A brand new season.

That’s what arrives Friday night as postseason play commences for high school football teams across the state.

A new opportunity comes as everyone starts 0-0. For a few, 10 teams to be exact, it will be the start of a six-game run that culminates with the State Finals in Indianapolis Nov. 23-24.  For others, it will be one more game in what’s already been a long season.

The draw was kind to some for first-round sectional contests Friday night and not as much so to others. But, everyone does get another chance to end their season on a high note.

Sectional openers are Friday with 315 teams entered in the 40th annual tourney in its five classes statewide. Sectional semifinal games are Oct. 26, with sectional championships Nov. 2. Regionals are scheduled for Nov. 9 with semi states Nov. 16 and the State Finals Nov. 23-24 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

Here’s a look at area games Friday night.

Class 5-A Sectional 2
Penn (8-1) at Warsaw (6-3), 7 p.m.

Warsaw coach Phil Jensen knows very, very well what Penn brings to the table.

Jensen was a standout tight end for the Kingsmen under legendary coach Chris Geesman in the early 1980s before going on to play at Butler.

Perennial power Penn, which owns five state championships, is no different this year than in the past.

“They are really good,” said Jensen. “They are big, strong, fast, deep and well-coached. Their second team players are  better than most team’s first units.”

Warsaw comes into tourney play beat up physically after a 34-9 home loss to Concord last Friday. The Tigers have lost two of their last three games, while No. 8 Penn has won five in a row since its lone loss (28-20 at No. 4 Fort Wayne Snider).  The Kingsmen have given up a total of just 38 points in their last five games.

“We just have to come out and play with our hair on fire for four quarters,” Jensen said. “We have to play hard. We have to get first downs, move the chains and put points on the board when we have opportunities to. We have to give our defense some breaks. They were on the field way too much last week.”

Junior quarterback Zach Oakley makes the Kingsmen offense, which averages 37 points-per-game, go.

“He’s athletic, strong, fast,” said Jensen of Oakley. “He’s exceptional. He even is out there throwing lead blocks on their sweeps.”

Penn, after a 7-5 finish in 2011, went 14-1 a year ago and finished as Class 5-A state runner-up. The Kingsmen have won 19 sectional championships, tied for fourth most in state history. Penn coach Cory Yeoman is 105-24 in his 10th season.

The Tigers will start Austin Head at quarterback on Friday, according to Jensen. The junior was injured three weeks ago versus Wawasee and came on in relief of sophomore Jake Mangas last week versus Concord.

Warsaw star tailback Tristan McClone has piled up 1,563 yards this season. The standout junior is within reach of the single-season school record of 1,652 set by Rod Wildman in 1972. McClone has 14 touchdowns for the Tigers.

Penn is 9-0 all-time versus Warsaw on the gridiron. The two have not met since 2000 when Penn won 10-7 in a sectional semifinal contest en route to a state championship.

Jensen knows the challenge of facing a program with the history of Penn.

“The only way to beat them is to be in it at the end,” said Jensen. “You’re not going to beat them in the first, second or third quarters. The difference is that they have the ability to knock you out in a matter of minutes on the other hand.”

The Warsaw-Penn winners plays the Fort Wayne Carroll-LaPorte winner next week.

Class 4-A Sectional 11
Wawasee (5-4) at DeKalb (2-7), 7 p.m.

The Warriors go on the road with the momentum of a three-game winning streak.

Wawasee finished strong in the regular season with NLC wins over Warsaw, Elkhart Memorial and Goshen to take a winning mark into postseason play.

Sophomore quarterback Gage Reinhard has come on throughout the season for coach Tom Wogomon’s squad. Standout wideout Clayton Cook and tailback Derrick Sorensen lead the offense for the Warriors.

DeKalb, whose only two wins were over Garrett and Norwell, has lost its last two games. The Barons are allowing 40 points-per-game this season.

The Wawasee-DeKalb winner faces the Plymouth-NorthWood winner.

Class 3-A Sectional 18
Tippecanoe Valley (7-2) at West Noble (1-8), 7:30 p.m.

The Vikings ended their season on a high note by claiming a share of the Three Rivers Conference title last week for the second straight year.

It’s the first time Valley has won back-to-back league titles since 1993-94.

Now, they face a tough sectional which includes No. 1 and undefeated Jimtown looming in a potential sectional title game.

The IHSAA was kind to the Vikings with their draw as they face a struggling West Noble team in the opener and the Jimmies are in the opposite bracket.

“It’s a tough sectional and we haven’t looked ahead,” said Valley coach Jeff Shriver. “We feel we have a pretty good draw and a great opportunity. In the past, it seemed like we always had a tough draw with Marian or St. Joe or NorthWood when they were in our sectional.”

“We know we have to focus on self-improvement and getting better all the way around as a football team. It’s one at a time because upsets happen. Like they say, the road to easy street goes through the sewer.”

The explosive Vikings, who boasts a bevy of offensive weapons, are averaging 33 points-per-game. The Chargers allow 43 points-per-game.  Junior quarterback Ben Shriver has throw for over 1,300 yards and 13 touchdowns for Valley with Tanner Andrews making 35 receptions for nearly 700 yards and six scores. Justin Gunter and Chris Torpy have combined to rush for over 900 yards for the Vikings.

“I want us to play with enthusiasm Friday night and be disciplined on defense,” said Shriver.

Lineman Nick Gamble will be out for the second straight week for the Vikings after suffering a concussion at North Miami two weeks ago.

The Valley-West Noble winner plays the Lakeland-Heritage winner.

Class 3-A Sectional 18
Garrett (7-2) at Whitko (3-6), 7:30 p.m.

The Wildcats should be very familiar with the Railroaders.

The two teams scrimmaged at the start of this season and Whitko lost 42-14 to Garrett in a second-round sectional game a year ago.

“It’s a heck of a challenge for us,” said Whitko coach Wayne Swender. “They are a good football team. They are huge and physical. We’re glad to be playing at home.”

Garrett is averaging 30 points-per-game this season and allowing 23.

“We have to mix it up on offense and move the ball,” Swender said. “We have to fly to the ball on defense.”

Whitko is led by sophomore tailbacks Tanner Hughes (622 yards) and Devin Gerding (596 yards).

The Whitko-Garrett winner plays the Fort Wayne Concordia-Jimtown winner.

Class 1-A Sectional 35
Triton (1-8) at Adams Central (5-4), 7:30 p.m.

“It’s a long way away,” quipped Triton coach Rodney Younis about Adams Central.

The Trojans will board the bus for about a two-hour trip to Adams Central, located in Monroe, which is near Decatur.  A year ago, the Flying Jets came to Bourbon for a first-round sectional game and defeated the Trojans 38-18.

“They have a good program,” said Younis. “They have a senior quarterback (Dalton Combs) who is special and they like to run the ball right down your throat. We have to control what we can control and do our assignments on defense.

“This is a new start and new life for our kids. It’s a new outlook and a new season for us. We’ve been through the grind in our conference and we won’s see anyone like we saw like last week in Jimtown.

“We’ll go out there and give everything we have Friday night. We’ve been the underdogs before. We just have to not turn the ball over and not allow big plays.”

The Triton-Adams Central winner plays the Fremont-Southwood winner.

Other Area Games

Class 5-A Sectional 2
South Bend Adams (5-4) at Goshen (2-7), 7 p.m.
Fort Wayne Carroll (7-2) at LaPorte (1-8), 8 p.m.
Elkhart Central (5-4) at Elkhart Memorial (1-8), 7:30 p.m.

Class 4-A Sectional 11
Plymouth (7-2) at NorthWood (4-5) 7 p.m.
Angola (3-6) at Northridge (1-8), 7 p.m.
Concord (7-2) at East Noble (7-2), 7 p.m.

Class 3-A Sectional 18
Fort Wayne Concordia (2-7) at Jimtown (9-0), 7:30 p.m.
Lakeland (8-1) at Heritage (7-2), 7:30 p.m.

Class 1-A Sectional 35
Fremont (4-5) at Southwood (2-7), 7 p.m.
Northfield (3-6) at Central Noble (0-9), 7 p.m.
LaVille (1-8) at North Miami (6-3), 7 p.m.