Former Journal Review sports editor Jared McMurry held off challengers the last few weeks to place first in this year’s Pigskin Pick’ems Contest. McMurry tied with the Mystery Picker with the best score of the week enabling him to hang on to the lead.
McMurry selected 90 winners out of 110 (82%) local high school, college and professional football games.
He runs his own business, McMurry Lawn Care, and has plenty of time to sit on his mower and ponder the outcome of each game. Being the head coach for Crawfordsville High School cross country teams, rumor has it he also receives advice from his harriers in selecting the winners.
The participant known as the Mystery Picker placed second with 88 correct guesses. A fondness for a local team with a name that carries a Greek connotation might have cost Mystery a few points this season. By the way, the Mystery’s identity will remain a mystery.
Journal Review sports coordinator Bob Cox placed third with 87 points. His final score represents the fact he acts as the newspaper’s host for the contest. He is aware that if he won the contest, some contestants would claim it is rigged so it is appropriate he intentionally allows others to win. (Whatever, Bob.)
Placing a disappointing fourth place was Barry Lewis, also a former Journal Review sports editor, who had won the contest for three straight years. Rumor has it that Lewis, who is the city’s code enforcement officer, was spending too much time in other people’s yards and did not take the time to study each game’s potential outcomes.
Lewis has had a difficult time with his favorite teams this season starting with the St. Louis Cardinals’ dismal season. Add in the Colts and Pacers, and it is evident that the he is not having much sports fan success. But he is still holding onto the promise of good seasons with Notre Dame football and Southmont softball, where he is an assistant coach for the Mounties.
Fifth place this year goes to Montgomery County Visitors Bureau Director Heather Shirk. The “Mountie Mom” scored 82 points. It is rumored that Shirk is considering turning the visitors bureau into a sports betting facility so she can turn her guesses into cash. The proposal has not been presented to her board of directors as yet.
Rob Hinckley placed sixth with 79 points. Rob got off to a good start but seemed to fade toward the end of the season. It might have something to do with the fact he still can be considered a newlywed and now lives in Martinsville with the love of his life.
Hinckley keeps busy in the fall at local racetracks as race director and as a public address announcer. He does still find the time to call football games on Crawfordsville radio and writes game stories periodically for the Journal Review.
Last week, he was on a cruise ship in the Caribbean so his interest in the contest might have waned a tad.
Longtime Journal Review freelance writer Jeff Nelson kept his last place streak intact with 71 points. He puts himself in a precarious situation with his refusal to pick a local team to lose. The only time he does is when Montgomery County teams are playing each other. When that is the case, Nelson will select the home team to win by a single point.
Nelson is never around after all the games are played since he has the weekly date with his friend Tom Brady and Fox NFL. We are always amazed to think it is Nelson who is in Brady’s ear during NFL telecasts filling the Hall of Fame quarterback’s head with so much game information. All of us Colts fans know it is Nelson who comes up with all the interesting facts for Brady’s commentary and it takes a Montgomery County sports guy to keep Brady above water. So, if Nelson is OK with perennially placing last in the Pick’ems contest, that is OK with us Colts fans.
All contestants are hoping the Little Giants can get a big Bell Game win in Muncie in a couple of weeks.
