Staff file photo / R. Michael Semple
Hubbard’s Antonio Burkley (2) looks for running room as Brookfield defenders Christian Davis (1) and CJ Campana (2) pursue during their meeting earlier this season.

With three weeks of games in the books, the high school football season kicks into a new gear Friday with the start of conference play for a large majority of area schools.

Highlighting the slate of league games is a Northeast 8 Conference showdown between South Range (3-0) and visiting Lakeview (3-0). The Raiders and Bulldogs are two of five NE8 schools which enter Week 4 with a perfect record. NE8 schools are a combined 18-3 in non-league play.

Lakeview will be looking to do something no NE8 school has done since 2019 – defeat South Range. The Raiders enter Friday’s game having won 30 consecutive league games, dating back to 2019. In the process, they have won four straight conference championships.

Lakeview has outscored its three opponents 92-6. South Range has outscored the opposition 115-14. Both teams have recorded a pair of shutouts.

Struthers (3-0) entered the season as the team that perhaps had the best chance of dethroning South Range. The Wildcats have flexed their muscles in non-conference play, outsourcing opponents 109-20. This week, they host league opponent Girard (2-1), which is looking to rebound from its first loss of the season.

Hubbard (3-0) will also look to remain perfect when it hosts Niles (1-2).

The Eagles and Red Dragons will meet for the 39th time in a series which began in 1919. Hubbard owns a 20-17-1 edge in the series, which includes an Eagles’ 16-game winning streak over Niles, which was snapped in 2023.

A year ago, Garfield (2-1) breezed through the Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Grey Tier with a 7-0 league record, two wins better than the nearest competitors. In fact, the G-Men were the only team in the Grey Tier to finish with an overall winning record.

Garfield (2-1) should get tested right out of the gate as it hosts LaBrae (3-0), the only team in the Grey Tier without a defeat.

Crestview (2-1) and Liberty (0-3) both finished 5-2 in league play last year. The Rebels and Leopards will meet at Crestview.

Brookfield and Champion will both be seeking their first win when the two teams meet in Champion, while Southeast (1-2) will make its Grey Tier debut when it travels to Newton Falls (0-3).

The MVAC Scarlet Tier saw three teams (Western Reserve, Lowellville, Springfield) finish with a 5-1 league record in 2023. Western Reserve (3-0) currently is the lone undefeated team in the Scarlet Tier, but the Blue Devils should get tested when they host McDonald (2-1). Meanwhile, Campbell – off to a 2-1 start for the first time since 2019 – makes its Scarlet Tier debut when it travels to Lowellville (2-1). The Red Devils were previously part of the MVAC Grey Tier.

Ursuline (2-1) begins defense of its Steel Valley Conference crown when it hosts East (2-1). The Irish won’t face their other two SVC foes until the end of the season. They play Chaney in Week 9, then close the regular season against arch-rival Cardinal Mooney.

Friday’s non-conference slate is highlighted by the Battle of 224 as Poland (3-0) travels to Canfield (1-2). Last year the Bulldogs defeated the Cardinals 10-7, snapping a six-game losing streak against their rival.

Friday will also will mark the 77th meeting between the Bulldogs and Cardinals. The two teams first met in 1921 as eight-man football teams. They began playing as 11-man teams in 1944 and have played continuously with the exception of 2019 and 2020. Poland leads the series 41-34-1.

West Branch (3-0) is among the 10 area schools looking to remain perfect. Chaney (1-2) visits the Warriors, who have scored 48 or more points in nine of their last 11 games dating back to last year. The Cowboys have lost two straight since their opening week win over Akron East.

Fitch also hopes to stay undefeated when it travels to Painesville Riverside (1-2).

Cardinal Mooney (0-3) hasn’t recorded a winning season since 2017, the longest such drought in program history. The Cardinals opened the season by losing to three opponents who all currently own 3-0 records. The Cards now face another 3-0 team with a road game against Sugarcreek Garaway.

Warren G. Harding (2-1) is off to its best start since 2016 when the Raiders won seven straight to start the year. The Raiders will look to win their third straight when they host Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary.

The Irish are led by first-year coach Doran Grant, who is a 2011 graduate of the school. Grant was a two-time All-Ohioan who went on to have a stellar career at Ohio State. With the Buckeyes, Grant was a team captain on the 2014 national championship team. He had a four-year career in the NFL.

The Irish were victorious in Doran’s coaching debut (21-14 over Mansfield Senior). They have since suffered losses to Perry and Walsh Jesuit.

The Warren G. Harding athletic department will also honor the school’s 1974 state championship team before and during Friday’s game. The 1974 Panthers went 9-1 in the regular season, then logged playoff wins against Cincinnati Moeller and Upper Arlington to claim the Class AAA crown.