- Now that we have gotten out opening weekend jitters out of the system, it is on to the business of our brand of football. 40 games of football over three days is exactly what we look forward to.

- Those buckin’ broncs from Hampden are starting to catch our attention. Their 24-14 win over John Bapst at Harold Alfond Sports Stadium on the University of Maine campus pushed Hampden Academy up to 2-0. That is also their best start to a season since going 2-0 out of the gates in 2008. Broncos quarterback Galvin Monyok had himself a solid game as he passed for 295 yards, ran for 70 yards, and had a passing & rushing touchdown on the night.

- It was a night where little stopped the Portland Bulldogs during their home opener as they defeated Windham 29-7. Their ground game was clicking all evening long. Cordell Jones led the attack with 128 yards and three touchdowns via the run, part of Portland’s 357 rushing yards.

- Bonny Eagle rebounded from last week’s loss at Lewiston with a 27-10 win over Oxford Hills on Friday. The game was largely a group effort on the ground, with the Scots combining for 227 rushing yards amongst six players. Connor Johnson was 90 yards and two touchdowns on the day. Also noteworthy on the night was the amount of yellow. The two teams combined for 23 penalties totally 207 yards. On the other side, the Vikings tried to take to the air with Carter Wyman completing 19 of 31 passes. However they just couldn’t get much going on the ground (47 total rushing yards). Oxford Hills 0-2 record is their worst start since 2015.

- Noble’s Jamier Rose had himself quite the offensive game Friday as he had 286 yards of total offense to go with his five touchdowns (one passing and four running) to help lead the Knights to a 43-8 win over Edward Little at home. And while we noted the offense, it is the defense that is noteworthy for them. They currently lead Class A with only 11 points allowed per game. At this point last year they allowed 59 points.

- It is a different sort of Rams team that is leading the way in Southern Class B at the moment. Deering had already climbed out to a two-score lead just a minute into their game against Biddeford and there was no looking back as they defeated the Tigers 56-7. No doubt it is a bit of a surprise that Deering leads all of Class B with 91 points scored.

- In a potential preview for a late-season Northern Class B playoff showdown, undefeated teams Cony and Lawrence met at Fuller Field in Augusta on Friday. The game was mostly even until the last play of the first half when Cony’s Ethan Demmons caught a Parker Morin Hail Mary pass in the end zone that helped give the Rams a 21-14 advantage. Then in the third quarter Parker Morin completed a scoring pass, this time to Lance Theriault, to give Cony a two touchdown lead. While Lawrence got to within a touchdown late in the third quarter, Cony was able to score twice more in the fourth quarter and didn’t give up anything else the rest of the way for the 42-21 win.

- Guess the only team in the state that has yet to concede a point? If you couldn’t guess it at first and needed help, you would be forgiven for not saying it was Falmouth. The Navigators won another game playing shutout football in their 46-0 win at Skowhegan against the River Hawks.

- York was the site in a battle of unbeaten Southern Class C teams fighting for early possession of first place in the region. The 1-0 Wildcats hosted 1-0 Fryeburg Academy. In the final quarter Daniel Ruiz helped the Raiders take the lead on the ground, and then intercepted a pass and took it all the way back to ice the game in a 33-20 win against York. Daniel finished the night with four touchdowns – three rushing and the pick-six.

- Oceanside held a 14-0 lead early on during their Friday-night home stand against Foxcroft Academy. That was where the Mariners seemed to fall apart and the Ponies picked up all their momentum. By halftime Foxcroft Academy had tied the game 14-14. At game’s end they completed the comeback by scoring 30 unanswered points for the 30-14 win.

- Fellow regional rival Winslow walked out of Madison a victory richer following their 52-7 win against the Bulldogs. This sets the stage next week between Winslow and Foxcroft Academy in a battle of undefeated teams with first place in Northern Class D on the line.

- Gray-New Gloucester’s Kobi Conant had himself a night to remember in the Patriot’s 65-26 win against Sacopee Valley. Kobi had 266 yards of offense while scoring seven touchdowns (five passing and two rushing).

- An anticipated match-up saw the 2023 8 man state champions Orono and Mount Desert Island meet on Friday in Orono. Everyone knows about Orono’s offense, anchored by one of the state’s top quarterbacks in Jack Brewer. And if you don’t, you should learn about them. In Mount Desert Island, they were a much-touted team coming into the season. Plenty was written about their playoff run in which they surrendered only 9 points in their three games. It didn’t take long to see how this game would go as Jack completed his first of three touchdown passes to Will Francis around a minute into the game. From there it was all Red Riots. They built a 21-0 lead that led to the final score of 46-6.

- The 8 man small school North saw four teams remain unbeaten following their Friday night games. Ellsworth beat Boothbay 48-36, Houlton beat Bucksport 54-30, Orono beat Mount Desert Island 46-6, and Stearns beat Dexter 54-6. There is the potential that all four teams could remain unbeaten for another week, as they do not play one another in week three.

- Speaking of the Ellsworth Eagles, their 2024 start has been a good one for a program that has not had lots of success. How so? This is the Eagles first 2-0 start in their football programs history. That dates back to their first MPA season in 2012.

- Two out-of-state match-ups were on the highlight list for Saturday. And why shouldn’t they be? One was a showcase of two of the top teams in Northern New England, the other a unique cross-state meeting based on a coaching tie-in. Thornton Academy was in a good position early on to pick up their first victory over one of New Hampshire’s best teams in the Bedford Bulldogs. They held a 7-0 first quarter and 14-0 first quarter lead. The second Golden Trojans touchdown came when Mauricio Sunderland found some daylight and ran it all the way for an 88-yard touchdown. However, Bedford responded two and a half minutes later by Brody Helton. Then with 26 seconds left in the first half it was Bulldogs quarterback Jack Maye that quickly brought the team downfield on two passes. The was followed by a third pass to Peter Suozzo that beat the Thornton Academy’s defensive secondary as time expired to quickly tie the game 14-14 at the half. While the two teams exchanged a touchdown in the early minutes of the third quarter with Thornton Academy holding a tentative 21-20 advantage, Bedford was eventually able to re-claim the lead and then extended it by another touchdown with about three minutes in the third quarter. Bedford has won every game in their three-year series with Thornton Academy.

- The budding rivalry between the football programs of Brewer, Maine and Salem, Massachusetts met for their first ever regular season match-up for the “Cauldron Cup” on Saturday. The cauldron reference coming from the nickname shared by both schools. The two schools also share a link from former head coach Ken Perrone. It is with that in mind that the Salem Witches made the 227-mile trek North this year to play the Brewer Witches at Doyle Field. Ken was on-hand for the festivities to include the dedication of the field’s press box in his honor. For all pre-game emotions honoring Ken’s contributions to both communities, the performance on the field was unfortunately one-sided. Brewer scored on the game’s first drive, capped by a nine-yard Brody Muncy score. However, a blocked point after try immediately signaled just how talented the Salem team was. They would respond immediately on the ensuing drive, then got two more touchdowns second quarter on runs of 86 and 99 yards to hold a 21-6 halftime lead. That lead only increased in the second half as Salem scored four more touchdowns to win the game by the score of 50-6.

- The Massabesic Mustangs came out of the 2023 gate struggling. They dropped their first three games before rallying to finish the regular season 4-4. That does not appear to be the case this season as they defeated Cheverus 28-14. The Mustangs battled back on Saturday against Cheverus, twice tying the game, before capitalizing with a Kyle Abbott 60-yard fumble return for a touchdown. That capped a crazy 34-point, five touchdown first quarter that put Massabesic into the lead. They would score again in the second quarter and then locked down the Stags to hold on for the win.

- Nokomis played well in the first half to hold Medomak Valley to an 8-6 deficit. The Warriors got onto the scoreboard with less than a minute left in the half and tried to build some momentum for the second half. Unfortunately that momentum quickly swung the other way with two touchdowns, sandwiched around a turnover on downs, that quickly increased the Panthers led to 24-6. They struck quickly later in the half as they held on the goal line to force a turnover on downs followed by an 80-yard catch and run by Wyatt Simmons to Gabe Lash that shattered any last hopes of a Nokomis rally in the 30-6 finish.

- Early in this article we mentioned that Falmouth has yet to allow any points this season. That leads the state. They are followed by Wells, who have given up just six points. But they aren’t the sole holder of second place. Can you guess who is that other team in second place? No, it’s not the team you are thinking on. No, please don’t use any resources. Give up? It’s Camden Hills. The 8 man team in the large school class pitched a shutout during their 30-0 victory against Yarmouth on Saturday.

- There are currently two regions in the state that have four teams that are 0-2. That would be Northern Class A and Southern Class B. In Northern Class A, the teams of Bangor, Edward Little, Oxford Hills, and Windham have combined for just 92 points scored and 279 points allowed in their eight combined games. The region’s combined record is 3-8. Southern Class B barely has a closer margin. The teams of Biddeford, Cheverus, Gorham, and Westbrook have a combined 86 points scored and 268 points allowed. The region’s combined record is 7-9.

- Maine’s top five scoring teams in classes A through D: Winslow (102), Foxcroft Academy (101), Deering (91), Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale (86), and South Portland (77).

- Maine’s top five scoring 8 man teams: Old Orchard Beach (138), Stearns (114), Houlton (100), Orono (100), and Spruce Mountain (100)

- Out of state tracker
Bedford defeated Thornton Academy 35-21 on Saturday. The 2-0 Bulldogs will travel to Nashua to play 1-1 Bishop Guertin on Saturday.
Dover lost to Manchester Memorial 21-19 on Friday. The 0-2 Green Wave will host 0-2 Salem on Friday.
Exeter beat Nashua North 36-0 on Friday. The 2-0 Blue Hawks will host 0-2 Portsmouth-Oyster River on Saturday.
Hillsboro-Deering defeated Winnisquam 38-21 on Saturday. The 1-1 HillCats will host 1-0 Franklin on Saturday.
Portsmouth-Oyster River lost 48-0 to Pinkerton Academy on Friday. The 0-2 ClipperCats will travel to 2-0 Exeter on Saturday.
Salem defeated Brewer 50-6 on Saturday. The 1-1 Witches will host 2-0 Greater Lawrence Tech on Friday.
Spaulding lost to Winnacunnet 13-6 on Friday. The 0-2 Red Raiders will travel to Manchester to play 1-1 Manchester Memorial on Saturday.
Winnacunnet beat Spaulding 13-6 on Friday. The 2-0 Warriors will host 0-2 Manchester Central on Friday. 

- Quote of the week
"I have eight uncles who were coached by (Ken) Perrone, so it means a lot to honor him and have a good game. We know the tradition and how much he’s done for both programs. Feeling the energy with all of the fans here, it really did feel like a big game. It felt like a movie set."
Rocco Ryan, Salem wide receiver

- Streak tracker
There are 23 unbeaten teams in Maine, down from 40 last week
2 teams had their winning streak of 4 of more games snapped: Mount Desert Island (8) and Thornton Academy (5)
The longest active winning streaks belong to Orono (12), Kennebunk (6), and Wells (5)
3 teams ended their losing streaks of 4 or more games: Washington Academy (9), Maine Central Institute (7), and Mattanawcook Academy (5)
The longest active losing streaks belong to Madison (18), Edward Little (17), Valley (16), and Mount View (15)

- First place teams after week two
Class A North – Portland (no change)
Class A South – Noble (change from last week)
Class B North – Cony (change from last week)
Class B South – Deering (change from last week)
Class C North – Hampden Academy (change from last week)
Class C South – Fryeburg Academy (change from last week)
Class D North – Foxcroft Academy (no change)
Class D South – Wells (no change)
8 Man Large School – Camden Hills (change from last week) 
8 Man Small School North – Orono (no change)
8 Man Small School South – Spruce Mountain (change from last week)

- Five games of interest to us in week three
Leavitt at Deering
Cony at Falmouth
Hermon at Hampden Academy
Orono at Mt. Ararat
Foxcroft Academy at Winslow