New York High School Football Games of the Week: Sept. 12-14

After two weeks into the high school football season in New York, a number of schools have made major moves up and down the top-25 rankings.

Three programs have jumped into the top 10, while six teams have entered the On3 Massey Ratings New York top 25. St. Francis and Canisius are each now in the top five heading into the second weekend of September.

And a few major matchups are on the slate that could affect things again this week:

The On3 Massey Ratings, officially used during the BCS era, is a model that ranks sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule and margin of victory. According to the model — four teams from Alabama rank inside the nationwide top 100.

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Bergen Catholic (N.J.) @ #1 Iona Prep
The Gaels rebounded nicely from a season-opening defeat, rolling past Springfield Central (Mass.) for a 44-20 win on the road last week. But it’s no cupcake this week against New Jersey’s No. 1 team. The Crusaders opened this season with a huge test against Florida’s IMG Academy, but fell to the Ascenders 27-14. After regrouping, they traveled to Ohio to face the No. 2 team in the Buckeye State: Washington. They put on a dominant performance from start to finish, rolling to a 35-21 victory.

St Joseph Regional (N.J.) @ #8 Archbishop Stepinac
Archbishop Stepinac is off to a rough 0-2 start, losing a pair of games to Maryland powers McDonogh and Archbishop Spalding. The Crusaders have scored just 14 points so far this season and the schedule is only getting tougher. St. Joseph fell in a 31-21 decision in Week 1 to Baltimore powerhouse St. Frances Academy, but rebounded quickly with a decisive 28-7 win over the state’s No. 9 team, Seton Hall Prep.

DePaul Catholic (N.J.) @ #2 Cardinal Hayes 
Cardinal Hayes just picked up its first win of the season in Massachusetts, bouncing state contender Catholic Memorial for a 36-29 victory. Syracuse QB commit Rich Belin totaled four touchdowns in the win — two through the air and two on the ground. The Spartans opened against Pope John XXIII, routing the Friars 47-14. Over the weekend, they headed down to Maryland to face D.C.-area powerhouse Good Counsel and came out with an impressive 28-17 victory led by Ohio State wide receiver commit De’zie Jones.

#22 Yorktown @ #4 Somers
Defending state champions Somers had to survive at home last week, escaping with a 40-35 win over Ramapo (N.J.). The Tuskers nearly blew a big lead in the second half but moved to 1-0 and will now prepare for a ranked in-state matchup against No. 22 Yorktown on Friday night. The Huskers rolled to their only win of the season so far last week 26-8 over Harrison. Somers currently has a 90% win probability, per the Massey Ratings.

#5 Canisius @ Washington (Ohio)
Sophomore athlete Elijah Kimble collected four touchdowns, including a kickoff return score, to propel Canisius to a 14-point win on the road over Scranton Prep (Pa.) last week. The Crusaders’ offense looked the part and will now be put to an even tougher test in the coming days, as they’ll head to Ohio to take on Washington, a top-150 program nationally and the No. 4 team in the Buckeye State. The Tigers are coming off a 35-21 home loss to Bergen Catholic and will be looking to get back on track.