Game capsules for Week 2

John Kampf breaks down a handful high school football matchups for Week 2. Check out the key matchups and what to expect this weekend.

MENTOR AT EUCLID What: Greater Cleveland Conference game When: 7 p.m., Sept. 4 Where: Euclid Community Stadium Records: Mentor 1-0, Euclid 1-0 Last year: Mentor 45, Euclid 0 Last week: Mentor def. Medina, 37-19, Euclid def. Brunswick, 14-7 For the record: Both teams got off to a good start last week with victories, but both could — and likely — will play more crisp in Week 2. Mentor QB Ian Kipp ran for two touchdowns and threw for another last week against Medina. Riley Coughlin ran for 96 yards and two scores . ... Armond Scott had a big 51-yard touchdown reception last week against Brunswick. Malachi Davis had a solid first game at quarterback. Atiba Fitz scored on a late touchdown run . ... Mentor’s front seven, particularly the Dline of Brenan Vernon, Preston Cardina and Greg Predina, are going to want to get pressure on Davis so he can’t pick apart the Mentor secondary. ... Euclid’s secondary with Cam Smith, Michael Gravely, Rasheed Evans and Fitz is one of the best around.

SOUTH AT CHARDON

What: Western Reserve Conference game When: 7 p.m., Sept. 4 Where: Memorial Field Records: South 0-1, Euclid 1-0 Last year: Chardon def. South, 42-0 Last week: Chardon def. North, 45-7, Riverside def. South, 30-0 For the record: South hasn’t beaten Chardon since 2014, so the Hilltoppers come into this game on a five-game winning streak . ... Chardon dominated North last week, outgaining the Rangers, 478-166. There were no passing yards in the game, but then again, Chardon won’t pass much when it runs as effectively as it did against North, with James Pettyjohn (179 yards, three TDs) and Drew Fetchik (102 yards) leading the way behind a big, veteran offensive line. ... South had a hard time getting its offense going against Riverside. The Beavers held the Rebels to six yards of offense. RB Ira Sampson ran for 37, but sacks and negative plays hurt the Rebels. Chardon’s defense very well might be the best defense in the News-Herald area, so South will look to shore things up offensively this week against one of the better teams Chardon Coach Mitch Hewitt has had in his tenure there.

BENEDICTINE AT AKRON SVSM

What: Nonconference game When: 7 p.m., Sept. 4 Where: John Cistone Field Records: Benedictine 1-0, Akron SVSM 1-0 Last year: Did not play Last week: Benedictine def. Warren Harding, 24-17, Akron SVSM def. Maple Heights, 35-8 For the record: Benedictine owns the all-time series, 8-3, but SVSM won the last meeting, 55-21, in 2018. The Bengals are coming off a win over Warren Harding in which Ron Schultz threw for 211 yards and two touchdowns, with Marvin Conkle catching touchdown passes of 80 and 75 yards. Chris Gales had a nice TD reception that was called back because of a penalty. Schultz also ran for 43 yards. Gary Merrill was held to 19 yards on 13 carries. Kicker Ivan Shuran is one of the best around, so that’s a forte for Benedictine. ... The Irish got a big game from George Linberger (118 yards rushing, two touchdowns) to overpower Maple Heights last week . ... This game could come down to the running game. Can Benedictine, with its big offensive line anchored by Luke Beltavski, get the running game going this week? And can the Bengals shut down the running game of Linberger & Co. the way they limited Warren Harding last week?

KENSTON AT MADISON

What: Western Reserve Conference game When: 7 p.m., Sept. 4 Where: Dick Hamblin Field Records: Kenston 0-0, Madison 0-1 Last year: Kenston 26, Madison 14 Last week: Kenston did not play, Madison lost to Geneva, 17-14 For the record: This is Kenston’s first game of the season after having their regularlyscheduled Week 1 game against Mayfield nixed because of the coronavirus. Madison hasn’t beaten Kenston since 2016 (a 21-7 victory). Both teams graduated large senior classes this past spring, so experience isn’t a forte for either team. ... Madison’s offense is led by returning 1,000-yard rusher Austin McCourt and fellow senior Brad McKeon (who had two touchdowns last week vs. Geneva). QB Michael O’Brien is a capable thrower, too . ... Kenston has experience at RB with Stanley Sell, as well as reliable targets in receiver J.P. Germano and 6-foot-6 tight end Ryan Miller. Sophomore Nikko Georgieu is a first-year signal-caller, just like O’Brien. ... As inexperienced as both teams are, this could come down to a mistake here or there to swing the momentum of the game. That Madison has a game under its belt already and Kenston doesn’t could benefit the host Blue Streaks.

LAKE CATHOLIC AT VASJ

What: Nonconference game When: 7 p.m., Sept. 5 Where: Sparky DiBiasio Stadium Records: Lake Catholic 0-1, VASJ 0-1 Last year: Did not play Last week: Kirtland def. Lake Catholic, 31-15, Garretsville def. VASJ, 35-34 For the record: Both teams lost their season-opener last week. Lake Catholic leads the all-time series, 12-10-3. Lake has won the last eight meetings, including the most-recent meeting in 2009. VASJ’s last win over Lake was in their state-title season of 1989 . ... The Cougars got things going late against Kirtland last week, but it was too late by then. QB Joe Malchesky ran for 80 yards and passed for 98, including a long score to Luke Rako. Starting RB Tyler Seacrist went down with an injury last week, which means Ryan Joy — a standout linebacker — could get a larger role on offense this week . ... VASJ returns 10 starters on each side of the ball, so experience is on the Vikings’ side. QB Kevin Eiseman threw for 2,241 yards and 26 touchdowns last year. Keep an eye on 6-3 receiver Jordan Dean. Noah Clarke and Andrew Terry are are also threats in the passing game . ... A week ago, VASJ put up a lot of points, but gave up a lot. The Vikings will hope to shore up the defense this week, while Lake Catholic will try to kick-start its offense.

KIRTLAND AT SHAKER HEIGHTS

What: Nonconference game When: 1 p.m., Sept. 5 Where: Russell H. Rupp Stadium Records: Kirtland 1-0, Shaker Heights 0-0 Last year: Did not play Last week: Kirtland def. Lake Catholic, 31-15 For the record: This is the first meeting between the Division V Hornets and the Division I Red Raiders. The common link here is Shaker Heights offensive coordinator P.J. Guhde was the quarterback at Kirtland under Coach Tiger LaVerde in 2009-2010. ... Kirtland dominated Lake Catholic last week, holding the Cougars to less than 100 yards of offense until the middle of the fourth quarter. The Kirtland running game piled up nearly 300 yards on the ground, with Mason Sullivan rushing for 111 and quarterback Liam Powers accounting for two scores. The Hornets don’t pass much, but when they do, 6-foot-3 receiver Gage Sullivan is the prime target. Senior All-Ohioan Kiki Grman anchors the line . ... This game is Shaker Heights’ opener. Coach Alex Nicholson (formerly an assistant at Brush) has a big, tall and athletic group to work with. QB Adam Diaz threw for 1,281 yards and 14 touchdowns last year. Jahdae Walker (6-4, 190) and Alex Benson (6-5, 185) give Diaz two tall playmakers in the passing game, and the offensive line (including 6-3, 265-pound Devon Jefferson, 6-4, 235 Hasim Rashid and 6-5, 350 JaMonte Bowen) is huge . ... Kirtland has won 31 games in a row. Can the Division I Red Raiders snap that streak?