He was in the Pundit Pit following one week of our high school grid picks.

On August 31, I wrote, “Already in trouble and in danger of falling out of the race is “Bad” Brad Hurley whose nickname appropriately describes his 8-7 week of picks, dropping him three games off the pace.”

Today, he sits alone in the king’s chair as the captain of the crystal ball and the envy of his peers.

Brad Hurley is the 2018 Grid Picks Cup champion of the Times News. His best Week 12 record of 12-3 lifted him two games above second place finisher, “Hot” Rod Heckman and three ahead of “Handy” Andy Steinmetz.

A method to his gladness

Hurley broke last week’s first place tie with Heckman with his picks of Saucon Valley over Northwestern and Freedom over Parkland.

“Northwestern had a great season and beat Saucon Valley pretty easily early in the year,” said Hurley. “But when I researched the game, I found out that Saucon had made quite a few mistakes which contributed to Northwestern’s scoring. Saucon has a huge offensive line that is very physical so I thought there would be a different outcome this time around.”

He picked Freedom each week of the season, including their 21-20 win over six time consecutive District champs, Parkland in early September. The Patriots had lost the last two years to the Trojans in the title game, but this time Freedom prevailed, 35-21.

“This was a tough one to pick, but I chose Freedom because they have a great quarterback and they are very athletic,” Hurley said.

Hurley relies on research for out of area contests.

“I look at common opponents when picking for Colonial and Lehigh Valley league games and our football capsules help me a lot,” he said. “We break down plays to a point where I get to know a team’s offensive and defensive strengths.”

He follows a high risk, high reward strategy.

“First, I’m very competitive in my nature and I’m aware that I’m up against a very knowledgeable sports staff who know the game. I was very aggressive with my picks at the end of the season because you have to pick against those ahead of you to move up.”

Trash talking triumph

Hurley has finished second a few times in the past and has always been in the mix for the title, but he admitted that winning the Grid Picks Cup was a special moment.

With a dash of humility for his victory and respect for his runner up, he also felt a need to throw a jab or two at a few of his competitors.

“Rod Heckman is like me. He researches two teams’ common opponents and knows the football programs very well.”

“All I can say about Andy Steinmetz, who last week said he didn’t care if he finished ninth as long as I finished tenth, is ‘I don’t care where I finish either as long as I finish first.’”

In regards to last year’s champion, Bob Ford who next week will relinquish the trophy, Hurley said, “Ford’s nothing but a blip on the radar. Last year was a fluke. He got lucky picking which uniform color he liked each week.”

And the cellar dweller is …

Sam “The Man” Matta who has been renamed to Sam “The Sham” because he is the lone occupant of the Pundit Pit where he will reside until next season. Throw away your crystal ball, Sam! Next year try the “eeny meeny miney moe” method.

The offseason is on

While a few district championship games and a number of state playoff games remain to be played, we move our sights toward next year. We offer our thanks to our area teams for another season of exciting high school football.

Next year, Yours Truly intends to move up from seventh place into the top tier of pickers. Hurley and Heckman do their research. Steinmetz consults his friends. I will wave my daughter’s Harry Potter’s magic wand across the weekly match ups to make my picks. I will call myself the Wizard of Winning Wisdom.

See you next season!