XTRA: XO Insider

By Roger Brown
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Updated: October 18, 2016

Justin Grassini/Joe Marchilena (nh-highschoolsports.com)

Some noteworthy items from Merrimack’s 68-29 victory over Pinkerton Academy on Friday night:

• It was the first time Merrimack has beaten Pinkerton since 1995, when the Tomahawks knocked off the Astros in the Division I semifinals. Manchester Central beat Merrimack in the Division I championship game the following weekend. Pinkerton beat Merrimack 14-7 during the regular season that year.

• Merrimack quarterback Justin Grassini tossed nine TD passes in the victory. According to the National Federation of High Schools Record Book, the national record for touchdown passes in a game is 15. That was set by Cozad (Neb.) High School’s Arthur Smith in 1921. The modern-day record for TD passes in a game is 10, and is shared by seven players.

Grassini threw for seven touchdowns in the first half, which is one shy of the national record. Chris Redman (Louisville Male) and Thomas Thrash (Pulaski Academy in Arkansas) share the record of eight. Pulaski Academy is the school that almost never punts, and usually attempts an onside kick following a TD.

Grassini has thrown for 30 touchdowns this season, which is five short of the state record set by St. Thomas quarterback Stephen Hedberg in 2014.

• Pinkerton’s loss eliminated the Astros from playoff contention. It’s the first time Pinkerton hasn’t made the playoffs since 2002, when the Astros finished 4-4 against New Hampshire competition, and 4-6 overall. Pinkerton lost to St. John’s Prep of Danvers, Mass., and Brockton, Mass., that season.

Concord, Salem, Central and Nashua were the Division I playoff teams that year. Central beat Concord, 3-0, in the championship game.

*****

Four of the University of New Hampshire’s top 10 tacklers are New Hampshire residents: Plymouth’s Jared Kuehl is third ( 38), Portsmouth’s Rick Holt is seventh (23), Plymouth’s Kyle Reisert in ninth (22) and Atkinson’s Michael Balsamo is 10th (21).

UNH (4-3) will travel to Towson (1-5) on Saturday. Towson is coming off Saturday’s 20-17 loss at Dartmouth. The Tigers had a 470-253 edge in net offense in that loss, and it was the third game Towson has lost by seven points or less.

The Tigers will be without senior running back Darius Victor, who was the Colonial Athletic Association’s Rookie of the Year in 2013, and surpassed 1,000 yards rushing in 2014 and 2015. Victor was injured in a loss at Elon, and Towson coach Rob Ambrose said he won’t play again this season.

“It is a turf toe that needs surgery,” Ambrose said.

Freshman running back Deshaun Wethington gained 145 yards on 27 carries against Dartmouth.

He’s one of the few healthy [running backs] we have,” Ambrose said.

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The marquee game on this weekend’s NHIAA schedule is Bishop Guertin (6-1) at Exeter (6-1) Friday night. The winner will likely be the No. 1 seed for the East/West bracket and won’t have to travel for the Division I quarterfinals or semifinals.

Exeter will secure first place in Division I East with a victory. If BG prevails, there’s the possibility that all four playoff teams from the East/West bracket could finish 7-2 (Dover, Exeter, BG and Nashua North).

Some other games with playoff implications this weekend:

Nashua South (4-3) at Portsmouth (4-3): Both teams need a win to avoid being eliminated from playoff contention. South will qualify if it wins this week and beats Dover next weekend. Portsmouth needs to finish the season with two victories and have either Dover or Nashua North lose their last two games.

Salem (6-1) at Goffstown (6-1): Both teams have qualified in the Division I North/South bracket, but the outcome of this game will go a long way toward determining the first-round matchups. Bedford (7-0) and Merrimack (6-1) are the other North/South teams that have qualified.

Bow (6-1) at John Stark (7-0): John Stark is currently No. 2 overall in the Division II standings. Bow is sixth. Both teams have secured a playoff berth, so this is about battling for home-field advantage.

ConVal (6-1) at STA (5-2): The winner of this game will finish in the top eight. Things will be dicey for the loser. ConVal will complete its regular-season schedule with a game against Windham, so even though the Cougars are 6-1, they are not safe.

Winnisquam (4-2) at Campbell (4-2) : Both teams are in good shape in terms of making the playoffs. This is another game that’s more about seeding.

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Entering Saturday’s home game against Framingham State, Milford’s Mitch Banuskevich leads Plymouth State in all-purpose yardage (495 yards). Banuskevich, a sophomore running back, has 274 yards rushing and 221 receiving.

Concord’s Jacob Szulc, a freshman wide receiver, leads the team in receiving yards (277).

*****

There’s a strong possibility that four of the eight playoff teams in Division I will open the postseason against the same team they faced on the regular season’s final weekend. Those possible matchups are Bedford/Salem and Goffstown/Merrimack.

Three back-to-back matchups are also possible in Division II: Hanover/John Stark, Plymouth/Milford and ConVal/Windham.