By Tom Nader

Publisher and Editor

Week 3 of the high school football season will be the first of the season that features every school in Portage County back in the classrooms.

Field, Rootstown, Southeast and Waterloo all began classes this past week, waiting for the conclusion of the Portage County Randolph Fair.

For many programs, Week 3 marks the final week of non-league games before beginning matchups within league play in Week 4.

THIS WEEK’S THEME:

EMBRACE THE TOUGHNESS

High school football is not easy.

Because of that, it is not for everyone.

By playing football, you inherently must be ready to embrace the toughness.

It is tough to hit.

It is tough to be hit.

It is tough to block.

It is tough to do all of those against bigger players.

It is tough to wake up regularly on summer mornings and put in the work.

It is tough to find time to self-led independent workouts.

It is tough to do it in the 90-plus degree weather.

It is tough to all of those when you know some of your closest friends are sleeping in. 

It is tough to know that they could be somewhere swimming.

Run toward what was tough.

It will prepare you for your life after graduation, when life gets tough.

And you will be ready.

WEEK 3 SCHEDULE

West Geauga at Aurora

Chippewa at Crestwood

Rootstown at Field

Normandy at Garfield

Lakewood at Kent Roosevelt

Mogadore at Dalton

Ravenna at Revere

Southeast at Champion

Alliance at Streetsboro

Lisbon David Anderson at Waterloo

Windham Jackson-Milton

FRIDAY NIGHT’S WEATHER

It will be a beautiful night for football.

At kickoff, the temperature will be 70 degrees with no rain in the sky.

By the fourth quarter, it will drop a little bit closer to 65 degrees, but still no rain.

STATISTICAL LEADERS

Updated leaders can be found here.

STANDINGS

METRO ATHLETIC CONFERENCE

Norton 2-0

Streetsboro 2-0

Cloverleaf 1-1

Woodridge 1-1

Coventry 0-2

Field 0-2

Ravenna 0-2

Springfield 0-2

PORTAGE TRAIL CONFERENCE

Mogadore 2-0

Rootstown 2-0

Southeast 2-0

Warren JFK 1-1

St. Thomas Aquinas 0-2

SUBURBAN LEAGUE

American Conference

Aurora 1-1

Barberton 1-1

Cuyahoga Falls 1-1

Highland 1-1

Kent Roosevelt 1-1

Revere 1-1

Tallmadge 1-1

Copley 0-2

MAHONING VALLEY ATHLETIC CONFERENCE

Grey Division

Garfield 2-0

Campbell Memorial 1-1

LaBrae 1-1

Newton Falls 1-1

Brookfield 0-2

Champion 0-2

Crestview 0-2

Liberty 0-2

MAHONING VALLEY ATHLETIC CONFERENCE

Scarlet Division

Jackson-Milton 2-0

Lowellville 2-0

McDonald 2-0

Mineral Ridge 2-0

Western Reserve 1-1

New Middletown Springfield 1-1

Waterloo 1-1

CHAGRIN VALLEY CONFERENCE

Valley Division

Kirtland 2-0

Berkshire 1-1

Crestwood 1-1

Wickliffe 1-1

Beachwood 0-2

Painesville Harvey 0-2

Cardinal 0-2

Grand Valley 0-2

NORTHEASTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE

Fairport 1-1

Pymatuning Valley 1-1

St. John School 0-2

Mathews 0-2

Windham 0-2

WEEK 4 LOOK-AHEAD SCHEDULE

(Friday,  Sept. 8, 2023)

Revere at Aurora

Crestwood at Wickliffe

Field at Springfield

Garfield at LaBrae

Cuyahoga Falls at Kent Roosevelt

Cloverleaf at Ravenna

Pymatuning Valley at Rootstown

Akron North at Southeast

Norton at Streetsboro

Waterloo at New Middletown Springfield

Windham at Tuscarawas Central Catholic

(Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023)

Mogadore at Newark Catholic