For the past seventeen seasons, we have handed our football championship previews over to the coaches who know these teams better than anyone, the coaches who faced them during the season.

 We asked four head coaches to break down top-seeded Campbell and third-seeded Inter-Lakes Moultonborough and defending champion Pelham versus Souhegan using blind quotes.

 Our championship scouting report is brought to you by our longtime partners at Buffalo Wild Wings in Manchester, Concord, and Nashua.

 The winning teams will have the option of having a championship watch party hosted by Buffalo Wild Wings.

 Pete Tarrier and Patrick Cogan will bring you all the coverage of the Division III championship game while Jennifer Chick-Ruth and I will bring you all the coverage of the Division II championship.

 

 Division II

 Final Division II Standings and Statistical Leaders

 (2) Pelham vs. (4) Souhegan

 Box Score of the regular season meeting

 Video Highlights of the first meeting

 The Pelham Pythons will look to win their third consecutive Division II title and fifth overall (they won back-to-back Division III titles in 2020 and 2021) when they face off with the fourth-seeded Souhegan Sabers on Saturday afternoon at Pinkerton Academy.

 We asked the head coaches we spoke to break down both teams and the match-ups, beginning with Justin Hufft's Pythons.

 "Pelham is tough, and they'll go after you. They come into games with an attitude, and that intimidates some of their opponents," said one head coach we spoke to.

 "(Justin) Hufft knows how to coach defense, and you can see that they have improved by the week on that side of the ball. Patrick Muise is their best player on defense, and in the secondary, Justin Bowlen and Nathan Migliore are excellent. They both make plays."

 "To me, the big match-up will be the Pelham offensive line against Souhegan's defensive line, and I give the edge to Pelham. You can run the ball on Souhegan."

 Another coach spoke about the weapons the Pythons have on offense.

 "Junior MacKinnon is the best player in our division. He's got speed to the outside and is tough to bring down on the first tackle."

 "They run him to the point where it's the focus of your defense, and then when you over-pursue, they run the counter on you."

 "You can see the origins of the Double Wing that John Trisciani had them running in the pre-season, but they have evolved into different schemes over the season under Justin. They have adopted some spread concepts, and the old Goffstown (where Hufft previously won a title as a head coach) power read/counter."

 "I wouldn't kick to Justin Bowlan. He's capable of swinging the momentum of the game with a long return."

 "Souhegan did a very good job against Plymouth, but Pelham is a tougher match-up for them. A long Plymouth run is fifteen yards. Pelham will break those runs for sixty (yards) because they have more speed."

 What about the Souhegan Sabers?

 "They have a dynamic offense, and their QB (Micheal) Fiengo has been great,"  said one head coach we spoke to. "He runs the offense the way Robin (Bowkett) intended, and he is much more of a threat with his legs than Romy Jain was last season."

 "Fiengo will make guys miss, and he runs the read option very well. I really like their receiver (Brody Smith) on the outside, and Brayden Hickman is a big receiver you look for in the red zone."

 "They are more balanced offensively than last season and look like a team playing with a lot of momentum."

 "When you're the underdog like Souhegan was at Plymouth and again this weekend, you take more chances. That helps them; they'll play looser.

 "The Souhegan defense has gotten better since Grant Harris came back. Luis Toledo has always been their best lineman, but Harris gives them speed on the edge. He's got to be the guy looking for MacKinnon on every run."

  Another head coach weighed in on the Sabers.

 "Robin is a great coach; they will be well prepared."

 "Fiengo gives you fits because if you pressure him, he dumps it down to a guy in the flat, and if you give him time, he finds a guy, or he can tuck the ball and run it himself."

 "Pelham will do a nice job in coverage; they have excellent speed in the secondary. I don't see Souhegan getting as many big plays as they did against Plymouth."

 "Nathan Migliore and Justin Bowlan are so good. I see them bottling up good receivers on film all the time. It was hard to get a read on them last week because Trinity didn't have their best player (Anthony DiGiantommaso)."

 "For Souhegan to win, they have to get off to a good start. I can see them winning, but I don't see them coming back if they fall behind 14-0 or 21-7."

 “ When Pelham faces adversity, you see them react to it. Finger-pointing, etc., but the key is getting them in stressful situations. If Souhegan has the lead late, that is something to watch for.”

 So who wins on Saturday?

 "I'm going with the upset and Souhegan's momentum. Sabers win it 28-14.”

 "I'm going with Pelham again. 28-21."

 

 Division III

 Final Division III Standings and Statistical Leaders

 Video Highlights of the first meeting

 (1) Campbell vs. (3) Inter-Lakes Moultonborough

 Glen Costello's Cougars will face Guy Donnelly's Lakers in a battle for their second Division III title in three years.

 We asked the coaches to break down both teams, beginning with the undefeated top seed.

 "It begins with the Hershberger brothers. An argument could be made that Scott is the best offensive player in our division, and Nick is the best defensive player."

 "(Scott) is worth the price of admission," said one of the coaches we spoke to. "He has speed, but to me, it's his toughness and vision. He reads the blocks in front of him and can beat you between the tackles or by bumping it outside."

 "They are very fundamentally sound in their blocking. Whether it is a down block or a guard pulling for them, they get in their spots and stick to their assignment."

 "They are well coached by Glen," said one of the coaches we spoke to. "He likes to put them in formations that make it tough on your defense. They will run the same plays but give you different looks, and when they see your secondary coming up too far, they'll look to throw it with their QB (Mikey Grace) or even one of the backs."

 "Scott Hershberger is phenomenal. It seemed like if teams contain him for four or five plays, he would burn you on the sixth play. Your defense has to be disciplined, and you cannot allow the big play."

 "Defensively, their linebackers do a nice job of setting the edge, and their secondary has a ton of speed. Brody Pinciaro is a really good young player; he gave us problems."

 "They have to get pressure on Alec Adorno. You can't let him sit back there and make throws."

 What about the Inter-Lakes Moultonborough Lakers?

 "They are a unique team to go up against because of how much they throw the football," said one of the coaches we spoke to. 

 "You prepare a certain way every week, and then when you play them, your linebackers are more focused on pass coverage than filling the running gaps."

 A fellow coach agreed.

 "The strength of their offense is it isn't about containing one guy. Brogan Donnelly is the best receiver we saw all season, and both Jacob Hayward & Wyatt Burhman are capable of beating you if you have to put your third cornerback on them."

 "Their defensive front is quick and very athletic. They went toe to toe with Campbell for about three-quarters the first time they faced them; I thought turnovers killed them."

 "The reason so many high school football coaches run the ball 80% of the time is that you are far less likely to fumble than you are to throw an interception. For Inter-Lakes Moultonborough to win, they cannot turn it over more than once."

 "Campbell makes you pay with the short field because they will go for it on fourth down and ask you to hold them to nine yards on four carries. Good luck with that."

 "That level of confidence explains why they will onside-kick. It may burn them once, but they trust their defense, and it's a statement on keeping the pressure on you."

 "O'Brien Murray, Jacob, and Garrett Hayward are all very good. I like the (Wyatt) Burhman and (Brogan) Donnelly kids, too," said one of the coaches we spoke to.

 "They need to mix in more runs and keep Campbell off balance. I can't see how throwing 35 passes wins the game."

 "When I-L beat us, it was because we could not get pressure on Adorno. They protected him, and they picked us apart. You need good defensive ends to go at him, and I think Campbell has them."

 How does Inter-Lakes Moultonborough pull the upset?

 "They'll have to play their best game of the season. Keep the game to six possessions each, and don't turn the ball over."

 "Make the big play, but keep Campbell from breaking those long touchdown runs."

 So who wins on Saturday?

 "Hershberger wears them down. Campbell 34-14."

 "Campbell 31-21."