Robservations: Tonight’s tilt a must-win for playoff shot

“Playoffs?! Don’t talk about playoffs! Are you kidding me? Playoffs?! I’m just hoping we can win a game, another game!”

— Coach Jim Mora’s reaction, when asked by sports writers about his team’s chances at making the NFL postseason.
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On one hand, the Pioneers could very well repeat this quote when it comes to the remainder of the 2005 season.

But on the other hand, winning “a game, another game” and making the playoffs could be one and the same.

A victory at Cumberland County tonight, combined with another Region 3-5A win over either Franklin County or Coffee County, could very likely give the Pioneers’ that coveted spot among the league’s top four teams, and their first trip to the state playoffs since 1983.

In Warren County’s six-team league, teams finishing in first through fourth advance to the postseason, where they’re paired with the top four from Region 4-5A with No. 1’s playing No. 4’s and 2’s playing 3’s.

The Jets have already gotten one league win, as they ruined Coffee County’s Homecoming on Sept. 16. Should the Pioneers follow suit, and rain on Cumberland County’s Homecoming parade, they’ll not only be a win away from that magic number — 2 — but they’ll own the tie-breaker over the Jets should both teams finish with two league victories.

Couple a win tonight with a victory over Franklin County and/or Coffee County — both of whom are beatable opponents — and there you go. A spot in the top four is just that easy.

On the other hand, fall to the Jets tonight, and a postseason berth is just about out of the picture.

The Jets would improve to 2-1 with a win, and although they would have matchups against the region’s top two teams — Lincoln County and Cookeville — remaining, they’d beat the Pioneers in a tiebreaker even if WCHS were to top Franklin County and Manchester.

So tonight, realistically, is a must-win situation. Even if the Jets lose out, and Warren County runs the table in their final two region games, the Jets would make the playoffs based on the head-to-head matchup tonight in Crossville.

How great is this? I’m writing, and you’re reading, about the scenarios which could land the Pioneers in, or out of, the playoffs.

“Playoffs?!” Yes, playoffs.

Sure, it seems weird to be talking postseason when you consider the 39-game losing streak, the 22-year absence from the playoffs and the like. But it’s a legitimate possibility, and it’s something the Pioneers are shooting for.

And before you start looking at the Region 4 standings, I’ll save you the trouble and let you know that Riverdale — amazingly — is on top.

Should the Pioneers finish as their league’s No. 4, they’d be heading to Murfreesboro for the first round of the postseason and one of the biggest mismatches since David picked out some good-sized stones.

But, we all know how that one came out, don’t we?