Tonight’s high school football schedule is about as good as it gets for area prep grid fans when it comes to Pioneer Valley League play getting underway and a Sierra Foothill League titanic that could be disguised as a mid-season playoff game.

In PVL opening games tonight, Colfax (4-1) tests four-time defending champion Placer (1-4) in a game that is expected to fill the Falcons’ Marson Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

Meanwhile, about eight miles away as the crow flies at Lake of the Pines, Bear River (2-3) and Lincoln (2-3) collide in an expected tough 7:30 p.m.matchup of two more potential PVL contenders.

While those two PVL openers garner a lot of attention, you’ll have to go a ways to  overshadow what will transpire in Loomis when Del Oro, the No. 1 ranked team in the Sacramento region, entertains two-time defending SFL champion Folsom in a game expected to draw more than 6,000 fans.

Here’s a quick look at tonight’s games:

Placer (1-4, 0-0) at Colfax (04-1, 0-0), 7:30 p.m.

After spending September on the road, the Colfax Falcons return home today to open PVL play against the Hillmen.

While most of their preseason went well, the Falcons’ resolve and resiliency  was more than head coach Tony Martello could have asked for.

“With our youth in a lot of spots this year we needed to use this preseason to grow as a team,” Martello said. “For the most part, I thought we did a good job.”

But today, Martello and the Falcons will find out just how far they have come this season.

“It’s a big game because it’s a league game,” said Martello, whose Falcons went 4-1 through their five non-league games. “It’s a tough start for us because they’re the defending champions, but the last time I looked you have to play everyone.”

While there is a prevailing mindset that this season’s PVL football race will be more wide open than it’s been in years, the truth is that Placer, despite a 1-4 start against a heavyweight preseason schedule, is still the team to beat.

“They’ve played a very tough schedule,” Martello said of the Hillmen. “They took some early injuries but they still are a very, very good team.”

Despite a dismal record in the preseason, Placer coach Joey Montoya saw his team grow too.

“I think our tough schedule will help us down the road,” Montoya said. “We have a lot of good teams in our league this year though, and I do think it could be wide open.”

“We got nicked up a bit in the preseason because of the schedule,” Montoya added. “But we’ll be ready to go.”

At the reins of  the Hillmen wing-T offense this season is sophomore quarterback Michael Stuck. Stuck, the grandson of former Colfax High coach George Massick, played most of his formative youth football years with the Colfax Jr. Falcons.

“He runs their offense real well,” Martello said of Stuck. “His passing looks good. He’s doing a good job. Their receivers are good too. They run excellent routes.”

Carrying the bulk of the Hillmen load this season have been running backs Mario Perez (491 yards, nine TDs), Morgan Rein-Robinson (6 yards per carry, four TDs) and shifty Anthony Kerrigan (162 rushing yards, 161 receiving yards). Kerrigan, a threat as both a runner and receiver, is expected to be in action today after missing most or part of three games.

Stuck, who is 45 of 91 for 736 yards passing, has two big targets in Carter Benz (13 catches, 224 yards) and Hugh Hanson (11-222). Both Benz and Hanson stand 6 feet, 3 inches.

On defense, Rein-Robinson (five sacks), Aidan Barnhart, Devin Toste and Dallen Trentman are the big hitters.

Colfax’s balanced attack on offense has been keyed by running backs Mason Ahrens (477 yards, 12 TDs) and Marc Avila (403 yards, six TDs).

Colfax quarterback Austin Weir, meanwhile, is hitting on 60 percent of his passes (771 yards, seven TDs) with Garren O’Keefe, Nick Van Doorn, Jake Green and Blake Kipp as the top receivers.

Lincoln (2-3, 0-0) at Bear River (2-3, 0-0), 7:30 p.m., Lake of the Pines

The Zebras and Bruins were nearly mirror images of each other in the preseason. While Lincoln dropped non-league games to Ponderosa, Antelope and Nevada Union, Bear River was felled by Orland, Marysville and Sutter.

“This is a pivotal game for us,” said Bear River co-coach Terry Logue, whose Bruins played highly-touted Sutter close for three quarters before two late Huskies touchdowns last week led to a final 31-6 defeat.

“It’s the league opener but we have to make up some ground for our preseason,” Logue said. “I think Lincoln’s in the same position.”

The Zebras make no bones about what they want to do offensively this season. Running behind a huge offensive line, Lincoln is going to get the ball to Ryan Graham. Already in five games, Graham has carried the ball 108 times for 665 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Providing the blocking up front for the Zebras are Chad Bagwell (6-5, 350), Colton Fraga (5-11, 270), Jackson Tofft (6-3, 250) and Daniel Munch (6-4, 230).

“They’re huge up front,” said Logue of the Zebras. “They look like a college-sized line.”

Folsom (5-1, 2-0) at Del Oro (6-0, 2-0), Loomis, 7:30 p.m.

“It’s a big game no doubt,” said Del Oro coach Casey Taylor about tonight’s SFL showdown between his undefeated Golden Eagles and Folsom’s reigning two-time SFL champion Bulldogs.

“But regardless of what happens, there’s a whole lot of football left this season,” Taylor added. “There’s a long way to go.”

Both the Golden Eagles and Bulldogs enter tonight’s clash with impressive credentials.

Del Oro has maintained the No. 1 ranking in the Sacramento area for the past three weeks after Folsom, which had not lost to a CIF Sac-Joaquin section foe since 2011, dropped a 32-27 non-league game to Sacramento High last month.

On a larger scale, last week Del Oro and Folsom were both still ranked high in Northern California and state polls. But all those polls and rankings go out the window come game time.

For Del Oro, the Golden Eagles will be trying to so something that no other SFL team has been able to do since Folsom joined the league in 2-14 – beat the Bulldogs in a league football game.

“They’re very good,” Taylor said. “They do what they do and haven’t missed a beat this season. They stubbed their toe a couple of weeks ago but they’re the same old Folsom.”

In last week’s action, while Folsom was blanking Granite Bay, 42-0, the Golden Eagles ventured to Grass Valley and rolled up 529 rushing yards on their way to a 58-21 drubbing of Nevada Union.