With the parity that exists in the National Football League, we’re continually reminded of the often-used saying that any team, no matter how good or bad, can be beat on any given Sunday.

And while local games don’t quite reach those proportions, this past weekend showcased that in Maine high school football, any team can be beat on any give Friday night (or Saturday afternoon). It was easily the most exciting and unpredictable weekend of the high school football season this fall, both in York County and around the state.

Three teams that came into the weekend as the top-ranked teams in their respective divisions ”“ Thornton Academy, Windham and Brunswick ”“ were upset after rolling through the first five games of their seasons, while three other division leaders ”“ Dirigo, MCI and Winslow ”“ were surprisingly tested by teams that many expected them to beat comfortably.

After weeks of seemingly endless blowouts, with a couple good, close games sprinkled in here and there, it was just the sort of weekend Maine high school football needed as we passed the three-quarter-pole of the regular season and head into the home stretch toward the playoffs.

It would be hard to make that argument to Thornton Academy, though, who would have much preferred the blowout-style wins of the first five weeks against heated rival Cheverus on Saturday.

The Golden Trojans had strolled through their first five opponents, outscoring the opposition 264-13 with an offense that was scoring at will and a defense that was barely allowing first downs, let alone touchdowns.

On the other side, Cheverus, the gold standard in the state over the past five years, was still a top team, but also struggling. The Stags had seen a 36-game regular season winning streak ended in emphatic fashion in a 35-7 defeat to Windham two weeks before, and Cheverus hadn’t looked quite as dominant or sharp in its four wins, despite all of them coming rather easily.

There was talk that the Stags lacked the depth and overbearing line play of the previous seasons, while Thornton, which had gone to Portland and gotten shellacked by Cheverus 56-7 last October, would obviously be out for blood on its senior day.

All of those narratives went up in smoke in three hours at Hill Stadium as Cheverus rallied from two 14-point deficits to beat Thornton 48-41 in double overtime in what was one of the most thrilling Class A games in recent memory. The game featured an explosive first quarter that saw a remarkable 47 points scored in 12 minutes, and a second-half defensive struggle that ended with the scored tied 34-34.

Both teams scored in the first overtime, and after Cheverus’ Joe Fitzpatrick ran in his third TD of the day to start off the second OT, the Stags defense made one last stand to hold onto the win, one very few outside of the Cheverus locker room would have thought to be on the cards hours earlier.

It was just the latest chapter in what has turned into one of the best rivalries in the state over the past few years, and coupled with Portland’s equally-surprising upset of previously-unbeaten Windham earlier on Saturday afternoon, it was a day that made everyone have to reconsider what they’d previously known, or thought they knew, about Class A.

Less than 24 hours before the stunner in Saco, neighboring Old Orchard Beach had experienced a thriller of its own. Like Cheverus, OOB ”“ which after a 3-0 start had lost its previous two games by a combined score of 74-9 ”“ wasn’t given much of a chance against unbeaten Dirigo.

That looked to be the correct assessment as the Cougars led 21-6 at the half they dominated after the first few minutes. But with their backs against the wall, the Seagulls responded behind the brilliant all-around play of quarterback Bryan Roberts, who used his arm and legs to will OOB back into the game at 21-18 with four minutes to play.

Dirigo then seemed to throw one last knockout punch with a long TD pass on a fourth-down play to move back ahead by 10, but OOB wouldn’t quit ”“ scoring again quickly, recovering an onside kick and driving down to the Dirigo 2-yard line in a tremendous two minutes of play.

But that’s where the comeback ended as Roberts was stopped three times on rushes in the final minute as the Cougars hung on with a goal-line stand to end a palpating last half-hour of play.

It was an ending that left Dirigo coach Jim Hersom exhaling for minutes afterward and several devastated OOB players lying on the field following the final whistle, but the Seagulls should take heart in one fact: With Dirigo currently at the top of the Western Class D standings and OOB almost guaranteed to finish in the fourth or fifth spot, the teams have a very good chance of meeting again in the semifinal round of the playoffs in a few weeks up in Dixfield.

The two games, just a few miles apart in OOB and Saco, also showed that no matter the size of the school or the letter of the Class, very little is assured up and down the ranks of Maine high school football.

It was a much-needed reminder of that “any given” mantra, one that we can all expect to see repeated before the four state champions are crowned in six week’s time.

— Cameron Dunbar is a sportswriter with the Journal Tribune.

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