Football picks: previewing the Week 4 slate of Bayside South football

The opening weeks of football season are in the books and Week 4 has arrived, as Bayside Conference teams prepare for more games under the Thursday and Friday night lights.

There are only four football games in the Bayside South this week, as Washington is on a bye while two of the South's teams, Snow Hill and Decatur, face-off against each other. Wicomico, after losing a close overtime battle will go toe-to-toe with a team that looks arguably the Bayside's top team through three weeks, while Bennett hosts Queen Anne's. And Parkside, still looking for their first win, goes to face Kent County, another winless team.

Here are previews and predictions for this week's slate of Bayside South football:

North Caroline (3-0) at Wicomico (1-2)

Sept. 21 | 6 p.m. | Wicomico County Stadium

This week's Thursday night game in the Bayside Conference features Wi-Hi, as they come back home to Wicomico County Stadium after back-to-back road games. After grabbing their first win over Easton in Week 2, Wi-Hi fell just short on the road against Queen Anne's losing 25-19 in overtime. Now, they'll come home to face a North Caroline team that has made a lot of waves in the first three weeks.

The North Caroline Bulldogs are coming into the game with a 3-0 record as they make the trip to Wicomico County. The Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 69-0 in their last two games, with their defense shutting out Parkside and Easton, while senior quarterback Nasai Bell and their offensive weapons like Zymear Smith have taken care of business on the other end.

It'll be a tough task for the Wi-Hi defense to keep the Bulldogs' offense in check, while Wi-Hi's offense, led by explosive quarterback Takai Hugee, will have to put some more points on the board in this one. North Caroline looks like, along with Stephen Decatur and Kent Island, maybe the Bayside's best team, and will leave Salisbury with the win.

Pick: North Caroline

Queen Anne's (1-2) vs James M. Bennett (1-2)

Sept. 22 | 6 p.m. | Wicomico County Stadium

Right after winning their first game in four years against Washington in Week 2, the Bennett Clippers fell to Stephen Decatur, 35-0 last week. While the final score may look similar to the usual Bennett-Decatur results that we've seen between these two teams in the last few seasons, when watching the game you could see the Clippers improvement, as they hung around in the first half before Decatur took full control of the game after halftime.

Now the Clippers are back home to face Queen Anne's, who just beat Wi-Hi last week. The Clippers run game, led by quarterback Zakai Smullen along with running backs Jamareon Stevens and Jorryn Smith, led them to the win against Washington, and appears to be the focal point of their offensive attack. They were able to put up over 70 points combined in their first two games, and will have to get back to that production if they want to upset the Lions this week.

While Bennett continues to look like an improved team, they've still got a ways to go before consistently competing with the Bayside's best. Queen Anne's will move to 2-2 with a win Friday night.

Pick: Queen Anne's

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Snow Hill (3-0) at Stephen Decatur (3-0)

Sept. 22 | 6 p.m. | Stephen Decatur High School

The Bayside South's last two unbeaten teams will face off in Berlin Friday night, as Snow Hill and Stephen Decatur both try to keep their win streaks alive.

It comes as no surprise that Stephen Decatur, fresh off a State Semifinal appearance last year, has been one of the Bayside's best to start the year. On the other hand, the Snow Hill Eagles have been one of the best stories of the early portion of the season, impressing in their first season under new head coach Raheem Hammond.

Stephen Decatur's offense has been impressive so far this year, with star quarterback Brycen Coleman connecting with receivers Trybe Wise, Gavin Solito and Careen Bolden for big plays. Snow Hill on the offensive end has been led by Tyler Reddick and Zyheem Collick, while their defense has been opportunistic in getting takeaways. If the Eagles want to pull off an upset, it'll be interesting to see if they can manage to hang around in the first half like Bennett did last week against the Seahawks.

While Snow Hill has been great so far, Stephen Decatur will be the lone undefeated Bayside South team when the final buzzer sounds on Friday, defeating the Eagles at home.

Pick: Stephen Decatur

Parkside (0-3) at Kent County (0-3)

Sept. 22 | 6 p.m.

In a battle of winless teams on Friday night, Parkside will make the trip to Kent County in search of their first win of the season. Parkside lost a tough, close game last Thursday, losing 28-21 to Cambridge-South Dorchester after being unable to tie the game in the red zone with seconds left in the fourth quarter.

Now the Rams turn their sights to Kent County, who have a tough first three weeks, losing in blowouts to Arcadia, and Bohemia Manor, while keeping things closer against Seaford last week, but still falling 24-6. Parkside, led by quarterback Canaan Mapp and running backs Nasir Holden and Elijah Donaldson, should be able to put the necessary points on the board to get ahead in this one. Parkside grabs their first win of the season Friday night over Kent County.

Pick: Parkside

This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Preview and predictions for Week 4 of Bayside South football