Thomas Dale, Dinwiddie, Prince George, Matoaca and Colonial Heights all go down

A wild night of football saw five of the seven teams in the P-I coverage area go down with a loss, with Petersburg and Hopewell the only two teams to come out unscathed. Hopewell announced its presence as a contender on the Class 3 level, and their star TreVeyon Henderson laid his claim to the early individual headlines. Thomas Dale, considered a favorite across the region, was upset by Hermitage on the road.

There's a lot to digest. Here are some quick takeaways:

Thomas Dale runs into a road surprise

Our five questions heading into the week included, "Can Thomas Dale take care of business?"

We have the answer. Hermitage beat Thomas Dale 21-19.

Thomas Dale always had the talent to run the table this year, but the questions was never about talent, more about mentality and preparedness. In preseason, Knights head coach Kevin Tucker spoke about just that, saying, "You don't win championships on paper. Nothing is won in August. You've gotta get out there and grind every single day and go 1-0 each week. It doesn't matter if you go out there and grind, grind, grind, then you go out there in week 10, or week 11 and you have your bad game. It's each week, you've gotta go 1-0."

It wasn't week 10 or 11 when the Knights had their hiccup -- it was week three.

Take nothing away from Hermitage, a proud program that needed a big win like this following a lackluster season last year and early adversity this season, with their head coach arrested for embezzlement. But this game should have belonged to Thomas Dale if they had played up to their standard. Following two-consecutive shutouts in front of large crowds against Chesterfield rivals with heavy media attention, this felt like a potential let-down game for the Knights, and it was.

TreVeyon Henderson is that man for Hopewell

Thomas Dale's Chris Tyree generated headlines across the country in the off-season. His commitment to Notre Dame was national news, and he showed out at national camps, earning the title "Fastest Man in high school football"from USA Today.

Three weeks into the season, though, and TreVeyon Henderson has stolen the show, and jumped into the driver's seat in area Player of the Year talk.

Henderson had a performance to behold in Hopewell's 46-25 win over I.C. Norcom, scoring five touchdowns, including four in the first half. He returned a kick 99-yards for a score, and scored on running plays from as far as 25-yards out. Following a week one performance that saw him score two touchdowns, including a 95-yarder, Henderson has made a declaration through two games; he can take it to the house from anywhere on the field.

Oh, and he did it with Alabama scouts reportedly there to see him. Add the Crimson Tide to his impressive list of suitors, that includes Clemson and Michigan among many, many others.

Throw in the fact that his backfield partner Robert Briggs Jr. scored two, including a 70-yarder, Friday night, and you have as dynamic a backfield as there is in the area.

Petersburg has grit

The Crimson Wave were outrun against that same Norcom team Hopewell thumped last week, and needed a bounce-back win to make a statement to the rest of the Central District.

They did just that, hanging on to beat Booker T. Washington 32-30, in a back-and-forth game that saw several penalties go against both teams. Petersburg took a ten point lead into halftime, saw that lead evaporate, but found a way to win. That is the kind of toughness Petersburg needs to continue their upward trajectory.

The schedule does Dinwiddie no favors

The Generals fell for the second time this season, 33-29 to North Stafford at home, their second-straight loss. The last time the Generals were 1-2 was 2012.

The Generals are battling injuries, including two on the offensive line, and the early schedule has been brutal, with Massaponax and GW-Danville as Dinwiddie's other two opponents, all three strong programs. North Stafford won 10 games in 2018 and finished in the state semifinals.

The Generals will learn from these battles, and sophomore quarterback Brenton Hilton should take the lessons he's learning and apply them down the road. Easier games are to come down the schedule, and more than likely these early losses will sew the seeds of late-season victories. Dinwiddie's culture is too strong to think the Generals area out of it so early.

Prince George goes down on the road

The Royals were a surprise team around the area after their first two wins of the year, over Douglas Freeman and J.R. Tucker. Churchland looked, on paper, like a winnable game, though it was on the road. The Royals took a 7-3 lead into the half, but gave up a second-half touchdown, and were not able to answer, falling to the Truckers on the road for their first loss.

This is an improved Prince George team, but head coach Bruce Carroll must look at this as a missed opportunity, considering the opponent and the way the game was lost.

Jeff Milby can be reached at jmilby@progress-index.com or 804-722-5151. Follow him on twitter @JeffMilby.