Merrimack's Nathan, left, and Jonathan Sadia are thrilled to be playing in Friday's CHaD East-West All-Star Game, especially for the cause it represents. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

MANCHESTER – Think the color of Merrimack High School blue when it comes to this year’s Team West for Friday night’s annual CHaD East-West All-Star Football Game.

There’s definitely a Tomahawk feel to Team West, with Kip Jackson as head coach and lineman Nick Franqui, tight end Josh Ozog, plus brothers Jonathan and Nathan Sadia (backs), and lineman Colby Smith all on the roster.

Jackson is no stranger to this game, constantly on the coaching staff either as a head man or an assistant, and this year he’s running the Team West Show. As we reported here two years ago, community service is his middle name and it’s what he instills in his players. But don’t be mistaken, he likes the football, too.

“It’s an opportunity to kind of get your football fix a little bit earlier,” Jackson said. “Get to work with a lot of really good coaches, to learn. One of the reasons I want to do it is to learn from some of the great coaches we have in the state of New Hampshire and obviously for the kids, it’s just a wonderful opportunity.

“I want to be able to help them get through this experience.”

And thus all his players here are thrilled to be playing in this contest.

“I’ve been wanting to play in the CHaD Game since I heard about it freshman year, what it means to the community, what it means to the kids,” Smith, who will play at Plymouth State, said.

He knows moving in the game will mean a higher level.

“I think it’s going to be a big step up from high school,” he said. “Bigger, faster, I’m excited for the challenge.”

Then there’s Nathan Sadia, who played some defensive tackle and fullback.

“This game means a lot to me, because I’ve been put in the situation where you had to rely on other people to make sure changes are made in the road. I was hoping that by playing in this game we can help bring revenue into Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth.

“That’s the most important thing. I know there’s definitely parents out there that have different situations that need help. Money shouldn’t be a reason why kids don’t get help. ”

Sadia is going to New England College and will continue his football career there. He may be used at outside linebacker there, which will be new.

“I know I’m a little undersized for my position (5-foot-11, 225 pounds) but making that switch, it may bring out the more athleticism that I have,” he said. “I wasn’t surprised. I know they (the NEC staff) want the best for me and they want me to succeed. I’ve seen a lot of different players play at that position. I just want to learn from them. They want speed. Speed kills. We’re working on that. This is just a small milestone on what I want to work on.”

JoJo Sadia said when he went with the team to visit the Childrens Hospital, he saw the amount of hours that all the people who work there put in.

“It’s crazy, because it really touched me, they’re putting in their own personal time toward the kids,” Sadia said. “It just means a lot to me and it means a lot to the kids too.”

He’s been to the game to see his cousins, former Nashua South standouts Josh and Jason Compoh play. “Just a great experience,” he said. “I know why they played, and it just kind of touched me. I always wanted to play in this game, it instilled that passion to keep going, keep grinding to get better.”

And he’s moving on in the game, headed to UMass Dartmouth in the fall and will be playing more football. This game is a springboard to that.

Franqui, meanwhile, was enamored with this game after taking a tour of the Childrens Hospital.

“They were saying that the revenue we make from this game doesn’t just impact the kids directly, but it also helps easing the kids into the treatment they have,” Franqui said. “Get them better, more suitable living (during treatment), easier so it gives them a better time, more comfortable conditions.”

Franqui was “ecstatic” when he found out he had made the CHaD Game, as Jackson called him right before the team banquet. He played defensive tackle and Merrimack and will likely do the same thing here.

“Defensive tackle’s a small position,” he said, “but they can make a great impact. Just being able to fight in the interior.”

Franqui will be going to Wentworth to compete as a thrower (shot put, discus) in track. So this is it for football.

“I like it’s kind of individual in a way,” he said of track and field. “You work on yourself. It’s all self-improvement, it’s what you put into it is what you can get out of it.”

And, in typical Tomahawk fashion, they all will get something out of playing Friday night