Freeport head coach John Gaillot talks to players after a practice earlier this season. The Yellowjackets host Valley Friday night as they look for their third victory in four games.

FREEPORT — A small adjustment went a long way for the Freeport varsity football team last week.

Ben Lane, a 5-foot-10 sophomore, was inserted at quarterback and turned in a huge night in the Yellowjackets' 34-14 win at Derry. He rushed for 116 yards and scored three touchdowns, threw for 239 yards and returned a kickoff 95 yards for a score.

“We wanted to go back to having that dual threat at quarterback,” Freeport coach John Gaillot said. “Ben gives us that. He's a lot like Alex Isenberg and Brendan Lynch that way.”

Freeport (2-1) hosts Valley (1-2) at 7 p.m. Friday. The Vikings are coming off a 34-0 shutout of Deer Lakes.

The teams haven't met since 2017, when Freeport scored a 34-6 win. Valley leads the all-time series, 10-6.

“Valley is big and strong, with a lot of weapons,” Gaillot said. “Their running back (Justin Hooper) is tough and their quarterback can really move.

“We have to stop the big play. They've got six kids who can take it to the house.”

Cole Charlton has been making his share of big plays for the Yellowjackets. He's got three quarterback sacks and two interceptions through three games.

Jackson Reiser, an inside linebacker, leads Freeport with 27 tackles.

“Cole has developed into a playmaker on both sides of the ball,” Gaillot said. “He's making plays at receiver for us. too. He's been great at that outside linebacker/defensive end position.

Jackson has been a beast at inside linebacker. He's got the instincts. His dad (Nick Reiser) played linebacker at Knoch and Allegheny College.”

Former quarterback Zach Clark has been moved to receiver. He intercepted a pass against Derry as well. Vinny Clark replaces Lane at running back.

“We're a young team that's growing up pretty fast,” Gaillot said. “That's a good thing.

“This is a big one for us Friday. We'd love to get off to a 3-1 start. We're chasing momentum that way.”

<b>7 p.m., Thursday</b>Union/ACV remained undefeated last week by crushing visiting Curwensville 45-0. Redbank Valley did not play its scheduled game against Sheffield after the latter canceled the rest of its season due to lack of players.Junior Caden Rainey is one of many playmakers for U/ACV. He leads the team with nine catches for 130 yds. and has added 159 yds. on the ground with two TDs.Bulldogs' junior QB Gunner Mangiantini has passed for 220 yards and 5TDs. Senior RB Hudson Martz has 189 rushing yds. and 2 scores.The Falcon Knights and Bulldogs squared off twice last year. U/ACV won 28-7 in the regular season before the Bulldogs won 32-6 in the playoffs.

<b>7 p.m., Friday</b>The all-time series between the teams is even at 9-9. This is the first game between the teams since 2017, when Knoch scored a 56-28 victory.Both teams run the triple-option attack. While Indiana scored eight touchdowns in last week's 56-28 win over Greensburg Salem, Knoch has been limited to four touchdowns in three games.Indiana QB Devin Flint has attempted only 10 passes this season, completing two. He has rushed for 431 yards. ... RB Zach Herrington has 431 yards rushing.Knights RB Gavin McGowan rushed for 120 yards in last week's 34-7 loss to Armstrong ... QB JJ Szebalskie has thrown for 193 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions.

<b>7 p.m., Friday</b>Mars tasted defeat for the first time this season with a 49-21 loss to Plum last week. Armstrong toppled Knoch, 34-7.Senior RB Teddy Ruffner has scored 9 of Mars' 10 TDs this season, including one on a kickoff return. Planets' coach Scott Heinauer said his offensive line has been spurred by efforts from center Chase Nesselroad, guard Jordan Moser and tight end Chris Dvorak.Armstrong is a pass-heavy team and is averaging just 55 yards per game on the ground. Sophomore QB Cadin Olsen has thrown for 835 yards with 7 TDs and 1 INT.The Planets beat the River Hawks last year, 42-21.

<b>7 p.m., FridayMars Athletic Complex</b>Burrell suffered a 56-8 non-conference loss to Apollo-Ridge last week while North Catholic continued its dominating play with a 35-14 win at East Allegheny.Junior RB Caden DiCaprio has rushed for 307 of Burrell's 412 yards on the ground.North has outscored its three opponents 141-27. The Trojans held East Allegheny to just 58 yards of offense last week, including minus-15 on the ground.North defeated Burrell last year, 54-6.

<b>7 p.m., Friday</b>The Gremlins have dominated this series, winning 11 of the 12 meetings. KC's lone loss to the Chucks was 31-0 in 2010. ... Karns City won last year's game, 49-7.Punxsutawney is coming off a 24-0 loss to DuBois Area and has struggled to score points. The Chucks have been outscored 87-20 in three games ... Senior QB Kameron Falgout has been their offense, throwing for 193 yards and running for 164 in the first two games combined.Karns City is coming off a 44-0 loss at Brookvlle, held to 47 net yards rushing in 25 attempts. ... RB Jayce Anderson leads a balanced KC ground game with 121 yards. Cole Coon has 115, Brayden Christie 104. ... Gremlin QBs Christie and Eric Booher threw 3 interceptions each last week ... Michah Rupp has five catches for 93 yards on the season.

<b>7 p.m., Friday</b>The Moniteau defense is in for another challenge. The Warriors gave up 425 passing yards last week to Calvin German and Central Clarion last week. German also tossed 6 TDs in the 46-19 win.This week, the Warriors are tasked with trying to slow down Brookville's Jack Krug, who threw for 276 yards and 4 TDs last week against Karns City. ...Krug has thrown for 913 yards and 12 TDs this season to go with only one INT.Moniteau will try to help its defense out by keeping its offense on the field with a Wing-T attack led by senior QB David Stamm. ... Last week Mason Mershimer and J.D. Dessicino combined for 113 yards rushing on 32 carries.The Warriors have lost the last three meetings with Brookville, including a 21-8 loss last season.

<b>7 p.m., Friday</b>This is a rematch of Slippery Rock's Week 1 home win over Sharon, 27-7.Since, the Rockets have lost two in a row, falling to Grove City on the road and to Hickory at home last Saturday. ... Sharon has been outscored this season 117-40 and is coming off a 42-17 loss to Grove City.Sharon has struggled to get its offense going with only 633 total yards in three games. The Tigers are averaging only 3.8 yards per carry with Brett Salsgiver the leader with 129 yards.Despite a rough outing against Hickory, Slippery Rock QB William Mokel still has healthy numbers. The sophomore has passed for 451 yards and is completing 59 percent of his passes.