Loudonville at Crestview

WHEN: 7 p.m. Thursday

LAST SEASON: Loudonville 1-9; Crestview 12-1

THE MATCHUP: This is the fourth time in the past five years these teams have opened the season against each other. … Crestview has won all three of those meetings, including a dominant 45-25 victory in 2021. … That was the first of many wins for the Cougars, who finished the regular season undefeated for the first time since 2011 and reached the regional semifinals in Division VI. … Crestview lost its top offensive player to graduation but returns a nice mix of talent on both sides of the ball. … Senior quarterback Hayden Kuhn is one of those players. With his experience under center, the Cougars offense shouldn’t miss a beat this season. … Crestview also had a standout defense last year and returns several of those players, including senior defensive end Owen Barker, the reigning Times-Gazette Defensive Player of the Year. … Loudonville showed steady improvement as last season progressed and was competitive in most of its games down the stretch. … QB Matt Sprang is entering his second year leading the offense, which should help the Redbirds have more success on that side of the ball this season. … Senior running back Peyton Regan is also back after carrying the offensive load over the second half of last season. … Loudonville will need to make drastic improvements on defense, though, if it wants to win more games this year. … The Redbirds ended last season allowing at least 27 points in seven consecutive games.

Black River at Hillsdale

WHEN: 7 p.m. Friday

LAST SEASON: Black River 8-4; Hillsdale 7-5

THE MATCHUP: Featuring two playoff teams from last season, this is one of the best Week 1 matchups in the surrounding area. … It’s been at least 20 years since these Ashland-area schools last played each other and quite possibly much longer than that. … Black River started throwing the ball more last year than in previous seasons, and that’s going to continue in 2022. … The Pirates are abandoning their wing-T offense and transitioning to a spread pistol shotgun formation. … The decision makes sense since they have plenty of talent at the skill positions, including senior wideout Tyler Mrakuzic, who set several school single-season receiving records last year. … Five other starters return on offense and defense for Black River. … No matter how many players the Falcons lose to graduation, they continue to find a way to win games and make the playoffs. … They’ve reached the postseason six consecutive seasons and have a great chance to do so again in 2022 with several key pieces returning, including senior QB Jake Hoverstock, a dual threat who gained valuable experience in his first year leading the offense last season. … How quickly Hillsdale develops in the trenches will be key to how high its ceiling is in 2022.

Chippewa at Mapleton

WHEN: 7 p.m. Friday

LAST SEASON: Chippewa 4-6; Mapleton 3-7

THE MATCHUP: Both teams will look to establish their running attacks when they open the season against each other for the second consecutive year. … The Chipps won last year’s meeting 27-8. ... They both will try to do so without their top rushing threats from last season, as they each lost several key pieces to graduation. … Mapleton coach Matt Stafford wants his offensive linemen to get back to owning the line of scrimmage this season after failing to do so for much of the 2021 season. … That could be challenging against Chippewa, which returns several players in the trenches on both sides of the ball. … Stafford plans to showcase junior QB Kollin Cline, one of the area’s top all-around athletes, more in the running game this season. … That should help take some pressure off the newbies lining up behind him and make the offense more dangerous since it’s a new element. … Isaiah Radebaugh (57 carries, 259 yards rushing; 21 catches, 212 yards, two TDs receiving) took plenty of snaps as a freshman last season and is expected to lead the Chippewa rushing attack.

Northwestern at Keystone

WHEN: 7 p.m. Friday

LAST SEASON: Northwestern 3-7; Keystone 9-2

THE MATCHUP: Last season, Northwestern gave Keystone everything it could handle before falling 39-35. … That was somewhat of a microcosm of the Huskies’ season, as they scored enough points to win several games that they lost but just couldn’t get enough stops on defense. … They do return two of the area’s top tacklers, Nolan Hartsel and Anthony Huber, from last season, though, so they have a solid base from which to build as they look to take a step forward on that side of the ball under first-year coach Joe Cardinal. … Northwestern also returns senior QB Ethan Siders, a dual threat who gashed opposing defenses last year. … He also has some talented weapons to which to throw this season, so expect Siders and Co. to light up some scoreboards throughout the season. … It could be a long night for the Huskies if they aren’t able to contain Keystone senior wide receiver Ryan Shackelford, a Purdue commit who has scored 32 touchdowns during his first three years of high school. … Senior QB Konner Rodick is also a player to watch, as he’s passed for 3,363 yards and 34 touchdowns in 19 starts over the past two seasons. … Defense is expected to be a work in progress — at least early on — for the Wildcats, who graduated two All-Ohio linebackers. … The pair combined for 235 tackles last season.

South Central at Willard

WHEN: 7 p.m. Friday

LAST SEASON: South Central 3-7; Willard 1-9

THE MATCHUP: This will be the fourth all-time meeting between these teams, with South Central winning the previous three. SC cruised to a 41-15 win in last year’s game. … The Trojans scored plenty of points last year, averaging 28.4. … The only problem was they couldn’t stop the opposing offense, allowing 32-plus points seven times. … SC’s offense should be potent again this season with senior quarterback Brandon Mitchell returning for his third season leading the unit. … Mitchell already owns nearly all of the school passing records. … He lost some of his top weapons to graduation, but that doesn’t mean the cupboard is bare at the skill positions. … Willard ended a 20-game losing streak — the second longest in program history — by beating Vermilion in last year’s season finale. … The Crimson Flashes return sophomore QB Isaac Robinson, who passed for 1,612 yards and 11 TDs last season, and wide receiver Cam Robinson, who finished with 36 catches for 246 yards. … They also bring back linebacker Carson Hamons, who led them in tackles with 106, including three sacks.

This article originally appeared on Ashland Times Gazette: A capsule look at the area H.S. football teams' Week 1 games