It’s never too early for a must-win football game in the South Puget Sound League 4A North Division.

Especially when powerhouse rivals Auburn (2-0, 2-0 league) and Kentwood (1-1, 0-1 league) line up against each other, as they did last Friday at French Field.

And although Auburn came out with the 35-28 victory, both teams showed flashes of brilliance – along with the typical miscues that occur this early in a season.

“I was asked if I’m happy with our performance, and I’d have to say no, we’re not happy with our performance,” Kentwood coach Rex Norris said. “We had a lot to overcome and the kids played hard, but that’s the expectation of Kentwood football.”

Auburn started off the game by reeling off two big TDs in the first quarter, with senior quarterback Marshall Klontz hooking up with senior Austin Embody for a 35-yard score. Embody added the Trojans’ next TD, scampering into the end zone from 50 yards out.

Senior Tristan Askew answered for Kentwood in the second quarter, scoring on a 57-yard run. Junior Mikell Everette added a 5-yard touchdown to close out the second quarter with the game tied at 14-14.

At the half, Kentwood had 185 yards of total offense, with 55 rushing and 130 passing yards. Auburn had 257 yards, 45 rushing and 212 passing.

According to Klontz, the Trojans’ poor play in the second quarter necessitated a talking-to by Auburn coach Gordon Elliott.

“He basically told us we needed to pull our heads out and start thinking and playing smart football,” he said. “We were embarrassed because that was terrible football, but we picked it up and started playing like we could and it worked out.”

Initially, Auburn continued its struggles in the second half with Kentwood scoring twice in the third quarter. Askew added a 34-yard TD run to take the lead 21-14. Matthew Hubbard stretched the lead to 14, scooping up a Chris Young fumble and rumbling in from 25 yards out to put the Conks up 28-14.

Down by 14, Auburn finally got the machine rolling in the waning moments of the third quarter, with Klontz hooking up with junior Alphonse Wade for a 52-yard passing TD.

“We were pumped up then, because we knew it was ours,” Klontz said. “We were ready.”

The fourth quarter was all Auburn as the Trojans turned to their deadly backfield of Young, Wade and Embody, with Young scoring twice in the quarter on long Auburn drives.

“We played well in the first quarter and then had some not very disciplined things going on, and we still did OK,” Elliott said. “We just didn’t play very well in the second quarter. We played well in the first quarter. But that’s not a characteristic of us making those mistakes.”

Auburn finished the game with 425 total rushing yards, with Wade responsible for 213 yards on 13 carries and Embody adding 117. Young finished with 95 yards.

For Kentwood, Askew finished with two TDs and 123 yards on the ground.

“I thought we did a really nice job of not losing our composure and coming back after being down 14 points,” Norris said after the game. “But we gave up some really long plays, and that’s something you just can’t do to Auburn. You’ve got to make them earn it, and we gave them about three touchdowns they didn’t earn. They worked hard and their players made the plays, but we certainly made it a little easier on them.

“We didn’t turn the ball over. There were some big hits in the game and our kids held onto the ball,” Norris said. “We did some big things defensively, we’ve just got to fix some things.

“For Auburn to throw the ball the way they did, they’re going to be real tough. We’re going to be following them.”

“I didn’t expect this type of game,” Klontz said after the game. “I expected to come in here and do a lot of the things that we did to Federal Way. But it was a good lesson for us.”

Auburn will host Kent-Meridian (0-2, 0-2 league) at 7 p.m. Friday at Auburn Memorial Stadium. Kentwood will travel to Tahoma Stadium for a 7 p.m. contest Friday against the Bears (2-0, 2-0 league).

ELSEWHERE: The Auburn Mountainview Lions (1-1, 1-1 league) fell 27-7 to the Bonney Lake Panthers (1-1, 1-1 league) last Thursday in SPSL 3A play at Auburn Memorial Stadium. The Lions’ only touchdown came on a 13-yard pass from senior Cody McNeil to senior Tate Newell. Auburn Mountainview finished the game with just 134 yards of offense, 97 on the ground, 37 passing. Newell and Skyler White led the team with nine tackles and Vincent Wagner added eight. Jammil Alexis had two sacks and Jeremy Perkovich added another.

Auburn Mountainview will travel to Peninsula for a 7 p.m. game Friday.