Is this the year Eric Rueb's preseason predictions hit? Find out now in this week's picks column
It’s time to make some picks.
All those talking heads and so-called NFL experts think making preseason picks is tough, but the reality is they’ve got it easy. Making preseason predictions for Rhode Island high school football is an impossible task.
I don’t root for my picks or root against teams I didn’t pick. I’m just taking information that I have today and making picks based on that knowledge or, because I have a dumb sports brain, a storyline I think would be fun.
Looking at last year’s picks, I fared well. In Division IV, I hit three of the four playoff teams, got one Super Bowl team correct but didn’t pick that same team – Smithfield – to win. In D-III, I got five of the eight playoff teams correct, but only had one of the four semifinalists right and didn’t hit a Super Bowl team at all, nevermind pick Moses Brown to win.
Division II went a little better as I correctly picked seven of the eight postseason teams (although not in the right seeds), had two of the four semifinalists and nailed the Super Bowl champ – St. Raphael.
Picking the Super Bowl teams in Division I wasn’t tough, but I went with Hendricken to win it all and we know how that played out.
Last week I delivered my Division IV picks and today, with the Division III and II season set to start with D-I officially kicking off Monday, here are my picks for the 2023 season.
Apologies if I didn’t pick your team, sincere apologies for the teams I did pick.
DIVISION III PREDICTIONS
The idea of a Rogers-Middletown Super Bowl is inviting to pick, but I don’t know that seeds will allow for it so we’ll take that game in the semifinals. Classical is the team I’m most worried about because if they get the right seed, a Super Bowl run is possible with all their talent. Lincoln is another team that I hate not putting in the final.
Ultimately, Moses Brown is the pick for a simple reason – the Quakers have the best player and I believe they’re the most complete team.
TEAM I HATE LEAVING OUT OF THE PLAYOFFS: Tolman
ELITE EIGHT: No. 1-A Middletown over No. 4-B Ponaganset; No. 1-B Moses Brown over No.
4-A Coventry; No. 2-A Lincoln over No. 3-B West Warwick; No. 2-B Rogers over No. 3-A Classical.
FINAL FOUR: No. 2-B Rogers over No. 1-A Middletown; No. 1-B Moses Brown over No. 2-B Lincoln
RUEB’S SUPER BOWL PICK: Moses Brown over Rogers
DIVISION II PREDICTIONS
These picks are totally for the story. The idea of Sandy Gorham and Barrington getting ready to play against Jon Stringfellow – his former assistant – and East Providence is just too good not to think about.
Cumberland could be the team that disrupts all of this, but Mount Pleasant is a total wild card for me. I believe their talent is good enough to take them to a Super Bowl, but if they missed the playoffs it wouldn’t surprise me. This division is going to be absurd, so I tried to think about what would be the most fun Super Bowl and Barrington-EP was what hit me first.
TEAM I HATE LEAVING OUT OF THE PLAYOFFS: Burrillville
ELITE EIGHT: No. 1-A St. Raphael over No. 4-B South Kingstown; No. 1-B Barrington over No. 4-A Cumberland; No. 2-A Mount Pleasant over No. 3-B Woonsocket; No. 3-A East Providence over No. 2-B Westerly.
FINAL FOUR: No. 3-A East Providence over No. 1-A St. Raphael; No. 1-B Barrington over No. 2-A Mount Pleasant.
RUEB’S SUPER BOWL PICK: Barrington over East Providence
DIVISION I PREDICTIONS
I’ve spent the whole summer telling myself I wasn’t picking anything but La Salle-Hendricken in the Super Bowl even though I really want to. If there was a year for one of the public schools to show up in a big way, this is it. The Hawks are a wagon, but the Rams have a lot of question marks after graduating just about everyone (minus the best player in the state, of course). Using my brain is not something I’m used to, so this is a hard choice.
FINAL FOUR: No. 1 Hendricken over No. 4 North Kingstown; No. 2 La Salle over No. 3 Central
RUEB’S SUPER BOWL PICK: Hendricken over La Salle
Eric Rueb's Picks for Week 1
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14
Division II
Providence Journal Thursday Night Game of the Week
Portsmouth at Westerly, 7 p.m.
Landon Husereau’s first official varsity game went well. I’m trying to remain as calm as possible with his potential talent, but if this kid puts up numbers in this game the train will be off the rails.
THE PICK: Bulldogs
Division III
Coventry vs. Toll Gate at Warwick Vets, 6:30 p.m.
I’m sure the field at Vets is going to hold up tremendously with all the rain that hit Wednesday. Maybe someone who thinks they’re important in city politics will see the mud pit and realize the city needs to built a multi-purpose turf field for the two Warwick schools.
THE PICK: Oakers
Division IV
North Providence vs. Central Falls at Macomber Stadium, 6 p.m.
A night game at Macomber? That’s a homefield advantage that not too many schools have and it’s not because of the crowd noise.
THE PICK: Cougars
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15
Division I
Providence Journal Game of the Night
North Kingstown at Hendricken, 7 p.m.
I want to believe the Skippers have a chance in this one but with what the Hawks have – and have added – I don’t know that they’ll have one in Week 1.
THE PICK: Hawks
Division II
South Kingstown vs. Woonsocket at Barry Field, 3:45 p.m.
The matinee start is wonderful, but I’ll take the over on what time this game actually starts. Good news is the field will be muddy and both teams will play 48 minutes of smashmouth football, giving this game a chance at finishing in under two hours.
THE PICK: Villa Novans
Shea at Barrington, 6:15 p.m.
If the Raiders struggled against Moses Brown last week, I have to image the Eagles are going to be able to put up a few points
THE PICK: Eagles
East Greenwich vs. Cumberland at Tucker Field, 7 p.m.
The Clippers should be the Avengers and the Avengers – because they’re actually next to water – should be the Clippers. Name swap please.
THE PICK: Clippers
Burrillville at Cranston West, 7 p.m.
This game is going to feel like something out of the 1970s or, as this generation would say, the 1990s. It’s taking time getting used my heyday being used as the barometer for old stuff.
THE PICK: Broncos
East Providence vs. St. Raphael at Pariseau Field, 7 p.m.
If anyone sees a Russian billionaire roaming around the perimeter of McCoy Stadium, see if he can throw a high school football field into his plans.
THE PICK: Townies
Division III
West Warwick at Ponaganset, 6:30 p.m.
Thanks to last weekend – where the Wizards hung tough with Cranston West and the Chieftains cruised in a win over North Smithfield – this game went from off my radar to “I wish NK-Hendricken wasn’t the same night.”
THE PICK: Wizards
Lincoln at North Smithfield, 7 p.m.
Can someone explain to me why the Northmen are the Northmen? Woonsocket is the northernmost city, so what happened there? I know it wasn’t an internet contest.
THE PICK: Lions
Tolman at Chariho, 7 p.m.
When you talk about the state’s all-time worst commutes for games, Pawtucket to Wood River Junction has to be top five. The Tigers are going to have to leave at like 3 p.m. just to get through traffic.
THE PICK: Tigers
Mt. Hope at Pilgrim, 7 p.m.
Speaking of bad commutes, Bristol to Warwick during rush hour isn’t a walk in the park either.
THE PICK: Patriots
Rogers at Johnston, 7 p.m.
More people will travel from Newport in Johnston for this one than did in July and August combined.
THE PICK: Vikings
Division IV
Davies vs. Juanita Sanchez at Conley Stadium, 6 p.m.
Another interesting fact about Daniel Rose – that’s his professional name. Close friends and family call him by his middle name. As someone who is called by his first, middle and last name depending on the situation, I understand the confusion.
THE PICK: Patriots
Tiverton vs. Scituate at Bryant University, 7 p.m.
What’s larger – the seating capacity at Bryant or the combined student population of these two schools? It seems like it should be a trick question but it’s not.
THE PICK: Tigers
Non-league
Mount Pleasant vs. Watertown (Mass.) at Victory Field, 7 p.m.
Because of the transfer rule – you must sit 35 days from the first official day of the season - David Rodriguez is ineligible for this one, but I’m curious what would happen if he played? What is the RIIL going to do? Make them forfeit a game that doesn’t count? LET HIM PLAY.
THE PICK: Kilties
La Salle at St. John’s (Mass.), 7 p.m.
Hopefully Terrence Campbell gets a chance to show some people that Rhode Island has some dudes that can play.
THE PICK: Rams
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 16
Division III
Middletown at Classical, 12 p.m.
I spent last Saturday on the soccer field and this week my wife is taking over, so I’ll be in Providence for this one. Just hope my kid remembers that a Happy Meal before a game is a bad idea.
THE PICK: Islanders
Narragansett at Moses Brown, 1 p.m.
I made a slight error in my Division III preview. Quakers’ left tackle Ian Cooper is not 6-foot-5, 270 pounds. He’s 6-foot-8. I regret the error, mainly for the opposition’s sake.
THE PICK: Quakers
Division IV
Hope at Exeter-West Greenwich, 11 a.m.
I’ve been saying his name for a few years, but people need to realize that Tyler Stanton would start for any team in Rhode Island at linebacker and would be a pretty good fullback.
THE PICK: Scarlet Knights
Non-league
Central vs. Cranston East at Cranston Stadium, 3 p.m.
If Middletown and Classical can play at a responsible pace, I’ll head over the Conley to see some of this one, then persuade my wife to meet me in Providence for a dinner date. I’m a genius.
THE PICK: Knights
LAST WEEK'S RECORD: 15-9
THIS SEASON: 15-9
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: ProJo's Eric Rueb makes preseason predictions for the 2023 football season
