We talked to the people that know these two teams better than anyone in putting together our championship game preview; two head coaches who faced these teams during the season.
 

Division I
Pinkerton Astros at Concord Crimson Tide

 We talked to the people that know these two teams better than anyone in putting together our championship game preview; two head coaches who faced these teams during the season.

 First the opposing coach’s views on top seeded Concord:
“Offensively they have it all; size, speed, strength…we just found we had no way of slowing them down when we faced them. When we came into the game we decided we wanted to take away one of their biggest weapons so we worked to stop (WR) Seimou Smith, and we actually did a good job doing that. Problem was there were just too many other guys capable of hurting us.” A fellow Division I coach agreed that Eric Brown’s offense is one of the best he has seen in years, “We knew they could run the ball behind (Wally) Ndi and (Leo) Sudeih but we were surprised at how well they passed the ball. Robbie Law was very smart with the ball and made all the throws you need your quarterback to make. It’s pick you poison with them. They hit the hole fast when they run the ball and when you meet them to try and wrap you up they have the ability and strength to make sure it’s a minimum of four yards a carry.”

 What did the coaches think of Concord’s defense? “They fly to the ball; quick passes are a key to execute because they get there quickly.” Both coaches agreed this is a Concord team that is difficult to run on, “They are strong against the run, tough to get yards up the middle on but even more difficult to get around the edge on. I saw the Exeter game last weekend and I thought Exeter had some success running up the gut but more often than not when they tried to go outside they did it with very little success. We had success during the season when we spread them out and made quick reads but Coach Brown said after the game that they saw some holes in their own defense and that they would adjust. From what I’ve seen they did.”

 The coaches also broke down Brian O’Reilly’s Pinkerton Astros. “The offensive line is what beats you, just the sheer size of those players, and they can move too. Manny (Latimore) is just tremendous, we thought we had him trapped behind the line of scrimmage only a few times but every time we did he got out of it and turned it into positive yards. That and their pure size can really wear away at your defense over the course of the game.” Another Division I coach agreed the running game was the key to beating Pinkerton. “They just ran all over us, simple as that. I think their passing game isn’t as strong as it has been in recent years though, in the past they would set you up for a big play in the passing game but this year when they tried it we were able to get back and make a play. If Concord can get up a few scores in the second half Pinkerton might have trouble overcoming that.”

 Video of the first Pinkerton/Concord match-up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z10YAaWVB6Y&feature=c4-overview&list=UUYsYojuTC26gXnZ1DhkR9TA

 The two coaches we talked to gave a lot of accolades to the defense and one player in particular. “Matt Madden is just tremendous, boy he killed us. You try and run away from him and there he is, they have a lot of good ones over there but he is the best defensive player I’ve seen in New Hampshire.” Other coaches agreed, “Their linebackers are very aggressive towards the ball but they do a good job of not over-pursuing. They are sound technically and so it is tough to get them so far out of the play that they cannot recover. Madden is a monster, I didn't realize how big he was until we were on the field warming up and I thought ‘Oh boy this kid is going to be tough to deal with.’”

 The two coaches agreed again on the fact that the two best teams in Division I have made it to the final Saturday. “I think Pinkerton wins it because I see their size eating away at Concord over four quarters. One thing is for certain these are the two best teams and I see a fantastic game taking place Saturday.”