The defenses for North Catholic and Hampton will have their hands full come Friday night.

Both teams feature a star running back, with North’s Jack Fennell gaining 734 yards so far to go with a 7.3-yards-per-carry average. Hampton’s Brock Borgo gained over 1,000 yards last year and is well on his way to duplicating that feat. He had 212 yards in last Friday’s 28-26 loss to Connellsville.

“They use some two- and three-tight end sets, do a lot of things that drive defensive coordinators crazy,” said North coach Chris Rizzo of the Talbots. “We have to get them into 3rd-and-long situations.”

The teams will square off with a 7 p.m. kickoff at Hampton’s Fridley Field.

Hampton must do a better job against the run than it did against Connellsville, which received 232 yards and two touchdowns from Bruce Giles.

“It’s no secret. Fennell is North Catholic’s number one guy and last week, we didn’t reach the standard we expect to play at,” said Hampton coach Steve Sciullo. “We’re counting on our defensive line — ends Gabe Gannelli and Brady Long and tackle Gryffin Keller — to neutralize the line of scrimmage.”

Hampton (2-4, 2-0) was dealt a heavy dose of adversity prior to the start of the season when returning starting quarterback Adrian Midgley was lost for the year when he tore his ACL.

Porter Kelly, a junior, stepped in and has been, according to Sciullo, “fantastic. He’s been lights out in our two conference wins”.

Those victories, against Kiski Area (35-26) and Armstrong (32-27), came in back-to-back weeks last month.

“The first few weeks of the season, it was a trying time,” Sciullo said. “We were trying to get the offense going and Brock was our only playmaker. The passing game has improved, though, and Brock is now in midseason form.”

North (3-3, 2-1) is coming off a 21-20 loss to Armstrong last week. The team’s conference wins came against Highlands (19-0) and Kiski Area (28-7).

Senior quarterback Jason Siket has improved since 2022 and has thrown for 690 yards with seven touchdowns and four interceptions.

“We use a lot of (pre-snap) motion and Jason understands all of it,” Rizzo said. “He’s put a lot of time in and works at his craft.

“We’re a balanced offense, but are not capitalizing on a lot of scoring opportunities.”

The Trojans defeated Hampton 13-7 last year.

Hempfield (1-5)

at Seneca Valley (1-5)

7 p.m., Friday

Hempfield dropped a 63-21 decision to Gateway last week; SV picked up its first win of the season, 55-0 over Butler.

Hempfield senior Keiran Lippmann started at QB the first 4 weeks for the Spartans, passing for 557 yards, 3 TDs and 3 INTs, but sophomore Dominic Detruf played last week and threw for 246 yards, 2 TDs and no INTs.

In their first 5 games of the season, the Raiders successfully converted just 34 percent (19 of 56) of third downs, but against Butler last week, they scored quickly, with their longest scoring drive lasting just 5 plays.

SV earned a 42-12 victory over the Spartans in 2022.

Mars (4-2) at

Kiski Area (2-4)

7 p.m., Friday

Mars defeated Highlands 48-15 last week; Kiski beat Indiana 28-7.

In last week's win, Mars RB Evan Wright, K/S Mason Childress and WR Gabe Hein each left the game with an injury and did not return. Head coach Eric Kasperowicz said on Wednesday that it is not known whether Wright or Hein will play Friday, but that Childress was practicing and was expected to play.

Kiski junior RB Landon Kucic rushed for 112 yards last week. ... Before defeating Indiana, the Cavaliers lost Greater Allegheny Conference games to Hampton (35-26) and North Catholic (28-7).

The Planets outscored the Cavaliers 47-28 last year.

Union/A-C Valley (3-3)

at Port Allegany (5-1)

1:30 p.m., Saturday

Union/A-C Valley fell at home last week to Redbank Valley, 50-6; Port Allegany crushed Kane 41-7.

Port Allegany QB Nick Wilfong has passed for 618 yards, 8 TDs and 2 INTs. ... RB Peyton Stiles has 841 yards from scrimmage (604 rushing, 237 receiving) and has scored 9 offensive TDs. ... The Gators' lone setback is a 57-6 loss to Class 2A power Central Clarion. Port has outscored its 5 other opponents by a combined score of 202-14.

Union/A-C Valley is averaging 270 yards of offense per game (125 passing, 145 rushing).

The Gators topped Union/A-C Valley 42-14 last year.

Freeport (2-4)

at East Allegheny (4-2)

7 p.m., Friday

The Yellowjackets were tripped up by Shady Side Academy, 31-28, as they opened Allegheny 6 Conference play; East Allegheny blew past Valley, 42-12.

Freeport’s offense revolves around QB Drew Ross (719 yards passing, 10 total TDs) and RB Colton Otterman (59 carries, 362 yards, 3 TDs). ... Otterman is also tied for the team lead in tackles (50) and has seven sacks on the year.

The Wild Cats have won three games in a row, all by at least 3 TDs. ... East Allegheny is averaging 31.5 points per game.

The Yellowjackets won last year’s clash, 35-13.

Slippery Rock (1-5) at

Sharon (5-1)

7 p.m., Friday

The Rockets suffered their third consecutive loss — a 48-14 decision at home against Hickory — last Friday; Sharon got past Sharpsville on the road, 26-7.

QB Eli Anderson paces Slippery Rock on the ground, having picked up 315 yards and 2 scores on 47 totes. ... WR Sam Schwartz has accounted for over 1/4 of the team’s receiving yardage, totaling 200 yards and 3 TDs on 22 grabs.

The Tigers defense has shined thus far, allowing its opponents 7 points in all but 1 game — 4 of those instances have been shutouts.

Sharon downed Slippery Rock, 20-6, last year.

Central Clarion (6-0) at

Moniteau (1-5)

7 p.m., Friday

The Warriors traveled to Bradford and returned home on the wrong side of a 40-21 result last Friday; Central Clarion washed away Karns City, 50-15, on the road.

Moniteau has dropped 4 decisions in a row, allowing at least 40 points in each of those defeats. ... The Warriors used two QBs — sophomore Brendin Sankey and junior Trent Beachem — in last week’s setback.

The Wildcats boast QB Jase Ferguson (1,327 passing yards, 23 total TDs). ... He leads an attack that has averaged 59 points per game over the first 6 weeks. ... No opponent has stayed within fewer than 35 points against the Wildcats.

Central Clarion won last year’s meeting, 46-14.

Riverview (3-3) at

Summit Academy (0-6)

12:30 p.m., Saturday

The Knights are still looking for their first win of the go-round after losing to South Side, 56-7, last week; Riverview lost to Jeannette, 42-22.

Summit Academy has lost its games this year by an average of 33.5 points. ... The Knights showed signs of improvement by scoring at least 20 points for the third time this schedule the week before.

Riverview is 1-3 in its last 4 outings. ... RB Carlo Buzzatto has gone for 8.9 yards per carry (99 totes, 886 yards, 8 TDs) this year. Landon Johnson and Rio Stotts both have over 285 rushing yards in 2023, too.

Riverview hosted Summit Academy and won, 40-12, last year.