Light(s) at the end of the tunnel

Unless you're Harrisburg or Bishop McDevitt, this Friday's scrimmages will offer a taste of what's ahead on Aug. 29. Most of the teams will meet an opponent under the lights for the first time in 2008 - Cumberland Valley has a jump on everyone after scrimmaging South Western at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Speaking of those Eagles, it might be smart to check out their scrimmage at Chapman Field on Friday at 7 p.m. against J.P. McCaskey from Lancaster. This will give CV a good idea of where it stands in terms of speed. The Red Tornado, despite last year's 3-7 mark, usually boasts its share of speed. With regular-season games against traditionally fast opponents State College, Altoona, Central Dauphin East, Harrisburg and Central Dauphin this scrimmage will be very useful.

Another safe bet is South Western vs. Red Land and head coach Frank Gay (above) at West Shore Stadium. Kickoff between the two, who met for the 2006 District 3 Class AAA championship, is at 7 p.m. Both teams were shuffled back to the AAAA ranks in the offseason, making a rematch in the district playoffs unlikely.

The complete scrimmage schedule for Mid-Penn teams:
Friday
Area
West Perry at Trinity, 4
Bermudian Springs at Boiling Springs, 6
Eastern York at Big Spring, 6
Elizabethtown at East Pennsboro, 6
Lebanon at Mechanicsburg, 6
Kennard-Dale at Shippensburg, 6:30
Carlisle at Red Lion, 7
Cedar Cliff at Reading, 7
Dover at Northern, 7
Lancaster McCaskey at Cumberland Valley, 7
Newport at Camp Hill, 7
South Western at Red Land, 7
Others
Harrisburg at Wyoming Valley West, 10 a.m.
State College at Bethlehem Liberty, 4
Greencastle-Antrim at Gettysburg, 6
Hershey at Mt. Carmel, 6
Bishop McDevitt at Manheim Township, 6
Lower Dauphin at Susquehanna Township, 6
Steelton-Highspire at Shenandoah Valley, 6
Central Dauphin East at Wilson West Lawn, 7
Erie Cathedral Prep at Altoona, 7
Governor Thomas Johnson (Maryland) at Chambersburg, 7
Lewistown at Milton Hershey, 7
Middletown at Littlestown, 7
Saturday
Area
Susquenita at Millersburg, 11 a.m.
Others
Boonsboro (Maryland) at Waynesboro, 10 a.m.
Scotland at Fairfield, 10 a.m.
James Buchanan at Schuylkill Valley, 1