Location: Wayne Hills High School

When: Tonight (Thursday), 7:00 p.m.

PV Record: 2-1

Montclair, W 29-14

DePaul, L 25-14

@West Milford, W 35-7

Wayne Hills Record: 1-2

@Demarest L, 7-6

@Passiac Valley L, 35-14

Northern Highlands W, 35-7

PV Rankings: No. 8 in NJ (MaxPreps), No. 13 in NJ (Star-Ledger), No. 6 in North Jersey (Bergen Record)

Wayne Hills Rank: No. 140 in NJ (MaxPreps)

Key Matchups:

Wayne Hills’s RBs vs. PV defense — Last week, Wayne Hill’s running backs Chris Garrone and Justin Hogan combined for 255 yards and 4 TDs (2 apiece). The PV linebackers and linemen will focus on stopping the run, as Wayne Hills only threw the ball six times last week and ran the ball 50 times. Of those six passes, only one was completed for 16 yards. If the Valley defense can stop the run, they should be able to stifle the Wayne Hills offense by forcing them to throw the ball.

PV punt team vs. Wayne Hills’ punt return team — Against West Milford, PV never had to punt the ball. Wayne Hills had a punt return against Northern Highlands that went for 81 yards and a TD. If PV has to punt, they should watch out for Wayne Hill’s Vincent LoVerde. PV’s offensive success will be the key to keeping the ball out of LoVerde’s hands on punt returns.

PV passing offense vs. Wayne Hill’s secondary– Last week against West Milford, Colin Dedrick passed for 213 yards and 2 TDs. The Wayne Hills’ defense had three INTs last week against Northern Highlands.

PV Perspective: After overcoming a slow start en route to a satisfying win against West Milford, Valley travels to square off with a Wayne Hills squad that looks to be a notch below the level of its recent glory years. PV, which has beaten the Patriots three times in the last two seasons, looks to position itself for another late-season run. If PV’s defense is able to contain Wayne Hills’ run game, it should be able to pull it off. Wayne Hills’ passing game is not used often. The Patriots have only thrown the ball a total of 37 times for 209 yards through three games. PV’s offense should be to run the ball successfully as they have during the beginning of the season. When needed, PV will go to the air looking to make big plays and catch the Wayne Hills’ defense napping. The Bergen Record has this game as one of its five to watch this weekend.

Predictions:

Jake Aferiat’s prediction: 28-10 PV

Calvin Ralph’s prediction: 35-13 PV

Evan Jones’s prediction: 28-7 PV