HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL / SECTION CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES : Games today at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium : 3-A DIVISION : Poway vs. Morse, 4 p.m.

Don’t be surprised if neither team scores. Both defenses have five shutouts to their credit. During the regular season, Morse (13-0) allowed only 6.5 points per game, Poway (10-3) only 6.6. In the playoffs, Morse has outscored its three opponents, 101-16. Poway has outscored its opponents, 38-20. Both teams shut out high-powered offenses in the semifinals, Morse beating Orange Glen, 12-0, and Poway defeating Mt. Carmel, 7-0.

That puts an emphasis on the field-goal units, where Poway has the edge. Matt Turner has been successful from 29, 35, 38 and 39 yards. Morse sophomore Brian Roberts has been unsuccessful in three attempts.

The schools have five common opponents, and neither has lost. The most telling comparison might be Point Loma, which Morse beat in the final week of the regular season, 43-0, and Poway defeated in the first round of the playoffs, 14-10.

The offensive edge goes to Morse, which features tailback Archie Amerson (1,708 yards) and fullback Conan Smith (1,295 yards). They run behind an offensive line that averages 263 pounds, a 44-pound advantage over Poway’s defensive front.

Poway’s offense is small-time, by comparison. Poway’s leading rusher is Russ Fouts (593 yards). Poway’s edge is in passing. Travis Nichols threw for 1,442 yards. His leading receiver is Jeff Pattison, who has caught 49 passes for an average of 18 yards per reception. More importantly, 12 were for touchdowns.

Among the most intriguing matchups of the game is Pattison (6 feet 5) against Morse’s secondary, which has three players who are 5-11 and one 6-1.

Poway’s offensive line averages 235 pounds, 30 more than Morse’s defensive front.

The Titans, 5-3 against playoff teams, have four players who will start both ways, while Morse has three--and that might climb to four if Amerson plays in the secondary.

Another telling factor in the game could be attitude: Poway, whose last playoff victory was in 1980, is just happy to be in the finals, its first since 1963. Morse is making its fifth championship appearance in six years. Big difference.