The State of Football: Week 4
St. Thomas coach Eric Cumba and his Saints will play a key Division V game against Somersworth this weekend. Photo courtesy of Cody Smith photography.
Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com
Non-league games that carry significant meaning are rare, but we do have one this weekend.
Rivals Exeter and Winnacunnet will meet Saturday at Exeter High School in a game that won't count in the Division I or Division II standings, but will mean plenty to each community.
An Exeter player was once asked if he would rather win a state championship or beat Winnacunnet, and without hesitation he chose the latter. He may have been caught up in the moment, but to even suggest that one regular-season victory would carry more meaning than a state title gives you an idea of how real this rivalry is.
"Everyone knows the importance of the game," Exeter coach Bill Ball said. "It doesn't have to be stated."
A year ago Winnacunnet entered ithe Exeter game with a 3-0 record and had already established itself as one of the best teams in Division II. Exeter limped in with a 1-2 record (0-2 in Division I) and was struggling to stay competitive. Winnacunnet overcame a 14-point deficit to win that matchup 35-28 in overtime.
This year the roles are reversed. Exeter will bring a 3-0 record into Saturday's contest, and Winnacunnet is trying to avoid its third loss in four outings.
"A year ago we were 1-2 at the time and trying to find our identity a little bit," Ball said. "Probably our best effort of the year was down there. We couldn't quite finish the deal.
"This year's Winnacunnet team impresses me up front. They have good size. Quarterback is efficient. They mix the run and the pass well.
"I think defensively, what I've seen, they've been victimized a little bit by the big play. They do a good job with their interior run defense."
Winnacunnet has battled injuries all season, and Saturday will be no different. Winnacunnet coach Ron Auffant said he expects running backs Ben Franzoso (knee) and Bryan Tarantin (ankle) to play, but middle linebacker Mitch Lapierre will likely miss the game while recovering from a concussion suffered in last Friday's 28-0 loss to Dover.
"We're hoping we'll get him back next week," Auffant said. "It's one thing after another."
Auffant said Winnacunnet's performance against Dover raised a lot of questions about his team.
"It was an embarrassment in terms of effort as far as I'm concerned," he said. "Poor performance, poor coaching -- it was awful. And it was worse on film.
"I can't guarantee much, but I will guarantee we will give a better effort against Exeter. No depth chart was posted this week. Whoever practices the best will play on Saturday. We're gonna answer some questions on Saturday -- and we have a lot of questions."
It will be the second -- and final -- non-league game for each team.
"The game means a lot around here," Ball said. "No question about that."
At any rate, with the utmost confidence ... this week's selections:
Bedford 35
Pembroke 13
Bedford scored 62 points last weekend. That's a lot of points during running time.
Milford 28
Con-Val 7
The Spartans better get a victory this weekend. Their next five games are against Portsmouth, Bedford, Souhegan, Goffstown and Hollis-Brookline.
Souhegan 21
Hollis-Brookline 14
Could the Sabers lose three in a row?
Portsmouth 42
Pelham 13
After last Friday's game Con-Val coach Greg Leonard called Portsmouth "a team with no weaknesses."
Timberlane 21
Alvirne 7
Owls have more offensive punch than the Broncos.
Bishop Guertin 28
Merrimack 13
If all the Merrimack residents who play in this game played for Merrimack, it would be a very competitive contest.
Dover 35
Spaulding 0
Dover's 28-0 triumph over Winnacunnet may have been the most impressive win in the state last weekend.
Keene 28
Manchester West 6
Blackbirds rarely lose in September.
Exeter 21
Winnacunnet 10
Blue Hawks are at home, and they happen to be playing some pretty good football.
Concord 21
Londonderry 7
Both teams desperately need a victory.
Manchester Central 28
Nashua North 14
Central should win as long as its defense shows up.
Nashua South 38
Manchester Memorial 35
Should be plenty of offense in this contest. South has scored 95 points in its three games, and Memorial has scored 89. The teams allowed a combined 85 points last weekend.
Pinkerton 28
Salem 21
Definitely the marquee game in Division I.
Inter-Lakes 28
Epping-Newmarket 14
Winner of this game becomes the clear favorite in Division VI.
Mascoma 20
Farmington 8
Farmington offense has been held to eight points in its three games.
Frankin 36
Raymond 6
Franklin seems to have rebounded from its Week 1 loss to Epping-Newmarket.
Gilford 35
Winnisquam 14
Franklin 42, Gilford 14? Didn't see that one coming.
Newport 35
Newfound 6
Newport ends its two-game losing streak.
Hanover 21
Kennett 20
You can toss a coin to pick the winner here. Should be a good one.
Monadnock 35
John Stark 13
Monadnock is quietly putting together a pretty impressive resume.
Merrimack Valley 36
Kingswood 13
Kingswood is allowing an average of 48 points per game.
Laconia 28
Lebanon 7
Raiders will score this weekend, but they won't score enough.
Trinity 28
Plymouth 14
An unbeaten falls.
Campbell 35
Bishop Brady 6
Cougars stretch their winning streak to three games.
Bow 22
Windham 20
Not much separates these teams. Windham's a little better on offense. Bow has an edge on defense.
Kearsarge 34
Fall Mountain 13
Kearsarge has to win this one if it expects to be a playoff team.
Stevens 28
Sanborn 20
Cardinals collect their first victory.
St. Thomas 28
Somersworth 19
Saints have too much offense.
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Last week: 25-4
Record to date: 69-15
Roger Brown covers high school and college football in the Northeast for ESPN/Scouts Inc. His column, The State of Football, appears each Friday throughout the season.
