Hot Rod steps on the gas for the finish line, a Ford Mustang stalls out and (Car) lucci smokes his tires for one more surge to win it all.

Rod Heckman’s 12-2 Week 9 pulled him a game up on Bob Ford and Justin Carlucci. With just one week to go, the winner of the 2020 Grid Picks Cup is still very much undecided. Heckman took sole possession of the king’s throne with his pick of Whitehall against Ford’s choice of Southern Lehigh, while Carlucci fell back of the leader when he selected Minersville to beat Catasauqua.

Ford has unknowingly pulled himself out of the race because he picked the same winners in Week 10 as Heckman did so he has no possibility of gaining on the current leader. Picking the same winners as anyone ahead of you freezes your chances to gain ground. Ford’s saving grace is that he’s guaranteed to finish in the top three.

Heckman looked at the bigger picture when asked about his excellent chance to hoist the trophy next week.

“It would be great to come out on top this year, but honestly, I’m just glad we were able to have a season,” he said. “Making picks every week just means the kids were able to get out and play football, which is the most important thing.

“As I look at the games this week and go back and forth on what to select - which happens all the time - I realize how much luck is involved in winning. I’m hoping I can be lucky one more week.”

Carlucci quipped about being in a great position to topple Heckman and win the title.

“It’s the Master’s weekend, but my attention has shifted to high school football,” he said. “If I win, it proves that nobody really knows anything. It is funny how things work. A few years ago when I was a member of the sports department with Pat Matsinko, I would spend 40-50 hours a week on high school football coverage and I never finished a pick season strong. Now, I rarely cover a single game and I’m on the verge of pulling off an underdog story.”

Hixson hops ... Yours Truly drops

With another stellar week, Chuck “All the Luck” Hixson continues to advance in the standings. He’s now just two games behind Yours Truly, who fell six games off the pace. That leaves me desperately trying to run out the clock and hold my place behind the top three.

Last year’s champion, “Handy Andy” Steinmetz, has quietly moved away from the Pundit Pit where he once resided. Emmett “Bossman” McCall has a shot at getting past “Bad Brad” Hurley and Steinmetz, but the boss will need to have a great final week. His picks against the majority are evidence that he’s going for it, all or nothing.

Pat “The Mat” Matsinko has fallen from contender to pretender in recent weeks, while Sam “The Sham” Matta has locked the door on the Pundit Pit and isn’t coming out until the kickoff of next season.

Games that will decide it

Northwestern, Palmerton, and Northern Lehigh are all still in the playoffs. The Tigers’ District 11 Class 4A semifinal was canceled due to COVID-19 issues at Wilson, meaning Northwestern will advance.

But the staff is split with the game between Northern Lehigh and the Bombers, who won by three points in a game against the Bulldogs earlier this season.

The top three in the standings have agreed on every pick in Week 10, except for two that will decide who becomes the 2020 Grid Picks Cup champion.

In a battle of the 7-0 unbeatens, second-seeded Notre Dame Green Pond plays top seed North Schuylkill for the District 11 Class 4A title. This is a gargantuan matchup of two teams loaded with athletic talent and offensive firepower. Notre Dame scores an average of seven touchdowns a game, while the Spartans light up the board with six TDs per contest. Both teams have allowed an average of just 13 points a game. And both have incredible talent at the skill positions. If there ever was a true toss up game, this one is it.

This is a swing game for Heckman and Carlucci. A Spartan win, and Rod pulls two games ahead. If the Crusaders win the district title, Carlucci will have a chance to win it all.

On Wednesday, it was learned that the game has been postponed because of COVID-19 issues. It appears that it could now be played the weekend of Nov. 27-28.

The other swing game is Jersey Shore against Crestwood, a contest between two 8-0 teams. Jersey Shore has outscored its opponents by a 321-30 margin, with four shutouts. Crestwood, led by versatile QB Ryan Petrosky - who has passed for 664 yards and run for another 311 - will test Shore’s shutdown defense.

Heckman likes the Bulldogs, while Carlucci picks the Comets. Once again, this game has significance in deciding who wins the Cup this year.

And the winner is ...

Heckman has been in the lead or very close to it all season long. Carlucci started off great as he usually does, then faded as he usually does, but has resurged in recent weeks to put him in excellent position to grab the Cup right out of Heckman’s hands and sit in the king’s throne until next year.

The favorite or the underdog? Week 10 determines who will be the Grid Picks Cup champion for the 2020 season.