Posted by: MARC THALER, UnionLeader.com
Triple-E concerns forced Exeter to move its Week 2 home game against Spaulding of Rochester from Friday night to Saturday afternoon. But the threat is gone, according to Exeter athletic director and head football coach Bill Ball.
“We are cleared to play night games again at Exeter,” Ball wrote yesterday in an e-mail. “Therefore, football this week is Friday night at 7 p.m.”
The third-ranked Blue Hawks (4-0 overall, 3-0 Div. II) host Merrimack (1-3 overall, 0-2 Div. II) in Week 5.
Posted by: MARC THALER, UnionLeader.com
Finally, some re-shuffling of the rankings.
That’s the case for several squads in the Week 5 Union Leader/WGAM/WMUR Power Poll, released earlier today (Monday, Sept. 28). Certain teams find themselves in new spots after the latest tilts that closed the September slate.
Manchester Central is back in the poll, at No. 10, after its big win this past weekend.
Then unranked, the Little Green knocked off former No. 2 Nashua South. Timberlane of Plaistow, previously No. 9, is now unranked after its 47-6 loss to t0p-ranked Bishop Guertin of Nashua.
Ah, yes. Bishop Guertin.
The Cardinals continue to sweep the first-place votes. All six ballots led off with BG for the fourth consecutive week.
As always, let’s start with the weekly comparison between the Power Poll and my votes. “Power Poll: 3-and-out,” which points out three poll-related items, is second.
Week 5 Power Poll
1. Bishop Guertin (4-0 overall, 3-0 Div. II / 6 first place) — No. 1
2. Salem (4-0, 3-0 Div. I) — No. 3
3. Exeter (4-0, 3-0 Div. II) — No. 4
4. Nashua South (3-1, 1-1 Div. I) — No. 2
T-5. Nashua North (4-0, 3-0 Div. I) — No. 7
T-5. Souhegan (4-0, 3-0 Div. III) — No. 6
7. Pinkerton (2-2, 2-1 Div. I) — No. 5
8. Plymouth (4-0, 3-0 Div. IV) — No. 8
9. Portsmouth (4-0, 4-0 Div. III) — No. 9
10. Man. Central (2-2, 1-1 Div. I) — NR
My votes
1. Bishop Guertin
2. Salem
3. Exeter
4. Nashua North
5. Souhegan
6. Nashua South
7. Pinkerton
8. Portsmouth
9. Man. Central
10. Plymouth
First down: Nashua South at No. 4?
This one caught my eye immediately. I’m surprised the Purple Panthers are still in the top four. I voted them sixth on my ballot. Here’s why:
Nashua South (3-1 overall, 1-1 Div. I) became just the second top-two team to be upset by an unranked squad. The other team is also a Gate City grid group: Bishop Guertin last season was bumped by unranked Keene, 18-14, in Week 8. The Cards, at that time, were No. 1 in New Hampshire.
Second down: Top 10 tilt in Division III
It isn’t often that a top 10 tilt surfaces outside Divisions I and II. But this Friday night, we’re going to have one in Division III.
Ninth-ranked Portsmouth (4-0 overall, 3-0 Div. III) visits Souhegan of Amherst (4-0 overall, 3-0 Div. III), which is tied for fifth in the state. The Clippers are likely the only team remaining on the Sabers’ regular-season schedule capable of giving the defending champs a game.
Barring something unthinkable, the winner will likely earn home-field advantage for the playoffs.
Third down: Plymouth stays put
The Bobcats (4-0 overall, 3-0 Div. IV) won big on Saturday. They beat Milford (1-3, 1-2 Div. III) in a non-league matchup, 51-6. The 45-point pounding extended Plymouth’s state-record win streak to 48 games.
Yet that didn’t translate to a jump in the rankings. And this was the week to make a move. Plymouth, like last week, is No. 8.
What gives?
At the absolute very least, I believe the Division IV Bobcats should have played Division III Souhegan in its non-league game.
Frankly, Plymouth could own a 100-2 all-time mark against Souhegan. So long as the Sabers are the undisputed top team in the league Plymouth previously dominated, that should be the bye-week opponent.
Posted by: MARC THALER, UnionLeader.com
Apologies for the delay in posting the latest rankings. The Week 5 Union Leader/WGAM/WMUR Power Poll was just released at 2:15 p.m.
As expected, the latest top 10 is rather different than previous weeks. One key upset (Manchester Central over Nashua South) and a head-to-head tilt (Salem over Pinkerton Academy of Derry) are two big reasons.
Bishop Guertin of Nashua is still No. 1. The Cardinals swept the six first-place votes for the fourth week in a row. Timberlane of Plaistow, previously No. 9, is no longer ranked after its 47-6 loss to BG. And Central is back in the top 10, at No. 10, after its 20-14 upset of former No. 2 Nashua South.
Here it is: the Granite State’s new top 10, as voted by six individuals, two apiece from the New Hampshire Union Leader, WGAM-Radio and WMUR-TV sports staffs.
Team records and, if applicable, first-place votes, appear in parentheses. Each team’s previous ranking appears after the long dash.
The “Honorable Mention” list is for teams that received votes, but didn’t total enough points to qualify for the top 10. “Bumped” is for teams that dropped from the poll.
I’ll post my “Power Poll: 3-and-out” analysis later this afternoon/tonight. Here’s New Hampshire’s top 10 for Week 5:
Week 5 Power Poll
1. Bishop Guertin (4-0 overall, 3-0 Div. II / 6 first place) — No. 1
2. Salem (4-0, 3-0 Div. I) — No. 3
3. Exeter (4-0, 3-0 Div. II) — No. 4
4. Nashua South (3-1, 1-1 Div. I) — No. 2
T-5. Nashua North (4-0, 3-0 Div. I) — No. 7
T-5. Souhegan (4-0, 3-0 Div. III) — No. 6
7. Pinkerton (2-2, 2-1 Div. I) — No. 5
8. Plymouth (4-0, 3-0 Div. IV) — No. 8
9. Portsmouth (4-0, 4-0 Div. III) — No. 9
10. Man. Central (2-2, 1-1 Div. I) — NR
Honorable Mention
Laconia (3-1, 3-0 Div. IV)
Timberlane (2-2, 2-1 Div. II)
Trinity (4-0, 4-0 Div. V)
Bumped
Timberlane
Posted by: MARC THALER, UnionLeader.com
Thirteen high school football games were played Saturday (Sept. 26). Here are the final scores:
Division I
39 - Nashua North
13 - Concord
07 - Pinkerton
24 - Salem
Division II
21 - Exeter
06 - Winnacunnet
34 - Alvirne
07 - Keene
Division III
43 - ConVal
21 - Pembroke
38 - Hollis/Brookline
06 - John Stark
Division IV
48 - Monadnock
07 - Sanborn
Division VI
03 - Franklin
12 - Newport
14 - Gilford
28 - Campbell
34 - Inter-Lakes
06 - Farmington
30 - Raymond
28 - Mascoma
Non-League
06 - Milford
51 - Plymouth
06 - St. Thomas
13 - Winnisquam
Posted by: MARC THALER, UnionLeader.com
PLAISTOW — Yes, Bishop Guertin of Nashua is that good.
The No. 1-ranked team in the Union Leader/WGAM/WMUR Power Poll completed its September slate tonight (Friday, Sept. 25) in dominant fashion at overmatched Timberlane of Plaistow. The Cardinals scored the game’s first 27 points — including 21 in the first quarter — and crushed the No. 9 Owls in Division II football, 47-6.
One week after his six-touchdown, 200-plus yard game, Timberlane star running back Derek Furey was held to 27 yards rushing. He did, however, score Timberlane’s lone TD on an 80-yard kickoff return.
Guertin, by contrast, tallied 362 yards on the ground. Adam Hall (two TDs), Nick Phillips, Elias Kassis, Tom Barrile, Mike Kelly and Zach Mailloux all crossed the goal line.
BG improved to 4-0 overall (3-0 Div. II). Timberlane dropped to 2-2 overall (2-1 Div. II).
The game story will appear in tomorrow’s New Hampshire Union Leader.
Posted by: MARC THALER, UnionLeader.com
The final scores of the 15 high school football games played tonight (Friday, Sept. 25) throughout the state:
Division I
13 - Man. West
40 - Londonderry
14 - Nashua South
20 - Man. Central
Division II
47 - Bishop Guertin
06 - Timberlane
45 - Dover
25 - Spaulding
Division III
44 - Goffstow
47 - Portsmouth
44 - Souhegan
21 - Bedford
Division IV
14 - Hanover
13 - Kennett
28 - Kingswood
31 - Merrimack Valley
28 - Laconia
12 - Lebanon
Division V
17 - Bow
14 - Pelham
00 - Epping-Newmarket
38 - Bishop Brady
07 - Somersworth
21 - Kearsarge
43 - Trinity
21 - Stevens
Division VI
35 - Newfound
07 - Fall Mountain
Non-League
00 - Man. Memorial
28 - Merrimack
Posted by: MARC THALER, UnionLeader.com
This may just be the week where results re-shuffle the rankings.
The word for Week 4 is “matchups.” Quite a few quality contests come to mind.
Later today (Thursday, Sept. 24), I’ll chat with Mike Mutnansky and Rich Keefe on WGAM-Sports Radio. While waiting for that segment at 3:45 p.m., I’ve posted a few items with connections to “First & 10″ for tomorrow’s New Hampshire Union Leader. Also, some items are extras that didn’t make it into the notebook.
Division I: Pinkerton at Salem (Saturday)
The biggest big-boy matchup of the weekend. Fifth-ranked Pinkerton (2-1 overall, 2-0 Div. I) at third-ranked Salem (3-0, 2-0). Tomorrow at 2 p.m.
After chatting with both head coaches, it’s hardly a suprise to learn positioning in the league standings is their main focus. But Salem head coach Jack Gati is the subject of a top storyline. He is one win shy of his 100th career victory at Salem.
That’s far from the only storyline that makes this matchup very fascinating. You’ll have to pick up the newspaper tomorrow for the other factoids. They don’t disappoint. That’s a promise.
But I’ll hit you with this: What’s the link between Oct. 15, 1993 and tomorrow’s game?
On that date, Brian O’Reilly, in his 16th season as Pinkerton’s head coach, posted his 100th career victory. His Astros worked a 35-0 win over Concord. The Crimson Tide’s head coach was Gati, who also entered the game with 99 career wins.
Gati said he has been impressed with the improvement of his offensive line and the team’s defensive effort. The Blue Devils outscored their first three foes, 110-27 (plus-83).
“Week in and week out, our kids have been focused. That’s why we’ve improved on a steady basis,” Gati said. “The kids are listening. They’re coachable. There’s a good feeling about them.
“I’ve been around this game a lot,” he added. “This group has been consistent. They’ve been consistent with listening skills, and it showed up in games. I hope it continues.”
Pinkerton is coming off back-to-back blowout/shutout wins over Manchester Memorial (42-0) and Manchester West (47-0). But O’Reilly said those victories won’t reveal nearly as much about his Astros as tomorrow’s tilt with a legitimate title contender.
“(Playing Salem) will tell us whether we have remnants left over from the first week (a 35-7 loss to Bishop Guertin), or if we’re heading in the right direction,” O’Reilly said. “It will answer questions for me as coach, as to where we stand right now in the season.”
Division I: Londonderry at Man. West (Friday)
Londonderry (1-2, 1-1, Div. I) is expected to top West (0-3, 0-2 Div. I). That’s not why this matchup caught my eye.
I’m curious to see if the Lancers take care of business. After all, the annual Mack Plaque competition with arch-rival Pinkerton is next week.
“We have not looked ahead. We have not mentioned the Pinkerton week,” Londonderry head coach Jon Rich said. “Every game is important at this point.”
Division II: Bishop Guertin at Timberlane (Friday)
Top-ranked Bishop Guertin (3-0, 2-0 Div. II) visits ninth-ranked Timberlane (2-1, 2-0).
Can the Owls give Guertin a test? For me, the most intriguing matchup in this game is BG’s extremely athletic defense versus Timberlane’s talented running back, Derek Furey.
As senior safety Matt Bayne told me after his team’s 35-7 Week 1 win at Pinkerton, BG’s defense is “ball-hawking.” Let’s see if the trend continues.
Division II: Exeter at Winnacunnet (Saturday)
Big rivalry game on the Seacoast. Fourth-ranked Exeter (3-0, 2-0 Div. II) heads to Hampton having allowed just seven points this season. The Blue Hawks haven’t allowed a point in league play.
Then there’s Winnacunnet (2-1, 1-1). The Warriors lost their No. 9 ranking after last week’s 20-19 loss at Dover. A win this week would make a great case that this team deserves to re-enter the top 10.
Division IV: Hanover at Kennett (Friday)
Since its season-opening loss at Laconia, 48-26, Hanover has won two straight. The streak includes a Week 2 win at Division III Goffstown, 20-13. Are the Marauders (2-1, 1-1 Div. IV) building momentum?
Mike Ivanoski & Co. travel to play the club coached by Ken Sciacca. That team would be Kennett (2-1 Div. IV), which played Plymouth very tough in a 21-14 loss last Saturday.
Division V: Bow at Pelham (Friday)
As I wrote earlier this week, the Bow Falcons may be the surprise of Division V. The Falcons are 3-0. They’re winning close contests. In my book, pressure-packed wins are far more valuable than lopsided victories.
Let’s see if Bow keeps it going at Pelham (2-1, 1-1 Div. V). The Pythons last week received a career game from quarterback Joe D’Angelo. The senior cracked 300 yards passing (five TDs) against Division VI Campbell.
Non-League: Milford at Plymouth (Saturday)
Milford (1-2 Div. III) visits Plymouth (3-0 Div. IV) tomorrow. The Bobcats look to add to their state-record 47-game win streak, set last weekend.
Keith Jones has a streak he’d like to snap. The Spartans head coach is 0-6 against Plymouth since his program jumped to Division III after the 2003 season. The Bobcats twice recorded shutouts and twice scored 50-plus points. The Spartans scored double digits once.
Posted by: MARC THALER, UnionLeader.com
The only major changes to the new rankings are, as expected, in the final two slots. That’s where Division II Timberlane of Plaistow and Division III Portsmouth appear in the Week 4 Union Leader/WGAM/WMUR Power Poll, released a short time ago today (Monday, Sept. 21).
The Owls re-enter the poll, at No. 9, after being bumped last week. The Clippers, at No. 10, crack the poll for the first time.
As for the teams occupying the Nos. 1-8 slots, they’re all the same. Overall movement, once again, was minimal.
Tony Johnson is still coaching New Hampshire’s top-ranked team. Bishop Guertin of Nashua cracked 50 points in Saturday night’s 56-6 win over Spaulding of Rochester. BG topped all six ballots for the third straight week.
The only other change in the top five involves Salem and Exeter. I’ve said since Week 2 that Salem was the No. 3 team in the state, and Exeter was No. 4. That’s the case this week. Both teams won in Week 3, but they flip-flopped spots.
Anyway, here’s the top 10 of Week 4. The weekly comparison between the Power Poll and my votes is first. “Power Poll: 3-and-out,” which points out three items regarding the new poll, is second.
Week 4 Power Poll
1. Bishop Guertin (3-0 overall, 2-0 Div. II / 6 first place) — No. 1
2. Nashua South (3-0, 1-0 Div. I) — No. 2
3. Salem (3-0, 2-0 Div. I) — No. 4
4. Exeter (3-0, 2-0 Div. II) — No. 3
5. Pinkerton (2-1, 2-0 Div. I) — No. 5
6. Souhegan (3-0, 2-0 Div. III) — No. 6
7. Nashua North (3-0, 2-0 Div. I) — No. 8
8. Plymouth (3-0, 3-0 Div. IV) — No. 7
9. Timberlane (2-1, 2-0 Div. II) — NR
10. Portsmouth (3-0, 3-0 Div. III) — NR
My votes
1. Bishop Guertin
2. Nashua South
3. Salem
4. Exeter
5. Pinkerton
6. Nashua North
7. Souhegan
8. Timberlane
9. Portsmouth
10. Plymouth
First down: 5-for-5
It isn’t often that the order of the top five teams on my ballot matches the order of the top five teams in the rankings. This week, however, that very scenario played out.
More important than tooting my own horn, this tells me the voters are all on the same page.
I was interested to see if the second consecutive 40-plus-point shutout win for No. 5 Pinkerton Academy of Derry — the only one-loss team in the top five — would persuade voters to send the Astros back into the top four. The Astros followed their 42-0 Week 3 win over Manchester Memorial with a 47-0 Week 4 victory against Manchester West.
Clearly, though, clubbing a pair of Queen City squads expected to struggle this season didn’t do the job. But now that the Astros begin playing the iron of their schedule in Week 4 (at No. 3 Salem on Saturday), there’s a chance things are about to change.
Second down: Timberlane returns
Timberlane appeared in the top 10 for the preseason and first two weeks of regular-season play. But that changed last week when the Owls were bumped from the poll.
Fast forward to this past weekend. The Owls topped Merrimack, 41-21. It was the kind of performance that gave me good reason to reward the Owls with a vote on my ballot — for the first time this season.
Now we’ll have to see if No. 9 Timberlane avoids traveling the same Power Poll path as Manchester Central. Bumped from the Week 2 poll, the Little Green returned for Week 3. But now they’re out again after a 24-0 loss at N0. 7 Nashua North.
Timberlane hosts No. 1 Bishop Guertin Friday night.
Third down: Just barely …
Portsmouth and Plymouth earned the final two votes on my ballot — just barely. I struggled for some time with the idea of whether these teams are, at this moment, truly top 10-worthy. It’s the same struggle I had with Plymouth alone a week ago.
What it comes down to is this: the Clippers and Bobcats were helped immensely by the slow starts of Division I squads Londonderry and Manchester Central, both 1-2 overall. Division II Winnacunnet of Hampton, which lost at Dover, 20-19, also helped the causes of the Clippers and ‘Cats — definite bubble teams on my ballot.
Posted by: MARC THALER, UnionLeader.com
It’s nearly noon on Monday, Sept. 21. The official rankings for the Week 4 Union Leader/WGAM/WMUR Power Poll made it my way a few minutes ago.
Seventy-five percent of the high school football season’s first month is complete. And thus far, the poll has remained remarkably consistent with regard to the top eight teams. Those squads being Bishop Guertin of Nashua, Nashua South, Salem, Exeter, Pinkerton Academy of Derry, Souhegan of Amherst, Nashua North and Plymouth.
Guertin — fresh off its 56-6 Division II decision over Spaulding of Rochester — is the Granite State’s No. 1 team.
BG swept the six first-place votes for the third week in a row. Winnacunnet of Hampton and Manchester Central, ranked No. 9 and 10, respectively, are no longer ranked.
Here you go: the Granite State’s new top 10, as voted by six individuals, two apiece from the New Hampshire Union Leader, WGAM-Radio and WMUR-TV sports staffs.
Team records and, if applicable, first-place votes, appear in parentheses. Each team’s previous ranking appears after the long dash.
The “Honorable Mention” list is for teams that received votes, but didn’t total enough points to qualify for the top 10. “Bumped” is for teams that dropped from the poll.
My “Power Poll: 3-and-out” analysis is on the way. For now, though, here’s New Hampshire’s top 10 for Week 4:
Week 4 Power Poll
1. Bishop Guertin (3-0 overall, 2-0 Div. II / 6 first place) — No. 1
2. Nashua South (3-0, 1-0 Div. I) — No. 2
3. Salem (3-0, 2-0 Div. I) — No. 4
4. Exeter (3-0, 2-0 Div. II) — No. 3
5. Pinkerton (2-1, 2-0 Div. I) — No. 5
6. Souhegan (3-0, 2-0 Div. III) — No. 6
7. Nashua North (3-0, 2-0 Div. I) — No. 8
8. Plymouth (3-0, 3-0 Div. IV) — No. 7
9. Timberlane (2-1, 2-0 Div. II) — NR
10. Portsmouth (3-0, 3-0 Div. III) — NR
Honorable Mention
Trinity (3-0, 3-0 Div. V)
Winnacunnet (2-1, 1-1 Div. II)
Bumped
Man. Central (1-2, 0-1 Div. I)
Winnacunnet
Posted by: MARC THALER, UnionLeader.com
The Week 3 high school football scores from yesterday (Saturday, Sept. 19) …
Division I
00 - Man. Central
24 - Nashua North
00 - Man. West
47 - Pinkerton
Division II
06 - Spaulding
56 - Bishop Guertin
Division III
18 - Goffstown
07 - Hollis/Brookline
Division IV
14 - Kennett
21 - Plymouth
20 - Lebanon
35 - Hanover
06 - Merrimack Valley
00 - Sanborn
Division V
14 - Kearsarge
28 - Trinity
Division VI
00 - Fall Mountain
34 - Inter-Lakes
06 - Farmington
50 - Newfound
14 - Franklin
20 - Gilford
54 - Newport
06 - Mascoma
41 - Stevens
07 - Epping-Newmarket
33 - Winnisquam
18 - Raymond
Non-League
21 - Brattleboro, Vt.
25 - Keene
