Four home games — including the final two Homecoming contests of 2011 — highlight week eight of the high school football season in the tri-county area. In addition to the Homecoming games at Southern and Point Pleasant, South Gallia will play host to Wahama in a battle of TVC Hocking football powers with playoff hopes on the line and River Valley will be at home for the final time in 2011 and the final time at Raider Field in Cheshire, Ohio.

Gallia Academy, Eastern, Meigs, Hannan and Wahama will all be on the road this week. The Marauders, White Falcons and Blue Devils continue league play at Wellston, South Gallia and Portsmouth, respectively, while Eastern will play its final non-league game of the year and Hannan will travel to Kentucky for its week eight contest.

Here’s a brief look at the week eight games involving Meigs, Mason and Gallia counties teams.

RAVENSWOOD at POINT PLEASANT

The No. 2 ranked Point Pleasant football team will host No. 6 Ravenswood on Friday evening in the 2011 Homecoming game at Point Pleasant High School.

Point Pleasant is a perfect 6-0 this season, while Ravenswood is 5-1.

The Big Blacks have wins over Tolsia (63-16), Sissonville (75-7), South Point (49-6), Vinton County (42-7), Wayne (16-14) and Poca (50-7).

Ravenswood was 5-0 through the first five weeks of play, with their lone loss coming last week at Braxton County (51-13).

The Red Devils had wins over Herbert Hoover (35-18), Poca (42-8), Roane County (59-26), Tyler Consolidated (40-7) and Ritchie County (28-7).

Point Pleasant has put together a total of 2,596 yards of offense (432.7 yards per game) this season and has allowed a total of 1,368 yards.

In addition to 37 offensive touchdowns, the Big Blacks also have a punt return, two interception returns and a fumble return for touchdowns this season. Point Pleasant has also scored a field goal this season.

Tylun Campbell and Anthony Darst have been the leading rushers for the Big Blacks this season. Campbell has 54 yards on 56 carries and five touchdowns, while Darst has 508 yards on 47 carries and eight scores.

Point Pleasant quarterback Eric Roberts is 35-56 passing this season for 724 yards. Roberts had thrown 14 touchdown passes and has not thrown an interception through the first six games.

Brandon Toler has been the team’s leading receiver to date with seven catches (six touchdowns) for 266 yards.

Point Pleasant has won four of the last six meetings between the two teams. Ravenswood has won the last two in Ravenswood, while Point Pleasant won the last meeting in Mason County.

HANNAN at BETSY LAYNE

The Hannan football team will be aiming for its second consecutive win of the season Friday night when it travels to Betsy Layne (Ky.) for a Week 8 non-conference matchup at Bobcat Field in Floyd County.

The Wildcats (2-4) ended a 17-game losing streak at home last weekend with a 26-14 victory over Manchester, which allowed HHS to pick up its first two-win season since the 2006 campaign. The Wildcats will be riding some momentum into Friday night after posting a season-high in both points and yards gained.

Betsy Layne (5-2), on the other hand, is coming off a heartbreaking 8-6 loss at Leslie County last weekend. The Bobcats, after starting the year 4-0, have now lost two of their last three contests.

The Wildcats are averaging 11.3 points per game offensively while allowing 23.8 points as a defense. Betsy Layne, conversely, is scoring 29.7 points a night and surrendering just 13.7 points defensively.

The Bobcats, who have one shutout win this season, are averaging 383 yards of total offense, including 285 rushing yards a game. BLHS is also 2-1 in home games this fall.

Hannan is 1-3 in road games this season. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

WAHAMA at SOUTH GALLIA

Winning streaks, playoff hopes and bragging rights are all on the line this weekend when South Gallia hosts Wahama in a pivotal Week 8 Tri-Valley Conference Hocking Division matchup at Rebel Field.

The host Rebels (6-1, 5-1 TVC Hocking), winners of four straight, will be looking to become the first team in TVC Hocking history to beat the White Falcons (6-0, 6-0) — who currently own a 17-game winning streak overall and a 14-0 record alltime in TVC Hocking play.

Wahama — which is 10-0 alltime against SGHS — can clinch a share of the TVC Hocking crown this weekend with a win, while the Rebels could open up a three-way race for the championship with WHS and Trimble if they can pull off the upset.

Currently, both SGHS and Wahama are sitting in playoff contention in their respective state brackets … and a win would be a great boost for one of these squads in regards to the postseason.

Wahama is averaging 59 points per game offensively while allowing just 8.8 points as a defense. The White Falcons have churned out 3,046 yards of offense and 48 touchdowns through six games, including 2,428 rushing yards (405 yards a game) and 618 passing yards.

WHS has had 10 different rushers score a touchdown this season, and special teams have added two more scores this fall. The White Falcons are also plus-6 in turnover differential this year. Wahama’s defense has also allowed just 1,063 total yards, including a mere 388 rushing yards.

South Gallia, on the other hand, is scoring 38.4 points per night while surrendering just eight points defensively. The Rebels have produced 2,533 yards of offense and 30 touchdowns through seven weeks, including 1,793 rushing yards (256 yards a game) and 729 passing yards.

SGHS has had eight different rushers score a touchdown this year, and the defense has scored an OVP area-best four touchdowns defensively. The Rebels are also plus-10 in turnover differential this fall.

Both teams have recorded two shutouts this season. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

GALLIA ACADEMY at PORTSMOUTH

The Gallia Academy football team will look to keep both its playoff and league title hopes alive Friday night when it travels to Scioto County for a pivotal Week 8 Southeastern Ohio Athletic League matchup against Portsmouth.

The visiting Blue Devils (4-3, 1-1 SEOAL) — who are 3-0 in road contests this fall — snapped a two-game losing skid last Friday with a 19-7 win at Chillicothe, and GAHS is looking to take some momentum from that contest after posting season highs in both rushing yards and total yards offensively.

The Devils — who are currently 13th in the Division III, Region 12 playoff bracket — are averaging 13.4 points per game offensively while allowing 9.9 points as a defense against an overall strength of schedule of 22-27.

GAHS has produced 1,578 total yards of offense this season, including 1,149 rushing yards (164 yards a game) and 429 passing yards. However, as good as the defense has been this year, Gallia Academy has allowed 1,609 yards — almost 500 yards more than it has gained.

Opponents have churned out 818 rushing yards and 791 passing yards against the Blue Devils this fall. GAHS is also plus-5 in turnover differential, but GAHS has been on the negative side of that statistic the last two weeks.

The Trojans (2-5, 1-2), on the other hand, are coming off a 46-6 victory over Cincinnati College Prep last Saturday, which was a season-best for PHS in both points scored and points allowed. Portsmouth, which is 2-2 at home in 2011, has also won two of its last three contests after starting the season 0-4.

PHS is averaging 22.9 points per game offensively while allowing 31.1 points as a defense against an overall strength of schedule of 29-19. Portsmouth is also 1-1 in overtime games this year, while GAHS has yet to go past regulation.

It will be the 25th meeting between these programs, with Gallia Academy owning a 13-10-1 alltime record in this head-to-head matchup. The home team has won the last six contests. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m.

COAL GROVE at RIVER VALLEY

The River Valley football team will look to snap a six-game losing skid Friday when it hosts Coal Grove on Senior Night during a Week 8 Ohio Valley Conference matchup at Raider Field.

The host Raiders (1-6, 0-2 OVC) have dropped 12 straight OVC decisions overall and have also lost seven straight against CGHS, dating back to a 42-6 win back in 2003. RVHS is coming off a 62-14 setback last week to Chesapeake, which was both a season-best in points scored and a season-worst in points allowed.

River Valley, which is 1-3 at home this fall, is averaging 8.3 points per game offensively while allowing 30.8 points as a defense against an overall strength of schedule of 31-18.

The Hornets (3-3, 2-0), on the other hand, have won two straight outcomes after going through a three-game losing skid in weeks 2-5. Coal Grove had its Week 3 contest with Trimble cancelled due to an outbreak of illness.

CGHS is averaging 31.7 points as an offense and is surrendering 24.2 points defensively through six games against an overall strength of schedule of 23-19. Coal Grove also scored a season-high in points last week in a 51-28 victory over Rock Hill, which improved its road record to 2-1 this season.

Senior Night festivities will be before the opening kickoff at 7:30 p.m.

WATERFORD at SOUTHERN

Homecoming 2011 in Racine, Ohio, will see the host Southern Tornadoes (2-5, 2-3 TVC Hocking) facing TVC Hocking foe Waterford (4-3, 3-2 TVC Hocking).

Both teams are coming off single digit victories in their respective week seven contests.

Southern snapped a three game losing skid last week with a 20-12 victory over Miller. The win was the first road victory of the season for the Tornadoes. Southern’s only other win of the season came in week three at home against Belpre (20-14).

Waterford’s week seven win came over non-league opponent Green by a 13-7 final score. The Wildcats have three TVC Hocking victories this season. Waterford defeated Miller (13-6) and Federal Hocking (20-9) in weeks one and two, and defeated Eastern (20-12) in week four.

The Tornadoes are averaging 14.4 points per game against league opponents this season, and have allowed 29 points per game against TVC Hocking teams. Overall, the Tornadoes have scored just over 13 points per game, while allowing nearly 31 points per game.

Southern had 235 yards of total offense in last week’s win, with 186 yards coming through the air. Two of the three Southern scores at Miller last week came on the ground.

Waterford is averaging 15 points per game in league games this season, and have allowed 21.8 points per game in league contests. Overall this season, Waterford is scoring just over 12 points per game, while they have allowed 21 points per game through seven weeks.

The Wildcats were led by Darek Brown with 143 yards rushing and a touchdown in last week’s win.

Homecoming festivities — including the crowning of the 2011 queen — will take place at halftime of the game.

EASTERN at CANTON CENTRAL CATHOLIC

The Eastern football team enters new territory on Friday evening as they make their first ever trip to face Canton Central Catholic.

The Eagles (2-5) are playing CCC (6-1) as their second non-league contest of the 2011 season to complete the 10 game regular season. Eastern opened the season with its other non-league contest — a 41-6 loss to Alexander.

Canton Central Catholic is an unknown to most in this region, having mainly played teams from the northeast part of the state to this point in the season. The Division IV team is currently ranked fourth in the OHSAA Computer Rankings for Region 13.

The Crusaders have wins this season over Division I opponent Youngstown East (24-0), Division II opponents Alliance (17-12), Springfield (42-14), and Barberton (25-0), and Division V opponents St. Peter Chanel (45-12) and Western Reserve Academy (54-14).

Canton Central Catholic’s lone loss came in week two against Division I opponent Perry by a 22-16 score.

Eastern has victories over Miller (13-6) and Belpre (20-0) this season, while they have losses against Alexander (41-6), Wahama (69-0), Waterford (20-12), South Gallia (36-7) and Trimble (49-0).

The Eagles are averaging 8.3 points per game this season and have allowed 31.6 points per game.

The Crusaders are averaging 31.9 points per game this season, and have allowed just 10.6 points per game this season.

Eastern has not faced a Division IV opponent this season, while the Crusaders have not faced a Division VI team.

The Eagles gained a total of 164 yards during last week’s game at Trimble, with 118 of those yards coming on the ground.

MEIGS at WELLSTON

One team returns to the field after a surprising victory in week seven, while another looks to snap a two game losing skid.

The Meigs Marauders (4-3, 0-2 TVC Ohio) play their final road game of the 2011 regular season on Friday evening as they travel to Wellston (4-3, 1-1 TVC Ohio) for a TVC Ohio showdown.

The Marauders are coming off two consecutive double digit losses in TVC Ohio play, a 56-9 loss at Athens and a 41-14 loss to Nelsonville-York at home.

Wellston, on the other hand, will be looking for its second TVC Ohio win after defeating previously unbeaten Alexander by a 27-14 margin last week.

The Golden Rockets are 2-1 at home this season, with wins over Oak Hill (59-18) and Fairland (33-15) and a loss to Gallia Academy (14-12).

Meigs has one win on the road this season, a week two victory over Fairland (27-20). The Marauders are 1-2 on the road this season with losses coming at Coal Grove (43-7) and at Athens (56-9).

The Marauders are averaging 11.5 points per game in TVC Ohio contests, while allowing 48.5 points per game in league play.

Wellston has averaged 13.5 points per game in league contests, and has allowed 31 points per game.

Meigs has tallied 1500 yards rushing through the first seven weeks of the 2011 season, and has given up 1,203 yards rushing this season.

Through seven weeks of play, Jeffrey Roush is the leading rusher for the Marauders with 643 yards on 155 carries and eight touchdowns. Dillon Boyer is leading the Meigs passing game with 340 yards. Boyer has completed 23 of 50 passes this season, thrown for five touchdowns and six interceptions.

Wellston has 1,139 yards on the ground this season and 629 passing yards. Jaylen Prater has accounted for all of the Wellston passing offense this season, and is the team’s third leading rusher with 268 yards and five touchdowns.

D.J. Young is the leading rusher for the Golden Rockets this season with 346 yards on 80 carries and three touchdowns.