This is Rivalry Week in certain Chronicle Country circles.
Teams with longstanding histories against each other usually use the early portion of the schedule for crowd-drawing contests. 
It’s also an opportunity for teams to improve before region play.
Here are some of those contests:
• Airport at Brookland-Cayce - This is a unique rivalry. Both teams have faced each other twice a season in the same region. The Region 4-4A title was on the line when last the 2 rivals met. Airport won 38-27 to take a 46-30 lead in the series.
• Batesburg-Leesville at Gilbert - The Panthers dominated “The Battle of Highway 1” with a 27-6 advantage. That changed since Gilbert Coach Chad Leaphart returned to his alma mater. The Indians have won 3 straight for the 1st time ever in the series and are playing the 2nd of 3 home games opening the season. 
• Mid-Carolina at Chapin - The “Battle of the Bell” is one of the state’s oldest rivalries. Named after the bell used on the train from Chapin to Prosperity, the matchup dates to 1961. The Chapin Eagles hold a 44-16 advantage and won the last 6 meetings. Tonight’s game will air on WACH 57 (1250 on Time Warner Cable). It marks the “Homecoming” for former Chapin and University of South Carolina offensive lineman Mason Zandi, who does commentary for the broadcast. 

TEAM OF THE WEEK - Gilbert
The Indians needed all of the offense in its repertoire to hold off visiting Gray Collegiate Academy. They amassed 670 total yards in the 62-47 shootout win. 

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK - Airport's Bruce Staley, Nanders Lawrence and Markco Gilmore provided a 3-headed, 6-legged attack for an Eagles' 41-7 win over Dreher. Each of the backfield trio had 2 TDs and close to a combined 450 total rushing yards 

WEEK ZERO GRIDIRON GIANTS
Malachi Brown (Brookland-Cayce) - 13-19 passing, 172 yards, TD
Will Way (Brookland-Cayce) - 7 receptions, 107 yards, TD; 84 rushing yards
Ty Olenchuk (Dutch Fork) - 23-36 passing, 295 yards, 4 TDs
Jalin Hyatt (Dutch Fork) - 3 receiving TDs
Elijah Spencer (Dutch Fork) - 7 receptions, 124 yards, TD
Drew Howell (Gilbert) - 10 tackles
Dre Cook (Gilbert) - 102 rushing yards, 2 TDs
Matt Reed (Gilbert) - 6 receptions, 75 yards, 2 TDs; 30 rushing yards
Jy Tolen (Gilbert) - 23-30 passing, 358 yards, 4 TDs; 1 rushing TD
Hunter Helms (Gray Collegiate) - 17-28 passing, 402 yards, 2 TDs
K.Z. Adams (Gray Collegiate) - 148 rushing yards, 108 receiving yards, 5 TDs
Omarian Dollison (Gray Collegiate) - 6 receptions, 106 yards, 2 TDs (rushing & receiving) 
Jack Wood (Gray Collegiate) - 6 receptions, 147 yards 
Chris Rhone (Gray Collegiate) - 19 tackles
Dalton Shumpert (Gray Collegiate) - 12 tackles
Braylen Scott-Joyner (Gray Collegiate) - 10 tackles
Ahmad Bynem-Scott (Lexington) - 140 rushing yards, TD
Jackson Stone (River Bluff) - 4-11 passing, 117 yards, 2 TDs, 1 rushing TD
Aveon Smith (White Knoll) - 175 total yards, TD
Darius Derrick-Jones (White Knoll) - 6 receptions, 97 yards, 2 TDs

BY THE NUMBERS
Gilbert head football coach Chad Leaphart is 30-6 in 4 seasons at his alma mater. He’s the fastest coach in school history to 30 career wins...Gilbert and Grey Collegiate combined for 1,254 total yards, but also 29 penalties for 285 yards...Dutch Fork has gone undefeated in 26 straight games. Its game with Mallard Creek of North Carolina was called tied at 27-27 with 4 minutes to play due to lightning. It has won 19 consecutive road games entering Friday’s game at Spring Valley dating back to 2015...Batesburg-Leesville improved to 20-0 all-time against Ridge Springs-Monetta last week

QUOTABLE 
“That was a wild one, too. We lost that 63-60 (in overtime) when I was at Swansea. That might have been as bad, too. I think that one we had to come back and finish on a Saturday. But this time, I’m on the winning side. So, I like this a whole lot better.” - Gilbert head coach Chad Leaphart following the win over Gray Collegiate. 
The contest drew flashbacks to the classic 2015 matchup against Chapin when he was head coach at Swansea. 

S.C. PREP MEDIA FOOTBALL POLL

(Class 5A) 

1. Dutch Fork 2. Gaffney 3. Fort Dorchester 4. Byrnes 5. Dorman 6. T.L. Hanna 7. Sumter 8. Blythewood 9. River Bluff 10. Greenwood

 Receiving votes: West Florence, Berkeley, Carolina Forest, Summerville

(Class 3A)

1. Chester 2. Dillon 3. Chapman 4. May River 5.Union County 6. Camden 7. Strom Thurmond 8. Wade Hampton (H) 9. Woodruff 10. Gilbert

Receiving votes: Fairfield Central, Newberry, Manning, Aynor, Hanahan, Pendleton, Cheraw, Marion

(Class 2A)

1. Abbeville 2. Barnwell 3. Timberland 4. Bamberg-Ehrhardt 5. Saluda 6. Oceanside Collegiate 7. Southside Christian 8. Gray Collegiate 9. Carvers Bay 10 (tie) Whale Branch, Andrew Jackson Receiving votes: Blacksburg, Batesburg-Leesville, Cheraw, Hannah-Pamplico, Woodland