IDAHO FALLS — Week 2 will feature a pair of conference matchups on the high school gridiron — Skyline at Blackfoot and Declo at Aberdeen. But that is far from the only intriguing games set for this weekend.
Highland will play yet another out-of-state opponent, Summit (OR), Saturday at the Northwest Showdown at Rocky Mountain High School in Meridian. Rigby will also be there, facing Moses Lake (Wash.) Friday night.
Back home in eastern Idaho, fans will have their pick from another full slate of games.
Battle of 3A undefeateds
Declo (2-0) will go to Aberdeen (1-0) for an early undefeated showdown in the 3A South East Idaho Conference.
The Hornets have already scored a pair of road wins, beating Teton, 26-14, and Nampa Christian, 28-7. They are coming off an undefeated regular season — including a 55-28 victory over Aberdeen — and runner-up finish in the 2A state tournament. Aberdeen opened its season last week with a tight 20-18 victory over rival American Falls.
Which team will establish early-season dominance in the only District 5 conference matchup of Week 2.
The other side of that coin
Snake River has started its season with a pair of losses, first to Homedale then in a very one-sided game game to Sugar-Salem, 41-6. The Panthers will go on the road to face Kimberly, another 0-2 team, for a 4A non-conference matchup.
Which of the two will tally its first win of 2024.
3A top dog playing up a division
The West Side Pirates, who have won three of the last four state 2A titles, are now in the 3A division, following a state-wide realignment. They started their season last week with a come-from-behind 33-19 victory over division rival Firth.
This week, West Side will open their home schedule welcoming 4A South Fremont. The Cougars are 1-1, with a Week 0 win at home against Bear Lake and a Week 1 loss at Marsh Valley.
Broncos face tough test in Grizzlies
Blackfoot looks for its second win of the season after holding off Preston in last week’s opener.
The Broncos will get conference power Skyline, which fell in its opener to Morgan (UT).
Look for the passing game to come up big. Morgan passed for 345 yards last week and the Grizzlies’ second-half rally came up short after an early deficit.
Preston’s Carter Perry passed for 316 yards and two touchdowns against the Blackfoot defense, but the Broncos overcame that passing attack.
Schedule change for Titans
Thunder Ridge’s football game, originally scheduled for Friday at Centennial, has been moved to Thunder Ridge due to air quality.
The JV team will play Ridgeview at 2 p.m., followed by the freshman game vs. Centennial at 4:30 p.m.
The Centennial at Thunder Ridge varsity game kicks off at 7 p.m.
