This week’s football Top of the Crop

When Avon and Avon Lake take the field for the first game of Southwestern Conference play, the game will pit the top two teams in this week’s rankings. See how the area’s best stack up.

Football

1: (1) Avon Lake 3-0 2: (2) Avon 2-1 3: (4) Columbia 3-0 4: (3) Keystone 1-1 5: (6) Olmsted Falls 2-1 6: (5) Rocky River 2-1 7: (7) Elyria 3-0 8: (8) Elyria Catholic 2-1 9: (9) Firelands 1-2

10: (NR) North Olmsted 2-1

Dropped out: (10) Brookside

Watch list: Wellington 2-1, North Ridgeville 2-1, Bay 2-1, Brookside 1-1 Crop Comments: The top two teams in the Crop will face off this week in the annual meeting between Avon and Avon Lake. The last two seasons it’s been the first of two meetings between the bitter rivals. With the way both teams are playing right now, it looks like this year won’t be any different. Unless there’s a blowout in this game, expect the top two spots in the Crop to remain Avon and Avon Lake. What order they’re in will be determined on the field. … Columbia jumps to No. 3 after another impressive win. The Raiders have an explosive stable of runners with Marco Cirigliano leading the way. The sophomore track star has more than 500 yards on the ground through three games and looks to be the next great Columbia running back. … Keystone took a surprising loss to LaBrae on the road in Week 3, causing them to drop a spot to No. 4. The Wildcats were tied at 14-14 heading into the half but lost, 49-20. They’ll have a get-right game in their Lorain County League opener against Oberlin, but the Phoenix will be a tough out after their first win in nearly two years. … Olmsted Falls and Rocky River swap spots again in the middle of the Crop. The Bulldogs topped Norwalk, getting back on track before their Southwestern Conference schedule begins. The Pirates lost a heartbreaker to Valley Forge, giving up 22 unanswered after going up 21-0in the first half. Rocky River was banged up heading into the night and lost Johnny Bebie for most of the second half. … Elyria, Elyria Catholic and Firelands all remain in their spots from last week. The Pioneers dominated Lorain, while the Panthers narrowly escaped Midview on the road. Firelands picked up their first win, defeating Vermilion. The Pioneers now embark on their SWC schedule with a date with Berea-Midpark first up on the schedule. Elyria lost that matchup last year, but has been playing much better in 2021. … North Olmsted takes the No. 10 spot from Brookside this week. The Eagles came from behind to send Amherst to 0-3, while the Cardinals’ offense sputtered against Chagrin Falls. … Brookside drops to the watch list with three 2-1 teams looking to crack the top ten. North Ridgeville has now won two straight games under first-year head coach Bryan Morgan, while Wellington has also bounced back from an 0-1start. Note: Records as of Sept.