Week 4 football action is ready to kick off

Sports Editor Jon Behm breaks down this week’s big games, including Oberlin at Brookside and Rocky River at Holy Name. Plus, Athletes of the Week and football statistics leaders.

AMHERST AT MIDVIEW

What: Medley Memorial Game of the Week When: 7p.m. Sept. 15 Where: Ross Field at Ed Adelsburg Stadium, 38199Capel Road, Grafton Records: Amherst 3-0, Midview 3-0 Last time: 2016— 34-15, Midivew For the record: Not a ton of people had this one circled on their schedule when the season started. The status of Midview was in the air following the departure of arguably its most talented senior class in school history. Amherst was an up-and-comer, but it was hard to tell just where the Comets would be a this point. Well, at 3-0each, this one should be a good one. Amherst is driven by the running of junior Khennedy Scagliozzo, who leads The Morning Journal area in rushing yards (600) and rushing touchdowns (10). Meanwhile, Midview has developed a strong pass-run punch behind quarterback Seamus Higley (39-for-60, 599yards, 10touchdowns) and running back Connor Wolfe (54carries, 444yards, two touchdowns). Big game experience my be the deciding factor in this one. Amherst has not been in this type of a situation for a while, so it’s hard to predict how the Comets will respond, whereas Midview is the team with a target on its back year in and year out.

OBERLIN AT BROOKSIDE

What: Patriot Athletic Conference crossover game When: 7p.m. Sept. 15 Where: Dick Sevit Stadium, 1812Harris Road, Sheffield Village

Records: Oberlin 0-3, Brookside 1-2 Last time: 2016— 22-19, Oberlin For the record: In the last few tests before Patriot Athletic Conference division play starts, both Oberlin and Brookside are looking to gain some traction. Brookside managed to pick up its first win last week behind some strong play from quarterback Jonathan Hice and a defense that held Cleveland JFK to just six points. Oberlin, on the other hand, has struggled at times on offense, but started to click last week in a 49-30 loss to Trinity. This game will come down to which team can put together all three phases of the game. Each has shown flashes in the first three weeks of being a solid team, but they haven’t been able to go four quarters of maintained success.

LUTHERAN WEST AT BUCKEYE

What: Patriot Athletic Conference crossover game When: 7p.m. Sept. 15 Where: Edwin Steingass Field, 3084Columbia Road, Medina Records: Lutheran West 2-1, Buckeye 3-0 Last time: 2014— 39-13, Buckeye

For the record: The Longhorns suffered their first setback of the season last week against Normandy in a back-and-forth affair. While losing to a team two divisions above you in a tight matchup is nothing to shake your head about, Lutheran West will want to get things back on track against perennial Patriot Athletic Conference Stars Division frontrunner Buckeye. The Bucks, as always, are a tough running team behind the three-headed attack of Justin Canedy, Adam Fauver and Dominic Monaco. Shutting the run game down will be key for the Longhorns. As for the Buckeye defense, it will need to try to stop the Longhorns’ big-play ability. Against Normandy, Lutheran West scored three touchdowns — all on plays of over 50yards. Expect this game to be one that will be back-and-forth the whole way.

ROCKY RIVER AT HOLY NAME

What: Great Lakes Conference game When: 7p.m. Sept. 15 Where: Serpentini Stadium, 6579Royalton Road, North Royalton Records: Rocky River 2-1, Holy Name 1-2 Last time: 2016— 34-20,

Holy Name For the record: This might be another game for the Pirates, but Holy Name has been waiting for this one. Why? Because the Week 10loss to Rocky River last year dropped the Green Wave out of earning the Great Lakes Conference title outright, forcing a co-title with Bay. That was last year, though, and both teams are considerably different. The Pirates have developed into a multi-tiered attack, rather than just relying on the running back tandem of Dameon Crawford and Matt Popovich. Holy Name features a balanced attack between quarterback Joe Carter and running backs Marques Thompson and Evan Nicholas. It’s rare that a Week 4game has big conference implications, but with Rocky River and Holy Name — and Bay — expected to finish at the top, this one is huge.