Division I

 North/West Bracket

(4) Nashua North at (1) Goffstown

 Second meeting of the season between these two teams as the Grizzlies beat the Titans 35-6 back in Week 3 of the regular season.

 Dante Laurendi’s team has only lost one game since and comes into this one with what they believe is a clean slate. North has developed a very strong backfield tandem in Devin Leonard and Jordan Buckmire, with Leonard better between the tackles and Buckmire your home run hitter off the edge. If Goffstown scores 35 points again they are moving on, Saturday the Titans defense needs to hold Goffstown to field goals and keep Bourque from running a punt or kick back for seven points. The hope as the lower seed in a game like this is to stick around long enough to cause the favorite to start to get tight.

 For as good as Casey Gervais, Bourque, Andrew Duval and Franklin Castillo-Diaz have been for the Grizzlies offense this has become a team that can win playoff games behind their defense. Damian Jackson and Ian Routhier have played at an all-state level at linebacker while Zach Comeau and Justin Wanner lead an excellent secondary. Jack Nordin is among the Division I leaders in sacks. The task on Saturday afternoon is to slow a very good Nashua North running game and preserve their home field advantage for a semifinal showdown next weekend.

 (3) Bedford at (2) Bishop Guertin

 Highlights of the first meeting: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=og0lWzl5Wfg
 Bedford lost only one game all season, a six point loss to the only undefeated team in Division I on the road no less, but still has to go on the road in the first round Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs beat BG 43-22 in Week 3 in a game we covered and hope their top ranked defense led by Bobby Heald and Danny Flynn can slow down an offense that has gone for over 50 points in a game five times this season.

 For all the talk about the Bedford defense Derek Stank’s team boasts the highest scoring team in the Division (something tells me the analytics geeks would love this Bedford team). Nick Leahy has found the end zone a division high 20 times and Connor Robert has been tremendous in his first season as the starting quarterback.

 Twenty one points isn’t going to win this game Saturday, expect the defenses to tighten up but the team in the 30’s will be moving on.
 
 South/East Bracket

 (4) Timberlane at (1) Pinkerton Academy

 Box score from first meeting: Pinkerton vs Timberlane

 Remember that first time you hit a home run in Little League? (pretend you hit a home run in Little League)

 Imagine a few weeks after that jubilant moment someone telling you, ‘That’s great, now you need to go do it again.’ That is what Timberlane faces this weekend when they take on The Evil Empire (Darth Vader’s words not mine) in Derry Saturday afternoon.

 Pinkerton Hall of Fame head coach Brian O’Reilly pointed to a pair of very big Astro turnovers in the first meeting as a major factor in his teams defeat. It must be noted, if James Tulley doesn’t jump on a late Exeter fumble last Friday night he would be launching a lacrosse ball around the gym today.

 Assuming everyone takes care of the football Saturday it comes down to a pair of very good defenses: Pinkerton led by Mike Curley and Tulley amongst others while the Owls feature the brothers Hall; Austin and Travis. There are playmakers galore; Jacob Post, Tyler Furey, Brett Dattillo, Nick Coombs and a pair of quarterbacks in Jason Hughes and Ryan Albrecht who take care of the ball and can make plays with their arm or legs. Each team features a strong kicking game in Hughes and Kyle Cantalupo.

 Anywhere you look this is an even football game that can go either way. Should be a good one in Derry Saturday afternoon.

 You can listen to the game LIVE from the game you are at Saturday by tuning into Nick Anastos and Mike Beliveau on our partner station ESPN NH on the Tunein Radio app or 1250 and 900 AM.
 
(3) Salem at (2) Exeter

 Box score from first meeting: Exeter vs Salem
You would expect a grind it out affair when two very good defenses square off and that is exactly what we got in the Blue Hawks 14-10 win earlier in the season.

 It wouldn’t be Salem without a little controversy, Justin McIsaac wondering whether Salem high school was built on an ancient Indian burial ground may have something to it, and in Exeter’s win there was the question of whether the Blue Hawks benefited from extra time being left on the clock.

 This game is the toss-up you’d expect and the more I think about our radio conversation last Saturday with Brian O’Reilly the more I think he hit the nail on the head when he said any one of eight teams could be the last team standing. I’m dubious on one of those teams getting through the gauntlet they face but for the seven other teams it’s going to come down to who makes plays over the next three weeks. The team that loses this game Saturday is good enough to win it all and in years past when it felt like Pinkerton and everyone else, what more could you ask for?