Everyone who plays high school football wants to be a champion.
But only those who have won it all before know how reluctant they can be to relinquish that title.
Take the 2016 North regional champions, who withstood graduation losses, injuries and new challenges to qualify for postseason play again this year.
Three of those four — Class A Portland, Class B Brunswick and Class D Maine Central Institute of Pittsfield (now in Class C) — finished their regular seasons at .500 or less and had to play their regional quarterfinals on the road.
All three won those games last weekend meaning another road trip for their semifinals, but if last weekend is any indication no one should look past them.
Class B
No. 5 Brewer (5-4) at No. 1 Skowhegan (5-3), 7 p.m. Friday: The BDN Sports Game of the Week — live streaming at bangordailynews.com — matches a Skowhegan passing attack that has averaged 293 yards per game against a Brewer ground game that rushed for 259 yards per game during the regular season, though the Witches used more than 250 passing yards and a stout late-game defense to outlast No. 4 Messalonskee 29-28 in their quarterfinal.
Skowhegan quarterback Marcus Christopher has completed 165 of 249 passes for 2,287 yards with 30 touchdowns and just four interceptions, and his targets include four of the top six receivers in Class B North — Cam Barnes (48-762, 10 TD), Jon Bell (35-554-10), Sean Savage (31-398-7) and Colby Miller (18-340-8).
Brewer’s Bryant Kiley has rushed for more than 1,000 yards this season while quarterback Cody Wood has passed for more than 800 yards, with his favorite targets during the regular season Jacob McCluskey (18-284) and Andrew Kiley (16-166).
No. 6 Brunswick (2-7) vs. No. 2 Lawrence (5-3), 7 p.m. Friday at Fairfield: Brunswick, the reigning Class B state champ and three-time regional title holder, kept its bid to repeat alive by scoring the final 24 points of its 38-27 quarterfinal win over No. 3 Cony of Augusta.
Lawrence edged Brunswick 23-20 in Week 6 at Keyes Field in Fairfield, and the Bulldogs make their playoff debut with three wins in their last four games — the only loss a 58-56 decision at Skowhegan that proved to be the tiebreaker for the No. 1 seed in the division.
Isaiah Schooler (98-916-8) and Tyler Larouche (107-689-11) give Lawrence a solid 1-2 rushing punch behind senior quarterback Braden Ballard.
Class C North
No. 5 Oceanside (6-3) at No. 1 Mount Desert Island (8-1), 7 p.m. Friday: Two prolific offenses match up on the island, with defending regional champion MDI averaging 39.4 points and Oceanside at 36.6 points per outing.
Playmakers abound in this game, including the division’s top two rushers. Oceanside’s Michael Norton Jr. is now at 1,536 yards and 28 touchdowns after his 237-yard, five-touchdown outburst during the Mariners’ 40-33 quarterfinal win at No. 5 Hermon.in the quarters. Teammate Ben Ripley also has rushed for more than 1,000 yards.
MDI’s Colby Lee ranked second in the league with 1,236 yards and 18 TDs during the regular season to anchor a deep rushing corps that also includes Elijah Joyce, Billy Kerley and more recently fullback Croix Albee, who has returned after missing much of the season with an Achilles-ankle injury.
Senior quarterback Andrew Phelps passed for two touchdowns in MDI’s 36-6 quarterfinal win over John Bapst of Bangor.
No. 6 MCI (5-4) at No. 2 Winslow (8-1), 1 p.m. Saturday: These teams met two weeks ago in Pittsfield, with Winslow rallying from a 14-12 halftime deficit for a 32-29 win behind Ryan Fredette’s 218 rushing yards on 28 carries.
A big question entering the rematch concerns whether Fredette (182 carries, 1,330 yards for the season) will be at 100 percent after suffering an ankle injury early in the Black Raiders’ 49-13 quarterfinal win against Waterville. Ben Dorval picked up the slack in that game, rushing for 148 yards and four touchdowns.
MCI has gotten healthier as the season has progressed and now boasts a deep backfield including Adam Bertrand (162-954, 13 TDs), Pedro Matos, who rushed for more than 100 yards in the earlier meeting against Winslow, and converted lineman Shane Bussell, who like Bertrand rushed for more than 100 yards during the Huskies’ 33-24 quarterfinal win at Nokomis of Newport.
Class D North
No. 4 Dexter-Piscataquis (5-4) vs. No. 1 Foxcroft Academy (6-2), 7 p.m. Friday at Dover-Foxcroft: These neighboring rivals last met at Oakes Field in Week 2, with Foxcroft churning out a hard-fought 24-14 victory.
The Ponies have won five of six games since then, averaging 45.5 points during that run behind senior quarterback Nick Clawson (939 passing yards, 751 rushing yards, 14 TDs).
Dexter-Piscataquis has regrouped from a three-game losing streak with two straight victories, including a 34-20 quarterfinal win over No. 5 Ellsworth-Sumner. Senior Tyler Beem has been a catalyst for the Tigers with 961 rushing and receiving yards and 15 touchdowns during the regular season.
No. 3 Mattanawcook Academy (6-3) at No. 2 Bucksport (5-3), 7 p.m. Friday: These teams played a wild three-overtime game in Week 2, with Bucksport’s 48-42 win earning it home-field advantage in the rematch.
Bucksport has won its last four games, with record-setting senior quarterback Chase Carmichael (1,573 passing yards, 20 TDs, 4 INTs) guiding a potent aerial attack.
MA, which topped No. 6 Houlton in last week’s quarterfinals, features one of the LTC’s top rushers in Matt Young (1,002 yards, 13 TDs during the regular season).
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