The high school football season will continue to answer some of the many intriguing preseason questions this weekend with key match-ups in Week Three.
Our friends at the Region Sports Network have some of the biggest games previewed, for the second weekend in a row tabbing a rivalry at Demaree Stadium as the game of the week.
The border war between No. 3 Crown Point and No. 4 Merrillville tops the list tonight as the Bulldogs look to make up for losses to the Pirates in recent years.
"The game sets up as a high-scoring affair and the Pirates can go toe-to-toe with anybody in that situation," the RSN's Denny Churilla writes. "But one of these defenses will have to make a few stops at some point and the Bulldogs seem a bit more likely to pull it off." See full RSN preview here.
The "Battle of the Bridge" also takes place tonight with No. 2 Munster paying a visit to Highland in a battle of 2-0 teams at "The Zipper."
According to the RSN, "while the running backs are key for the Mustangs, it’s (QB Adam) Ostoich who makes this offense go. The senior QB is completing 64% of his passes with a 10.4 yard per completion average. He also has a pair of rushing scores, proving he can make plays with his arm and his legs."
"The Trojan D did step up in key moments in their win over Hammond High, picking off a pair of Hammond passes to kill Wildcat drives deep in Highland territory," but the staff is picking a 42-14 victory for Munster. See full RSN preview here.
No. 7 La Porte looks to continue their momentum into Valparaiso, where the Slicers look for their first Duneland Athletic Conference victory against a school not named Michigan City in four years.
"La Porte’s resurgence has been highlighted by the play of running back Charles Salary, who many are taking notice as perhaps the premier offensive player in the Region this year," the RSN's Steve Wartman says in picking a 28-14 victory for La Porte. See full RSN preview here.
A bit larger of a venue awaits the Indians from both No. 6 Lake Central and Portage this Saturday. The two will kickoff at Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the Indianapolis Colts, at 1:40 p.m. in the 38th meeting between the two DAC foes.
"While the Blue Indians were able to get back on track with a 49-13 victory over East Chicago Central last week after a stinging week one 24-21 loss to Munster, the Red Indians luck went from bad to worse in the first two weeks of the season," the RSN staff said, but Chris Lannin is still picking a 17-10 upset win for Portage. See full RSN preview here.
No. 10 Lowell looks for their first win of the season after a pair of tough losses as the Red Devils host Kankakee Valley tonight.
"The game phase Lowell should look to improve upon is their finish, after faltering late against Crown Point and allowing a 10-yard touchdown run on Morton’s only offensive play of OT last week. It’s unlikely that they’ll be in a position this week where they’ll need a strong finish to preserve the win, but head coach Keith Kilmer would certainly be delighted to see an all-around strong four quarter performance come Friday," Wartman says. See full RSN preview here.
"The Brickyard" will be host to another classic rivalry tonight as 0-2 Griffith visits 1-1 Hobart in what the RSN staff says used to be "THE" game on the Region football schedule.
"If Griffith can slow down (Noah) Smith and put the game on the arm of the sophomore Zanolla, who’s growing on the job, the Panthers can take the first step in turning the season around," Nathan Laird wrote while picking the Brickies to pick up a 38-24 win. See full RSN preview here.
Photo: The Merrillville Pirates storm the field after being introduced last week before the "Battle of Broadway" against Andrean. This week, the Pirates will have another tough one on tap at home against Crown Point. Credit: Michelle McCaskey