By Kalle Oakes,Staff Writer

Some racehorses are celebrated as “mudders,” meaning that railbirds know they’re worth wagering a longshot buck in wet conditions.

The “Cougar Gun” offense embraced at Mt. Blue isn’t conducive to great gains in lousy weather, but senior quarterback Mason Barker might be better suited to Maine’s late-autumn elements than anyone coach Gary Parlin has coached.

With a steady rain soaking his uniform, dampening his hands and clouding his vision, Barker completed 15-of-23 tosses for 129 yards and a touchdown in last week’s 21-0 win over Messalonskee.

“We were ready for it,” said Parlin, noting that the Cougars resurrected the shovel and quick screen passes that characterized the heyday of 1996 Fitzpatrick Trophy winner Dustin Ireland. “We had Mason playing the old throw-the-ball-in-the-bucket game Thursday in practice.”

Tonight’s forecast calls for starry skies and crsip temperatures, but don’t blame Parlin if he’s praying for low pressure over Bangor just prior to the 7 p.m. kickoff.

“Mason seems be a kid who throws the ball even better when it rains than when it’s dry,” said the coach.

Bark early, bark often

Lisbon coach Dick Mynahan can’t gripe about his team’s defense this season. The Greyhounds haven’t allowed more than eight points against a Western Class C opponent.

What he wants to see Saturday against Old Orchard Beach is more offense, sooner.

“Our last two weeks, I believe we’ve been tied 6-6 (Boothbay) and 8-8 (Jay) going into the fourth quarter,” Mynahan said. “We’ve been playing against some quality teams, but it would be nice for us to play as well in the first quarter as we have in the fourth.”

The Greyhounds will enjoy their regular-season home finale. They’re one of the few Western C teams that hasn’t installed lights.

“We’re on the road three of the last four weeks and playing on Friday night,” Mynahan said. “That’s kind of unusual territory for us.”

Raiders’ silver lining?

As Mountain Valley and Fryeburg sloshed through the handshake line after the Falcons’ 56-0 win last Saturday, Mountain Valley coach Jim Aylward had a simple command for the beleaguered Raiders.

“Have fun the next two weeks, guys,” Aylward repeated as he slapped hands and shoulder pads. “Have fun.”

One win, or even two, would do wonders for Fryeburg, which had the impossible task of facing the defending Class B champions three days after a fire destroyed its gymnasium and its football equipment.

It’s a realistic goal. Fryeburg (0-7) visits another winless foe, Gray-New Gloucester, tonight before hosting Lake Region on Oct. 29.

Life was at least a trifle closer to normal in the Fryeburg camp this week, with basic needs fulfilled and practice time relatively uninterrupted.

“We probably practiced for 90 minutes, total, from Wednesday on (before the Mountain Valley game),” said Fryeburg coach Jim “Fuzzy” Thurston. “And we did basic stuff. We didn’t spend one minute on special teams.”

Cony forfeits pair

In a development that could have a minor impact on the Eastern Class A playoff race, Cony has forfeited its two Pine Tree Conference victories so far this season because it used an ineligible player.

Cony discovered the error, which stemmed from a senior attending school in his ninth semester, and reported it late last week. The Rams had won two straight games over Mt. Ararat and Messalonskee before dropping a 14-6 decision to Skowhegan last Saturday.

Messalonskee moves to 4-2 and now has a chance to make the playoffs by beating Skowhegan and Lawrence in its final two games. The forfeits also could have a minor effect on strength of schedule in the Crabtree standings. Skowhegan played Messalonskee and Cony, while fellow playoff contenders Lewiston and Oxford Hills did not face either of those two schools.