Central High senior guard Clantina Stewart has committed to play basketball next season at Middle Tennessee State University, according to Stewart’s head coach, Niki Bray.

Stewart, a 5-6 standout who averaged 16.4 points per game for the Lady Warriors during the regular season, made an unofficial visit to Murfreesboro last week. She will sign with the Blue Raiders on April 16.

Stewart led the Lady Warriors to a 23-8 record this season and the District 16-AAA tournament title.

OK, I’ve gotta give it up to MarkH and Stuman, who outpicked the supposed “expert” last week. MarkH correctly picked 19 of the 23 area match-ups to win the contest. Stuman picked 18. Me? Just 17, and darn it hurts to say. (I guess I shouldn’t have been such a homer on my Division 2-AA picks).

But it’s a new week, meaning we all start clean with a new slate.

So without further hesitation, to the picks we go (the winner will be announced next week on thememphisedge.com and in next Tuesday’s prep notes column):

Tennessee
Class 1A
Fayette Academy (5-6) at McKenzie (10-1)

Class 2A
Peabody (8-3) vs. Carver (5-6) at Crump

Class 3A
Dyersburg (10-1) vs. Mitchell (8-3) at Freeman
Bolivar (7-3) at Fayette-Ware (7-4)

Class 4A
Fairley (8-3) at Henry County (10-1)
Kingsbury (7-4) at Melrose (8-3)

Class 5A
Whitehaven (10-1) at Millington (11-0)
Houston (9-2) vs. White Station (11-0) at Fairgrounds

Division 2-A
FACS (7-4) at St. George’s (10-0)
Davidson Academy (5-5) at SBEC (9-1)

Arkansas 6A
Texarkana (9-1-1) at West Memphis (10-1)

Mississipi 5A
Northwest Rankin (8-3) at Olive Branch (9-2)

Now that we’ve finally got the pairings figured out, we thought we’d put the pressure on you guys to make the first-round playoff picks this week.

Nothing to it. Just pick out your favorites from the list below, and we’ll calculate the winner this weekend.

To give us your picks, click on the headline at the top of this post, then proceed to the response section and tell us who you think will win.

Tennessee
Class 5A: Cordova vs. White Station at Fairgrounds
Ridgeway at Whitehaven
Houston at Arlington
Collierville at Millington
Class 4A: Jackson North Side at Melrose
Hardin County vs. Fairley at Kirby
Kingsbury at Munford
Raleigh-Egypt at Henry County.
Class 3A: Ripley vs. Mitchell at Freeman
Haywood vs. Sheffield at Halle
Trezevant at Dyersburg
Frayser at Dyer County
Cheatham County at Fayette-Ware.
Class 2A: Westwood at Huntingdon
Washington vs. Carver at Crump.
Class 1A: Manassas at Bruceton
Gleason at Fayette County.
D2-AA: Nashville Ensworth at CBHS
Nashville Father Ryan at MUS
ECS at Brentwood Academy.
D2-A: FACS at Harding Academy (St. George’s and SBEC have first-round byes.)

Arkansas
Class 6A: Marion at Lake Hamilton
Sheridan at West Memphis.

The coach that led Melrose to its only two state football titles in school history in 1996 and 1998 returns tonight as the head coach of a Fayette-Ware team that already this season has set a state record for total yards amassed in a game.

Thompson says he knows they’ll be a few unkind words for him, but he’s expecting most Melrose fans to “show lots of love” toward him in his return to his high school alma mater.

I’m very interested in what sort of reception Thompson will get tonight from Melrose’s homecoming crowd. After all, he was practically a hero in Orange Mound a decade ago, when he became the first Shelby-Metro football coach since 1985 to lead his team to a state title.

One thing’s for sure: If Fayette-Ware does come into Orange Mound and hands it to the Golden Wildcats, the always vocal Thompson is going to make sure they don’t forget about it anytime soon.

For those of us that thought for a while the University of Memphis may be St. George’s senior guard Elliot Williams’ fourth choice among a group that also includes Duke, Tennessee and Virginia, I personally believe after talking to Williams on Wednesday the Tigers helped themselves immensely during last Friday’s Midnight Madness festivities at FedExForum.

Prior to last Friday, Williams (right), a 6-4 slasher rated the nation’s No. 3 senior shooting guard prospect by Rivals.com, seemed concerned about fitting in at Memphis, a concern apparently alleviated sometime during his official visit last weekend (see story).

I’m not saying Memphis is the pick. I believe Williams when he says he hasn’t made a decision yet and that right now all four are even. However, I do believe the Tigers made it a much tougher decision for the hometown product. We’ll find out Nov. 2.

Taking a closer look at how The CA’s Dandy Dozen teams fared in Week 6:

No. 1 White Station 44, Kirby 14: First, let’s give credit where credit is due: Kirby, a team that scored a combined 28 points all of last season, was up 7-0 for a short time in this one before eventually succumbing to the area’s top-ranked team. The Cougars, with former Melrose coach Chester Flowers Jr. now at the helm, are on their way up. White Station, on the other hand, just continues to roll. All together, the Spartans amassed 395 total yards and 18 first downs in this one.

No. 2 ECS 35, Fayette Academy 7: Why is Adam Currie not a more highly regarded college prospect? And don’t give me that same old tired answer about size (Currie is 6-0 at the least, a solid 200 pounds and has legs like tree trunks from playing catcher on the Eagle baseball team). All he’s done this season is complete 63-of-102 pass attempts for 1,154 yards, 13 TDs and ZERO interceptions). He’s rushed for another 427 yards and eight touchdowns. He should have more on the table than just one scholarship offer from Cornell.
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