Missing the Red Sox? High school football is still here to fill the void.

There aren’t any curses. The players’ hairdos are usually more subdued and most of them have visited their razor within the last week. But there’s still some pretty high drama to be had this fall.

The playoffs began this weekend in Class A. Classes B and C join the fray next weekend. The drama and emotion will be substantial, and there won’t be any playoff shares or contracts at stake. The players will be playing for their schools, their teammates and their pure love of the game.

Here are some personal observations on the season that was, and what lies ahead:

• On paper, the Pine Tree Conference semifinals seem pretty simple to break down. Gardiner hosts Bangor in one semifinal. The two teams didn’t meet in the regular season but both like to grind it out with bruising running games and stout defenses. If Las Vegas were setting the over-under for next Friday night, it would be 10. In the other semi, Skowhegan meets Mt. Blue, a rematch of their 48-32 shootout from two weeks ago.

So why do I get the feeling the final score in Gardiner will be 35-31 and the scoreboard in Farmington will read 7-6 at the end of the night?

• The Winthrop Ramblers faded a bit down the stretch, but what Joel Stoneton did to turn the program from 1-8 last year to 4-5 this year deserves recognition.

Stoneton had his players playing “Rambler football” for much of the season. I finally got to see them in person against Lisbon yesterday and was impressed with the defense. They were flying around the field and hitting hard, just like in the days when Clyde Moody was wreaking havoc in the Campbell Conference.

The Ramblers will have to replace some key seniors such as Bruce Brooks, Chip Burnham, David Paleschi and Jake Clark next season. But the offense, with Travis Frautten at quarterback and Tavis Hasenfus at running back due to return for their senior seasons next year, could be a force.

“We took a program that was headed in the wrong direction last year because of some things and we turned it around and put a positive spin on it,” Stoneton said. “The seniors were huge in doing that.”

• Jay’s offense has been the talk of Western C this year, and understandably so with Justin Wells directing the aerial attack. But the Tiger defense has been just as outstanding, allowing only 5.4 points per game. Shane Gagnon, Joel Ouellette, Trevor McCourt, Chris Jewett and Ryan Bourassa lead a fast and physical unit that will have as much say on how far the Tigers go as Well’s right arm.

• Jay and Livermore Falls earned the top two seeds and were clearly the two best teams in the Campbell Conference this season, but neither should overlook their first round playoff matchups, Boothbay and Lisbon, respectively, in anticipation of another chapter in their rivalry. The Seahawks and Greyhounds will be very dangerous next week.

• Regardless of who wins Western C, I’d really like to see them play Bucksport in the state championship game. Eastern Maine football fans that I meet on occasion speak of them in such reverential tones.

• Something’s wrong if Mountain Valley goes 8-1, beats Gorham and Wells, outscores its last five opponents 288-30, and yet ends up having to travel to York next week as the No. 3 seed for their Western B semifinal. The Falcons lost to the Wildcats, 14-6, in their season opener.

• My favorite game of the year so far? Watching the newborn Poland Knights beat Lake Region, on opening night. Yes, it was painful viewing my alma mater getting thoroughly whipped on its home field, but seeing the smiles on the Poland players and coaches as they walked off the field that night reminded me what high school athletics is all about.

My second favorite game? EL-Mt. Ararat on Oct. 8. Not a particularly thrilling game, but the PA announcement that the Red Sox had beaten the Angels on a David Ortiz home run and the subsequent crowd reaction sent chills up my spine.

• A fellow sideline observer mentioned this to me this week and I’d have to agree. It seems like coaches are roaming further and further out onto the field this year to yell instructions to their players, even during live action. Maybe we need to bring back the old seat belt rule from basketball for football.

• Heh, heh. Just kidding fellas.

• All right, here are my predictions. Mt. Blue-Bonny Eagle in Class A, Brewer-Mountain Valley in Class B, Jay-Bucksport in Class C. See you at Fitzpatrick Stadium in 20 days.