Football: Thursday doubleheader at Manning Field rings in Week 2 a day early

Because Friday is the first day of the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, there will be three football games tonight … two of them at Manning Field.Meanwhile, Classical will head over to Marblehead and do the same thing it did last week … help christen a new football field. This time, it?s Christopher Piper Field, which was done over during the off-season, with new turf installed. When Bertram Field is finished — hopefully around Thanksgiving — it will bring to four the number of Northeastern Conference fields re-turfed: Manning, Piper, Bertram and Newell Stadium in Gloucester.There will also be four games Friday: Saugus hosts Winthrop (a change from the original schedule that had the teams playing Saturday), Revere travels to Hormel Stadium in Medford, Salem will be at Gloucester, and Beverly goes to Danvers.English will host Peabody this evening (5) while Swampscott and St. Mary?s will play the late game (7:30) at Manning.English has to make up for the loss of 17 seniors to graduation, plus the departure of running back Isaiah Davis and receiver Desmond Wilhelmsen.However, the ?Dogs do have Haverhill transfer Jordan Javier in the fold to play quarterback, and they have some athletes coming back who should help, including junior Lucas Harris, and senior lineman Chris Tinkham.As for Peabody, it?s a new ballgame over there. Mark Bettencourt, who helped the Tanners win a Super Bowl in 1990 under Ed Nizwantowski, is steering the ship now. It?ll be junior Mike Raymond calling signals for the Tanners, with wide receivers including Matt Gonnick and Pat Tuohy catching passes.Cody Wlasuk, one of five captains, is one of several backs on the roster. Others include Billy Teehan, Tanner Moquin, Isaac Lopez and Doug Santos.Swampscott at St. Mary?sAt Manning Field (7:30), the Big Blue are reeling from their 33-7 loss to Triton Saturday — a big one considering both are in Division 4 under the new football post-season alignment format.The Spartans open with a new quarterback and one new running back. There was a lively pre-season race for the quarterback spot among sophomores Antonio Felix and Kyle Smith, and freshman Calvin Johnson. Also, Connor Sakowich, a junior, is expected to pick up the running slack vacated by Jordan Collier?s decision to attend prep school. He joins a loaded backfield that includes John Gaeta and Jordan Manthorne.Classical at MarbleheadAt Piper Field (7), the two teams couldn?t have had more different opening weeks. The Rams fell to Gloucester, 15-14, last Friday, with turnovers playing a huge role in the defeat.Meantime, everything went right for the Magicians in their 44-0 romp over Danvers at Dr. Deering Stadium.FRIDAYWinthrop at SaugusAt Stackpole Field (7), this is now a non-league game, as the Sachems have moved onto the Cape Ann League. But it is a traditional game for both teams.Saugus enters the season very young, having lost much of its key skill players to graduation. The Vikings, on the other hand, suffered all their growing pains last season and are looking to make some noise this season.Revere at MedfordAt Hormel Stadium (7), a pair of old Greater Boston League rivals open their seasons. The Patriots started strong last season, but injuries and lack of depth caught up.Coach Lou Cicatelli hopes that senior Tommy Portrait and junior Kaleb Silva can help sophomore Dan Murphy as he steps into the quarterbacking role.Beverly at DanversAt Dr. Deering Stadium (7), both teams lost their openers. Beverly?s was a heartbreaker (21-19 to Haverhill) while Danvers? was a rout (44-0 to Marblehead).Salem at GloucesterAt Newell Stadium (7), it is the season?s opener for the Witches, who will be nomads for much of the season until their field is finished. Gloucester beat Classical, 15-14, last Friday.