ESPN RISE

Game of the Week: Sherwood (2-0) at Paint Branch (2-0)

This region game pits the defending Class 4A state champion with one of the up-and-coming programs in Montgomery County. These teams have similarities. Both offenses have been putting up points early in the season. Sherwood (2-0) has scored 104 points while Paint Branch (2-0) has scored 84 points. The difference in this game could be defense _ with Sherwood only allowing 14 points so far this season. Look for a solid Sherwood running game anchored by running back Cyrus Britt, who has rushed for 278 yards and five touchdowns. As stout as Sherwood's defense is, it could have trouble containing quarterback Tracy Martin. Martin is coming off a game in which he threw for 196 yard and a touchdown and rushed for 98 and another TD in the win over Bethesda-CC. Paint Branch head coach Mike Nesmith told MDVarsity.com in the offseason that if the team is going to reach the next level they need to beat the traditional powers in Montgomery County. After missing the Class 3A playoffs each of the past two years because of losing its final game of the year against Damascus, a Paint Branch victory this week could signal that this program has arrived in its first year back as a Class 4A program.

Best Matchup: Gilman (2-1) at Good Counsel (2-0)

Gilman does not get much time to rebound from a 56-35 loss to state No. 1 DeMatha. Gilman, who plays in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA), will face yet another Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) opponent and DeMatha's biggest conference rival, Good Counsel (2-0). The Falcons are coming off a 42-0 victory over one of Gilman's conference opponents, Mount St. Joseph. It would not be a stretch to expect a busload of points to be scored in this game. Gilman's Darius Jennings racked up 364 total yards and five touchdowns against DeMatha and if Good Counsel does not have a solution, Jennings could run roughshod over the Falcons defense. The good news for Good Counsel is the Falcons have their own offensive star power. Led by quarterback Zach Dancel, receivers Louis Young and E.J. Scott along with running backs Mike Nittoli and Wesley Brown, the Falcons will score points and Gilman has not proved they can prevent opposing offenses _ giving up a total of 105 points this season.

Most Important: Mountain Ridge (1-1) at Allegany (2-0)

Mountain Ridge is one of the Top 10 and most consistent Class 1A programs in Maryland over the last two years _ the problem is hardly anyone east of Cumberland knows it. Fort Hill and Allegany are consistent playoff powers, representing Western Maryland in each of the last two Class 1A state championship games, while Mountain Ridge has been left out of the playoffs despite a 14-6 record over those seasons with four losses to Allegany and Fort Hill. The Miners have the best record of any program in Maryland that has not made the playoffs the past two seasons. The Miners have yet to make the playoffs, because the past few years Boonsboro and Smithsburg have been either 10-0 or 9-1 and took the final two spots in Class 1A West. This year could be the year for Mountain Ridge. With Boonsboro and Smithsburg suffering losses early in the season, it leaves the door open for Mountain Ridge to test its playoff mettle and a win over Allegany would certainly help. Meanwhile, the Campers are cruising _ coming off a 70-13 drubbing of Grande Prairie (Alberta, Canada). Allegany is led by a host of talented seniors with J.D. Hook and Dustin Wharton highlighting the cast. Mountain Ridge junior, Drew Winters is coming off a 171-yard, two-touchdown game against Hedgesville (W.Va.). With 1A West playoff berth scarce and traditionally only Fort Hill and Allegany getting those spots, this early season game takes on even more importance for these two teams.

Star Power: North Point (2-0) at McDonough (1-1)

This Southern Maryland Athletic Conference (SMAC) game could posses some of Maryland's most athletic players. North Point boasts running back Arlando "Trey_ Scott and junior linebacker Connor Crowell. McDonough has one of the most talented receiving duos in Maryland with Javarrus King and Devante Stamps. McDonough was one of the teams that SMAC coaches thought would make a run this season. Stamps has 143 yards receiving this season and Scott has rushed for 269 yards.

To report scores immediately following games, e-mail Sheldon Shealer

To report Top Performances for the weekend listing, e-mail Mike Loveday

MDVarsity.com High School Football Media State Poll

1. DeMatha (3-0) def. Friendship Collegiate (D.C.), 45-12
2. Linganore (3-0) def. Walkersville, 43-21
3. Good Counsel (3-0) def. No. 5 Gilman, 49-37
4. Arundel (3-0) def. Broadneck, 28-6
5. Gilman (2-2) lost to No. 3 Good Counsel, 49-37
6. Wise (3-0) def. Bladensburg, 39-0
7. Loyola (4-0) def. Valley Forge Military (Pa.), 31-14
8. Westlake (3-0) def. La Plata, 38-0
9. Quince Orchard (3-0) def. Whitman, 24-20
10. River Hill (3-0) def. Long Reach, 37-0
11. Suitland (2-1) def. Northwestern-PG, 21-0
12. Eleanor Roosevelt (3-0) def. High Point, 55-0
13. Sherwood (3-0) def. Paint Branch, 19-0
14. Damascus (2-1) def. Blake, 35-0
15. Fort Hill (3-0) def. No. 25 Mount St. Joseph, 22-12
16. Eastern Tech (3-0) def. Kenwood, 35-13
17. Gwynn Park (3-0) def. Surrattsville, 44-0
18. Old Mill (2-1) def. Northeast-AA, 41-7
19. Thomas Johnson (2-1) def. Century, 35-0
20. McDonogh (3-0) def. Penn Charter (Pa.), 27-17
21. Hereford (1-1) idle
22. Landon (2-0) def. Mercersburg, 30-6
23. North Point (3-0) def. McDonough, 12-7
24. Patterson (3-0) def. Southwestern-Balt., 45-8
25. Mount St. Joseph (2-2) lost to No. 15 Fort Hill, 22-12

Saturday, Sept. 19

Baltimore City
* City College 51, Digital Harbor 6
* Dunbar 66, Northwestern-Balt. 8

Bayside Conference
* J.M. Bennett 33, Easton 9

MIAA
* Loyola 31, Valley Forge Military (Pa.) 14
* Baltimore Lutheran 21, Long Island Lutheran (N.Y.) 7
* Gonzaga (D.C.) 23, Georgetown Prep 20
* Perryville 20, Annapolis Area Christian 17

UCBAC
* Perryville 20, Annapolis Area Christian 17

WCAC
* Bishop McNamara 38, St. Albans (D.C.) 27

Others
* Allegany 44, Mountain Ridge 0
* Bishop O'Connell (Va.) 35, St. Mary's Ryken 6
* Bishop Walsh 14, St. James 0
* Central Maryland Christian 20, Silver Oak Academy 6
* Maryland Christian 37, Frederick County Home School 0
* Massanutten Military (Va.) at Leonard Hall, canceled

Friday, Sept. 18

Baltimore City
* Carver Vo-Tech 31, Southside Academy 17
* Edmondson 29, Mervo 6
* Forest Park 28, Reginald Lewis 0
* Lake Clifton 38, Douglass-Balt. 0
* Patterson 45, Southwestern-Balt. 8
* Poly 28, IBE 8
* WEB DuBois 8, Maritime Academy 0

Bayside Conference
* Kent Island 29, C.M. Wright 13
* North Caroline 20, Stephen Decatur 19
* Queen Anne's 35, Kent County 0
* Snow Hill 60, Washington 24

Howard
* Atholton 35, Centennial 14: Ryan Raines returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown and Andrew King added a punt return score as Atholton improved to 3-0.
* Glenelg 28, Howard 12: Colin Osborne had seven carries for 144 yard and two touchdowns and caught two passes for 57 yards. He also had seven tackles and two passes breakups for Glenelg.
* Mount Hebron 33, Oakland Mills 10
* Reservoir 33, Marriotts Ridge 13
* River Hill 37, Long Reach 0: Kevin Johnson rushed for two scores and caught a touchdown pass as River Hill rolled to its 31st straight victory.
* Wilde Lake 18, Hammond 12: Khalil Vierra caught a 24-yard scoring pass from Joe Kelly as Wilde Lake broke a 12-12 tie in the fourth quarter in en route to a victory.

MIAA
* Archbishop Curley 21, St. Paul's 20 (OT)
* Archbishop Spalding 27, Cardinal Gibbons 24: Junior K.K. Smith rushed for 210 yards and two scores on 19 carries for Spalding. Chris Piccirilli led Spalding with 12 tackles. Terrell Johnson had 11 and Brian Cooper and Julian Washington each had 10 tackles.
* Boys' Latin 45, Severn 20: Patrick Steele rushed for 167 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries as Boys' Latin surged to a 31-0 third quarter lead en route to a victory.
* Calvert Hall 44, Havre de Grace 0
* Fort Hill 22, Mount St. Joseph 12: Devin Lee rushed for a touchdown, threw a pair of TD passes and interecepted two passes as Fort Hill defeated Mount St. Joseph to go to 3-0 in a battle of state-ranked teams.
* McDonogh 27, Penn Charter (Pa.) 17: Rudy Johnson passed for two touchdowns and ran for another score as the Eagles ran their record to 3-0.
* St. John's Catholic Prep 42, John Carroll 41: Stephen St. Clair rushed for 121 yards and four touchdowns and passed for 42 yards with a pair of touchdowns and a two-point conversion in John Carroll's loss. He also had 12 tackles and a pass breakup.
* St. Mary's-AA 19, St. Frances 6

Prince George's County
* Central 16, Fairmont Heights 14
* Douglass-PG 40, Paul VI (Va.) 0
* DuVal 35, Parkdale 18
* Eleanor Roosevelt 55, High Point 0
* Flowers 46, Bowie 18
* Friendly 21, Crossland 0
* Gwynn Park 44, Surrattsville 0
* Largo 21, Potomac 8
* Laurel 21, Oxon Hill 20
* Riverdale Baptist 20, Forestville 0
* Suitland 21, Northwestern-PG 0
* Wise 39, Bladensburg 0: Jabril Baldwin rushed for 76 yards and two scores and Deontre Johnson added 50 yards and two touchdowns on three carries for Wise. Rahsaan Moore scored two touchdowns, as well.

UCBAC
* Aberdeen 54, Harford Tech 6
* Calvert Hall 44, Havre de Grace 0
* Elkton 17, Bohemia Manor 7: Kenyatta Carter rushed for 100 yards and a touchdown as Elkton surprised Bohemia Manor.
* Joppatowne 33, North East-Cecil 0
* Kent Island 29, C.M. Wright 13
* North Harford 39, Edgewood 0: Josh Barden and Brandon Bayer each scored a pair of touchdowns for North Harford.
* Patterson Mill 28, Bel Air 17: Cameron Wann completed 13 of 20 passes for 209 yards and four touchdowns. Dylan Burke caught three passes for 50 yards, all going for touchdowns. Justin Gunn led the Patterson Mill defense with eight tackles.
* Rising Sun 36, Fallston 35 (OT)

WCAC
* DeMatha 45, Friendship Collegiate (D.C.) 12

Others
* Fort Hill 22, Mount St. Joseph 12: Devin Lee rushed for a touchdown, threw a pair of TD passes and interecepted two passes as Fort Hill defeated Mount St. Joseph to go to 3-0 in a battle of state-ranked teams.
* Hampshire (W.Va.) 14, Southern Garrett 6
* Keyser (W.Va.) 34, Northern Garrett 0
* Landon 30, Mercersburg Academy (Pa.) 6
* MSD 57, Mount Zion Baptist 14: Todd Bonheyo completed 12 of 156 passes for 273 yards and three touchdowns for MSD, and Shawn Harrington caught four passes for 146 yards and two scores.
* Potomac School (Va.) 55, Avalon School 8
* Riverdale Baptist 20, Forestville 0

Thursday, Sept. 17

Anne Arundel
* Annapolis 48, Glen Burnie 0: Demond Brown rushed for 114 yards and three touchdowns on 14 carries. Kendall Saunders, a senior, had two interceptions and returned one for a touchdown.
* Arundel 28, Broadneck 6: Billy Cosh completed 26 of 39 passes for 233 yards and three touchdowns, Joseph Blackwell rushed for 146 yards and a score on 25 carries and R.J. Harris caught eight passes for 102 yards and two touchdowns as Arundel rolled to a victory.
* North County 46, Chesapeake-AA 6
* Old Mill 41, Northeast-AA 7
* Severna Park 3, Meade 0
* Southern-AA 20, South River 17

Baltimore County
* Chesapeake-BC 20, Dundalk 7
* Eastern Tech 35, Kenwood 13: Emmanuel Gbor and Criszon Brown each scored two touchdowns for Eastern Tech.
* Franklin 24, Catonsville 12
* Great Mills 45, Lansdowne 0
* Milford Mill 27, Randallstown 8
* North Hagerstown 66, Loch Raven 12
* Parkville 26, Overlea 0: Rashard Carter had 132 rushing yards and two touchdowns for Parkville.
* Perry Hall 14, Tuscarora 9
* Sparrows Point 33, Patapsco 6
* Towson 40, Dulaney 26: Michael Obineme rushed 16 times for 140 yards and three touchdowns and Jimmy Francis had 147 rushing yards and a score on 16 attempts as Towson ran its record to 3-0.
* Western Tech 2, St. Vincent Pallotti 0: Western Tech made a defensive stop in the end zone for the winning margin.
* Woodlawn 35, New Town 2: Justin Johnson had 131 rushing yards and a touchdown to pace Woodlawn.

Bayside Conference
* Cambridge-S.D. 34, Wicomico 0: Cambridge led 14-0 in the third quarter before putting the game away.
* Parkside 28, Col. Richardson 6

MIAA
* Good Counsel 49, Gilman 37: Stefon Diggs had kick return touchdowns of 87 and 93 yards and added a rushing touchdown as Good Counsel won a shootout over Gilman. Gilman's Darrius Jennings Jennings rushed for 261 yards and scored three touchdowns.
* Western Tech 2, St. Vincent Pallotti 0: Western Tech made a defensive stop in the end zone for the winning margin.
* Wilmington Friends 57, Baltimore Friends School 28

Montgomery County
* Blair 10, Wheaton 6
* Churchill 38, Walter Johnson 33
* Clarksburg 27, Gaithersburg 6
* Damascus 35, Blake 0: Brian Lucas rushed for 158 yards and two scores on 25 carries and Connor Frazier completed 6 of 9 passes for 81 yards and three scores as Damascus won.
* Kennedy 22, Watkins Mill 19: Sophomore quarterback Peter Ngoh completed 5 of 7 passes for 114 yards and one touchdown, and senior Rodrigue Andele had two sacks for Kennedy.
* Northwest 40, Bethesda-CC 26
* Quince Orchard 24, Walt Whitman 20
* Rockville 34, Northwood 14
* Seneca Valley 26, Einstein 0
* Sherwood 19, Paint Branch 0
* Thomas Wootton 35, Springbrook 34 (OT)
* Williamsport 20, Poolesville 6

MVAL
* Catoctin 43, South Hagerstown 8
* Francis Scott Key 39, Manchester Valley 6
* Liberty 23, Westminster 12
* Linganore 43, Walkersville 21
* North Carroll 34, Brunswick 28
* North Hagerstown 66, Loch Raven 12
* South Carroll 14, Smithsburg 12
* Middletown 30, Boonsboro 25: Colby Cavanaugh scored two touchdowns and Sam Glushakow passed for 138 yards in Middletown's victory.
* Perry Hall 14, Tuscarora 9
* Thomas Johnson 35, Century 0
* Urbana 24, Jefferson (W.Va.) 21
* Williamsport 20, Poolesville 6
* Winters Mill 19, Frederick 0

SMAC
* Great Mills 45, Lansdowne 0
* Huntingtown 40, Chopticon 8
* Lackey 40, Thomas Stone 18
* North Point 12, McDonough 7
* Northern Calvert 35, Leonardtown 7
* Patuxent 38, Calvert 17
* Westlake 38, La Plata 0

WCAC
* Good Counsel 49, Gilman 37: Stefon Diggs had kick return touchdowns of 87 and 93 yards and added a rushing touchdown as Good Counsel won a shootout over Gilman. Gilman's Darrius Jennings Jennings rushed for 261 yards and scored three touchdowns.

Others
* Bullis 28, Sidwell Friends (D.C.) 0
* Hancock 34, Clear Spring 25

Wednesday, Sept. 16

Montgomery County
* Magruder 41, Richard Montgomery 6