Region play begins for just about everyone this week. Here’s a look at this week’s games:

Hartselle at Athens

Series:Hartselle leads 34-30-2

Last meeting: Hartselle won 14-6

Streak on the line: Hartselle comes into the tonight’s game with Athens riding a nine-game winning streak in the series. The last loss to Athens was Nov. 24, 2006, in the third round of the playoffs. During the streak, Hartselle has defeated Athens by an average margin of victory of 20.3 points.

Offense starts fast: Hartselle has been getting off to fast starts over the first two games of the season. The Tigers have scored on the first two possessions of each game this year. The Tigers will look to create another fast start, as the Tigers will venture on the road for the first time.

Turnover battle: So far, Hartselle has yet to turn the ball over on a fumble or interception while forcing several turnovers on defense. The Tigers will need to replicate that recipe on the road again this week.

Bye week: This is the final week before Hartselle’s bye week. They will have two weeks to prepare for homecoming opponent Decatur. Homecoming festivities will also begin a week from Monday.

Brewer at Scottsboro

Series: Scottsboro leads 4-0

Last Meeting: Scottsboro won 23-21

Early measuring stick: Last week, local fans got a chance to see how much Brewer has improved in the Dan Styles era. You can’t completely judge it by the final score, although the 21-point loss was a major improvement from the 54-0 loss in 2011. However, Brewer has taken remarkable strides forward. After Hartselle jumped out to a 35-7 lead at the half, Brewer pitched a shutout in the second half and continued to fight all the way until the end. The Patriot faithful have reasons to keep their heads up.

Near miss: Brewer may have played its best game of the year in a 23-21 loss against Scottsboro a year ago. Now the two meet earlier in the season. Scottsboro is a much improved team from a couple of years ago, but so is Brewer. This should be a good early season game.

Finishing drives: While Brewer lost by three touchdowns to Hartselle, they also had at least two or three more opportunities to put points on the board. Bad snaps, penalties and other negative plays near the end zone doomed those possessions. The Patriots must eliminate those miscues if they want to steal a win on the road tonight.

JB Pennington at Priceville

Series: First meeting

Offense continues to impress: During the Dirk Strunk era, the Priceville Bulldogs have set all kinds of offensive records. This year appears to be no different. They are led by quarterback Kaleb Barker, who rushed for 110 yards and passed for 227 last week. Aaron Cartee had one rushing touchdown and two receiving touchdowns and Lamar Burch caught the other TD pass from Barker. The Bulldogs racked up more than 400 yards of offense.

Defense first test: Priceville will get its first test of the season. While JB Pennington may not be with North Jackson and Oneonta, they should present a much better test than West Morgan. Pennington lost a tight game to Class 5A Boaz in its opener last week. We should get a better gauge of how much better the defense is this year.

Road gets tougher: Tonight, it will be key for the Bulldogs to get the win. Priceville then heads to North Jackson next week followed by a visit from Westminster Christian. This is the last opportunity to work out the kinks before the competition gets tougher.

Danville at Vinemont:

Series: Vinemont leads 21-7

Last Meeting: Vinemont won 32-7

New era begins: The Josh LouAllen era of Danville football began last week. LouAllen had a tall order taking over the team only days before the season began. The lack of practice time together contributed to last week’s loss. Cold Springs was also playing its second regular season game, which meant that they got their first-game jitters out of the way the previous week. Expect the Hawks to improve as the season progresses.

A lot still unknown: Vinemont may still be a bit of a mystery this season. The Eagles, which are in Class 4A for the first time, fell to an Addison team that is ranked in Class 2A. Danville also played well in the jamboree against West Morgan, but the Rebels were blown by an improved Priceville team. Teams usually make their biggest improvements between the first and second games. We’ll see which one has improved more tonight.

Note: Falkville has a bye this week.