Several strong area teams looking for 1st win

The first week of the high school football season is in the books. There were a few surprises while some teams that were expected to win won comfortably. Huron and Oak Harbor played perhaps the game of the season in a Week 1 shootout at Huron Memorial Stadium. Port Clinton and St. Paul played just as long of a game — nearly 3 1/2 hours — but finished in regulation. Clyde, Huron, Perkins, Sandusky and St. Paul — all playoff teams last year with four of the five winning at least one postseason game — all lost in Week 1. Port Clinton — which limped to a 3-7 record last year with the three wins coming over teams with a combined record of 4-26 — opened with a road win over St. Paul. With just the top 12 teams in each region making the playoffs now, some teams can't afford to get further behind the 8-ball and fall to 0-2 if they hope to make a playoff appearance in 2025. A look at the area games in Week 2: Fremont Ross at Sandusky The Blue Streaks were roughed up in a 48-6 loss to Amherst. Sandusky mustered just 22 rushes for 26 yards with Daivyon Jackson leading the way with 11 carries for 29 yards. Quarterback Dale Johnson completed 5 of 16 passes for 94 yards and a touchdown with Dante Shipp catching three passes for 84 yards and the score. Ross slipped past Tiffin Columbian, 13-9, in Week 1. The Little Giants were 5-6 last year and that included a close 21-14 win over Sandusky. This is the 120th meeting between the two teams, the second-oldest rivalry in Ohio behind Canton McKinley and Massillon Washington. The Blue Streaks have a 58-53-8 edge all-time over Fremont Ross. Toledo Scott at Perkins The Pirates had the ball late against Clear Fork, but after a sack were forced to punt. The snap went over the punter's head, leading to the Colts hitting a 29-yard field goal as time expired to start Perkins 0-1. Perkins quarterback Sam Schweinfurth completed 13 of 29 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns against Clear Fork. Logan Wadsworth had three catches for 103 yards while Blake Parker hauled in six receptions for 98 yards and a score. Scott lost 49-8 to Toledo St. John's last week. The Bulldogs were 6-5 in 2021, 8-3 in 2022, and 5-5 in 2023 before falling to 2-8 last year. The game is Perkins' only home game in the first four weeks. Western Reserve at Margaretta The Polar Bears were leading Vermilion in the fourth quarter before the Sailors got a big play in the win. Things don't get much easier for Margaretta as it hosts Western Reserve, a team that posted a 45-6 win over Wellington in Week 1. Despite the comfortable win, WR quarterback Hayden Keith left in the second quarter injured. Against Vermilion, the Polar Bears got three big touchdown runs for their scores. Zack Bouy went for 88 yards, Jake Bouy went for 58 yards and Judah Keller went for 63 yards for Margaretta. Clyde at Toledo Start The Fliers had won four straight contests against Route 20 rival Bellevue before last week's 33-23 loss. Clyde just didn't do the little things it needed to beat the Redmen. Quarterback Jonathan Lantz completed 17 of 34 passes for 132 yards and an interception. Adam Young ran 20 times for 72 yards. The Spartans were 7-4 last year, but opened with a 17-14 home overtime loss to Norwalk last week. Clyde is 4-0 against Start in recent years. The Fliers won 49-25 in 2024, 44-12 in 2023, 44-0 in 2022 and 42-14 in 2021. "Start will present a new challenge for us as we will be on the road for the first time this year and playing a very athletic football team," Clyde coach Ryan Carter said. "Speed is the main issue we see with facing Toledo Start." After hosting Bellevue last week, Clyde plays four of its next five games on the road. Wauseon at Bellevue The Redmen were perhaps the surprise team of the week to open the season, winning by double-digits on the road against its rival Clyde. Ike Brown was incredible for Bellevue, throwing for three touchdowns — including the game-sealing one to Billy Sberna with a little over two minutes to play — and adding a score on the ground. Wauseon was 3-7 last year, including a 26-3 home loss to Bellevue. The Indians lost at home last week, 34-28, to Fairview. "Wauseon has good players," Bellevue coach Alex Shepherd said. "Their quarterback is a great player that can do a lot of things for them, so we will have to keep an eye on him." The Redmen also topped Wauseon, 28-7, in 2023. St. Paul at Edison The Chargers took care of business in a 42-6 win over Firelands. Bruising back Bryson Wittmer racked up 20 carries for 182 yards and three touchdowns for Edison while Cole Leimeister completed 6 of 11 passes for 100 yards and two touchdowns. St. Paul nearly erased a four-touchdown deficit, but lost to Port Clinton, 37-30. The Redskins led 37-9 early in the fourth quarter, but the Flyers had the ball in the final 30 seconds with a chance to tie or take the lead. A late sack ended the comeback for St. Paul. Both teams were playoff teams last year. Edison won at Contractors Stadium in Norwalk, 41-2, en route to an undefeated regular season. The Chargers also won, 42-6, in 2023. Huron at Elmwood The Tigers went toe-to-toe with a tough Oak Harbor squad before the Rockets escaped with a 52-46 overtime win. Landon Hohler carried the Huron offense to the tune of 27 of 39 passing for 288 yards and three touchdowns while running for three touchdowns. The Tigers hit the road to Bloomdale to take on the Royals, who opened with a 40-13 loss to Lakota. Elmwood was 10-2 in 2021 and 12-2 in 2022, but enter having lost its last 13 games. Port Clinton at Fostoria The Redskins look to start 2-0 for the third straight year when they travel to Fostoria Memorial Stadium to take on the Redmen. Landon Leis completed 11 of 21 passes for 203 yards and four touchdowns against St. Paul. All four scores went to Gavin Cornell, who hauled in just the four passes for 137 yards. Malakii Pinkelton had 26 rushes for 118 yards and a touchdown. Fostoria was on the wrong end of a 38-7 loss to Van Buren in Week 1. Vermilion at Firelands After going 9-3 last year, the Sailors got off to a good start this season in a close 21-20 win over Margaretta. Down six points after three quarters, Drake Hooks hit Brock Meyers with a 63-yard touchdown pass and Micah Smith added the extra point for the lead and eventual win for Vermilion. The Sailors also got a 37-yard touchdown run by Zack Werth and two-yard score from Hooks. Now Vermilion takes to the road to face the Falcons, who were roughed up by Edison, 42-6. The Sailors won at home against Firelands last year, 42-23. Ontario at Norwalk The Truckers got a walk-off 36-yard overtime field goal from Tommy Vanderpool to start 1-0 after a win at Toledo Start. Norwalk had four interceptions defensively and scored touchdowns on a five-yard pass from Brady Singer to Cade Evans and 27-yard run by Gabe Bellamy. Ontario lost to Lexington, 36-16, in Week 1. The two teams haven't played since 2019, a 52-7 win by the Truckers. Norwalk was the only Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division team to win in Week 1 after losses by Clyde, Columbian, Perkins and Sandusky. Calvert at Monroeville The Eagles make it two straight home games at a refurbished Marsh Field when they welcome in Calvert, who lost 39-6 at Mohawk last Thursday. Monroeville dominated its opener, thumping McComb 46-20. The Eagles racked up 410 yards on the ground against McComb. Colt Clark had 16 carries for 201 yards and three touchdowns while Connor Bores tallied 13 attempts for 192 yards and two scores. 8-MAN Sebring McKinley at SMCC (Saturday) The Panthers play their first home game when they host McKinley, who beat Kennedy Catholic from Pennsylvania, 22-6, in its opener. SMCC took care of business against Northern 8 Conference newcomer Cardinal Stritch, 43-0. Bryan Gibson tallied 12 rushes for 101 yards and four touchdowns on the ground while returning a kick for a fifth score. SMCC amassed 34 attempts for 251 yards and five touchdowns rushing as a team. Waldron (MI) at Danbury (Saturday) The Lakers shut out Fremont St. Joseph over the final three quarters, topping the Crimson Streaks 46-13. Tommy Dean completed 3 of 3 passes for 45 yards and two touchdowns, ran 17 times for 104 yards and two touchdowns, and ran in three two-point conversions in the win. Drake Turinsky added 16 attempts for 126 yards and a score for Danbury. Waldron is playing in its first game of the season. The Spartans beat Danbury 28-24 in 2023 and 48-28 in 2024.