Every year I hand the analysis of the championship games over to the people who know these teams better than anyone; the coaches that faced them during the regular & post-season.

 I spoke to nine football coaches from all three divisions asking them to break down the three title games. These are blind quotes, the coaches will not be named, giving you the best insight available into how the games at UNH on Saturday might play out.

 

 If you are unable to make it to UNH on Saturday you can listen online to all three games on both The McIsaac on Sports Network and ESPN NH

 Listen Live

 Justin McIsaac & I will call the Division III championship game on MOSN while Pete Tarrier and Bishop Brady defensive coordinator Chase Phaneuf will call the game on ESPN NH.

 I will then move on over to ESPN NH to call the Division II & I title games with Pete while Justin will have Eric Cumba of St Thomas join him for his broadcast.

 In other words we’ve got you covered..and it all begins at 9 am with the New Hampshire high school football show which you can listen to live right here on our website.

 We will have play by play and highlights of all three games plus the post-game interviews with the winning entire team.

 

 Division I

 Exeter vs Bedford

 We asked four different Division I coaches to break down Exeter’s chances of knocking off undefeated Bedford Saturday night under the lights at UNH.

 How will Bedford defend Bill Ball’s Exeter offense?

 “ First and foremost you better be ready to be tough and play disciplined against that (Blue Hawk) offense,” noted one coach we spoke with. “ If you don’t keep your pad level low you are going to get knocked off your spot and that is how they grind you down five or six yards at a time.”

 Another prominent head coach called Bedford’s defense against the Exeter offense the match-up of the day. “ I think for Exeter to win they’ll need to have the ball for big chunks of the game. So how (Bedford) is able to defend is going to be interesting to see. If Exeter is punting and playing for field position then they are going to be in trouble because I think Bedford is going to score in this game.”

 So how do you defend Exeter? “ You need to take the fullback up the middle away, because if you don’t they will build off of that and really get their Wing T (offense) going and break it outside.” The theme with every coach we spoke to was discipline when it came to defending Exeter. “ The key is being focused on every single play because they will bore you with their repetition but the one time you don’t have the lanes filled they beat you with it. (Kyle) Ball will run through his fake every single time so you need to have him accounted for because trust me, the one-time your defense doesn’t he is going to still have the ball and will be blowing by you up the sidelines.”

 Another coach brought up what could be a concern to coordinator Sean Donahue’s Bedford defense. “Bedford’s secondary is very good in coverage, maybe the best team we saw all season. They don't tackle very well though and that’s something to watch against Exeter, who isn’t going to throw the ball very much.”

 A fellow coach agreed. “ I would agree with that assessment, at the same time teams that run the football 90% of the time tend to struggle in coverage, especially against spread teams. What I find with my team is I can get a player who does well in coverage but he can’t tackle. Does that hold true for Exeter as well?”

 How about Exeter’s ability to defend Bedford?

 “Connor Robert is a very good quarterback,” praised one coach. “ They ask him to make some tough throws and he is able to do it. The other tough part about defending Bedford is that he will throw to guys that are covered and they can still make plays. When we played them Noah Chaberek was a very tough match-up. He goes and gets the ball.”

 “ Bedford does a very nice job running the football out of the spread,” said one Division I rival, “ and you don’t always see that kind of balance.” A fellow coach talked about the different looks Exeter will see on Saturday, “ They will line up in different formations and even hand it off to their slot receiver. That gives them multiple run threats and that is difficult to defend.”

 What will be the keys to watch for on Saturday?

 “I thought Jimmy Lauzon (Londonderry head coach) was absolutely right when he said on your radio show that Merrimack would have been a very bad match-up for Exeter. Bedford though is a team they will match-up well with. Bedford is the favorite, their undefeated record dictates that, but this should be a very good football game.”

 Another coach went back to Exeter’s ability to defend Bedford. “ The Exeter secondary is going to have to make plays. That will be a key, the other is the fact that both Timberlane and Central were able to really produce yards running the football against Bedford. Exeter runs the ball as well as any team in Division I. So that will be something to watch for as well.”

 

 Division II

 Bow vs. Plymouth

Box score of the first meeting: Plymouth 28, Bow 12

 

 We asked head coaches to breakdown seventh seeded Bow in their match-up against fourth seeded Plymouth.

 How will Bow match up against Plymouth?

 “ With Plymouth it is all about Garrett Macomber (who ran for 270 yards in the first meeting). When we played Plymouth we loaded the box to slow him down.,” said one opposing coach. “ Chris (Sanborn) seems to really be on a hot streak as a coach. He will line up in different formations, throw backside and even use #14 (Anthony Velez) on some sweeps to keep Bow off balance.”

 Another coach talked about Plymouth’s ability to surprise you at the right time. “ They threw the ball more against (Windham) than anyone thought. The key for Bow is getting that offense off the field. Plymouth will go for it on fourth down any time they are over midfield and so you have to be ready to play disciplined because they do a very good job of finishing off their blocks.”

 A Division II coach talked about the momentum Plymouth brings into the game. “ They have knocked off the last two champions on back to back weekends. They have a big time playmaker in Macomber and their kicker (Danny Carey) is coming off a game where he should have a lot of confidence after making some very big kicks.”

 “(Plymouth) is on such a high right now that if they keep their heads about them they’ll have the clear edge on Saturday. They are a team that is disciplined but plays aggressively. That wins you games in November.”

 How will Plymouth match up against Bow?

 “(Bow head coach) Paul (Cohen) does a nice job jumping from one formation to another, so you have to prepare for different looks. I would bet Plymouth is preparing the kids for a lot of different formations they will have to line up against.”

 Another coach talked about the versatility of the Bow offense. “It’s easy to call this a match-up of two Wing T offenses but Bow will throw the football and the tight end (Nate Alford) is a difference maker. The Plymouth linebackers will have to be sure they don’t get caught watching the backfield because Bow will throw the ball over their heads.”

 A Division II head coach talked about the Plymouth defensive line. “ We had seen (Plymouth) on film quite a bit before we played them so we thought we had a pretty firm grasp on what they were capable of. When we played them though they were much more difficult to contend with. They have stocky players but they also move their feet really well for big kids. They were a lot quicker than we gave them credit for before the game.”

 A fellow coach agreed and pointed out one Plymouth defender in particular. “ When we played them we had no answer for #61 (Rowan Drew). He was a monster, we couldn’t block that kid and he gave us fits all day.”

 Finally the coaches talked about the keys to Saturday’s game, which include the atmosphere. “ Going from a high school field to a college stadium with a jumbotron and press boxes is a giant step,” pointed out a coach who had been there before. “ How the kids handle the setting at UNH, and not getting caught looking around, will be an important factor in who wins the game.”

 

 Division III

 Stevens vs Inter-Lakes Moultonborough

 Video highlights of the first meeting (registered users only)

 Box score of the first meeting: Inter-Lakes Moultonborough 57, Stevens 12

 We asked Division III coaches….

 How will Stevens fare in their rematch with the Lakers on Saturday?

 “ I saw (film) of that first match-up and I think Stevens just really had a bad day. Inter-Lakes Moultonborough (IL-M) has enough size that they usually are able to move the other team but Stevens is very physical as well, “ said one opposing coach. “You have to be very tough to go into Monadnock and win. I think you will see a very different Stevens’s team this weekend.”

 How will the Stevens offense attack IL-M?

 “ I think (IL-M) is susceptible against the run. Stevens should try to get (Richard ) Bell going and then pick & choose their times to throw the ball deep,” suggested a coach who faced the Lakers this season. “Henri Bourque is a really good quarterback with a big arm. If they can draw enough attention from the defense to get Parker Smith in one on one coverage down the field you take those shots all day long.”

 “Stevens turned the ball over seven times in the first meeting,” noted one coach we spoke with. “ That is not happening again. I think if IL-M goes in thinking they are going to walk over Stevens they are in big trouble. This will be a very different football team they’ll face Saturday.”

 A fellow coach talked more about the Lakers defense. “ They are quick and they make up space in a hurry. I was impressed with their defense when we played them. One thing we were able to do was get them to jump off sides a few times by mixing up the snap counts.”

 How will Inter-Lakes Moultonborough attack Stevens?

 “ Ryan Kelly is a very good quarterback. I know they focus on running the ball, and why wouldn’t you with Andrew Brothers, but Kelly makes some very tough throws and he makes very good decisions with the football. I think he’s pretty impressive.”

 A fellow coach agreed, this is a very good offense that head coach Jon Francis brings to UNH on Saturday. “ Offensively they do everything well and they will give you multiple sets to get the match-up they want. When we played them Zach Swanson was a real problem and the other tight end (Jayden) Lara is a match-up nightmare as well because either player doesn’t need to be open for Kelly to get them the ball.”

 Another coach talked about the Lakers offensive line. “ They are a big physical line, especially for Division III. As a whole that offense is quick & aggressive. They will take their shots downfield and on 3rd and 6 they can go to Swanson or get the ball to Brothers in space. That’s a very difficult combination to stop.”