It’s Week 3 of the Maine high school football season and themes are emerging. Class C looks like the Wild West, with teams spread across the state creating unusual matchups. Class A South has three unbeaten teams. Is Cheverus a Class B contender?

Let’s start with a cross-town rivalry that has been on hold since 2018.

Route 9 renewal

Greely and Falmouth’s rivalry game has a nickname (The Battle of Route 9) and a trophy. But since 2018, when Falmouth beat Greely 21-12 in a Class B South regular-season finale, the trophy has been gathering dust in Falmouth. Greely shuttered its standalone program in 2019 because it knew it would have less than 10 players and joined a co-op with Falmouth. When Greely returned to a standalone program in 2022, it played eight-man football. Both programs won their first football state championship last fall – Falmouth in Class B and Greely in eight-man Large School. Now the Rangers are back in 11-man football, playing in Class C, while Falmouth is back in Class B South.

The Route 9 revival kicks off at 8 p.m. Saturday. The formerly dusty trophy, which Falmouth athletic director James Coffey said was spruced up this week at a repair shop, will be on site.

Class A South unbeatens

Thornton Academy, Bonny Eagle and Noble are each 2-0. Thornton has outscored its opponents 86-7 after handling senior-laden Bangor, 42-7. Bonny Eagle swamped South Portland in its opener and took care of business against Sanford, 26-6.

Noble, with only two returning starters on both sides of the ball, is the surprise. The Knights have close wins at home against Windham (14-10) and South Portland (23-14). 

Thornton has the toughest test this week, hosting Bedford, New Hampshire. Bedford, also 2-0, has beaten Thornton three straight seasons. Since 2022, Bedford is 33-4 and won New Hampshire Division I titles in 2022 and 2023. Bedford’s only loss last season was in the state semifinals. 

Bonny Eagle hosts Windham (0-2). Noble makes its first road trip, taking on Massabesic (1-1) in Waterboro.

Memorial Field in Portland has two top games

The marquee event is Friday, when Deering (1-1) hosts unbeaten Portland (2-0). Both teams are in Class A North now, and unlike their annual Thanksgiving meeting, this one counts in the standings. Then Saturday, on the same field, Cheverus will host Kennebunk in a matchup of 2-0 Class B South teams. While artificial turf is being installed at Cheverus’ Boulos Stadium this fall, the Stags are playing home games at Memorial Field and Fitzpatrick Stadium. Cheverus has impressed in the early going, shutting out Gorham 35-0 and handling Class B North’s Messalonskee, 48-21.

Cheverus won only two games last season. Kennebunk won the past two B South titles and edged Falmouth in its opener. This is a chance for the Stags to join the regional title discussion.

Crazy Class C; or Wells’ new adventures

Class C is a 13-team, statewide division. There are two defending champions, Wells and Greely, but neither played in Class C last year. The 2024 champion, Fryeburg Academy, is now in Class B North.

Wells, the Class D champion in 2023 and 2024, is at Gardiner on Friday night. The Warriors last played the Tigers in 2021 (34-6 win in Wells) when both teams were in C South. Wells beat Nokomis in its opener, then lost at Hermon — two opponents the Warriors had never played. The Warriors will also be making their first trip to Old Town to end the season and are at Greely in Week 6 for the first meeting between those teams since 2012, when both were in Western Class B and Maine had only three classes of football.

Gardiner is off to an impressive 2-0 start with a 52-6 point margin, having beaten two of the division’s winless teams, Oceanside and Old Town. Hermon, Brewer and Greely are also 2-0.

Seagulls fly north for title game rematch

Old Orchard Beach and Stearns were the highest scoring teams in the state last year. In the eight-man Small School title game, the Seagulls beat Stearns, 60-14, scoring 38 points in the third quarter to turn a close game into a rout. OOB makes the 217-mile drive to Millinocket for Friday night’s rematch, and both teams are again scoring at a high rate. OOB has a 120-18 scoring advantage, while Stearns’ mark is 110-22.