With last week’s best 13-2 record, Brad Hurley now sits on the king’s throne. He has a two-game lead over Rod Heckman, who finished the week at 10-5.

TJ Engle slipped to third place, five games behind, and Sam Matta holds fourth.

Two-man race?

With only two regular-season weeks remaining and two playoff weeks after that, the battle for the Bob Ford Memorial Trophy is looking like it will come down to Hurley and Heckman. Engle and Matta will need big weeks to close the gap, but they still have a chance.

The rest of us are jammed into the pack. Just three games separate Engle from Carlucci, Yours Truly and Matsinko, but we will need to get on winning streaks and hope the top three falter to move into the top three places. If we all have bad weeks, the dark abyss of the Pundit Pit might be calling for a new resident, a spot currently held by Mike Haines.

The strategy is simple for those of us chasing Hurley and Heckman: Pick upset winners and hope the underdogs prevail.

Speaking of winning

On the local front, our nine teams in the Times News circulation area continue to have very good seasons with a combined 45-27 record. Northwestern is unbeaten, and Palmerton has just one loss. Jim Thorpe, Lehighton and Northern Lehigh are 5-3. Tamaqua, Marian and Pleasant Valley are at .500, while Panther Valley, enjoying one of its better seasons in years, is 3-5.

Déjà vu

Every year, fans can circle the Northwestern-Southern Lehigh game because the two teams are usually undefeated, and this year is no different. The Tigers have dominated the series. The Spartans have not beaten Northwestern since 2018, but pundits are saying this Friday the Spartans will end that long losing streak.

Southern Lehigh is led by all-state quarterback Colton Sams, who has passed for 1,832 yards and 25 touchdowns through eight games. The Tigers are led by quarterback Trey Snyder, who has thrown for 1,234 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Both teams average more than 40 points per game. The Tigers’ defense has allowed just over eight points per game. The Spartans are allowing 10. This is unquestionably the marquee game of the week, and quite possibly of the year.

Out of Area Game of the Week

For Week 9, I’m going with Shamokin at Blue Mountain.

Shamokin is unbeaten at 8-0, and has outscored its opponents 376-62. The Indians are led by quarterback and Wake Forest commit Logan Steele, who has amassed 2,000 all-purpose yards, including five punt returns for touchdowns.

The Eagles, 7-1 with their lone loss coming against Southern Lehigh, have scored 392 points and allowed 105. They are led by quarterback Cohen Kirby, who has accounted for 1,877 passing and rushing yards, along with running back Brody Foose, who has scored 13 touchdowns while averaging nine yards per carry.

Blue Mountain has always been a good football school, but its 2026 edition has been the program’s best in recent years.

The Indians are on pace to win a state title. They have convincingly beaten successful programs such as Shikellamy and Williamsport, whose combined record is 13-3. Their closest game this season was a 35-14 win over Jersey Shore.

I believe the Eagles will stay close for a half, but Shamokin will prevail with a big second half and improve to 9-0.

The heavyweight battle

On the board for Week 9, six games are unanimous picks and will not affect the standings. Five others are either split evenly or have only a slight favorite.

Predicted to compete for the title, Hurley and Heckman disagreed on two of the 15 games this week. Heckman will pull even for the lead if Southern Lehigh defeats Northwestern and Stroudsburg takes down East Stroudsburg South.

On the home front, the Palmerton-Lehighton game favors the Tribe at home, but at 7-1, the Bombers can keep it close against Lehighton, which has lost three of its last four games. Tamaqua versus Selinsgrove is an even matchup that will certainly affect the standings.

Two out-of-area games will also shake up the order. Stroudsburg-East Stroudsburg South is split 5-5 in our staff picks, while Mifflinburg is only a slight favorite against Montoursville.

It’s a two-man race for now, but if the chasers can finish Week 9 with unbeaten or 14-win records, they will remain in contention. For the rest of us, we can either move up and compete or find ourselves fighting to stay out of the Pundit Pit.

Week 10 will mark the end of the regular season. Two playoff weeks will follow before one of us is crowned champion.