Whether the results have been shocking or expected, Cony has been one of the state’s most dominant football teams early this season.

The Rams’ Class B North foes have been unable to challenge them, but outsider Oxford Hills will get its shot. Cony (3-0) will face the Class A Vikings (2-1) at noon Saturday at Gouin Athletic Complex in Paris.

Through three weeks, no team in Maine has a better point differential than Cony’s plus-136. Wins over Messalonskee (47-0), Brunswick (55-6) and Mt. Blue (52-12) have the Rams — led by elite quarterback Parker Morin — atop Class B North.

What’s come easy for Cony in its first three games, though, likely won’t against Oxford Hills. After a 21-7 defeat against defending Class A champion Portland, which is now atop the Varsity Maine Top 10, the Vikings have shut out Massabesic and Edward Little in consecutive games behind a stingy defense.

Keys to a Cony victory

• Physicality in the trenches. Oxford Hills’ lines are young, but led by the 325-pound Brooks Merrill, they’ll also be the biggest fifth-ranked Cony has faced. The Rams’ ability to hold their own could determine whether they stay unbeaten.

• Handle adversity. The Rams, coach B.L. Lippert acknowledged, are unlikely to dominate from start to finish the way they did over their first three games. Cony must respond when things don’t go its way.

Keys to an Oxford Hills victory

• Keep Cony’s offense off the field by establishing the run. Malaki Sparks, Cam Pulkkinen, Keegan Ridley and Cam Roy have all factored into the run game for the ninth-ranked Vikings, and finding the right mix of them will be crucial.

• Stop screen plays. Lippert, as Oxford Hills coach Nate Danforth noted, is the master of the screen game. The Vikings must be on their toes to shut down those passes in addition to defending against the deep ball.

Cony impact players

• Senior QB Parker Morin (29 of 43, 715 passing yards, 11 TD, 0 INT)
• Senior WR/DB Ethan Demmons (10 receptions, 309 yards, 10 TD)
• Junior RB Anderson Noyes (22 carries, 147 yards, six TD; five receptions, 77 yards, TD)
• Senior OL/LB Kaiden Veilleux (20 total tackles, four for loss)
• Senior OL/DL Bohdy King Jones

Oxford Hills impact players

• Senior QB/DB Dylan Truman (13 of 20, 193 passing yards, 2 TD vs. Massabesic)
• Senior WR/K Cam Pulkkinen (three receptions, 81 yards vs. Massabesic; INT vs. EL)
• Sophomore WR/DB Keegan Ridley (five carries, 51 yards, TD vs. EL)
• Senior RB/LB Malaki Sparks
• Junior OL/DL Brooks Merrill

Last meeting

• Sept. 2, 2022: Oxford Hills won, 42-6

What they’re saying

• “They’re a physical team, and they’re going to go out there and try to drive to the football, but I think our athleticism can beat that. … Our O-line has been great this year, and with how they’re playing, hopefully it can open up some nice lanes in the running game.” — Anderson Noyes

• “If they load the box, we have to be able to air it out, and if they thin it out, we have to be able to run the football. We can’t just resort to throwing the ball 50 times a game; if we get too one-dimensional, I think that puts us in a situation where we’re a little easier to defend.” — B.L. Lippert

• “It’s our homecoming week, so the boys are very fired up, but there’s also the perspective of how much this game means in the long run. At the end of the year, when the playoffs come, a win against a Cony team that’s going to have a lot of wins would be really good.” — Nate Danforth