Even with more than 300 yards of total offense, Sidney (Ohio) Yellowjackets running back Isaiah Bowser still needed to score the winning touchdown with just over two minutes left in a 39-32 win over St. Mary's Memorial.

Bowser's four-yard plunge was his second rushing touchdown of the night. “I saw the end zone, put my shoulder down and had to get in there,” Bowser said. “It felt good.”

All told, the 6-foot, 200-pounder ran for 205 yards on 23 carries and added three receptions for 107 yards.

His first TD had been a brilliant 49-yard reception, responding just 32 seconds after Memorial got their first score of the night. In the third quarter he added a 39-yard touchdown sprint.

Sidney plays at Bellefontaine next Friday, and Sidney's Devan Rogers said the team isn’t going to be complacent after a season-opening win.

“We gave it all we’ve got tonight, but we want to keep this up,” Rogers said. “We’re going to keep working.”

Linebacker Jaylen Rivers and his Loganville (Ga.) Grayson won bragging rights with their 35-26 win against Hoover (Ala.) in a matchup of defending state champions.

Both teams are in the national Top 10 and won the Class 7A championship in their respective states last season.

Grayson took a 7-0 lead just 2:01 into the game on D.J. Irons’ one-yard quarterback sneak. The Rams then added another touchdown at the 4:32 mark as the Hoover Bucs had to play catch up all night.

“We just didn’t play very well early,” Hoover coach Josh Niblett said. “We had some opportunities in the game to kind of change the momentum a little bit. When you play good teams, you’ve got to take advantage of that, and we didn’t.”

Grayson will try to keep that momentum going at home against Powder Spring (Ga.) McEachern next.

Quarterback Jason Whittaker threw two interceptions, but made a handful of impressive runs and a stunning 59-yard touchdown pass to Eli Haddad as Rockford (Mich.) got a 14-0 win over Saline at Michigan Stadium.

Last year's game between the two was a Rockford forfeit due to a flu bug going around the team. This year, they made up for it by playing at the University of Michigan's “Big House”.

Whittaker started slowly and was just 1-for-4 for 3 yards in the first half. He'd finish the night with only three completions for 80 yards. The Saline Hornets had an opportunity to cut into the deficit late in the half after intercepting a wildly tipped Whittaker pass, but it amounted to nothing. Saline picked him off again on the first play of the second half.

Whittaker gave the Rams the cushion they needed with the late TD pass to Haddad, who made a one-handed running catch and trotted untouched into the end zone.

“Once we got the default loss last year, we were definitely hungry this year, and showed it today,” said Whittaker after the game.

Rockford plays its home opener against Lowell on Friday.

Safety Greg Newsome didn't hit the stat sheet but USA Today national No. 2 IMG Academy did not disappoint, traveling to Chandler (Ariz.) to beat the No. 7 team in the country, 27-14.

Sponsored by GEICO and broadcast on ESPN, viewers had to tune in early to see Ryker Brazerol return a blocked punt by Nolan Smith to put IMG up 7-0 in the first quarter. Xavier Thomas, the top-ranked defensive player in the nation, had four tackles, five hurries and broke up two passes for IMG.

Overall, the Ascenders ran for 284 yards on 35 carries for an average of 8.1 yards.

IMG might as well not bother flying back to Florida; they'll be in California next week to take on Corona (Calif.) Centennial, currently the No. 13 squad by USA Today's reckoning, in the “Honor Bowl” in San Diego on Saturday night.

Northwestern-bound tight end Brian Kaiser caught two passes for 45 yards in a 31-0 win over Elmhurst (Ill.) York.

Kaiser’s second reception covered 36 yards in the first drive of the fourth quarter. He even ran the ball twice for 10 more yards. The New Trier Trevians feel as though they have a shot at the Illinois Class 8A state title with their defense, which made a statement with a shutout.

“I’m really proud of our defense, our defensive coordinator [Jason Dane] and his coaches,” said NT head coach Brian Doll. “It’s always tough to prepare for an option offense like York’s, but our coaches did an excellent job of getting our players ready.”

New Trier goes on the road to take on Gurnee Warren Township this week.

The Dunlap (Ill.) Eagles didn’t need Charlie Mangieri's help in a 36-6 win at Galesburg.

After a 66-yard punt return for a touchdown from receiver Isaac Guyton and touchdown runs of 62 and 43 yards from RB Luke Bennyhoff, Dunlap had a 22-0 lead in the first quarter.

“The game got a little away from us and I’m a little worried about how we responded,” said Galesburg coach Tim Dougherty. “We’ve got a lot of inexperienced guys and it’s not a good way to start. But Dunlap’s a good team. They’re legit.”

Dunlap has their home opener against Marion this week.

Zero passing yards, four turnovers and two blocked punts go a long way towards explaining defensive end Andrew Leota and his Asheville (N.C.) Cougars' 26-16 loss at Knoxville (Tenn.) Webb. The loss drops the Cougars to 0-2 to start the season.

Webb took the opening kickoff to midfield and promptly scored a touchdown within a minute of play. Asheville took the ensuing kickoff no further than their own 12-yard line and promptly threw an interception. After a Webb field goal, Asheville gave the ball away again and the defense scored a touchdown. The score was 17-0 against the Cougars before their only “successful” drive of the half, resulting in a punt.

A turnover on downs at the Webb 15-yard line almost immediately became an 80-yard touchdown run for Webb's Elijah Howard. The game was 23-0 before Asheville could get on the scoreboard.

The Cougars will try to right the ship when they travel to Lexington North Davidson this weekend.

Projected defensive end Devin O'Rourke had a sack in Frankfort (Ill.) Lincoln-Way East's 27-7 win against Crete Crete-Monee.

"Defensively, to hold that team to seven points is pretty good," head coach Rob Zvonar said.

The defensive line applied consistent pressure throughout the game, but it was quarterback Brendan Morrissey who stole the show in his varsity debut, rushing for two TDs and throwing for two more.

This weekend will generate real proof for the Griffins as they will go on the road to meet defending Class 8A champions Park Ridge Maine South, the alma mater of Northwestern backup QB Matt Alviti.

Duncan (S.C.) Byrnes linebacker Khalid Jones enjoyed watching his team's offense score early and often in a 42-7 win against Greer.

Rahjai Harris, Quez Mayes and Brock Carroll each scored twice, piloting the Byrnes Rebels to a 21-0 halftime lead. They would double that lead in the third quarter before Greer could add an early fourth quarter touchdown.

Greer coach Will Young noted just how dominant Jones and his teammates were in keeping the game in their hands: “Their defensive front was really strong,” Young said. “They definitely controlled the line of scrimmage from the defensive side. We were not able to drive the ball and sustain our offense…. Early on (against Byrnes), it was the three-and-out, three-and-out and three-and-out.”

Next up, Byrnes will see a visit from powerhouse Ramsey (N.J.) Don Bosco Prep, the home of former Wildcat standout and Chicago Bear Corey Wootton.

Future Northwestern safety Jeremiah McDonald and his defensive teammates watched in relative comfort as their Slidell (La.) Northshore Panthers eased to 21-7 win over Pearl River.

The game was the first of a season opening “jamboree,” a double-header featuring two teams play two fifteen minute halves, followed by two different teams doing the same. Jamborees are quite common as season openers in Louisiana, frequently with proceeds going to a worthy cause like a local hospital or the Kiwanis Club charities.

Northshore got on the scoreboard in the first half when Terius Crawford capped off a 12-play, 65-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run. Leading 7-0 at halftime, the passing game got in on the scoring as Panthers quarterback Walter Harris connected with Ethan Swann for a 56-yard touchdown. Backup quarterback Mike Benedict scored from 12 yards out late in the second half to make it 21-0.

Pearl River didn't get their touchdown until there were only two seconds left in the game. It may have been something more akin to a scrimmage for most teams, but Northshore junior running back Dwayne Jones said “it was good to just line up against someone in a different uniform.”

Northshore heads to Zachary this week.

"To have success on offense, you have to be able to run the ball," said Northwestern-bound Libertyville (Ill.) senior offensive lineman Charlie Schmidt. "We had a great effort tonight and guys really stepped up."

The Wildcats cruised to a 27-14 win at Highland Park. Senior halfback Brendan Bazar was the main beneficiary of a workmanlike effort by the offensive line as he rushed for 212 yards and two touchdowns (58 and 44 yards) on 22 carries.

The Wildcats' offensive production wasn't limited to the ground, as quarterback Alex Stanulis was sharp in his first varsity start, connecting with seven different receivers. His 16-yard keeper late in the third put Libertyville ahead 24-7, as kicker Matt Rudolphi was good on both of his field goal tries (33 and 36 yards) to round out Libertyville's scoring.

The Libertyville Wildcats have an unusual four-game road trip to start the season. Friday's game at Batavia is being promoted as “Youth Football Night.”

Offensive guard pledge Wyatt Blake helped open the hole that enabled quarterback Jake Staples to run for an 80-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage as the Crystal Lake (Ill.) Central Tigers ran to a 37-21 win at Fox Lake Grant.

Staples wound up carrying the ball 12 times for 205 yards and two touchdowns and Braden Bisram added seven carries for 93 yards and two more scores. Staples added another 163 yards and a touchdown in the passing attack as he rang up 456 all-purpose yards to give Central a 31-6 lead after three quarters.

"Without our offensive line, we never could've put up numbers like that, so all the credit in the world goes to those guys," Staples said. "Everyone talks about Wyatt Blake, who protects my blind side at right tackle because I throw lefty, which is an awesome luxury. But this was a true team effort from everyone up front."

The Tigers have two more games on the road before getting home. This week's challenge comes at crosstown rival Crystal Lake South.

- Wide receiver Jacob Jefferson's Houston (Texas) St. Pius X has had to cancel their upcoming season opener against Las Vegas (Nev.) Faith Lutheran due to the effects of Hurricane Harvey. “We had to cancel the game because they have so many things to work through,” Faith Lutheran coach Vernon Fox said. “I don’t even know what the rest of their season is looking like at this point.” Fox said that St. Pius X’s players haven’t been able to go to school or practice. “It’s hard to focus on the misfortune of missing a football game when people have lost so much. Our prayers are out to that administration, staff, school and everyone that is affected by this.”

- As of this writing, Pearland, Texas, is under strict orders to remain indoors due to flooding and a curfew from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. in effect. An announcement regarding tackle Payne He'bert and Pearland Dawson’s Friday night game against Conroe Oak Ridge team has not yet been made but looks doubtful.

- Linebacker Grayson Mann and his Fort Worth (Texas) All Saints Episcopal team are scheduled to play at Plano Prestonwood Christian this weekend.