Friday night gridiron preview

Tonight marks the first official night of football with all area teams in action.

As the pads pop across the state of Iowa, it?s time to take a glance at what is in store for all our area squads, as they all look to improve to 1-0 on the season.

For a look at Washington?s opener at Albia, check out Thursday?s edition of The Journal for a full season preview.

Louisa-Muscatine at Mid-Prairie

The Golden Hawks will open the year against a squad that used to be in their district a season ago.

With Louisa-Muscatine dropping down to Class 1A this season, the Golden Hawks will see the Falcons as a nondistrict opponent, but they will understand how they can be dangerous.

Last season, the Golden Hawks traveled to Letts and handed L-M a 13-0 loss, as Mid-Prairie went on their way to a 5-0 start to the season.

Ricky Vargas, a senior on the 2016 squad, rushed for 194 yards and two scores in the contest, and he will certainly be looking to match those numbers as the Golden Hawks want to open the year with a strong showing.

The Falcons will be without their top rusher from a season ago, but return Austin Leopard, who rushed for 204 yards a season ago, as well as their quarterback, Jake Hillard, who threw for 213 yards and a score in 2015.

Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

Highland at Danville

Highland will boast a strong number of returners when they face Danville on  Friday night.

The Huskies opened up the season with Danville last year, and claimed an 18-10 victory over the Bears, but are without the athletes who accounted for the scoring in the contest.

They will be looking to a strong defense to help set the tone on Friday night, as Danville will return its starting quarterback, Bryce Carr, who threw for 727 yards and eight touchdowns as a freshman.

The Bears will also have running back Wade Samples returning, after leading the squad with 289 rushing yards and two scored in 2015.

Kickoff in Danville is set for 7 p.m.

Sigourney-Keota at Pekin

The annual Backyard Brawl between the two rivals has been even over the last two seasons, but although each team has claimed a win in that span, both games came in blowout form.

Most recently, Sigourney-Keota knocked off Pekin 44-12 in Packwood, highlighted by a strong performance from a number of seniors.

For Sig-K, the Cobras are replacing numerous contrubutors that helped them to a second-place district finish in 2015, including a 1,900 yard rusher in Peyton Crawford.

The Cobras will be looking to stop senior quarterback Trever Northup, who tossed 17 scores and threw for 1,128 yards a season ago, as well as senior running back Tyler Copeland, who rushed for nine scores and 829 yards.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. in Packwood.

Columbus at Durant

The Wildcats will open their season on the road, as they also look to replace some strong contributors.

On the sidelines, new head coach Scott Symmonds is hoping to use the Columbus returners to his advantage, including their returning quarterback.

Senior Carter Colby will be entering his third year under center for the Wildcats, and he will do so after a strong 1,332-yard, 16-touchdown passing performance in 2015.

Colby also represents the team?s top returning rusher after picking up 427 yards and four scores on the ground.

The strength of the skill positions resides in the wide receiving corps, as three of the top four receivers from last season return for the Wildats, led by junior Abel Mena.

Durant will be trying out a new quarterback and running back this season, but will be assisted by sophomore wide receiver Mason Compton, who was the team?s top target as a freshman, catching 25 passes for 426 yards and a score.

Twin Cedars at WACO

The WACO football team played their first game of the year last Thursday, but fell in a 28-13 contest to HLV.

For their home opener, they will face Twin Cedars, who will be opening their season against the Warriors.

Twin Cedars has a returning quarterback, senior Trace Embray, who tossed for 952 yards and 13 scores last season, and he will look to pair with junior running back Dakota Pinegar, who picked up 1,067 yards and 15 scores last year.

Kickoff in Wayland is set for 7 p.m.