For our younger readers...

"Guess who's back, back again..."

'Without Me' - Eminem

For our more seasoned readers...

"Hello, is it me you're looking for?"

'Hello' - Lionel Richie

Well to the delight of a few and the dismay of many, I'm back with another season of predictions! Today will be a little shorter than a normal opening column but I'll still try and make it worth your while.  Where else could you get Lionel Richie & Eminem together?

The Falcons look to be on the upward swing after a couple of years of a youth movement.  This should be another very fun year of Falcon football, but St. Albert will be severely tested earlier - which is great, we wouldn't have it any other way.

SA has skills, speed and depth.  But, do they have an 'edge' that has been lacking for a few years? That's my #1 question for this year.  We're blessed to have another great group of kids on The Hill, but does this Flock of Falcons have the 'Nasty Switch' when the helmet gets put on? Recent names come to mind like the Belt's, Brown's and Bowman's when I think of that 'switch'.  We'll find out tonight after the Falcons have gotten smacked once or twice if they have 'it'. 

Logan-Magnolia returns 3/5's of their line - one that manhandled the front 8 of the Falcons last year.  They average 215lbs across the O-Line.  The Falcons actually go about 220lbs up front.  For better or worse, Lo-Ma is a system program. Plug and play new players into the same system year after year.  Over time, it works.  So the Falcons will know exactly what to expect this year, again - but can they stop it?

The Panthers return 3 backs and their QB (who was 1 of 1 for 10 yards last year against SA) but Lo-Ma did lose a lot.  They lost Riley Wohlers who ran for 144 yards and 4 TDs against SA and also lost Morgan Melby who ran for 75 yards and 1 TD against the Falcons.  But remember, there's a reason the Panthers are nearly double digit favorites tonight.

You know of our strong belief in multi-sport athletes on The Hill.  This group exemplifies that belief and with their State Finalist run in basketball last season, they started to believe in themselves at the high school level.

I'll go against the grain and believe in the Falcons tonight to pull off the upset in a higher score game than the experts expect...

Barajas is big... Falcons win 31-28