UPDATED Aug. 31 at 10:20 p.m.

-- OK, the DODEA Japan high school football league opened this weekend, and Yokota beat Nile C. Kinnick 55-6, while Robert D. Edgren ... um ... run that by me again?

-- Zama American beat Edgren 40-24?

-- Winless last year, the Trojans beat the three-time defending Class A champion Eagles?

-- And rushed for a school-record 400 yards? And gained a school-record 604 total yards?

-- And Michael Spencer rushed 27 times for 253 yards, the first Zama rusher to go over 200 since ... gad, since Malcolm Hardaway back in the early 1980s?

-- You're kidding, right?

Musings, mutterings and the occasional schmahts as Ornauer concludes his torrid journey from Tokyo to Okinawa to Osan in 48 hours to continue the Pacific high school fall sports walkthrough:

-- Stand up and applaud the Foster Bulldogs. After coming up short in two seasons in the old Okinawa Football League, Tim Craig and Jonathan Molloy -- the OFL's lone holdovers -- and the Bulldogs finally got a chance to celebrate after throttling Yokota's offense 30-6 in Saturday's Torii Bowl.

Yokota 55, Nile C. Kinnick 6. Yokota rolls up more than 500 yards of offense and eight touchdowns. Not surprising.

Zama American 40, Robert D. Edgren 24. Trojans pile up school-record 400 rushing yards, 604 total yards. Edgren still dangerous, two kick-return TDs and two long passing TDs. But still unexpected.

George Washington 14, Father Duenas Memorial 0. Looks like the Geckos are back.

Can Robert D. Edgren make it four straight Far East Class A football titles? They'll have company chasing DODDS-Japan's title-game berth as Zama American has joined the Class A race. Can Yokota overcome thin numbers and extend its school record to 11 straight DODDS-Japan and Kanto Plain Association of Secondary Schools titles? Can Nile C. Kinnick's young, green players develop in time to give Yokota a run? Find out here in our DODDS-Japan season preview.

They've endured years of disappointment, going 0-4 in the Far East Class AA playoffs and only finishing as high as third place in the Independent Interscholastic Athletic Association of Guam playoffs. But incoming coach Billy Henry feels Guam High has the pieces in place for a breakout season that will turn the Panthers from also-rans to contenders. Read all about the Panthers in our season preview.

Things seen and heard around Berkey Field, the place which makes me wish that every field from Misawa to Mangilao would be field-turfed:

-- Memo to opposing defensive coordinators: Without a doubt, the Red Devils will be able to score. Between three returning starters in the offensive line, plus two running-back move-ups from the junior varsity (Elijah Gamble and Ryan Wang) and a pair of bookend newcomer tight ends (John Allen and Anthony Smith), the term "smashmouth" comes to mind.

-- But that's been the hallmark of just about any successful team at Yokosuka Naval Base, military or high school, since the 1990s. Seahawks and Red Devils teams that have been able to run hard, bruising up-the-gut style, have been champions.

Things seen and heard around Trojans Field, where a new sense of excitement and urgency abounds as Zama faces a new challenge, battling for a Far East Class A title:

-- Friday's home opener against four-time Class A champion Robert D. Edgren now means twice as much as it did. Aside from the start of the chase for a DODDS-Japan title, the winner of this season series earns the league's Class A title-game berth and a trip to South Korea to face either Osan or Daegu American for the championship on Nov. 7.

Things seen and heard around Guam High Panthers football camp, where cautious optimism dictates that a breakthrough title-contending season may be possible:

-- No question, Panthers football will be wide-open and exciting with new coach Billy Henry's four-receiver spread-option set. The sort of offense is what's made leagues like college football's Big XII so intriguing. Harkens back to the days of the mid-1990s and early 2000s when strong-armed QBs such as Chris Wessling and S.P Phillips powered the exciting John F. Kennedy and Father Duenas Memorial offenses.

OK, campers, here goes Ornauer for the umpteenth million year, putting his neck on the line to give you a (hopefully) crystal clear look into the upcoming weekend in high school football, and who will win (on average 80 percent of the time). Here goes nothin':

Friday, Aug. 28
Japan
Yokota at Nile C. Kinnick, 7 p.m. -- No question, the host Red Devils will score on Yokota. The question being, can Kinnick's young defense shut down the Panthers and their returning senior duo of Rainey Daley and DeEric Harvin? Panthers are still the champs until somebody knocks them off. ... Panthers 18, Red Devils 15.

Another program that has hung the "Unfinished Business" shingle outside its field house:

-- Examine the entire body of work, and you find Yokota is still the gold standard -- the 10 straight DODDS-Japan and Kanto Plain Association of Secondary Schools titles and well beyond, dating back to when the school opened in 1973. No DODDS school has won as many titles as has Yokota since 1973, and only Kubasaki has won more in DODDS-Pacific history.

-- Yet despite that legacy, this proud program has yet to win a Class AA title, and has reached just one Class AA title game, losing 39-13 at Kadena in 2007.