Friday Night Lights: The top Gardner-area football matchups to catch this fall

As another summer comes to a close, student-athletes of the Greater Gardner area are spending their days not only gearing up for the school year, but also preparing for their respective sports seasons.

Friday night football resumes Sept. 8 and there is plenty of strong competition to expect in Central Mass. this fall.

Here are some of the must-see games that you won’t want to miss. This list features local rivalries and games with league title and playoff implications.

Quabbin at Gardner, Sept. 8, 7 p.m. 

The season opener from last season will be mimicked again this year, as this Mid Wach E duo will face off for the first game of the season. Last year, Quabbin squeaked out the victory, 27-21, after being down for much of the game. Quarterback Brandon Arsenault’s fourth quarter touchdown propelled the Panthers past their opponent. Arsenault finished the game with 200 total yards and teammate Nicholas Warburton ran for 194 yards on 19 carries.

Gardner’s Ayden Sparrow, a 2022-23 All-Star who will be back this season, started Gardner’s offense with a touchdown in the first quarter. Warburton and Sparrow will both be back for the 2023-24 season match up, but Quabbin will have to see who will be able to step into Arsenault’s shoes as quarterback.

David Prouty at Narragansett Regional, Sept. 22, 7 p.m.

Narragansett found success against SWCL program David Prouty, defeating the Panthers 40-26 in a late September game last season. Gansett’s Joey Pineyro, Cam Hoey and Bryce Matyszewski all rushed for two touchdowns in the game, while Hoey also nabbed two interceptions. David Prouty’s offense was led by Logan Josti, Julian Kondrawtowicz and Cam Goodrich who each scored. With Pineyro back as a senior, his skill and leadership will help Gansett despite losing several key players from last year.

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Quabbin at Murdock, Sept. 29, 7 p.m.

Murdock defeated Quabbin, 33-18, last September, and they will rematch almost exactly a year later this upcoming season. Murdock’s strength caused issues for Quabbin and will be a good test for the Panthers. Jarius Williams was a star for Murdock in the game last year, rushing 254 yards and contributing both offensively and defensively to lead the team to a victory. Unfortunately for Quabbin in this case, Williams will return for his final year, posing a threat once again to the Panthers on both sides of the ball.

Monty Tech at Bay Path, Sept. 30, 1 p.m.

This tech school pairing is one that often produces a quality game. Last season, Bay Path was victorious, largely in part due to Casey Gallagher, Kaiden Brochu, Anthony Catino and Jonathan Nussey dominating on offense. Brochu is the only one of that crew that will be back, so a new generation of Bay Path stars will have to emerge to stay competitive. Monty Tech loses star player Logan Quinn, which will be a difficult role to fill as he led as QB and was a huge scorer for the Bulldogs. Both programs lost some key members, but both remain strong in the under class, so this year’s battle could be anyone’s game.

Maynard at Oakmont, October 20, 7 p.m.

Last season, the two teams competed and Oakmont defeated Maynard, 38-33. Sam Curtis completed 12 of 22 passes for 246 yards and Harris Fagan and Isaiah Smith tallied two and three touchdowns, respectively. Smith also tallied 196 receiving yards in the contest. Maynard’s Patrick Andrews scored three touchdowns for the Tigers, earning 135 rushing yards.

This season they will meet at a similar point in the schedule, giving both programs a chance to settle in before taking on one another. If anything is like last year, it is sure to be another competitive game to watch. Fagan along with Curtis, who was named an All-Star at the end of the 2022-23 season, will be back for their senior campaign. Maynard’s Andrews will not be returning, but he leaves behind a solid upper class (13 juniors, 10 seniors) and a deep roster that gives the Tigers plenty to work with.

Football will have a more in-depth weekly preview as we get closer to game-time, as well as recaps of the best moments of the week. Be sure to stay tuned for the season opener matchups and other news on football to come.

Contact Cait Kemp at ckemp@gannett.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @caitlinkemp09. 

This article originally appeared on Gardner News: 5 Greater Gardner area high school football games to watch this season