Sometimes in this business, I start to think I've got a pretty good grasp on what's going on. I speak with coaches and players, look at lots of numbers and get a fairly good idea of what should transpire on a week-to-week basis.

It's always fun to figure out just how much we don't know once the teams actually take the field.

While some results were practically written in stone before kickoff, the vast majority of Friday's games produced competitive - if not shocking - results that immediately altered the landscapes of several conference and district races after just one week of play.

In its initial installment, What We Learned will take a look back at the previous Friday night's action and give you some plot lines to ponder and digestible bits of information to chew on as we move through the season.

1. For some reason, I bucked conventional wisdom going into the much-anticipated opening game between Mound City and St. Joseph Christian. Logic would dictate that the Panthers are still state champs until proven otherwise, and that they've got Gage Rosier - hands down the best player in 8-man this year - on their side.

But it was easy to talk myself into this Christian team, and looking at the rosters, I thought the Lions had enough coming back and some very favorable matchups to supplant themselves atop our Power Poll.

I just didn't account for the emergence of Nathan Brickey and Lucas Schawang, in particular.

Brickey trimmed off nearly 40 pounds in the offseason and was all over the place on defense (10 tackles, 1 forced fumble, 1 pass defended), while Schawang, just a sophomore, looked fantastic and poised in his first action as a starter. He exceeded every expectation I had for him and is going to put up some solid numbers.

In Christian's defense, Mark Juhl was practically running an infirmary by the end of the third quarter. David Welchert (hamstring), Jordan Strandell (worrisome knee injury) and Tim Schmitz (concussion) all found their way to the bench and sapped the Lions of their powerful push up front.

Still, I don't think this game changed my stance that we'll see another rematch between this schools once against in three months in Edward Jones Dome. Which leads to my next point...

2. With Christian starting slow again, there are a handful of feisty 8-man contenders for the No. 2 spot behind Mound City.

Stanberry probably deserves the second-place spot right now based on last year's performance and an abundance of returning players. But we'll settle this once and for all when North Andrew comes calling Oct. 2. That game was incredible last year, and I expect nothing less this time around.

As always, be on the look out for a couple of sleepers that could work their way into the discussion, as well. At this point, we've got Worth County and Craig tabbed as early-season dark horses.

The young Tigers of last year have grown up in a hurry, while Craig (under new coach Matt Messick) have a ton of weapons and could surprise.

3. Undoubtedly the stunner of the season so far, South Harrison earned all the buzz it can handle after toppling heavily favored Princeton, 26-0. Ross will have more on that in Friday's paper.

To me, the biggest surprise was the manner in which Caleb Obert's team put its point on the board. All four touchdowns came from at least 45 yards out - the longest coming on Tyler Pickren's 90-yard burst.

It would be easy to write the big plays off as a fluke, but I'm not so sure. Take a look at this footage from Princeton's jamboree. The Tigers will have a couple weeks to get their defense in order against the softer part of their schedule before a telling stretch that features King City, Gallatin and Hamilton in consecutive weeks.

4. Some may question the call, but I love Chuck Siler's decision to go for the win against East Buchanan.

In his first game as head coach, the safe move for Siler would have been kicking the extra point and taking his chances in overtime with a backup quarterback that put up clutch numbers to that point. The decision didn't work out for his Blue Jays, but it showed the type of gutsy risk-taking you wouldn't expect to see from Siler. At least not in his first game.

Siler made the move because West Platte scored with nearly 4 minutes remaining, and he figured his team would get the ball back. Instead Luke Wetzel's pass fell incomplete, but even if the Blue Jays had completed it, an illegal man downfield penalty would have negated the score. Siler said he would have went for the extra point and the tie.

But they never got the chance to kick, and East Buchanan managed a couple of first downs to run out the clock.