When you’ve choked on the dust of the horses running in front of you for far too long, there comes a time to make a big move.

Perennial back of the pack pickers, Emmett “Bossman” McCall and Yours Truly, finished on top of the list with best records of 12-3 in Week 6.

Our editor has been pressured the past few years to prove his prowess as the mastermind of the Times News sports department.

Now, he comfortably sits in third place and just three back of the leader.

That prompted perennial contenderRod Heckman to ask, “Is this finally the year for McCall?”

The “Bossman” jested that he hasn’t been interviewed for this column in years. “That shows you how bad I’ve been lately,” he said.

McCall explained why he has been doing so much better this year than in recent grid picks’ seasons.

“There is really nothing I’m doing differently ... I always try to pick the winner, but for a change this season, I’ve actually been doing that a lot more often,” he said.

For him, participating in the Cup race is all about having fun.

“I like hearing from my friends and also from fans at the games ... Whether they are thanking me for picking their team to win or busting on me for making a pick they don’t agree with,” said McCall, “I enjoy the interaction with our readers that the Grid Picks create.”

Just three weeks ago, Yours Truly was all by himself in the Pundit Pit. I’m now in sixth place, having jumped over four pickers. Success is fleeting and a bad Week 7 will have me writing a different story, but for now, I’ll enjoy the success and pat myself on the back.

Brad Hurley sits in the king’s throne for the sixth week in a row, holding on to a two-game lead over Pat Matsinko, who continues to keep himself in contention. Following McCall are TJ Engle and Heckman. Both are four games back, and cannot afford to allow Hurley to widen the margin if they expect to contend for the title as we move into the second half of the picks’ season.

Wins for Raiders,

Bombers and the zoo, too

Tamaqua won a homecoming game against Jim Thorpe, while the Palmerton Blue Bombers and a herd of animals scored area wins last week. The Northern Lehigh Bulldogs, Marian Colts, and Northwestern Tigers all won games, but not Panther Valley, Pleasant Valley, or Lehighton.

The Panthers were tamed by the Palisades Pirates, and the Bears were clawed by the Panthers from Pocono Mountain West. The Eagles from Blue Mountain flew past the Indians.

This week, our staff picks Palmerton and Northwestern to remain undefeated, with Tamaqua and Marian also expected to keep winning.

But the crystal balls do not see such good fortune for Thorpe, Northern Lehigh, Pleasant Valley, Lehighton, and Panther Valley, who come up against opponents with combined 23-8 records.

Out of Area Game of the Week

I chose Palisades at Pen Argyl, not because both teams are having great seasons, but this is the one matchup that I feel could go either way.

On paper, Pen Argyl, with a record of 3-3 and at home, is a slight favorite. Last week, the Green Knights lost 35-20 to Minersville, while the 2-4 Pirates put up 55 points in a win over Panther Valley.

The Pirates are an enigma. They have lost games by 28, 31, and 42 points, but in their two wins, they’ve won by collective scores of 96-6.

Status quo?

Week 7 features many games that have one team heavily favored over the other, at least that’s what we think. Nine of the 15 games are unanimous picks, and four others have nine of our 10 pickers selecting the same winner.

All that means there should be little movement in the standings going into Week 8.

Concerning the top three pickers, Hurley’s picks match Matsinko’s exactly, but McCall can tie for second place if Palisades beats Pen Argyl.

But if the Green Knights prevail over the Pirates, “Bossman” could drop to four games behind Hurley.

At the back of the pack, Magda and Moeller need big upsets to gain ground, and they’re going for it. Magda picks Jim Thorpe to upset North Schuylkill, and also tabbed Panther Valley to knock off Schuylkill Haven.

Moeller likes Pine Grove to get past Tamaqua.

Sam Matta, who sits in seventh place, two games behind me, is the only picker going with Whitehall to defeat Nazareth.

As mentioned before, the Palisades-Pen Argyl game may be the one contest that moves the standings. Yours Truly takes the Pirates in an upset over the Green Knights. That’s my risky pick of the week!

As we march on toward the latter part of the football season, there still is a lot to be decided.

Hurley is not a lock to win the Cup, as he seemingly once was. Matsinko has a solid chance to celebrate a championship, and don’t count out McCall, who would love to take a victory lap around his editor’s office holding the Grid Picks Cup over his head!