On my way back from covering the Gaylesville at Spring Garden football game last Friday night, couldn’t wait to turn on the Buttram, Hawkins and Hopper WEIS Prep Scoreboard Show. I just had a feeling that I was going to turn my dismal start to picking this season around.

By the time I reached the studio in Centre after listening to our guys give the scores, I realized I went 5-0 in my picks for the week. I felt a feeling of relief, but I don’t just want that 5-0 mark to be a one-and-done.

Can I keep up my newfound momentum, or will I drop back under water? Here’s ‘What In The World Is Shannon Fagan Thinking?’ for this week.

Valley Head (0-4) at Cedar Bluff (1-2)

Cedar Bluff has had an extra week to prepare for this one. I look for the Tigers to shake off their loss to Ragland from two weeks ago and play perhaps their best game of the season.

The pick: Cedar Bluff.

Woodville (2-1) at Gaylesville (2-1)

Gaylesville impressed me with its physicality against Spring Garden last week, especially the tough-nosed running of Sean Poss. However, the Panthers were able to gain chunks of yards behind the running of Ben Baker and Brady Ruark.

Woodville has a similar offense with several veterans returning.

In last week’s 35-20 loss at Appalachian, Caleb Lancaster ran for 140 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries. Jonah Sparks added 130 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries, and Kaden Franklin was 8-of-11 passing for 118 yards and a touchdown.

I think it’ll be a close contest, but I’ll give Woodville a slight edge.

The pick: Woodville.

Gaston (3-1) at Piedmont (4-0)

The health of Gaston running back Zyien Dupree is the storyline in this one. Dupree suffered a shoulder injury in the fourth quarter of last week’s loss at Pleasant Valley.

Even with a healthy Dupree, I still think Piedmont’s defense would be too tough for him to run against.

The pick: Piedmont.

Cherokee County (2-1) at Guntersville (2-2)

Guntersville is coming off a hard-fought 7-3 victory at Fairview. The game’s lone touchdown came in the third quarter on a Mack Howard 5-yard run.
The Wildcats traditionally have given the Warriors a tough game. They own a 13-5 series lead, including a 26-13 victory in their last meeting back in 2011.

I’ve said this before, but I really like what first-year Cherokee County head coach Bayley Blanchard has been building so far. Behind Tatum Perry and Jayshawn Stroup, I think Blanchard earns a signature win at Chorba-Lee Stadium.

The pick: Cherokee County.

Spring Garden (2-2) at Ragland (2-2)

Both of these teams appear to have found their stride after winning their last two games. Baker and Ruark are a solid 1-2 punch for the Panthers, as is the Purple Devils’ Mason Parker and Kobe Embry. It wouldn’t surprise me if this one came down to which one had the ball last.

Here’s thinking that team is Spring Garden.

The pick: Spring Garden.

Sand Rock (2-1) at Collinsville (3-0)

This game features two of the area’s top gunslingers in Collinsville’s Mason McAteer and Sand Rock’s Alec Ashley.

This season, McAteer has completed 36 of his 49 pass attempts for 611 yards and six touchdowns. He’s also rushed for 168 yards on 20 carries with five scores.

Meanwhile, Ashley has connected on 43-of-65 passes for 591 yards and seven touchdowns. He’s run for 220 yards on 43 carries with four scores.

I’ll give the edge to McAteer and the Panthers in this week’s Foothills Tractor Mahindra Game of the Week, especially since the Wildcats are down one of their playmakers in Ryker Woodall (leg injury).

The pick: Collinsville.