Clash of Section V football title contenders is one of several key games in Week 2

Here are matchups to keep an eye on among the second set of high school games this season in Section V football:

Friday

Canandaigua vs. University Prep at Rochester Sports Complex, 7 p.m.

This is a very interesting crossover matchup. Canandaigua is among Section V's best, a team working on five Section V Class A championships in a row. University Prep is viewed as a strong contender to win the Class AA championship.

Canandaigua quarterback Drew Williamee threw to 5 different receivers last week against Spencerport, connected with 4 and finished 10 of 19 passing for 146 yards, including touchdowns to Sean Olvany and Judd York. Dominic Gullace turned a punt return into a big-gain play, a 75-yard touchdown. Four penalties fit Canandaigua's reputation for making less mistakes than most.

UPrep put up a big wave of points, 33 unanswered at Aquinas. Tavion Byrd, called a dual-threat quarterback by UPrep coach Isiah Young, had an 86-yard run for a touchdown and threw two touchdown passes to Tyrell Simmons. UPrep's aggressive offensive and defensive lines are big advantages.

More: 2023 Section V football schedule

Monroe at Honeoye Falls-Lima, 7 p.m.

Monroe is playing its season-opener, its first game since losing on the last play of the 2022 Section V Class B final. The bad news about this is that the Red Jackets try to get up and running at HF-L, another contender for this season's sectional title. The good news about this is the extra time Monroe received to prepare to play the Cougars, who lost at Waverly last week.

Cougars quarterback Matt Meacham finished with 328 passing yards after completing 27 of 35 passes, including touchdowns to Landon Hammond and Connor Finn. The Meacham to Andrew Wanzenried is respected.

The Monroe Red Jackets know they can beat the Cougars after doing so twice last season. They have a healthy number of starters back this fall, including running back Nazhier Wilson, receivers Landan McKnight and Messiah Hampton. Monroe coaches are excited to see Amari Colon play in a varsity game.

More: An essential guide to the 2023 Section V high school football season

Brockport at Brighton, 7 p.m.

Based on its impressive 40-13 win over Wilson/Early College, a team is going to have to be on its game to beat the Brighton Bruins. Quarterback Tyler Martinovich had two passing touchdowns and, when needed, impressive runs. The team's running game, which featured Gavin Parks last week, looks more polished. Nasir Smith had three sacks.

Let's see how the Brockport Blue Devils bounce back from a 42-21 loss to Webster Schroeder, after the Warriors collected five interceptions. Can quarterback Landon Scott and receivers Azay Odey and Tyler Judd click? Nate Parker can produce from the backfield or split out as a receiver.

More: Section V football scores for 2023 season

Caledonia-Mumford/Byron-Bergen at Pembroke, 7 p.m.

Caledonia-Mumford/Byron-Bergen is making its debut in 8-man football, where the games tend to be high-scoring. Pembroke won 55-24 at Red Jacket last week.

While Caledonia-Mumford/Byron-Bergen might not have the largest number of players on its roster, it's far from a team that is starting over. Having quarterback Austin Pittman will help. He is playing behind five offensive linemen who return from last season.

Tyson Totten, the 2022 8-man player of the year in the state, picked up where he left off. He scored 7 touchdowns as he rushed for 414 yards against Red Jacket. Caleb Felski scored Pembroke's other touchdown as a fullback, but was a larger force on defense, where he made nine tackles.

Hilton at Fairport, 7 p.m.

Step 1 turned out to be a good one for the Fairport Red Raiders, who rallied to beat Penfield. Can they stand up to Hilton, a team that won what coach Rich Lipani said was a "tough, very physical game" against Pittsford?

Fairport showed it can score and move the ball with receiver Sam Pucci, running back Bailey Frank and tight end Marques Garrett. Quarterback Jackson Rucker showed he can shrug off a bad play - an interception returned for a touchdown - on his way to completing 25 of 35 passes for 225 yards with two touchdowns.

Hilton's defense is going to be tough to crack if the unit plays like it did against Pittsford. Linebackers Brady Quill and John DiBattisto helped limit the Panthers to six points. Senior running back Robert Lowry scored all of Hilton's touchdowns, thriving on carries off-tackle.

Saturday

Penfield at Rush-Henrietta, 1 p.m.

This is the "Bounce Back Bowl" as both teams are coming off of losses. Penfield lost a 10-point lead in its season-opener against Fairport. Rush-Henrietta failed to keep up at Victor and lost 41-14 in the Teddi Bowl.

Nick Masters was Penfield's most productive offensive player, with 83 yards on 21 carries. Senior receiver Elijah Sanchez returned a kickoff for a touchdown. Brodie Joyce also reached the end zone, returning an interception for a touchdown.

The Rush-Henrietta Royal Comets would like to take steps forward, starting with turnovers. They had two last week and finished with 197 yards of offense. The bulk of the yardage came on the ground. Justin Medina (20-yard run) and Imani Wagstaff (10-yard run) reached the end zone.

LeRoy vs. Letchworth/Perry/Warsaw, 7 p.m. at Perry

This is a chance for one of these teams to stamp itself as a contender in Section V Class C. LeRoy, a sectional finalist in 2022, seems closer to that label.

Chances are strong that LeRoy will attempt to win this game with its running game. The Oatkan Knights had 311 rushing yards during its 43-6 win over Bath Haverling. Jackson Fix was nearly joined by Tony Piazza as a 100-yard rusher. The LeRoy defense stuffed a running play to force a turnover on downs at the team's 16-yard line and the Oatkan Knights ahead 8-0.

Letchworth/Perry/Warsaw seemed to have a good showing against Attica/Alexander, the team to beat in Section V Class C, while losing 16-12. Quarterback Bryce Tallman and Jordan Brown connected for a 53-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Rushing yards seemed tough to come by but Caden Sumeriski pulled Letchworth/Perry/Warsaw to within four points of Attica/Alexander with a four-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. The timing would be very good for Letchworth/Perry/Warsaw defensive linemen and linebackers to have a strong game.

Correction: An earlier version of this article included an incorrect game site for the Fairport vs Hilton game. The error has been corrected above.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Section V football 2023 title contenders lead top games in Week 2