KNOX — The Autumn Leaf Festival is kicking off with quite a football game.

Keystone (5-0) plays host to Union/A-C Valley (4-1) at 7 p.m. Thursdaty as a prelude to the annual event in Clarion.

“No one has school on Friday, so they pick one game every year to play on Thursday night,” Keystone coach Ryan Smith said. “This year, it happens to be us.”

Since Union/ACV merged their football programs in 2016, the Falcon Knights own a 3-2 edge in the series, including a 14-7 win last year. Other close games between the teams include a 12-8 Union/ACV win in 2018 and a 34-26 Keystone conquest in 2017.

“These are two really good teams,” Smith said. “Union/ACV is one of the most physical teams we're gonna face. Those guys come up and hit you hard.

“This game will likely come down to a late defensive stop or a key turnover somewhere along the line.”

The Panthers have been taking the ball away a lot. All-state safety Zander Mchenry leads a secondary that has 12 interceptions. Sophomore nose guard Brock Champluvier is 6-foot-3 , 327 pounds and has a number of tackles for loss.

The Falcon Knights are led defensively by senior linebacker Carter Terwint and junior lineman Mike Card with 22 and 21 tackles, respectively.

“They've been using a lot of people offensively,” Smith said of the Falcon Knights. “You can't concentrate on one guy with them, which makes them difficult to prepare for.”

Bailey Crissman has thrown for 238 yards and six touchdowns for Union/ACV. Skyler Roxbury has been his top receiver with seven catches for 108 yards.

The Falcon Knights have plenty of threats running the football, including Card (398 yards, 3 TDs), Dawson Camper (360 yards, 8 TDs), Crissman (127 yards) and Caden Rainey (114).

Union/ACV has won its last four games by the combined margin of 201-8. Three of those wins were shutouts.

“We have to play physical and stay disciplined on defense to win this game,” Smith said.

Kyle Nellis leads the Panther ground game with 510 yards and four TDs. Quarterback Bret Wingard has rushed for 124 yards and five scores.

Through the air, Wingard has 477 yards and seven TDs. His top targets are Mchenry with 11 catches for 128 yards and three scores, Tyler Albright with nine catches for 136 yards and two TDs.

“Kyle ran for 200 yards against Bucktail, but only 84 in limited touches against Sheffield,” Smith said. “We like to spread the football around.

“Bret is a tall quarterback at 6-3 and has good field vision. He's only thrown two interceptions, so he takes care of the ball. He's got strong legs and is an effective runner as well.

Union/ACV coach Brad Dittman could not be reached for comment.