Hephzibah, which has made one playoff appearance in school history, plays host to 14-time state champion Lincoln County on Friday.

If the Rebels win, they will have their first 3-0 start since 2001. Hephzibah won its first four games that year, when it earned the school's lone playoff berth. The Rebels beat Class A Lincoln County 10-0 in 2001.

BEST WIN LAST WEEK: Lucy C. Laney beat Screven County 21-14 in overtime to snap a four-game losing skid that dated back to last Nov. 2. A loss would have dropped the Wildcats to 0-2 in the region, with 0-3 a strong possibility considering powerful Dublin comes to town this week.

Now Laney has some momentum for its home matchup with the Fighting Irish, who are two years removed from winning the Class AA state title. Dublin is 1-0 after dropping Screven 13-3 in its opener two weeks ago.

BIGGEST SURPRISE: Greenbrier's offense, which didn't score in an opening loss to Evans, scored five touchdowns in a 49-28 win over Harlem.

Bryan Andrews (184) and D.J. Tyson (104) both ran for more than 100 yards, and the Wolfpack barely missed starting tailback Kendrick Wilson.

STREAKING: Evans has won seven consecutive games over area teams, dating back to a September 2006 loss to Greenbrier.

FRIDAY'S BIG GAMES

- North Augusta (2-0) at Strom Thurmond (2-0): Yellow Jackets' victory last year signaled the program was back.

- Lincoln County (2-0) at Hephzibah (2-0): All-time series is tied 3-3.

- Josey (0-2) at Richmond Academy (2-0): Musketeers could match victory total from 2005-07 with win.

SPARTAN NEMESIS: The only team yet to play a region game in Region 3-AAAA? Glenn Hills. The Spartans this week play host to Harlem, a team that has given them fits recently.

Glenn Hills, which lost 21-0 at Baldwin in its opener and was off last week, has lost three in a row to the Bulldogs. Two of those losses came in overtime.

RARE MEETING: Westside travels to Aquinas on Friday for a rare meeting between the Richmond County schools.

Aquinas, a private school barely five miles from Westside, has been outscored 133-28 in the four-game series, which was last played in 1979.

Aquinas assistants Matt and Tony LeZotte starred at Westside before playing at James Madison.

Reach Matt Middleton at (706) 823-3425 or matt.middleton@augustachronicle.com.