We are back with the Thursday Thoughts, ranking the best teams from all four divisions and looking ahead to Week 3 of the regular season.

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In Division I:

 Brian Pafford of Portsmouth-Oyster River, Ryan Francoeur of Winnacunnet, Jimmy Lauzon of Londonderry, Zach Matthews of Bedford, Tarek Rothe of Alvirne, Steve Abraham of Salem, Jack Byrne of Windham, Ryan Francoeur of Winnacunnet, Eric Cumba of Dover, Kevin Hebert of Spaulding, Bill Ball of Exeter

In Division II:

Keith Jones of Milford, Chris Lones of Hollis-Brookline, Robin Bowkett of Souhegan, Chris Sanborn of Plymouth, Chris Childs of Lebanon, Josh Marzahl of Gilford-Belmont, Kevin Fitzgerald of Timberlane, Bob Polish of Bo & Chris Childs of Lebanon

 

 On Friday night, we will be out covering three games:

 Colin O'Neil & I will be in Milford for a huge Division II showdown when Lebanon squares off with the Spartans.

 Pete Tarrier & Jennifer Chick-Ruth will be in Salem when the Blue Devils face the Pinkerton Academy Astros.

 Spencer Coronis, Brandon Bojarsky & Ian Melewski will be in Peterborough for a Division III match-up between Con Val and the Monadnock Huskies.

 

Division I Standings & Statistical Leaders

 

Week 3 Power Rankings

1. Exeter- The Blue Hawks slide up into the top spot after being at #2 a week ago. Jake Wiberg was the standout last week with five touchdowns, but it's the defense that has really impressed me. It's a game at Manchester Central this week before the 2021 version of the game of the year vs. Winnacunnet….and we will be there for that one.

2. Winnacunnet- We were just talking about you; Winnacunnet…the Warriors have the look of a team that can win the state championship 21-14 in November. This defense is elite.

3. Pinkerton Academy- Are the Astros' contender' good or 'champion ship-level' good? We are going to find out over the next nine days. First with a trip to Salem, then Londonderry comes in for Mack Plague weekend on the 24th.

4. Londonderry- It's as much the way they have gotten to 2-0 as the teams (Merrimack & Nashua South) they have beaten. Jimmy Lauzon has always coached quarterbacks very well, and Aidan Washington is continuing that legacy. They also enter a big two-game stretch against both Pinkerton and….

5. Bishop Guertin- They own the win of the year to this point with their Saturday night victory over Salem. Matt Santosuosso was outstanding, not only at QB but with a team-leading 12 tackles against the Blue Devils and John Trisciani is doing a terrific job coaching this team.

6. Salem- I wouldn't panic if I were Salem, and I'm guessing they haven't. This is a veteran team led by Steve Abraham & an excellent coaching staff, and I think it will be difficult for anyone to go undefeated this season. Just too many good teams. A win over Pinkerton takes the sting out of the Week 2 loss.

7. Goffstown- After a week off, and not a bad time for extra practices, the Grizzlies get back at it against Manchester Memorial (trap game alert!) before a showdown next Saturday against Bedford.

8. Bedford- Give Zach Matthews' team a lot of credit; they bounced back from the Winnacunnet loss in a hurry and in convincing fashion. Joe Mikol stole the show with four touchdown throws and two scores on the ground. Can Bedford match the speed of Portsmouth and beat them on the line of scrimmage?

9. Portsmouth-Oyster River- Quarterback Will Hindle looks like the real deal, and the Clippers get their measuring stick game tomorrow night at home against Bedford. They haven't faced a physically dominant team yet, that changes tomorrow night.

10. Dover- The Green Wave drops from #5 but edges out Nashua North. Eric Cumba's team needs to get right against Concord & Spaulding before a showdown with Winnacunnet in Week 5.

Dropped out: Nashua South & Nashua North

 

Division II Standings and Statistical Leaders

Week 3 Power Rankings

1. Lebanon- The Raiders are a little concerned their starters haven’t played four quarters in two games, but they’ll go the distance against a tough Milford team on Friday night.
2. Timberlane- Very difficult to critique a team that has outscored its first two opponents 84-0. I can’t wait to see the Owls play up in Plymouth next Saturday.
3. Milford- I don’t think the Spartans can win a game in the ’30s against Lebanon, and I’m pretty confident they know that. They need to keep Jackson Stone and the Raiders off the field as much as possible, force some turnovers, and win it in the 21-17 range. I am really looking forward to covering #1 vs. #3 Friday night.
4. Plymouth- It’s going to be a very emotional game at Bow on Saturday..
5. Souhegan-A young team went into Milford and had to prove they could be a Top 4 level team in November. Mission accomplished.
6. Hanover-Sam Cavallaro’s team took care of business against Manchester West. Seamus Murphy is again in the mix for the rushing title, and their ability to switch gears when Roger Lucas comes in to play quarterback is throwing teams off.
7. Bow- The Falcons stay right at #7. Saturday will be about honoring Nick & Gavin Ouellette and dedicating their season to them both.
8. St. Thomas- This team will get better by the week, and I think they’ll be a very tough out come November…if they can get there. Liam Sullivan & Tyler Leedberg have led the Saints ground attack.
9. Gilford-Belmont- Riley Marsh’s two interceptions led to a 28-7 win over Pembroke last week. They need to take care of business against Kingswood before facing Lebanon, Timberlane, and Kennett in consecutive weeks.
10.  Kennett- A loss at St. Thomas on Friday makes it a very, very tough climb to the playoffs…a place where Kennett seems to end up annually.

 Dropped out: None

 

Division III Standings & Statistical Leaders

Week 3 Power Rankings

1. Pelham-No Python running back had more than five carries in the 54-7 road win over Laconia.
2. Monadnock-We’ll be at Con Val on Friday night to see the Huskies face the Cougars. The October 2nd match-up with Trinity will tell us a lot about both teams.
3. Trinity- They didn’t look a year away against Inter-Lakes Moultonborough last Friday night. The Pioneers will run Devohn Ellis and James & Peter Thibault at you until they wear you down.
4. Campbell- Inter-Lakes-Moultonborough will get a healthy diet of Garrett Arnold & Scott Hershberger running the ball on them Saturday afternoon. 
5. Stevens- The Cardinals pick-up win #1 over Winnisquam 35-8…..two big home games back to back against Laconia & Kearsarge….both are toss-up games….do not let Playoff Paul get in…

 Dropped out: Laconia

 

 Division IV Standings and Statistical Leaders

 

 Week 3 Power Rankings

1. Newport- Karter Pollari was terrific (154 yards rushing) in the 36-0 win over Bishop Brady. Next up is Franklin before a showdown with Fall Mountain next week.
2. Somersworth- The Hilltoppers get ready for a trip to Mascoma on Saturday as two Top 5 teams square off.
3. Fall Mountain- Josh Devore led the way in a season-opening 32-6 win over Raymond.
4. Mascoma- We’ll know more about the Royals after Saturday.
5. Epping-Newmarket- They have outscored their first two opponents 90-10, but we are holding out judgment until we see what they can do at home against Fall Mountain this weekend,

  Dropped out: Raymond