St. Anselm linebacker Ethan Sylvain (pictured) has been named the Northeast-10 Conference Freshman of the Week for his play in his team's 17-13 loss to Kutztown in Saturday's season opener for each team.

Sylvain, one of 10 freshman starters for the Hawks, tied for the team lead with 11 tackles. Five of those were solo stops. In addition, Sylvain forced forced a fumble that led to a St. Anselm touchdown.

The Hawks (0-1) return to action on Saturday, when they will play in-state rival Plymouth State University at Grappone Stadium in Manchester. That game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.

Photo credit: Gil Talbot

In an ongoing attempt to promote football in New Hampshire, the New Hampshire Football Report site now includes a message board that can be accessed by clicking on the ad on the right side of this page. 

You can visit the message board for free, but please note that there is an annual fee of $19.95 to subscribe. This fee will allow you to post messages in the various forums, reply to posts and vote in weekly New Hampshire Football Report polls.

The decision to charge an annual fee was made for two reasons: to help keep the message board a clean and professional environment; and to help cover costs associated with publishing the New Hampshire Football Report main site, which remains free.

The message board currently has two poll questions, one in the high school forum:

Which team has the best chance to win a state championship this season?

Pinkerton Academy
Bishop Guertin
Souhegan
Plymouth

The other poll question is in the college forum:

Which team will win Saturday's game between St. Anselm College and Plymouth State?

Plymouth State by a touchdown or less
Plymouth State by more than a touchdown
St. Anselm by a touchdown or less
St. Anselm by more than a touchdown

The hope is that this message board will promote intelligent discussion about football in the Granite State.

Thank you for supporting this site and football in New Hampshire.

 

                                                                                                               -- Roger Brown 

Keene's WEEI 93.5 will broadcast both Keene High School and Monadnock Regional High School football games this fall. The current schedule features the following games:

Sept 4: Keene at Londonderry (7 p.m.)
Sept. 5: Monadnock at Plymouth (1:30 p.m.)
Sept. 11: Keene at Winnacunnet or Lebanon at Monadnock (7 p.m.)
Sept. 18: Monadnock at Kingswood (7 p.m.)
Sept. 19: Brattleboro (Vt.) at Keene (1:30 p.m.)
Sept. 26: Alvirne at Keene (1:30 p.m.)
Oct. 3: Timberlane at Keene (1:30 p.m.)
Oct. 9: Keene at Exeter (7 p.m.)
Oct. 16: Keene at Spaulding or Hanover at Monadnock (7 p.m.)
Oct. 23: Merrimack Valley at Monadnock (7 p.m.)
Oct. 24: Bishop Guertin at Keene (1:30 p.m.)
Oct. 30: Monadnock at Laconia (7 p.m.)
Oct. 31: Dover at Keene (1:30 p.m.)
Nov. 6: Keene at Merrimack (7 p.m.) 

New Hampshire Football Report is pleased to announce that Dover High School's Matt Gambill and Souhegan High School's Sean Cultrera will each be writing a Varsity Insider column for the site this fall.

Gambill and Cultrera are both seniors, and each is playing his third season of varsity football.

The columns are scheduled to begin this week and will run throughout the 2009 high school season. Look for Cultrera's column each Wednesday. Gambill's column will appear every Thursday.

                                                                                                         -- Roger Brown

High School: Montville, Jones a lethal combo >>  Portsmouth Herald

High School: Guinto overcomes knee injury >> Lawrence Eagle-Tribune

High School: Seacoast football preview >> Portsmouth Herald

 

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

Photo credit: Gil Talbot

St. Anselm College gave itself an opportunity to win its season-opening game against Kutztown on Saturday, but the Hawks fumbled that opportunity away.

St. Anselm trailed by four points with 6:02 remaining in the game when freshman running back Austin Wakinekoa (pictured) ran into a teammate and fumbled the ball just before he crossed the goal line. The ball went through the back of the end zone for a touchback, which gave Kutztown possession on the 20-yard line.

That was one of many key plays that allowed Kutztown to escape Grappone Stadium with a 17-13 triumph.

"He was noticibly upset," St. Anselm coach Pat Murphy said. "He's a freshman here from Hawaii. He's been here for three weeks. He felt like he let his team down. You gotta keep going. He's a tough kid and he's gonna be a great player here for us the next four years."

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

Following his team's contest against Manchester West in Friday night's Queen City Jamboree, Souhegan coach Mike Beliveau said senior running back/linebacker Steven Jellison, who is widely considered to be the best high school player in the state, still has the University of New Hampshire and Dartmouth College on his radar.

Division III Williams College is also in the picture, Beliveau said.

"Williams has told him he's their No. 1 recruit of the 14 they're bringing in," Beliveau said. "They told him he could be the face of their program and play running back. I think he's listening.

"Right now I'd say it's down to five schools: UNH, Harvard, Dartmouth, Amherst and Williams."

Jellison's brother, Sean, is a junior running back at UNH.

NCAA Division II
St. Anselm vs. Kutztown

• When and where: Saturday (10 a.m.) at Grappone Stadium in Manchester.
• Team records: This is the season opener for each team.
• 2008 result: Kutztown won 35-0 in Kutztown, Pa.
• Noteworthy: The opening kickoff for this contest, which was originally scheduled for 1:30 p.m., was moved up to 10 a.m. because of the possible impact Tropical Storm Danny may have on the Manchester area. ... St. Anselm is in its second season under head coach Pat Murphy. The Hawks finished 2-8 overall last season. St. Anselm was picked to finish eighth in the Northeast-10, which is a nine-team league. ... Kutztown, which competes in the Pennsylvania State Athletics Conference, was picked sixth in the PSAC East preseason poll. The Golden Bears finished 5-6 overall last season, but won four on their final six contests. ... Kutztown has two First Team All-PSAC East selections in senior running back Dontay Wilson and junior kick returner Kendall Coleman. Wilson led the PSAC East in average yards per carry last season (7.4) and rushed for at least 100 yards in a game five times. He gained a career-hgh 162 yards and scored two touchdowns in last season's victory over St. Anselm. ... "He's really good," Murphy said. "He's one of those kids who makes you hold your breath every time he touches the ball. We have our work cut out for us defensively." ... St. Anselm returned five starters on offense and three on defense. ... Kutztown's enrollment is 10,300. ... St. Anselm will face Division III Plymouth State at Grappone Stadium next weekend. It will be Plymouth State's opener. 

The University of New Hampshire held its annual Blue/White scrimmage Thursday, and junior quarterback R.J. Toman showed why he was voted the Colonial Athletic Association's Preseason Offensive Player of the Year.

Toman completed 9 of 14 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns, one to junior wide receiver Mike Greene for 27 yards on the opening drive, and the other a 33-yarder to senior tight end Kamal Mohammed. Toman also completed a 50-yard pass to junior wide receiver Kevon Mason and ran the ball three times for 44 yards.

Greene made four catches for 80 yards during the scrimmage.

Freshman running back Chris Setian led the rushing game with 14 carries for 58 yards, and scored on a 1-yard run.

The defense got into the scoring column when junior defensive back John Greer intercepted a pass and ran it back 45 yards for a touchdown. The Wildcats had four interceptions; four sacks, one pass deflection and one blocked point-after touchdown.

Freshman Chris Beranger led the defense 11 tackles, including five solo stops. Mark Petercuskie and Alan Buzbee each made nine tackles.

UNH will open the 2009 season Sept. 5 with a home game against St. Francis (Pa.).

Scoring Summary

1 - 12:15 - Mike Greene 27-yard touchdown reception from RJ Toman (Tom Manning PAT Good)

1 - 4:35 - Shawn Sweeney 2-yard touchdown run (Manning PAT Good)

1--11:52 - Derek Coppola 13-yard touchdown reception from Mike Roberto (DeLago PAT blocked)

2 - 6:34 - Chris Jeannot 18-yard touchdown reception from Kevin Decker (Manning PAT Good)

2 - 4:53 - Kamal Mohamed 33-yard touchdown reception from Toman (Manning PAT Good)

2 - 4:13 - John Greer 45-yard interception return (DeLago PAT Missed)

2 - 0:19 - Sean Jellison 4-yard run (DeLago PAT Good)

3 - 8:15 - Chris Setian 1-yard run (McNulty PAT Good)

College: Penn picked first >> The Sports Network

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

There's a whiteboard in Pat Murphy's office that lists personnel groupings by formation. This whiteboard reveals, to a large extent, the progress the St. Anselm football program has made since Murphy was named St. Anselm's head coach in February of last year.

At this time a year ago, that whiteboard showed the same five names regardless of the offensive formation. This year there's different names in different places.

"When we came in there was no depth," Murphy explained. "We had the same five kids (playing the skill positions) no matter the formation or personnel grouping. We had the same five kids on the field all the time.

"Now we have competition at a lot of positions. We have quality backups.

"Last year we had two running backs who could completely run the offense. We've doubled that now. The returning guy (Joe Tran) has a leg up, but by the end of the season it could be tough to pick a starter."

St. Anselm finished with a 2-8 record in Murphy's first season as head coach. The highlight of last season was a 48-42 triumph over Merrimack College that ended a 34-game losing streak.

St. Anselm will begin its second season under Murphy on Saturday, when it plays a non-league game against Kutztown at Grappone Stadium (1:30 p.m.). Kutztown handed St. Anselm a 35-0 setback in the opener for both teams last season.

"They'll be out to stop the run. dare us to pass," Murphy said. "On defense they are huge."

Murphy said he's sure St. Anselm will put an improved product on the field this season. He's hoping that will translate into a significantly better won-loss record as well.

"We're not gonna win many games this year in a landslide," he said. "We're gonna have to keep grinding it out.

"First and foremost, before anything, we have to protect the football. We can't beat ourselves with penalties and turnovers. Outside of points, turnovers are the most telling stat in football.

"We have to stay healthy. We have depth in certain positions, but we're still thin in some areas." 

The University of New Hampshire football team will play its annual fall Blue/White Scrimmage on Thursday at Cowell Stadium. The scrimmage is scheduled to begin at 12:30 p.m. and admission is free.

UNH will open its season Sept. 5 with a home game against St. Francis (Pa.). The kickoff for that contest is scheduled for noon.

High School: Early season growing pains >> Laconia Citizen

Plymouth will carry a 44-game winning streak into its regular-season opener against Monadnock on Sept. 5. Among teams that play 11-man football, the Bobcats currently have the third longest winning streak in the country.

The nation's longest winning streak belongs to Smith Center (Kan.) High School, which has won its last 67 games. The Smith Center program is the subject of a recent book by New York Times staff writer Joe Drape: "Our Boys: A Perfect Season on the Plains with the Smith Center Redmen."

Wayne Hills (N.J.) will begin the 2009 season with a 52-game winning streak. Concord (Calif.) De La Salle holds the record for consecutive victories. De La Salle won 151 straight games from 1992 to 2004.

Shattuck (Okla.) High School, which plays eight-man football, has won its last 84 games. Three of those victories came by forfeit.

Plymouth's last loss came against Souhegan in the 2004 Division III semifinals (28-10).

Dartmouth is the last of New Hampshire's four college football programs to begin preseason practice. The Big Green will hold its first workout Wednesday.

Dartmouth will begin the regular season at home with a non-league game against Colgate on Sept. 19 (1:30 p.m.). Here's Dartmouth's practice schedule -- which includes a scrimmage against Harvard -- leading up to the week before the Colgate contest:

DARTMOUTH'S PRACTICE SCHEDULE

Aug. 26
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Aug. 27
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Aug. 29
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Aug. 30
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Aug. 31
3:15-5:45 p.m.

Sept. 1
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Sept. 2
8:15-10:25 a.m.
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Sept. 3
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Sept. 4
8:15-10:25 a.m.
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Sept. 5
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Sept. 6
8:15-10:25 a.m.
3:45-6:15 p.m. (Scrimmage with officials)

Sept. 8
8:15-10:25 a.m.
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Sept. 9
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Sept. 10
8:45-10:25 a.m.
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Sept. 11
3:45-6:15 p.m.

Sept. 12
1-3:30 p.m. (Scrimmage vs. Harvard)

High School: Sachems making progress >> Laconia Citizen

High School: Epping-Newmarket settling in with new coach >> Exeter News-Letter

New Hampshire Football Report is pleased to announce that the site is entering its second year of a media partnership with CBS MaxPreps, Inc., the nation's largest provider of high school sports content on the Internet.

MaxPreps will provide the New Hampshire Football Report with its platform of high school data and statistical coverage in the state. Team standings, schedules and up-to-date results will be powered by MaxPreps and can be found by clicking on the NHIAA Standings header on the navigation bar.

 

                                                                                               -- Roger Brown

Here's the schedule for the Spaulding Jamboree, which will be held Thursday night at Hugo Bolin Field in Rochester:

Epping vs. Kingswood (6 p.m.)
Kingswood vs. Farmington (6:30 p.m.)
Epping vs. Farmington (7 p.m.)
Portsmouth vs. Spaulding (7:30 p.m.)
Portsmouth vs. Somersworth (8 p.m.)
Somersworth vs. Con-Val (8:30 p.m.)
Spaulding vs. Con-Val (9 p.m.)

It's a big week for preseason high school football, particularly preseason jamborees.

The Jungle Jamboree will be held Thursday at Souhegan High School and will feature eight teams:

Bedford vs. Merrimack Valley (4:30 p.m.)
Hollis-Brookline vs. Monadnock (5:30 p.m.)
John Stark vs. Sanborn (6:30 p.m.)
Souhegan vs. Merrimack (7:30 p.m.)

The Queen City Football Jamboree, the state's largest jamboree, will be held Friday at Gill Stadium. There will be 12 teams participating:

Concord vs. Merrimack (3 p.m.)
Salem vs. Goffstown (4 p.m.)
Trinity vs. Campbell (5 p.m.)
Manchester West vs. Souhegan (6 p.m.)
Manchester Memorial vs. Timberlane (7 p.m.)
Manchester Central vs. Bishop Guertin (8 p.m.)

In addtion, the Spaulding Jamboree will be held Thursday at Hugo Bolin Field in Rochester. Action is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. The teams participating will be posted later this week.

The Franklin Lodge #6 Free and Accepted Masons will sponsor an NFL Punt, Pass & Kick competition Sept. 19 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Lebanon High School. The competetion is free to enter and is open to boys and girls ages 8 to 15. Ages are as of Dec. 31 of the current year.

For more information about the event call 727-8578, or 448-1887. Entry forms are available online at nflyouthfootball.com, or at the Lebanon High School football field on the morning of the event.

The top eight finishers from each of the eight age groups will advance to a sectional competition. The winners at the sectional competition will have their scores compared to scores of other sectional champions. The top four scorers from the pool of sectional champions will advance to the New England Patriots team championship. 

College: Offensive line is biggest question mark for UNH >> Portsmouth Herald

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

Souhegan coach Mike Beliveau scouted the three-team scrimmage between Exeter, Manchester West and Milford on Friday, in part because Souhegan will be playing West in next Friday's Queen City Jamboree.

Beliveau may want to tuck his West notes away for safe keeping, because there could be many more meetings between West and Souhegan -- last year's Division III state champion --in the near future.

According to West coach Travis Cote, the West program will drop from Division I to either Division II or Division III next year.

"We have about 1,300 (students), so we'll be dropping down," Cote said. "We'll either be one of the biggest schools in Division III or one of the smallest in Division II."

West began losing students -- and athletes -- when a new high school was built in Bedford. West opened preseason practice with 59 players. The school has already cancelled the program's junior varsity schedule this season.

West was placed in Division I before the 2008 season based on its enrollment at that time (1,809 students). Even then, West had the smallest enrollment of any Division I school.

Excluding Bishop Guertin, Winnacunnet had the smallest enrollment of any Division II school (1,324) when teams were classified in 2008. BG's enrollment was 885 at that time, but the school petitioned the state to play in a higher division.  

West still has to deal with the Division I schedule this season, however. West's first six league games are against Nashua North (2,054), Pinkerton Academy (3,331), Londonderry (1,809), Manchester Central (2,159), Manchester Memorial (2,165) and Nashua South (2,287).

"I've explained the situation to the kids," Cote said. "We'll do the best we can."

College: Rough go for Wildcats >> Manchester Union Leader

The following is a list of 2009 high school football games that will be televised nationally:

Aug. 28: Dike-New Hartford (Dike, Iowa) at Aplington Parkersburg (Aplington, Iowa), ESPN, 7 p.m.
Aug. 28: Venice, Fla. at Oscar Smith (Chesapeake, Va.), ESPNU, 7 p.m.
Aug. 29: St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) vs. Upper Arlington (Columbus, Ohio), ESPN, noon
Aug. 29: Westerville (Ohio) South vs. Hillard Davidson (Hillard, Ohio) in Coumbus, Ohio, ESPNU, 3:30 p.m.
Aug. 30: Olentangy Liberty (Powell, Ohio) vs. Coffman (Dublin, Ohio), ESPNU, noon
Aug. 30: Lutheran (Orange, Calif.) vs. Pickerington Central (Pickerington, Ohio), ESPNU, 3:30 p.m.
Sept. 4: Memphis University at South Panola (Batesville, Miss.), ESPNU, 8 p.m.
Sept. 6: Colerain (Cincinnati) at Elder (Cincinnati), ESPN, noon
Sept. 11: Hoover, Ala., at Camden County (Kingsland, Ga.), ESPNU, 8 p.m.
Sept. 11: Jefferson City, Mo., at Fayetteville, Ark., CBS College Sports, 8 p.m.
Sept. 18: Lake Oswego, Ore., at Jesuit (Portland, Ore.), CBS College Sports, 9 p.m.
Sept. 18: Oaks Christian (Westlake Village, Calif.) at Skyline (Sammamish, Wash.), ESPNU, 10 p.m.
Sept. 25: Don Bosco (Ramsey, N.J.) at Prattville, Ala., ESPNU, 7 p.m.
Sept. 25: St. Xavier (Cincinnati) at Highlands (Fort Thomas, Ky.), CBS College Sports, 8 p.m.
Sept. 25: Lakeland. Fla. at De La Salle (Concord, Calif.), ESPN2, 10 p.m.
Oct. 2: Byrnes (Duncan. S.C.) at St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), ESPNU, 8 p.m.
Oct. 2: Green Valley (Henderson, Nev.) at Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), CBS College Sports, 9 p.m.
Oct. 8: Miami Northwestern at Miami Central, ESPN2, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 9: Valdosta, Ga., at Lowndes (Valdosta, Ga.), CBS College Sports, 8 p.m.
Oct. 9: Kapaun Mount Carmel (Wichita) at Bishop Carroll (Wichita), ESPNU, 8 p.m.
Oct. 16: Stephenson (Stone Mountain, Ga.) at Martin Luther King (Lithonia, Ga.), ESPNU, 6 p.m.
Oct. 23: Brentwood, Tenn. at Montgomery Bell (Nashville), CBS College Sports, 8 p.m.
Oct. 23: Foothill (Pleasanton, Calif.) at Monte Vista (Danville, Calif.), ESPNU, 10 p.m.
Oct. 29: Belton, Texas at Temple, Texas, ESPNU, 8 p.m.
Oct. 30: Centenial (Peoria, Ariz.) vs. Westview (Avondale, Ariz.), ESPNU, 8 p.m.
Nov. 6: Pulaski Academy (Little Rock) at Little Rock Christian, ESPNU, 8 p.m.
Nov. 13: Cypress Bay (Weston, Fla.) at St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), CBS College Sports, 8 p.m.

High School: West cancels JV football >> Manchester Union Leader

USA Today has released its Super 25 preseason high school football rankings:

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/preps/football/poll/2009-super25.htm

Curry College and Bridgewater State College have been selected as the preseason favorites in the New England Football Conference's Boyd Division and the Bogan Division in a poll conducted among conference coaches. The coaches also selected Curry as the preseason favorite to earn the conference's automatic bid to the 2009 NCAA Division III Championship Tournament.

Curry received six first-place votes in the Boyd Division, Plymouth State University, the 2008 Boyd Division champion collected two first-place votes and was second in the poll, behind Curry. In the Bogan, Bridgewater captured five first-place votes. Maine Maritime Academy had the three other first-place votes.

Thirteen of the 16 conference coaches put forth their selections for the eventual conference champion with Curry receiving nine votes, Plymouth State receiving two votes, and Maine Maritime and Bridgewater State each being named on one ballot.

The NEFC will kick off the 2009 season Sept. 3, when Massachusetts Maritime Academy plays host to SUNY Maritime at 7 p.m..

The conference championship game, pitting the champions of the Bogan and Boyd Divisions, will be held Nov. 13 at noon at the site of the Boyd Division champion.
 
The 2009 NEFC preseason poll results:
 
            Bogan Division                                             Boyd Division
1.    Bridgewater State College                        1.   Curry College
2.    Maine Maritime Academy                        2.   Plymouth State University
3.    Westfield State College                           3.   Salve Regina University
4.    U.S. Coast Guard Academy                     4.   Endicott College
5.    Fitchburg State College (tie)                     5.   UMass Dartmouth
       Worcester State College (tie)                   6.   MIT
7.    Framingham State College                       7.   Nichols
8.    Massachusetts Maritime Academy           8.   Western New England College

College: Wright has big shoes to fill >> Portsmouth Herald

College: Reyes hitting his stride at UConn >> Nashua Telegraph

College: Can Richmond give CAA another title? >> The Sports Network

High School: Heat beats down on Granite State gridders >> Lawrence Eagle-Tribune

St. Thomas Aquinas head coach Rod Wotton appears on the MaxPreps list of top high school football coaches in the country.

Wotton, the winningest coach in New England high school football history, will enter the 2009 season with a 331-70-3 career record.

Wotton guided St. Thomas to the Division IV championship in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2006. He also won 17 state titles when he was the head coach at Marshwood High School in Eliot, Maine.

    The 2009 St. Anselm football team is entering its second season under head coach Pat Murphy. The Hawks finished 2-8 last year and have added 50 freshmen to the program.

The returnees including quarterback Marc Wilson (pictured), the 2008 Northeast-10 Freshman of the Year; and senior linebacker Dan Bohenek, who led the team in tackles and has been named as a Consnesus Draft Services Preseason Honorable Mention All-American.

"We want to get better every week and play up to our potential as a team," Murphy said. "As we open camp, we are enthusiastic, and optimistic that, should we live up to our potential, we can compete with anyone."

A big part of this year's potential are the freshmen that have joined the program at nearly every position. These players will be given the opportunity to step in right away and make a difference on both sides of the ball.

"The strength of our team this year is our youth," Murphy said. "I know that is usually a liability, but in this case I hope youth will be served. Because of our freshmen, we are bigger, stronger and faster than we were a year ago. Now, that said, our youth has to play with savvy beyond their years for us to be successful. I know that's asking a lot, but I believe they are capable of doing just that."

St. Anselm will open the season Aug. 29, when it will face Kutztown University at Grappone Stadium. That game will be followed by a meeting with in-state rival Plymouth State University.

St. Anselm's Northeast-10 schedule starts Sept. 11, with a game at Bentley University. Murphy said the top teams in the Northeast-10 last season are again the teams to beat this year. 

"I think it will be the usual suspects at the top AIC, Southern Connecticut, Merrimack, Bentley, and I wouldn't be surprised if New Haven made a run in their first year in the league," Murphy said. "While I think the remaining teams all have the potential to get to that top tier, they must overcome graduation losses or some other kind of adversity to do so."

Here's a breakdown of the team by position:

High School: South, BG prepare to scrimmage >> Nashua Telegraph

New Hampshire Football Report is currently seeking sponsors for the 2009 season. The site offers several sponsorship options that can be obtained via email upon request.

All sponsorships include a logo that would link to a company's or organization's web site. A special rate is available for booster clubs and other team organizations that would like to promote their team on New Hampshire Football Report. Team logos can be created if necessary.

If you would like to promote football in New Hampshire by becoming a sponsor, or if you know of a business that might be interested in becoming a sponsor, please contact New Hampshire Football Report publisher Roger Brown at rbrown@nhfootballreport.com. These sponsorships help cover the costs of maintaining a free site.

NFL: Graham meets with older brother >> Chicago Tribune

College: Cramsey takes over UNH offense >> Concord Monitor

College: UNH takes pride in secondary >> Portsmouth Herald

College:  Changing sides >> Concord Monitor

High School: Plymouth is No. 2 in the state, really? >> Nashua Telegraph

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

Last season center Tom Neill was the youngest starter on the University of New Hampshire's offensive line. This year he must feel like an old man.

UNH graduated four of its five starting offensive linemen from last year and will build around Neill, a 6-foot-4, 285-pound senior, this season. 

Replacing the missing pieces on the offensive line may be the biggest challenge UNH faces as the Wildcats prepare for their season opener against St. Francis (Pa.) on Sept. 5.

"It's definitely a big challenge," Neill said. "Coach (UNH coach Sean McDonnell), he wants to put the best five on the field. Whoever steps up and makes Coach feel confident enough that they can play and are ready to go, then that's who he's going to put out there."

The questions about UNH's offensive line grew when two players -- sophomore Jayson Elmore and freshman Josh Lane -- left the team after spring practice. Elmore was projected to be a starter at right tackle, and Lane was listed as the backup a left guard on UNH's preseason depth chart.

Neill, junior tackle Seth Price, junior guard Dan Larkin and sophomore George Pecoraro are the offensive linemen with the most experience.

"At least with the incoming freshmen you have to lead them along," Neill said. "Don't let them get all flustered and frustrated. I know my first day (of preseason camp) my head was spinning and what not. Keep a positive attitude and keep encouraging them.

'The younger guys with less experience that have been here a little bit, you really have to depend on them to be focused on learning their playbook. That's what we're really emphasizing."

Neill said the mental part of the game is often toughest thing for an offensive lineman entering college out of high school. 

"The physical part, it's not easy at all for any lineman -- offense (or) defense," he said. "Just learning to balance the physical part of it and learning the playbook because we're going fast. It's not spring ball. We can't tempo it down. We gotta go, go, go. So for them to get their head in the playbook and learn that stuff, it's definitely hard.

"The (new) guys are actually picking up the plays pretty well. As much as we can get guys learning the plays that adds depth."

College: Alli plunges into college football >> Orlando Sentinel

As part of its high school football preview coverage, MaxPreps has released its top five New Hampshire teams entering the 2009 season. The choices will likely stir up a debate among the state's high school football followers: 

1. Bishop Guertin
2. Plymouth
3. Pelham
4. Nashua South
5. Souhegan

There are openings for teams interested in participating in this year's Spaulding Football Jamboree, which will be held Aug. 27 at Hugo Bolin Field in Rochester.

Anyone interested in participating this year can contact Spaulding coach Jim Keays at 742-9202 or by e-mail: rena49@comcast.net.

High School: Grinding it out >> Foster's Daily Democrat

College: Wildcats welcome back Decker >> Portsmouth Herald

College: Unusual describes Alli's path to Florida >> Gator Country

College: Jellison's year to shine at UNH >> Nashua Telegraph

College: More power to 'Cats >> Concord Monitor

College: Ware ready to lead UNH defense >> Foster's Daily Democrat

College: Young will help anchor defensive line >> Foster's Daily Democrat

College: Optimism runs high at UNH >> Foster's Daily Democrat

College: 'Cats confident defense will be team strength >> Portsmouth Herald

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

During his previous 10 years as the University of New Hampshire football program's head coach you may not have heard Sean McDonnell call defense the best part of his football team, but he made that statement Tuesday.

"I gotta say right now the strength of the team is on the defensive side of the football," McDonnell said at the team's annual media day. "And it's not any one position. We have kids that have played a lot there."

The Wildcats return eight defensive starters from their 2008 team, including the entire defensive line: tackle Jordan Long, tackle Steve Young, end Kevin Peters and end Brian McNally.

McNally was named the Colonial Athletic Association's Defensive Rookie of the Year following the 2008 season.

"I am cautiously -- as always -- optimistic about what's going on over there," McDonnell said. "The difference is there are some kids in that lineup that have started for three years now and played a lot of football -- some guys for four years. There's nothing that gives you a better opportunity to be good than experience.

"Defensively I feel we gotta do well and do the things we do well: cause turnovers, run to the football, stop the run like we did last year and get better in a couple other situations."

The other returning starters are defensive back Dino Vasso, linebacker Hugo Souza, defensive back Ryan Hinds and linebacker Sean Ware.

"We have a lot of experience on that side of the ball," Ware said. 'We have big expectations for our defense this year.

"(Defense) is a big factor in winning football games. Last year we had a better defense than we did in 2007. Anytime you have progress you want to build off of that."

*****

UNH was picked to finish first in the North Division of the CAA preseason coaches' and media poll, but McDonnell made it clear Tuesday that he has as much use for preseason polls as he does missed field goals.

"As I told the guys, you can forget all about the hype," he said. "I asked them what team was picked to win the North last year, and it was UMass. I asked them what team was picked to win it all last year in the CAA. I think a couple of them said JMU and they weren't really sure.

"I told them we have 17 practices before our first scrimmage. I told them let's take care of those and do what we gotta do. There's a lot of things these guys have to do before Sept. 5 for us to be good."

*****

Junior running back Sean Jellison was among the UNH players peppered with questions Tuesday, but many of them were about his younger brother Steve.

Steve Jellison will be a senior running back/linebacker at Souhegan High School this season, and is among the top high school players in New Hampshire. Steve Jellison helped Souhegan cap an undefeated season by beating Portsmouth in last year's Division III championship game.

Sean Jellison said UNH and Harvard are among the schools that his brother has a strong interest in attending.

"He has UNH in mind," Sean Jellison said. "He's also focused on Williams, Harvard and Amherst. Those are the schools I know he went to visit over the summer on junior days.

"He wants to play offense (in college). That's why he likes those schools. They've told him he can play running back."

Dartmouth was picked to finish eighth in the 2009 Ivy League football preseason media poll, which was released Tuesday. Harvard earned the top spot in the poll for the third time in four years.

Dartmouth completed the 2008 season with an 0-10 record, but returns several players at the skill positions. Junior wide receiver Tim McManus is among those returning. McManus caught 60 passes for 637 yards last season and was an honorable mention All-Ivy selection. He is also a preseason All-Ivy Second Team pick as selected by Phil Steele's College Football Magazine.

"We played 32 freshmen and sophomores last year," Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens said. "The bad thing about that is having to play that many inexperienced kids. The good news, however, is that those freshmen and sophomores become sophomores and juniors with invaluable experience. We have put last year behind us and look forward to proving we will be a competitive team in this league this season."

McManus will co-captain the team along with senior free safety Peter Pidermann, the team's leading returning tackler with 56 stops a year ago.

Also returning is senior quarterback Alex Jenny, who began last year by passing for 343 yards at Colgate. Nearly the entire offensive line returns as well. The line will be anchored by sophomore center Alex Fletcher.

While the defense graduated strong safety and All-Ivy second-teamer Ian Wilson, the defensive backfield will be bolstered not only by Pidermann, but also sophomore cornerback Shawn Abuhoff. Abuhoff was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week three times last year, when he intercepted three passes and was one of the league's top kick returners.

Junior defensive end Charles Bay started every game last year and is the veteran on the defensive line.

Sophomore Foley Schmidt will again handle the placekicking duties. Schmidt connected on 9 of 13 field goal attempts and made 12 of 13 PATs last season.

Dartmouth will open the 2009 season at home against Colgate (1:30 p.m.).

 2009 Ivy League Football Preseason Media Poll
(First-place votes in parenthesis)

1. Harvard (10)
2. Penn (4)
3. Brown (3)
4. Yale
5. Princeton
6. Columbia
7. Cornell
8. Dartmouth 

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

New Hampshire Football Report has learned that the University of New Hampshire football program will travel to the University of Minnesota for a game in September of the 2012 season.

UNH has had nothing but success against Football Bowl Subdivision opponents in recent years, having beaten Rutgers in 2004 (35-24), Northwestern in 2006 (34-17), Marshall in 2007 (48-35) and Army last season (28-10).

UNH will play at Ball State this season and at the University of Pittsburgh in 2010.

College: CAA proving itself >> Harrisonburg Daily News Record

College: Gators have high hopes for Alli >> Palm Beach Post

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

John Trisciani called it a tough decision, and one he didn't have long to make.

Trisciani was preparing to enter his third season as Trinity High School's head coach when he received an offer to become the defensive line coach at St. Anselm College. He accepted the offer less than two weeks before Trinity was scheduled to begin practice.

"I had a very small window," Trisciani explained. "The toughest thing was the aftermath -- meeting with the players and coaches. My No. 1 concern was the (Trinity) program.

"There was no unhappiness with Trinity and I had no aspirations for college. It was either jump or don't jump."

St. Anselm begins practice Saturday, and will open its season Aug. 29 against Kutztown.

Trinity athletic director Gary Leonard will replace Trisciani as Trinity's head coach. Leonard was the head coach at Manchester West from 1992 to 2002. He also served as an assistant on Trisciani's Trinity staff.

Trisciani guided the Pioneers to a 4-4 record in 2007, when they played an independent schedule. Trinity finished 7-3 in Division V last fall. Trinity earned the No. 2 seed for the Division V playoffs, but lost to second-seeded St. Thomas in the Division V semifinals.

"I knew the next head coach was probably going to come from the (Trinity) staff," Trisciani said. "I'm in contact with these coaches. I don't see the program missing a beat." 

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

What has long been rumored was reported as fact by the Manchester Union Leader on Wednesday: Offensive lineman Josh Lane has parted ways with the University of New Hampshire football program.

According to the Union Leader, Lane told UNH coach Sean McDonnell earlier this week that he wouldn't be returning to the program. Lane redshirted last season and would have had four years of eligibility remaining.

It was the second hit the UNH offensive line has taken recently. Sophomore Jayson Elmore told McDonnell last week that he plans to give up football and transfer to a school in Pennsylvania.

After the Blue/White scrimmage in May, McDonnell said there was an excellent chance Elmore would start this season. Lane was among those expected to compete for playing time.

Lane played at Pinkerton Academy in Derry, where he helped the Astros win three Division I state championships. He was one of five finalists for New Hampshire's Mr. Football Award following his senior season. He also represented New Hamshire in the 2008 Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl.

  University of New Hampshire junior quarterback R.J. Toman is one of 20 players on The Sports Network's Walter Payton Award watch list.

The Walter Payton Award is given annually to the most outstanding offensive player in the Football Championship Subdivision.

Toman (pictured), who was recently named the Colonial Athletic Association Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, became the starting quarterback for UNH in 2008, replacing 2006 Payton Award winner Ricky Santos, and threw for 3,110 yards and 28 touchdowns. He completed 65 percent of his passes.

Toman was also a threat on the ground, with 219 yards rushing and six TDs. He helped lead UNH to a CAA North Division title and the NCAA playoffs. He finished the 2008 season ranked seventh nationally in passing efficiency and 17th in total offense with 256 yards per game. Toman passed for a career-high 309 yards and four touchdowns in a 51-43 win at Rhode Island. In 2007, in his only game as a starter, He also came off the bench for an injured Santos and keyed a 35-30 victory over Delaware with 98 yards and two touchdown passes.

UNH will begin is 2009 season Sept. 5 when it faces St. Francis in Durham.

High School: Wotton represents New Hampshire in Canton >> Foster's Daily Democrat

CFL: Santos learning virtue of patience >> Bellingham Country Gazette

High School: Brewer steps up for Gilford >> Laconia Citizen

Here are the 2009 enrollment figures for each NHIAA varsity football program:

DIVISION I

Pinkerton Academy (3,331)
Nashua South (2,287)
Salem (2,263)
Manchester Memorial (2,165)
Manchester Central (2,159)
Nashua North (2,054)
Concord (1,877)
Londonderry (1,827)
Manchester West (1,809)

DIVISION II

Spaulding (1,768)
Keene (1,762)
Dover (1,671)
Exeter (1,654)
Merrimack (1,593)
Timberlane (1,590)
Alvirne (1,518)
Winnacunnet (1,324)
Bishop Guertin (885)*

High School: WR skipping senior year >> SI.com

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

The University of Florida coaching staff knew Proctor Academy's Stephen Alli was going to be a Gator, they just didn't know it would be this soon.

Alli, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound wide receiver who originally planned to spend a fifth year of high school at Proctor, will instead leave for Florida on Tuesday and join the team when it begins practice on Thursday.

"They asked him if he would be interested in joining the team mid-year," former Proctor Academy coach Chuck Reid said. "Proctor said they wouldn't allow him to graduate mid-year, but they would allow him to graduate now because he had enough credits.

"He's an outstanding student. He was being recruited by several Ivy League teams hoping he would fly under the radar.

"The one-in-a-million thing is that Florida had a scholarship that they didn't use this year. What's he going to say? 'I don't want to play with Tim Tebow and compete for a national championship?' He had the opportunity to graduate early and all the stars aligned."

Alli averaged 27 yards per catch on 13 receptions last season, when he helped Proctor finish 8-1. Seven of his 13 receptions were TD catches. He scored at least one touchdown in six of the eight games in which he appeared.

Alli played football in Canada before he enrolled at Proctor last year. He was one of 17 players in Florida's 2010 recruiting class.

Reid, who resigned from Proctor earlier this year to become the head coach at Loomis Chafee in Windsor, Conn., said the Florida coaching staff told him there's a chance Alli won't be redshirted.

"It'll depend on his development this year," Reid said. "They see him with a tremendous amount of upside because he's played so little football. They're really excited about him."

College: Wildcats getting ready for football >> Manchester Union Leader

New Hampshire Football Report is currently seeking sponsors for the 2009 season. The site offers sponsorship options that can be obtained via email upon request.

All sponsorships include a logo that would link to a company's or organization's web site. A special rate is available for booster clubs and other team organizations that would like to promote their team on New Hampshire Football Report. Team logos can be created if necessary.

If you would like to promote football in New Hampshire by becoming a sponsor, or if you know of a business that might be interested in becoming a sponsor, please contact New Hampshire Football Report publisher Roger Brown at rbrown@nhfootballreport.com. These sponsorships help cover the costs of maintaining a free site.

New Hampshire Football Report is looking for a varsity football player to write the site's Varsity Insider column for the 2009 season.

The column will cover topics related to the player's team (comments on previous game, upcoming opponent, etc.) and will run once a week throughout the season. Each column should be between 300-500 words in length. For reference, check the archives for Reed Spiller's Varsity Insider columns from the 2007 season or Ben Stallman's Varsity Insider columns from the 2008 season.

Final statistics from Saturday's Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl:

NEW HAMPSHIRE (40)

Total offense: 349 yards

Rushing

Andy Vailas (Bishop Guertin) 10-67 1 TD
Nick Barnes (Plymouth) 10-61
Ray Boulay (Keene) 16-65 1 TD
Justin Morgan (Con-Val) 7-37 1 TD
Gallagher Hogan (Portsmouth) 6-33
Chris George (Pinkerton) 5-22 1 TD
Austyn Turner (Franklin) 2-12 1 TD
Jake Gingras (Newport) 2-6
Cody Anderson (Kearsarge) 1-3
Jermaine McDay (Keene) 1-1

Passing

Andy Vailas (Bishop Guertin)1-3-42 1 TD, 0 INTs

Receiving

Colin Brown (Concord) 1-42 1 TD

High School: NH takes the air out of Vermont >> Rutland Herald

High School: New Hampshire routs Vermont >> Seacoastonline.com

High School; Big win for 603 >> Foster's Daily Democrat

High School: Too many weapons for Vermont >> UnionLeader.com

High School: New Hampshire wins 9th straight >> Burlington Free Press

High School: It's a runaway >> Concord Monitor

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

WINDSOR, Vt. - There were a lot of people - media members, coaches and fans - who said they thought Vermont would give New Hampshire a good fight in Saturday's Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl, which means a lot of people were wrong.

In the end New Hampshire did what it usually does: Dominate on both sides of the football and post a lopsided victory. This year's final score was New Hampshire 40, Vermont 6.

New Hampshire led 21-6 at halftime, and ended any hope of a Vermont comeback by scoring on its first two second-half possessions.

"Everyone was saying Vermont was the better team this year," Bishop Guertin quarterback Andy Vailas said. "We kept that inside us. We prepared very well throughout the week and we were a tough team today."

High School: Spread may stop New Hampshire's streak >> Burlington Free Press

High School: Vailas follows family tradition >> Nashua Telegraph

High School: NH will put up air defense >> Concord Monitor

High School: Vermont 'D' needs 'A" game >> Rutland Herald

High School: NH out to extend streak >> Nashua Telegraph

High School: It's another big game >> Manchester Union Leader

High School: NH preps for challenge >> Laconia Citizen

High School: Locals ready for Shrine game >> Foster's Daily Democrat

af2: Wolves fall in playoff opener >> Manchester Union Leader