IT'S BACK! The most electrifying listicle in sports today, Justin McIsaac’s Top 10! We've streamlined the voting process this year, only Justin McIsaacs can vote in the Top 10. Unless I just completely made that up. Anyway...

10. ABKARIAN THE LOAD

Over the last few years, when you think of Somersworth football, you generally think of Ray Mills running the ball. He’s one of those kids who seems like he’s been in school for 7 years (there should be a “Connor Walsh Tribute Award” for the one kid each year that holds this distinction).

But Ray’s had company this year, in the form of Christian Abkarian, who, with Mills out Friday at Raymond, scored 4 times  - 2 rushes, 1 punt return, and a reception for a TD as well. Other than that,  Abkarian didn’t do much. Once Mills is back in the lineup, the ‘Toppers will have their Thunder and Lightning backfield back in action, and they’re going to be a dangerous duo the rest of the way.

9. HAVE YOURSELF A DAY, TREVOR KNIGHT

Former Nashua South Panther, and current UNH Wildcat QB Trevor Knight went out of his mind crazy against Rhode Island on Saturday, throwing for 420 yards and 3 TD’s in UNH’s bounce back win. URI played a lot of zone coverage, and Knight just picked it apart. UNH is 3-1 and looking to get to 4-1 next week when they take on Bryant, which would set them up nicely going into a brutal 2nd half of their schedule.

8. BIRD FLU

Well, not a flu, but even worse, STAPH! Keene and BG had to push their game to Monday after some of the members of the Blackbirds came down with Staph Infections. Those are no joke, Staph ran through the Buccaneers locker room a few years back, and TB12 battled a nasty Staph Infection after his knee surgery.

Luckily it looks like everyone in Keene will be OK, and we’ll have our 2nd straight HS football week with an unusual start time and day – Sunday Night Football last week with Somersworth and Epping/Newmarket, and Monday Night Football this week with BG and Keene.

7. MY CON-VAL COUGARS ARE ON FIRE

4-0 for the first time since…. Ever? The Cougars had a great 6-3 season last year, but were on the outside looking in when the D2 Playoffs began, so they know there’s no room for error in D2. It looks like D2 will be the most entertaining division in the playoffs once again and CV wants to throw their hat in the ring this time around to try and get to Durham.

6. THE NFL WAS FINALLY ENTERTAINING

Two overtime games, a whole bunch of close ones, and the Lions getting screwed by the refs (a tradition unlike any other) – and points! Even the Giants scored points! (Not enough, but still). Not every week needs to have all barn burners, I’m perfectly happy watching someone take a 4 touchdown beat down, just as long as there’s some SCORING.

5. NEWPORT TAKES THE RIVALRY GAME

The Newport Tigers have designs on getting back to Durham, and they made a statement with a big win over rival Stevens, 35-14 at Barnes Park. Sophmore John Thibault scored 3 times for Newport, who looks to have a couple of games they should win before a huge showdown with Monadnock on 10/20.

4. TOM BRADY IS YOUR DADDY PART 235348

I mean, how many times have we seen this before? It didn’t stop me from swearing at the TV when the Texans took a 5 point lead, or when Brady fumbled on the winning drive, or 16 other times in that game, but when the chips were down you knew the GOAT was going to pull something amazing out of his hat (do GOATS have hats?).

We need to have a serious talk about the defense though, because they couldn’t stop a nose bleed on Sunday.

3. WIMMER WIMMER CHICKEN DINNER

I’m hoping that Sander Wimmer’s last name is pronounced kind of like “Winner” and not like “WHY-Mer”, because if it’s the latter my headline makes a lot less sense. However you say it, can you say “5 TD passes”? Because that’s how many Sander threw for Hollis-Brookline in a win over Merrimack Valley.  The Cavs are at 2-1 and could be in the mix for a playoff berth, especially if Sander keeps chucking it into the endzone.

2. THE BEACH BOYS GREATEST HIT (SO FAR)

Winnacunnet beat rival Exeter for the first time since 2012, a week after beating up defending champ Bedford. If you’re scoring at home, The Beach Boys (best nickname for a team in NH right now) have knocked of both of last years D1 finalists, and have done so in convincing fashion.

A Saturday home game vs Goffstown means Winny has no room to breathe, but if they can go 3-0 through this gauntlet they're currently in, I’m gonna declare them the favorite to take home the title in 2017. The only question is, how many spots behind Bedford and Exeter will they be in the power poll?

1. #TAKEAKNEE

If you follow me on twitter, you know I generally don’t #StickToSports, since real life is happening all the time, and I have a take on everything, be it health insurance, or just my dog farting. Generally the Top 10 is a politics and real-life free zone though. BUT, when President Orange Mussolini decided he had nothing better to do than (perhaps illegally) use the office of the President to tell NFL teams to fire (almost exclusively) black players for protesting social injustice, well, it’s getting the #1 spot.

A couple of things here: Nobody is protesting against the flag, or the anthem. I think that’s gotten lost. Colin Kaepernick chose that time to take a knee, because it was the only time he could really say “Hey, there’s some really effed up things going on in this country, specifically to people of color.”

Here’s where a lot of people might say “I JUST WANT TO WATCH A FOOTBALL GAME, YOU’RE THERE FOR MY ENTERTAINMENT, DANCE FOR ME!”. Well, sorry, NFL players are real people, with real feelings. I don’t feel that being an NFL player disqualifies you from having an opinion on racism and injustice.

And you know what? This was an issue that was losing momentum until President Baby Hands decided that you were, in his words, “Sons of Bitches” if you dared to protest in this way. He probably doesn’t even understand what the protests are about or why the protests were happening. He also might be trying to use this as a distraction from any of the 500 crooked things he’s doing at any one time. I don’t know.

But I do know this: It’s messed up that the President of the US can refer to people marching in a protest for White Supremacy as “Fine People”, and those protesting injustice as “Sons of Bitches”. Taking a knee now means even more than it did just a week ago.

ALSO RECEIVING VOTES: Spaulding was one score down to Bedford-  for a few minutes, 88 degrees in late September seems normal, Brandin Cooks is a beast, UMass gave Tennessee a scare