It’s show time.

No, not the NBC special on the Vineyard high school football team that will air nationally twice next month, though the Island football community got a kick out of NBC camera crews trailing every facet of practice, the locker room, then filming a solid 35-20 win over bulky Hull High School last Friday.

“Preseason’s over. The league starts on Friday,” said junior inside linebacker Cody Brewer while organizing his derby fishing gear on Saturday morning after the game.

The Vineyard football team passed its second test of the season on Saturday, defeating a dangerous opponent on the road in Carver High School by 14-0 to remain undefeated on the young season.

For the second week in a row, the Vineyarders found themselves locked in a tight battle to bitter end. After beating Old Rochester 7-0 in their home opener last week, the Vineyarders on Saturday again led only a single score going into the fourth quarter when Nick Viera scored on a 45-yard punt return to seal the win.

The Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School football team is having a good week.

In addition to rolling over Littleton/Broomfield at home on Friday by a final of 29-14 to remain undefeated on the season, a news crew from NBC Sports is traveling with the team this week and taping a segment that will be aired later this year during a halftime segment of the network’s NFL Sunday Night Football program.

Daylight is on the wane, temperatures are dipping and beaches are emptying, but on the high school athletic fields the fall sports season is just starting to heat up.

As one Vineyard sports fan put it this week, “The leaves are turning, the busy season is over, and there is high school football on Saturday and the Patriots on Sunday . . . not to mention the Red Sox are going to the playoffs . . . it’s the most magical time of the year.”

The Vineyarders and Whalers renewed their long rivalry on the soccer field this past week. The boys’ team traveled to the Grey Lady to turn back a hostile crowd and defeat a talented team, while the girls lost a tight yet ultimately frustrating game to the Whalers at home.

After defeating the Whalers last week, the boys’ golf team followed with an up-and-down week, beating Mashpee on the road, losing a nail-biter to Old Rochester at home and then winning a match at Sturgis.

As August heat gives way to the cooler temperatures of fall, so too changes the sporting landscape of the Vineyard.

In recent weeks, beach volleyball and recreational league softball have been replaced by high school football, cross country and field hockey. Eight teams compete in six sports during the fall high school sports season, more than any other season.

From back swings to forechecks to half-back options, the signs of autumn are everywhere.

It wasn’t a score-fest like Sunday’s game between the New England Patriots and New York Jets, but the regional high school football team’s 7-0 win over Old Rochester in the home opener Friday was equally impressive.

The Vineyarders’ defense shut down the potent Bulldogs attack, while the offense did not turn the ball over all game.

Benefit Yard Sale

The girls field hockey and girls lacrosse teams are holding a benefit yard sale, Saturday, Sept. 29, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Chilmark Community Center. A wide variety of items will be available.

Both teams are raising monies for uniforms and team travel for the current season. This is a collaborative effort with both girls’ sports sharing all proceeds to support field hockey and lacrosse.

Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School is exploring whether an opportunity exists to move its sports program, including football, to the Atlantic Coast League following the resignation of North Quincy, Quincy and Whitman-Hanson high schools from the league next fall.

Michael Joyce, athletic director at the Island high school, said this week that letters have been sent to principals and athletic directors of Atlantic Coast League schools inquiring about the fit for Vineyard sports in the league.

The Vineyard football team may be on the field for two and a half hours of game time tomorrow, but it takes days, weeks and a year of effort by another team to get them there. The Martha’s Vineyard Touchdown Club, a nonprofit organization, works to get those players onto the field for each of the 10 or more games they play each season. At least 100 students benefit directly from the club, including 72 football players and 28 cheerleaders.