a football to remain in contention?

Matta might be throwing all his chips on the table this week with his underdog picks of Jim Thorpe and Tamaqua. He also likes East Stroudsburg North over winless William Allen, while Heckman picks the Canaries to win their first against the one-win Timberwolves. Hurley also selected North over Allen, so this could be a big swing at the top of the standings depending upon the results of these three games. Matsinko, with a superior 27-3 record over the past two weeks, is coming on strong, but can he catch the favorite?

Yours Truly needs to begin making a move as the season and the race winds down. My fingers are crossed for the Olympians, the Canaries and the Crimson Tide to all win their games for me to hopefully cut into Heckman’s four-game lead.

There’s not much drama left in the rest of the pack, except the pride in gaining ground on the front five. Kudos do go out to Emmett “Football” McCall, who has saved face with a recent 23-7 surge of pigskin acumen to move up seven games from the Depths of Darkness.

My thinking is that everyone in the top five has to compile at least a 12-3 record this week to stay in the hunt. Heckman will be tough to catch, but the core four behind him will surely test the best.

Until next week, what’s up in the race for the Cup will be a mystery. Can Heckman own the king’s throne, or will a yet-to-be-known someone in the chase take over the lead in the race and put himself at the top of the line and leave all the rest behind?