Telegraph photo by HECTOR LONGO After a huge week and a quarterfinal win over Milford, Alvirne's Kyle Boucher and the rest of the Broncos are set for Saturday's Division II state semifinal at Plymouth.

HUDSON – In an offense like Alvirne High has, so run-oriented with so many diverse weapons, receivers are often asked to sacrifice or block or just wait their turn.

When Kyle Boucher’s number got called on Saturday at Milford, the senior played it like it was the final football game of his life.

Why? Well, it could have been.

“That pushes us to want to win even more. We know if we don’t, it’s our last game. We want to end on a win, especially after last season,” said Boucher, who caught five balls for 128 yards (doubling his season yardage output) and a pair of touchdowns in the playoff-opening win. “Our coaches are always saying, now that it’s playoffs, don’t let this be the last game you play. End the season on your terms, no one else’s.

“The four years playing football have been so fun. I don’t want it to end.”

Saturday, Boucher and the 26 other Broncos’ seniors get to do it all over again as they travel to Plymouth for a semifinal showdown with the sixth-seeded Bobcats.

Bronco fans might recall that these two teams met in the Division II state finals at UNH a year ago. So yes, they are fairly well-acquainted.

The Alvirne players certainly remember the loss to Plymouth.

“We had two one-point losses and that was the difference between us being the No. 7 seed that we are now or (potentially the No. 2 seed),” said Boucher. “I think we’re as good as anyone. We have a lot of seniors, a lot of experience. Most of the seniors in my grade started as sophomores.

“Last year we had more of a chip on our shoulder. It was our first year in the division, and we didn’t know what to expect. This year after losing in the championship last year we know we want to get back there, and that’s our goal.”

The 6-foot-2, 180-pound Boucher is a unique target among the Broncos’ fine receiving corps that includes Paul Manzi, Grady Hudson, Morgan Williams and Ayvion Prak.

“He’s very tall. He makes a lot of crazy catches,” said Alvirne QB Kyle Gora. “He gets up over kids that you would not expect him to and he knows how to get his feet in bounds,.

“His ability to go up and catch high balls, make plays in the end zone. That’s what he does.That trust, the ability to know he’s going to come down with it when we need him to, that’s what we get from him.”

Boucher plays rec basketball in the winter and saw his baseball pitching career end early with elbow problems.

His life at Alvirne has been the classroom, where he just turned a 3.4 gpa for the first quarter, and the football field.

Four years of high school football are nearly done.

“Coach has always said don’t take it for granted, live in the moment,” said Boucher, who is contemplating a career in law enforcement, either through the military or on the college route. “It just flew by.”

He’s enjoyed a couple big performances in the playoffs against Milford, including last week.

“It’s fun when the ball comes your way. It’s nice knowing that, but if it’s someone else, I’d be just as happy,” he said.

Boucher said the impetus for last week’s upset of the Spartans was borne in the 36-35 defeat, just one week before.

“We were down two scores with three minutes left. The coaches just say don’t give up. We’re always in the game, no matter how much time is left,” said Boucher. “We take that to heart. We made a comeback and lost by a point. That just made us push harder in practice. We knew we needed to win. We’re still here.”

And now Boucher and the Broncos look to carry that attitude to Bobcat Country, a place where road-team wins are pretty rare.

“We’re ready,” said Boucher. “Like I said, we’re still here.”

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