Moderator: Greetings to all. It's time to talk sports again, so lets get started!

john, fairmount, illinois: do you think that salt for will advance to the final four with jd learnerd's arm, matt fords ability to not go down, and their speedy receivers?

Moderator: Hi John! Great question. My feeling is that once you reach the state quarterfinals -- with very few exceptions -- you no longer have upsets when teams win or lose. If you've survived into the third round of postseason, you've beaten a couple of good opponents and deserve to be there. Salt Fork has the better record going into this week's game. Pawnee has the home-field advantage, plus the benefit of coming off a huge win last week over previously undefeated Villa Grove. I like Salt Fork's chances for these reasons. My thought is to go deep into the playoffs, teams need to be able to gain yards effectively through the air and on the ground. As you indicate, with J.D. Learnard's arm, the Storm's passing attack is strong. He has thrown for more than 1,700 yards for two consecutive years. Matt Ford is as close to 100 percent healthy as he has been since the first couple weeks of the season. He fights and scraps for yards and, you are right, is not easy to bring down. Plus, Chet Moreland and Lance Hubbard are capable ground-gainers. Salt Fork can move the ball either way, which I believe will lead to success.

Tom, Urbana, IL: Fred,

which of the two area teams remaing in the playoffs, has the best chance to keep going past Saturday?

Moderator: Hi Tom. I think my crystal ball has deserted me. As colleague Marcus Jackson likes to point out, he holds a four-game lead on our sports staff's weekly predictions race. So, the fact that I picked both Salt Fork and Tuscola to win this week may not be a good sign. But hey, as you can read in our Thursday editions, Marcus also picks both Salt Fork and Tuscola to win. But you didn't ask that! You asked which team has the BEST chance. Tough call. Tuscola is playing at home against an unbeaten team, but one it handled a year ago by 50-plus points when obviously each team had a different set of players. Salt Fork is unbeaten, but plays on the road, on the same field in fact that Pawnee whipped an area unbeaten (Villa Grove) one week ago. Though Tuscola might be about the hottest team around right now after knocking off two consecutive higher seeds, I'd go with Salt Fork as the team with the BEST chance to keep going past Saturday. Keep this in mind, if both teams win this week, one of them will get to play for a state championship! We know that because they would be paired against one another (at Catlin) in the state semifinals. Wouldn't that be a magical day?

Chad, champaign, IL: Out of all the teams left in the lower bracket of the 1A playoffs, i would have to say that Tuscola is the most battle tested. Look at what the rest of their conference has done in the playoffs. 4 teams left in the quarterfinals is pretty darn good. Do you think they will make another run to memorial stadium? Concord plays in a weak conference. salt fork is good, but also plays in a weak conference. pawnee plays in a conference similar to tuscola's with mostly all bigger schools.

Moderator: Hi Chad. Excellent points. I've talked at different times this fall about the uoltimate respect I have for the Okaw Valley Conference, not just in football but also in volleyball (and Unity is at state this week in that sport!) Sure, it has an affect on the record, but it makes you better in the long run. On the flip side of that, there is also something to be said for winning games, building confidence and believing in yourself. Unbeaten teams like Concord and Salt Fork certainly have plenty of reasons to feel good about themselves. In Concord's particular case, here's something else to wonder about: even though this is a different year, how much carryover will there be from the 2007 game when Tuscola totally dominated Concord on the way to its second consecutive state title game berth? Even with that 11-0 record this year, some of those returning players must have to think, 'Have we improved that much from last year?' Playing the game at Tuscola will certainly be a benefit to the Warriors. Personally, I think Tuscola is on a roll and can win this week. You could make the same case for Pawnee as well, but I have a feeling that Salt Fork can survive. Did you notice the statistical totals from Pawnee's game last week. I don't have the exact numbers handy, but it was close to a 2-to-1 margin that Villa Grove held in total yards. If Salt Fork's offense can be that effective -- and stay away from turnovers and penalties -- I could see the Storm improving to 12-0.

John, monticello, il: Have you heard any of the rumors of Stan Weinke and Jud Weinke coming back to the area? Where would they end up if they come back? Would Jud possibly come back to Tuscola and Stan not coach or would Jud go where ever his dad is coaching. The rumors have been flying around the last month. Is Monticello a possible destination for the Weinke's as head coach and player?

Moderator: Have I heard the rumors? Yes! Have I spoken with Stan or Jud or anyone to confirm it yet? No! I've been too wrapped up in Unity's upcoming state volleyball appearance, the football playoffs, the start of basketball ...and, oh yes, the All-State and All-Area teams I'm trying to get selected in volleyball to follow up. As soon as we're able -- and hopefully that will be very soon -- we'll get a story in the paper detailing whatever we learn. My guess is they would likely return to Tuscola, but in my opinion, we won't see Stan back there as the head coach. I believe Monticello's John Beccue has turned in his resignation as head coach. I'm sure Urbana's Mike Hoskins has also resigned. More than likely, there will be several other openings in the weeks ahead. Some may interest Stan. Or maybe not. He might like to be the fan in the stands to watch Jud the next two years and also have the flexibility on weekends to watch John, who may well get time at Iowa as soon as next year. That's the best i can tell you for now.

Moderator: We'll wrap this up for now and return again next week to see what's on everyone's minds. Hope you have a great weekend. Thanks for the questions!