Mountain Valley coach Jim Aylward isn’t known to mince words, and he’s not about to start when asked what his team will need to do to beat defending Western B champion Gorham tonight.

“We’ve got to do everything right. No mistakes,” said Aylward. “We’ve got to play as hard as we can.”

It’s a lot to ask, but Aylward thinks his team will be ready.

“We’re going to line up and expect to win a ballgame,” he said.

Gorham’s roster is nearly identical to last year’s state runners-up, including all-conference running back Andy Oldenburg and QB Rob Tole. The Rams outscored Falmouth and Winslow by a combined 105-7 in the first two weeks.

The Falcons, meanwhile, bounced back from an ugly Week 1 loss to York with an impressive 38-6 win over Greely last week. Chris Smith ran for three touchdowns and Aaron Arsenault tacked on two more.

Aylward feels his team matches up well with Gorham at the skill positions.

The biggest test for the Falcons this week will be in the trenches, where an inexperienced offensive line will be charged with opening holes for Smith and Arsenault and protecting QB Zach Fergola.

“We’re young up front, and we kind of knew that coming in, but we’re getting better,” Aylward said. “We’re telling our kids Gorham is getting us at a good time because I think four, five, six weeks from now we’re going to be pretty good.”

Several of this weekend’s games could have a significant impact on how the playoff picture looks five or six weeks from now, including:

• Jay (2-0) heads to the coast to face Boothbay (2-0) in a meeting of a pair of unbeaten Western Class C teams. Both clubs have been impressive through the first two weeks of the season. The Seahawks knocked off Buckfield/Dirigo last week, 54-0, and have outscored their opponents by a combined 81 points. The Tigers pounced on defending Campbell Conference champion Lisbon early on their way to a 30-7 victory last week and have racked up 83 points in two games while surrendering just one touchdown.

• Oak Hill (1-1) will try to knock Brewer (2-0) from the unbeaten ranks. To do so, they will have to stop three of the top rushers in the PTC in Kevin McAvoy, Ricky Porter and Zack Wilson, who are averaging a combined 12 yards per carry over the first two games. Oak Hill’s own ground game should get a boost from the expected return of fullback Eric Daniels.

• Mt. Blue and Bangor, both 2-0, square off in Cameron Stadium in a crucial PTC North tilt. Both teams are coming off impressive crossover wins over Western A opponents and both feature dominating running games. Nick Payson and Aaron Gallant carry the rock for the Rams, while Hazen Pingree and Jordan Stevens are the Cougars’ top ground gainers.

• Lewiston (0-2) looks to get on track against Gardiner (1-1). The Blue Devils’ offense has been spinning its wheels to start the season. The Tigers’ offense is led by bruising tailback Craig Toulouse and freshman QB Kyle Stilphen.

• Another team struggling to put points on the board, Oxford Hills (0-2), meets Edward Little (1-1) at Walton Field. The Red Eddies green offensive line appears to be jelling and the main beneficiaries are Jon Demers and Robie Leighton, who combined for over 200 yards and three TDs rushing last week.