The first weekend of October is upon us.  It is looking like a cold and maybe wet weekend, which is always fun.  Let’s get to the predictions, shall we?
Panther Marching Band Festival: Charleston, IL

Class 1A – Division I: We think that Mt. Zion should take this class fairly easily followed in 2nd by Wesclin and 3rd by Okaw Valley.

Class 1A – Division II: Paris should slide into 1st pretty easily with this line up.  Arcola and Atwood should follow up in 2nd and 3rd.

Class 2A:  Mater Dei and Carbondale will be neck and neck for 1st.  Carbondale’s early performance time isn’t helpful – but we still think they will pull out the win with Mater Dei in 2nd.  Look for PBL to snag 3rd place.  Freeburg will be interesting to watch, as they are making their competitive debut here.

Class 3A: The last 3 bands in the class will be your Top 3 in reverse order.  Look for Effingham to continue their strong season by taking 1st, followed closely by Marion and then Highland.

Class 4A: This class should prove to be fun.  Joliet West and Edwardsville will battle this one out.  We will give the nod to Edwardsville, as it seems Joliet might be slightly weaker than in years past.  Mahomet-Seymour could slide into 3rd, but their early performance slot in the class will hurt so don’t be surprised if Champaign Centennial finds their way into the 3rd place slot.

Grand Champion: Edwardsville

Normal West Marching Invitational: Bloomington, IL

1A: Danville should be able to take first place but Central A&M made a strong first showing last week at Mt. Zion, so will be a contender. Nashville Community will be in third, competing for the first time ever.

2A: Pontiac will win this class with U-High close behind. Prairie Central rounds out the top three.

3A: Morton walks away with this one. Limestone should be safe in second with Davenport Central, IA taking third.

GC: Morton takes their second GC of the year.

Metamora Parade and Field Invitational: Metamora, IL

1A: A close one between Bremen and St. Joseph-Ogden with the nod going to Bremen. Wethersfield in third.

2A: Rich Central makes their season debut with a first place finish. Fieldcrest takes second with Dunlap Cadet in third.

3A: A very close class all around.  Lincoln takes first with Watseka following in second and LaSalle-Peru in a very close third.

4A: Dunlap  gets another first place finish. Pekin should be safe in second, but their early performance time could hurt them. We’ll give the nod to Canton for third.

GC: Dunlap

Class 1A: We’ll take Thornton Fractional North in third, followed by H.D. Jacobs in their second show of the day.  Chesterton should take this class title back to Indiana after venturing out of state.

Class 2A: Without any bands doing a double show in this class, Glenbrook North should take third, followed by Herscher in second.  After a solid start to the season, Victor J. Andrew should run away with their first class title here.

Class 3A: Some more bands doing double duty in this class.  Huntley should come in third, John Hersey in second, and Marian Catholic takes this class.

Grand Champion: Marian Catholic

Naperville Central Marching Classic: Lisle, IL

Class 1A: H.D. Jacobs should take third, followed by Wheaton North.  Sandwich will grab their third class title of the season.

Class 2A: Several bands in their first competitive weekend here.  We’ll take Waukegan in third, Yorkville in second, and Alan B. Shepard as the class winner.

Class 3A: This could be a close one for the class title.  Batavia looks to come in third, followed by Naperville North and Waubonsie Valley will take this class by a narrow margin.

Class 4A: Another close class here.  We’ll say Lemont in third, Huntley in second, and Romeoville takes its second class title of the season.

Class 5A: Some big bands (120+) in this class.  Third place looks to be a battle, but we’ll give the nod to Warren Township.  Plainfield North should be far ahead after that in second, and Lake Park will keep their perfect class winning streak alive for the season.

Grand Champion: Lake Park

Marengo Settler’s Days: Marengo, IL

Class 1A: There’s no reason to think Sandwich won’t continue their dominance of this class at this competition from previous years.  They will easily take 1st followed by Evergreen Park in 2nd and Johnsburg in 3rd.

 

Class 2A:Lakes Community is on a tear this year….arguably one of the most improved bands in the state of IL from last year to this year.  We think they will continue their winning ways and overtake defending 2A champion Antioch in this show.  Antioch won’t go without a fight, but we think they will take 2nd here, followed by Sycamore.  Note:  Kaneland has won percussion in this class 2 of the last 3 years without placing in the overall Top 3 in the class.

 

Class 3A: The usual suspects here – joined by DeKalb.  Wheeling had an outstanding placement at the Prospect show, showing us they are once again a force to be reckoned with in Illinois.  They will cruise to victory here in Class 3A.  Oak Creek will most likely put on another very crowd pleasing jazzy show and snag the 2nd place in this class again.  TF South is always good when they are out competing so don’t be surprised to see this former ISU Finalist in 3rd place.

Wheeling should once again walk away as the Grand Champion of this show, which they’ve done 5 of the last 7 years.  The only years they didn’t win Grand Champion were the 2 years they didn’t attend since 2005.

 

Bands of America Regional Championships: Pontiac, MI

This Michigan regional has truly become difficult to predict.  With the rising of Walled Lake Central, Rockford and the resurgence of Reeths-Puffer, this is no longer a cakewalk for Plymouth-Canton.    Here’s who we think will make finals, in performance order: Bourbon County, KY, Reeths-Puffer, MI, Hillgrove, GA, Walled Lake Central, MI, Plymouth-Canton, MI, Ferndale, MI Goshen, IN, Rockford, MI, Lockport, and Jenison, MI.  There are a few spots that are completely up for grabs-don’t count out Munster, IN (in their BOA debut), West Bloomfield, MI, DeKalb, IN or Lake Orion, MI to come up and snag a spot or two away.  It’s also rather difficult to predict the champion of this regional-it could come down to 4 or 5 bands: Bourbon County, Reeths-Puffer, Hillgrove, Plymouth-Canton, Walled Lake Central, or even Rockford could come up and steal this regional away after a very impressive debut in the BOA circuit last year and a great start to this season.  We’re going to take the safe prediction and predict Plymouth-Canton as the champion of the 2012 Pontiac regional.

 

Best of luck to all bands this weekend!  Stay dry and warm.

 

 

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