No. 5 Middle Creek (2-0)

at No. 14 Fuquay-Varina (1-1)

This rivalry has grown into one of the biggest and most important in Wake County. Get there early to get a seat or parking spot. If that seat happens to be next to either rowdy student section, some earplugs may come in handy. Note: all Tri-Nine intraconference games start at 7:30 p.m.

All-time series: Tied 5-5.

No. 10 Cary (1-1)

at Holly Springs (1-1)

Both teams started off well last week but wilted in the second half. Should we call this the Kolstad Bowl? Ben Kolstad is the head coach of Cary, and his little brother Andrew is Holly Springs’ defensive coordinator.

All-time series: Cary leads 2-1.

Panther Creek (0-2)

at Athens Drive (1-1)

Both teams might feel as though they haven’t played up to their potential yet. Despite many returners, Athens Drive is off to a start similar to last year. Even with some high hopes this year, Panther Creek is off to a worse start, with last week’s loss to Sanderson being an obvious wakeup call.

All-time series: Athens leads 3-2.

Lee County (1-1)

at Apex (1-0)

Lee was tied with Richmond County, believed by many to be one of the state’s top teams, going into the fourth quarter. Apex rallied to overtake Durham Riverside last week in the season opener.

Last 10 meetings: Apex leads 7-3.

Sanderson (1-1)

at Green Hope (1-1)

Sanderson’s stunning shutout of Panther Creek last week means they shouldn’t be overlooked by Green Hope. With a win, the Falcons can be 2-1 after week three for the second year in a row.

Player of the week

David Salmon

Middle Creek, QB, senior

Salmon picked apart the Southern Durham defense Friday, completing 17 of 25 passes for 167 yards and four touchdowns in a 41-26 walloping.

Coach speak

Ryan Habich

Fuquay-Varina head coach

“We always play to win here. We didn’t get it against Middle Creek last year, we didn’t get it two years ago against Panther Creek, but we’re always going for two.”