The high school football season kicks into a new gear tonight as league play begins for a large majority of area schools.

The weekend schedule also includes several non-conference clashes between perennial powerhouses.

Highlighting the slate of league games is a Northeast 8 Conference showdown between Lakeview (2-1) and visiting South Range (2-1).

South Range enters the game riding a 36-game winning streak against NE8 opponents. The Raiders have won five straight conference titles. Their last loss in league play was a 35-34 overtime setback at Niles on Oct. 4, 2019. They own an overall league record of 37-2 since the formation of the NE8, and have never lost a home game to a league opponent during the span.

Hubbard is one of nine area teams with a perfect 3-0 mark heading into tonight. The Eagles will look to remain undefeated when they travel to NE8 foe Niles (0-3).

The Eagles and Red Dragons are meeting for the 40th time in a series which began in 1919. Hubbard owns a slight 21-17-1 edge in the series, but the Eagles have dominated recently, winning 17 of the last 18 meetings.

Girard (3-0) will put its perfect record on the line when it hosts Struthers (0-3). The Indians are averaging 55.3 points per game.

Springfield will have to wait a week to begin defense of its Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference (Scarlet Tier) title. The Tigers’ scheduled game against league foe Waterloo was canceled due to low numbers within the Vikings’ program.

Meanwhile, Jackson-Milton (3-0) will visit Mineral Ridge (2-1) in what will be a homecoming of sorts for Blue Jays coach Brian Shaner, who coached the Rams from 2019-24.

Also looking to win its fourth game of the season is McDonald, which will host Western Reserve (1-2). McDonald is seeking its first 4-0 start since 2018, when the Blue Devils posted a perfect 10-0 regular season record.

Garrettsville Garfield (2-1) begins defense of its MVAC Gray Tier title when it travels to LaBrae (2-1). In fact, the G-Men are looking to win their third consecutive conference championship. They have won 15 straight league games, winning titles in both 2023 and 2024.

Crestview and Liberty – both 3-0 – appear to be the early frontrunners in challenging Garfield in the Gray Tier. One of the two schools will gain the upper hand tonight as the Rebels and Leopards meet in Liberty.

The Leopards are 3-0 for the first time since 2008, when they opened the season with eight straight wins before dropping their final three games of the season.

Tonight’s non-conference slate is highlighted by the Battle of 224 as Canfield travels to Poland. Both teams are 3-0.

Tonight will mark the 80th meeting between the Cardinals and Bulldogs.

The two teams first met in 1921 as eight-man football teams. They began playing as 11-man teams in 1944 and have played continuously with the exception of 2019 and 2020.

Poland leads the series 41-35-3.

A pair of schools with a combined 12 state championships will meet tonight when Youngstown Cardinal Mooney (2-1) travels to Steubenville (0-2). The Cardinals and Big Red are meeting for the 15th time, with each team having won seven games. Steubenville defeated Mooney each of the last two years.

Austintown Fitch (2-1) will seek its third straight win when it hosts Riverside (3-0). Warren G. Harding (1-2) hopes to even its record when it visits Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary (0-3).

The Week 4 slate will conclude Saturday when Warren John F. Kennedy (0-3) travels to Youngstown to take on East (2-1).