Now that all seven teams in the River Ridge District have at least five games under their belts, I thought I would take a crack at considering what realistic best-case / worst-case scenarios, from here on out, look like for each of them. I should note that this of course is all based upon teams staying at least as healthy as they are currently. Remember - this is just one person's opinion, so please keep your indignation, rage, etc. to levels appropriate for meaningless midseason musings. Thank you.
So - in alphabetical order:
Blacksburg Bruins (4-2) Class 4 Region D
Ceiling: 8-2 regular season; lose in regional final. I could see the Bruins conceivably knocking off either E. C. Glass, or more likely Salem, in the playoffs, but not both.
Floor: 6-4 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. Games with Hidden Valley and Pulaski County won't be automatic wins. In the unlikely, but conceivable event that Blacksburg drops them both, the Bruins would be on the road for round one of the playoffs.
Cave Spring Knights (1-4) Class 3 Region D
Ceiling: 2-8 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. Hard to find another win on the Knights' schedule, but envisioning one upset isn't too outlandish (I suppose). 2-8 got CS into the playoffs last year; it looks as if that will be much more of a stretch this season. It would again be a quick visit.
Floor: 1-9 regular season; no playoffs. Any win for Cave Spring from this point would be a fairly substantial upset, and I just don't see it happening.
Christiansburg Blue Demons (3-2) Class 3 Region D
Ceiling: 6-4 regular season; lose in regional semifinal (second round). If C'burg continues to come along, three more regular season wins, and one in the playoffs, aren't outside the realm of possibility.
Floor: 4-6 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. Even if the Blue Demons only manage to go 1-4 in the second half of their season, that should be good enough to qualify for the Class 3 Region D playoff field.
Hidden Valley Titans (4-2) Class 3 Region D
Ceiling: 7-3 regular season; lose in regional semifinal (second round). The Titans could conceivably upset Blacksburg or Salem; I can't see them knocking off both. It's equally difficult for me to imagine HV getting further than the three-team roadblock of Magna Vista/Lord Botetourt/Northside in the postseason.
Floor: 5-5 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. Archrival Cave Spring is Hidden Valley's only sure thing remaining. A .500 finish to the regular season would likely presage a short playoff stay.
Patrick Henry Patriots (4-2) Class 5 Region D
Ceiling: 8-2 regular season; lose in regional final . The Patriots will probably be true underdogs in only one of their remaining four games, this week against Salem. If PH could pull that upset and win the other three, the team would almost certainly be a top-three seed in Class 5 Region D. If the Patriots are then lucky enough to somehow avoid both Mountain View and North Stafford, this could finally be the year that Coach Fiddler gets a playoff win - or even two - at Patrick Henry. Not likely, but conceivable.
Floor: 5-5 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. The often hot-or-cold Patriots could lose them all, except Cave Spring, from this point on. With Class 5 Region D's new, weaker (in football) lineup, 5-5 could still be good enough for a home playoff game in round one. Whether or not PH would take advantage of that would be a roll of the dice.
Pulaski County Cougars (5-1) Class 4 Region D
Ceiling: 8-2 regular season; lose in regional semifinal (second round). As with Hidden Valley, I could see Pulaski possibly upsetting Salem or more likely Blacksburg, but not both. In the postseason, the Cougars will almost certainly have to get by Salem or E. C. Glass to make the regional final, and I don't see that coming to pass.
Floor: 5-5 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. I'm trying not to put too much emphasis on last week's Hidden Valley debacle, but it does make one consider the possibility that PC won't see another W in 2019. I don't think that will be the case, but again - conceivable.
Salem Spartans (5-0) Class 4 Region D
Ceiling: 10-0 regular season; lose in regional final. If the Spartans both continue to improve on the offensive line, and learn to quit leaving points on the field, an undefeated regular season is possible. That would most likely have Salem hosting E. C. Glass for the Region D title. As much as I would like to say I can conceive of the Spartans closing the gap that currently seems to exist between themselves and the Hilltoppers - I can't quite get there, yet. Glass just has that look, the lean and hungry look of a team that is one of the legitimate top two or three contenders for the state title. Salem is probably a year away from having that look. As of today, I don't see the Hilltoppers being stopped before the state semifinals.
Floor: 8-2 regular season; lose in regional semifinal (second round). Heaven forbid, but I can envision Salem dropping the Martinsburg game, along with one other. That would likely result in the second seed, and at this point, I can't see Salem losing to any of the teams that could finish in the seventh slot.
So - in alphabetical order:
Blacksburg Bruins (4-2) Class 4 Region D
Ceiling: 8-2 regular season; lose in regional final. I could see the Bruins conceivably knocking off either E. C. Glass, or more likely Salem, in the playoffs, but not both.
Floor: 6-4 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. Games with Hidden Valley and Pulaski County won't be automatic wins. In the unlikely, but conceivable event that Blacksburg drops them both, the Bruins would be on the road for round one of the playoffs.
Cave Spring Knights (1-4) Class 3 Region D
Ceiling: 2-8 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. Hard to find another win on the Knights' schedule, but envisioning one upset isn't too outlandish (I suppose). 2-8 got CS into the playoffs last year; it looks as if that will be much more of a stretch this season. It would again be a quick visit.
Floor: 1-9 regular season; no playoffs. Any win for Cave Spring from this point would be a fairly substantial upset, and I just don't see it happening.
Christiansburg Blue Demons (3-2) Class 3 Region D
Ceiling: 6-4 regular season; lose in regional semifinal (second round). If C'burg continues to come along, three more regular season wins, and one in the playoffs, aren't outside the realm of possibility.
Floor: 4-6 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. Even if the Blue Demons only manage to go 1-4 in the second half of their season, that should be good enough to qualify for the Class 3 Region D playoff field.
Hidden Valley Titans (4-2) Class 3 Region D
Ceiling: 7-3 regular season; lose in regional semifinal (second round). The Titans could conceivably upset Blacksburg or Salem; I can't see them knocking off both. It's equally difficult for me to imagine HV getting further than the three-team roadblock of Magna Vista/Lord Botetourt/Northside in the postseason.
Floor: 5-5 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. Archrival Cave Spring is Hidden Valley's only sure thing remaining. A .500 finish to the regular season would likely presage a short playoff stay.
Patrick Henry Patriots (4-2) Class 5 Region D
Ceiling: 8-2 regular season; lose in regional final . The Patriots will probably be true underdogs in only one of their remaining four games, this week against Salem. If PH could pull that upset and win the other three, the team would almost certainly be a top-three seed in Class 5 Region D. If the Patriots are then lucky enough to somehow avoid both Mountain View and North Stafford, this could finally be the year that Coach Fiddler gets a playoff win - or even two - at Patrick Henry. Not likely, but conceivable.
Floor: 5-5 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. The often hot-or-cold Patriots could lose them all, except Cave Spring, from this point on. With Class 5 Region D's new, weaker (in football) lineup, 5-5 could still be good enough for a home playoff game in round one. Whether or not PH would take advantage of that would be a roll of the dice.
Pulaski County Cougars (5-1) Class 4 Region D
Ceiling: 8-2 regular season; lose in regional semifinal (second round). As with Hidden Valley, I could see Pulaski possibly upsetting Salem or more likely Blacksburg, but not both. In the postseason, the Cougars will almost certainly have to get by Salem or E. C. Glass to make the regional final, and I don't see that coming to pass.
Floor: 5-5 regular season; lose in first round of playoffs. I'm trying not to put too much emphasis on last week's Hidden Valley debacle, but it does make one consider the possibility that PC won't see another W in 2019. I don't think that will be the case, but again - conceivable.
Salem Spartans (5-0) Class 4 Region D
Ceiling: 10-0 regular season; lose in regional final. If the Spartans both continue to improve on the offensive line, and learn to quit leaving points on the field, an undefeated regular season is possible. That would most likely have Salem hosting E. C. Glass for the Region D title. As much as I would like to say I can conceive of the Spartans closing the gap that currently seems to exist between themselves and the Hilltoppers - I can't quite get there, yet. Glass just has that look, the lean and hungry look of a team that is one of the legitimate top two or three contenders for the state title. Salem is probably a year away from having that look. As of today, I don't see the Hilltoppers being stopped before the state semifinals.
Floor: 8-2 regular season; lose in regional semifinal (second round). Heaven forbid, but I can envision Salem dropping the Martinsburg game, along with one other. That would likely result in the second seed, and at this point, I can't see Salem losing to any of the teams that could finish in the seventh slot.
