MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK: Live and learn

The weather was gorgeous, not a gray cloud in the sky. People were in short sleeves and the mood was jovial, spring-like as you drove down Plumas Street and through Downtown Marysville. By nighttime, the conditions were enviable and comfortable for the Mid-Valley fans who settled in to watch some prep football.

There was a huge local rivalry on tap, some big implications for league titles, too. Week 7 had the makings of why we love this game so much.

Then the games started, or in one case, didn't start at all. Blowout losses. A game cancellation. Controversy, graffiti and suspensions. More blowout losses.

What a Friday, what an evening to forget.

We saw the Orland Trojans show Wheatland they're not just some feel-good, turnaround story. Down-on-its-luck team to league contender is a nice, but typical tale. It seems to happen to a few teams in the Northern Section per season (see below.) But the Trojans are more than a filler-day fluff piece — they're juggernauts who all but ended the Pirates' chance for a Butte View League title repeat with a 44-7 drubbing.

Ouch.

We saw Pierce's spotlight in the SVL title race not just dim, but get smashed. The Bears were one of the lead players in the Northern Section 2011 Turnaround Tale Spectacular, until Durham came out and served up 44 points of reality in a shutout victory.

Ouch.

We saw Yuba City get Inderkum'd. Someday, the Tigers may loosen their stranglehold on the Tri-County Conference. But it's a "we'll believe it when we see it" type of thing when they can run out to a 35-7 halftime lead in Honker Stadium and make it look easy.

Ouch.

We saw East Nicolaus give up 40-plus for the second-straight week. We saw Biggs struggle for nine points while Maxwell managed 52. We saw River Valley lose by more points (48) than the Falcons have scored in their last five games combined (46).

Ouch. Ouch. Ouch.

And worst of all, we saw the Marysville-Lindhurst game get canceled because a bunch of spray-can toting punks had the incredibly stupid idea to vandalize the Indians' campus. Instead of game highlights, TV crews were getting info from Marysville police; ditto for us at the Appeal. Nobody wants that, we all just wanted to watch a football game.

Ouch, indeed.

Yes, it was an awful Friday (save a couple instances, see below), but it's not the last Friday of the season. Like any good coach will implore, the best thing to do is wipe the slate clean and move on. Forget it, ignore the rearview mirror and lock your eyes on the interstate ahead.

As bad as it was, they were just football games. And for the Lindhurst-Marysville mess, let the powers in charge handle it, because it's so much more fun to cheer than fret and fight over such matters.

WHAT WE LEARNED:

WEEK 7

Two weeks and counting...

A couple of Butte View League contests on Friday gave an early indication of what to expect the rest of the way.

No team ever wants to look past an opponent; that's what we're here for.

With Orland's 44-7 victory over Wheatland and Sutter's 42-7 win at Winters, the Huskies and Trojans look like they're headed for a collision course on Nov. 4 in Glenn County.

That matchup will likely serve as the de facto BVL championship game. Even more intriguing is that both schools could be 9-0 when that game arrives.

Obviously, the Huskies' sole focus is this week's homecoming game against Gridley. The Bulldogs dropped a nonconference home game to Central Valley 32-15 last week.

Sutter will host Wheatland on Oct. 28 in the two teams' annual rivalry game before heading north to end the regular season against Orland.

Shaking things up

Everything became a little more interesting in the Sacramento Valley League on Friday night.

The formerly undefeated Pierce Bears came back down to Earth in a big way after losing 44-0 at Durham last week.

Was it an aberration, or to quote former NFL coach Dennis Green, are the Bears who we thought they were?

Live Oak will have its shot at Durham this Friday at home.

The Lions are looking for payback after the Trojans won the Division III Northern Section championship on Live Oak's field last season. Live Oak picked up a solid 35-14 win in Weaverville over Trinity last week.

Despite that 21-20 loss in Arbuckle to the Bears, the Lions can grab hold of the SVL championship race with a win this week.

Signs of life

The streak is finally over

For the first time since Nov. 20, 2009, the Colusa High football team won a game.

Colusa defeated county rival Williams 22-14, snapping a 17-game losing streak. It was also Colusa's first win as the RedHawks.

Is it the start of something?

Two of Colusa's final three games this season are at home. If the RedHawks win out they will finish 4-2 in the Mid-Valley League.

The hardest part is over. No matter what happens the rest of the way at least the RedHawks have found the win column.

QUICK HITS

• Yuba City's loss to Inderkum on Friday night means the Honkers will likely need to win their final three games (all on the road) if they hope to secure a playoff bid.

The Honkers (3-4, 1-1) have never finished better than 3-2 in the TCC. A 4-1 TCC mark would likely net a second place finish and a postseason berth.

• River Valley had 0 rushing yards against Pioneer last week as the Patriots cruised to a 56-8 win.

The Falcons will try to get their first TCC win since 2008 against Natomas at home this week.

• Aside from all of the off-field distractions, Marysville and Lindhurst are still involved in a tight Golden Empire League race.

With Friday's forfeit, four teams in the GEL are tied for second and Mesa Verde (Lindhurst's opponent this week) is 2-0 in first place.

• East Nicolaus dropped its third straight with a 41-24 loss at Portola. The Spartans can find respite in the fact they'll host a reeling Williams squad this Friday.

• Maxwell recovered from its loss to Chester with a 52-9 win at Biggs. The Panthers will face the Volcanoes again on Oct. 28.

HELMET STICKERS

Offense: Sutter's Trent Little, junior, quarterback — The Huskies' second-year starting quarterback showed his dual-threat capability.

Little threw three touchdown passes along with 183 yards. He also rushed for 113 yards.

Defense: Live Oak's Romario Acosta, junior, safety — Though he's gained prowess for his ability at quarterback, Acosta is a shutdown defender in the secondary.

He had two interceptions and made nine tackles, eight of which were solo.

Special Teams: Biggs' Israel Farfan, sophomore, kicker — One of the few bright spots for the Wolverines, the underclassman kicked a 28-yard field goal.

STAT OF THE WEEK: 693

Number of days between victories for Colusa, a span that dates back to a playoff win on November 20, 2009. The Redhawks ended the streak with a win over Williams.

QUOTABLE

“I know our players are disappointed ... the seniors in particular are pretty upset. (Missing) a game and particularly one against Lindhurst in their last rivalry game is tough."

-- Marysville Principal Gary Cena, who was commenting on the “Battle for the Bell” cancellation and the impact it had on the Indians.