While there were a lot of interesting storylines during the course of the opening weekend of high school football, to me the play of the Union Local Jets was amongst the most impressive.

Bruce Stiles heaped all sorts of praise on his team during the pre-season and his players backed it up in a 48-8 victory against Monroe Central.

Union Local doesn’t have a lot of “household” names, but they have solid football players. And on top of that, they have a big and talented offensive line, which paved the way for 402 yards rushing and an average per carry of 11.5 per rush. The line is comprised of Nate Stubbs, Hank Myers, Cory Jones, T.J. Kelley, Josh Taylor, Cody Ray, Kade Clark and Lucas Donley.

It didn’t matter who it was touching the ball, the holes were wide open. Brian McWhorter and Ben Howell were the ultimate beneficiaries. They went for a combined for 332 yards and seven touchdowns. Howell averaged a ridiculous 25.7 yards per touch and scored four times.

The Jets welcome Buckeye Local this weekend and then travel to Martins Ferry in week three.

DOESN’T HAPPEN OFTEN (IF AT ALL)

I have been following high school football pretty closely in the Ohio Valley for more than 17 years in this job. Never can I recall a team winning a game without completing a pass.

I won’t be able to say that anymore because Martins Ferry made it happen on Friday. Not only did the Purple Riders win, but they won big, posting a 74-0 victory.

Martins Ferry has always utilized a run-first approach, but rushing 35 times for 520 yards and 10 touchdowns is simply absurd. And before anyone tries to say Dave Bruney ran up the score, just stop. Telling young kids — in the second half — not to score simply wouldn’t be fair to those kids who have busted their humps all summer.

Anyway, back to the Riders. While the ground attack with the likes of Dalton Hoover and Jacob Johnson leading the way stole the show, how about the play of senior defensive end Jack Davis?

Davis was all over the field. According to the official stats that the Purple Riders provided, Davis had four tackles, a sack and four pass break ups.

Martins Ferry has always had a solid recipe for success and it’s not changed this season. Run the ball well and play good, sound defense.

PICKING UP WHERE HE LEFT OFF

Last time we saw Caide Bunfill in an athletic competition, he was completing an all-Ohio campaign in long jump at the OHSAA State Track and Field Championship. In doing so, he became the first athlete in Barnesville’s rich history to earn all-state accolades in three different sports during the course of a school year.

After the performance he put forth on Friday in a 40-7 Shamrocks’ win against Newcomerstown, one could surmise that more accolades and honors will be forthcoming when this season is said and done.

However, a lot of football remains between now and then and something tells me that Bunfill and his Shamrock mates aren’t about to slow down. Bunfill is a rare combination. He’s a physical runner with break-away speed. He’s the kind of player who doesn’t shy away from contact, but once he gets to the open field, he’s awful tough to catch.

The thing about Bunfill and Barnesville is the fact that he’s just one of the weapons. Matthew Burkhart — another track standout in the spring — is more than capable at quarterback. Butch Holskey is a punishing fullback and Kaelan Hannahs is a game-breaker at wide receiver.

Throw in the solid play of the offensive line, which was hit relatively hard by graduation and then battled some injuries this summer and you’ve got the makings of a quality squad.

The Shamrocks have a tough test this week in 1-0 Meadowbrook. Should the ‘Rocks defeat the Colts, one would think they’d be heavy favorites in each of their next six before closing with two weeks to prepare for rival Union Local.

Still, however, it’s one week at a time for Matt Johnson and company.

TOUGH OPENER

St. Clairsville knew several things entering its opening game against Carrollton last Friday. Brett McLean knew his team was green in spots and he also knew that the Warriors would be a quality opponent.

Both proved to be completely true as St. C. was handed a 26-7 loss.

There’s a cliche in football that says teams make their biggest jumps from week one to week two. McLean and company are going to need that to hold true because they certainly have no cupcake coming to town this week. A visit from Coshocton awaits on Friday night.

One of the areas where the Red Devils are especially young is up front. Carrollton was continually harassing St. C. quarterback Zach Bigelow and limited the Devils to minus two yards rushing for the contest. St. Clairsville’s one veteran up front — Trey Elerick — is expected to miss several games with an injury.

At 0-1, the Red Devils are in a position they’ve not seen since McLean’s first season at the helm.

I really liked McLean’s quote after the game that said, “It’s an awesome game. I love it to death, but man does it hurt when you put so much into it and you only get 10 competitions guaranteed to you and when you lose one it feels like the world has come to an end,. But there’s nine games sitting on our schedule in front of us.”

That’s exactly the approach, too. The first one is over and done with. Review the film and then throw it away.

SCHEDULE IDEA

I know a lot of logistics go into scheduling, but heat like we experienced last weekend in the Ohio Valley got me thinking. It would make a lot of sense if Bellaire opened each season on the road. The way the OHSAA’s calendar works means there’s going to be at least one game in August every year. Saturday afternoon in August can be absolutely brutal. If the Big Reds play at home in week two, yes it will probably still be warm and could be as hot and muggy as it was this past weekend, it’s still a week later and in September.

I guess just giving Mother Nature an extra week to cooperate a little more is what I am saying. I remember two years ago, Bellaire hosted Ridgewood in similar temperatures and a handful of players ended up dehydrated and some even spent the night in the hospital.

CHECKING IN ON THE LOCALS

JOHN MAGISTRO and his Westerville Central Warhawks opened the season on the short end of a 39-10 score in their game against Gahanna Lincoln last Friday. Magistro is a St. John Central alumnus and former head coach at Bellaire.

LEVI NELSON and his Rittman Indians debuted with an impressive, 47-8, victory against Richmond Heights last Friday. Nelson is a St. Clairsville High graduate.

MIKE ORLANDO and his Cincinnati McNicholas Rockets dropped a 27-6 decision to Cincinnati Turpin in their season opener last weekend. Orlando is a Steubenville Central graduate.

FRED RAY and his Fairview High squad fell to 1-1 on the season after a 41-28 setback to Hazard. Ray is a Martins Ferry graduate.

Staskey can be reached via email at sstaskey@timesleaderonline.com