As we do in both basketball and football we hand over our championship game previews to the people that know the six teams better than anyone; the coaches who competed against them all year.

The following are scouting reports from coaches we spoke to using blind quotes.

 Our entire team of Pete Tarrier, Justin McIsaac, Jennifer Chick, Jon Kesty & I will bring you all the play by play, highlights and post-game interviews from all three championship games in Durham.

 Remember you can buy full game DVDs of any of the games we cover right here on our website.
 
 Division I

 Goffstown vs. Exeter

 Justin Hufft’s Goffstown Grizzlies is the rare team that can carry pre-season buzz all the way to the promised land. Sunday night they take the field one win away from a perfect season and a Division I title after years of competing in the lower divisions. Standing in their way is one of the marque programs in New Hampshire high school football and a Hall of Fame head coach who will go down as one of best that ever walked a sideline.

 In the final of our three scouting reports we asked Division I head coaches to breakdown Sunday’s championship game.

 First the top seeded Grizzlies. “They are very physical. I think that tends to get overlooked because (opposing teams) are so worried about (Casey) Gervais and (Connor) Bourque. We were good upfront all year long and they pushed us around when we played them.”

 “Defensively they are very physical and they fly to the ball. Their safety (Andrew Duval) was excellent when we faced them and they play great as a unit. They had a lot of buzz about them in the pre-season and they have seemed to carry that confidence with them all season long. Not arrogance just a belief in each other and what they can do as a team. Justin and his staff do a terrific job.”

 We asked another Division I coach how will Goffstown attack Exeter? “I watched Goffstown play Exeter a year ago and there was one play that really gave Exeter a lot of problems. Gervais will take the snap and put the ball in Bourque’s gut while he reads the defense, and on that particular day he was able to slide to one side and complete a slant pass behind the linebacker on four or five occasions. I’m sure that is a play the Exeter staff is looking at this week.”

 A fellow coach praised the Goffstown offense. “Justin does such a good job with that offense. The passing numbers aren’t what they have been in years past but I think that’s because they don’t need to throw the ball as much. If Exeter has a perceived weak spot defensively it is against the pass so it will be interesting to see if Gervais throws more often than normal on Sunday.”

 We then asked coaches to break down the Exeter Blue Hawks. “Defense is the strength of that team and they are just so well prepared. They faced Goffstown last year and I think Billy (Ball) and his staff will have something new for them this time around. A few years ago Exeter got beat on several long runs by Emmitt Smith (of Pinkerton) in a regular season game and then when they faced them again they bottled him up so he couldn’t get loose on the same kind of runs. I see them doing that with Connor Bourque this weekend. I think Bourque will have trouble getting around the corner against Exeter, if they are able to do that I think they will be in good shape. I also expect Mason Wallace to sort of shadow Gervais from the defensive line. They are just so well-schooled as a unit.”

 What about the Exeter offense. “Kyle Ball (starting QB) is a play maker. He has a spin move that absolutely leaves guys in the dust and he seems to make two or three plays a game out of nowhere. Most of his passes come inside the 25 yard line. They will move the ball down the field with the running game and then once they get boxed in a little with the short field they will have him throw the ball. That is why he has such a high ratio of touchdown passes to completions. He does have a tendency to over throw his receivers, I’ve seen him miss Hunter Long a few times, so that is something to watch for.”

 Another coach talked about Exeter’s program and experience. “They are the standard as far as football programs in the state, along with Pinkerton. Beyond winning it is how they play and how they carry themselves. They are a smart football team that rarely ever beats themselves with penalties.”

 So who wins on Sunday?

 The coaches couldn’t agree but did come to the same conclusion. “I think it is going to be a terrific game.”

A fellow coach talked about the match-up he was most excited to see, “It is the Goffstown offense against the Exeter defense. Two great units and something has to give.”