Week 2 high school football games to watch: Central Catholic faces another big challenge in Whitmer

Matchups between 1-0 teams are few and far between entering Week 2 of the high school football season.

There are only eight such contests on the Toledo-area schedule, and only three of them are area teams facing each other: Whitmer-Central Catholic, Napoleon-Liberty Center, and Port Clinton-Rossford.

The others? Sherwood Fairview-Delta, Edon-Antwerp, Columbus Grove against Liberty-Benton, McComb-Convoy Crestview, and Gibsonburg-Attica Seneca East.

Michigan schools get under way this week, as do Ohio’s eight-man teams. Thursday’s games include a Michigan showdown between Blissfield and Whiteford, as well as an eight-man contest between Toledo Christian and Adrian Lenawee Christian.

Here are four games to watch this week. All games are 7 p.m. kickoffs Friday unless noted:

LARGE-SCHOOL GAME TO WATCH

Whitmer (1-0) at Central Catholic (1-0): A clear and convincing victory by Central Catholic in its opener against Findlay leads into a city rivalry game with Whitmer, a matchup the Fighting Irish won 35-8 last year. The Panthers also posted an impressive debut last week, overwhelming Dublin Coffman 42-14.

This is the second year in which Whitmer-Central Catholic has taken place in Week 2 following the breakup of the Three Rivers Athletic Conference, and Whitmer enters in much better shape this time around after dropping a 46-35 opener last year at Lewis Center Olentangy.

SMALL-SCHOOL GAME TO WATCH

Napoleon (1-0) at Liberty Center (1-0): This Henry County rivalry comes on the heels of Napoleon’s walk-off overtime victory over Defiance, with George Eggers’ fifth touchdown and Carson Marroquin’s decisive point-after kick sealing it after Defiance missed on a two-point attempt. Liberty Center, meanwhile, blanked Defiance Tinora 38-0 in Week 1 after coming off a Division V state title-game appearance last year. Liberty Center beat Napoleon 47-6 last year, but Napoleon’s fortunes turned around in the second half of 2023 following an 0-4 start.

The question is, how will Napoleon’s improvement translate against a team it has been unable to beat since 2015?

PROVING-GROUND GAME

St. Francis de Sales (0-1) at Scott (0-1), 6 p.m.: St. Francis posted a respectable showing in Josh Lindke's debut as head coach, giving a strong Perrysburg squad a challenge before falling 28-21 at the Glass Bowl. Another chance to put last year's 1-9 season in the rear-view mirror comes this week at Scott, a team that defeated the Knights in a wild 38-37 finish last year. Scott is coming off a 46-12 loss at Harrod Allen East, but the Bulldogs dropped their opener 36-8 to Lorain Clearview last year before bouncing back.

NUMBERS GAME

Maumee (1-0) at Bryan (0-1): Maumee won its opener for the second straight year but has not opened 2-0 since 2017, when it started off with victories over Bowsher and Waite. The Panthers nearly pulled off a 2-0 start last year, but a 42-35 home loss to Bryan spoiled the bid en route to a 5-5 season. Maumee opened with a 41-8 victory over Springfield, while Bryan lost 48-8 to Van Wert.