Nashua South will be taking food donations on Friday night at the huge Division I city clash vs. Bishop Guertin at Stellos Stadium. (Graphic courtesy of Nashua Athletics)

NASHUA – The Battle of the Bridge is always a hyped football game with city bragging rights on the line.

Friday night, we may have something even better.

How about a Week 6 battle between two Division I city teams?

That’s what we’ll get at Stellos Stadium on Friday night between Bishop Guertin (5-0, 4-0 Division I ) and Nashua South (4-1, 3-1 Divison I).

The points could be off the charts.

“I hope it’s a high scoring game in terms of us scoring points,” Guertin coach Anthony Nalen said, wincing at the task ahead. “It’s a short week, they’re coming off a Friday game we had a Saturday game. We’e got to turn the clocks back pretty quick. … We’re going to give it a go and see where the chips fall.”

Oh there are plenty of chips between the two. South scored 49 this past Friday at Keene and BG 51 vs. North on Saturday. There you go, an even 100.

South was dominant, leading at Keene 41-0 by halftime of a 49-7 win. Like BG they have playmakers galore, with some constants (QB Cody Jackson, receiver Josh Tripp) but the thing Friday was the Panthers got Sam Levine in a feature spot as he rushed or 115 yards and three TDs.

In the win over North, the Cards featured multiple skill players, with the constant being QB Nate Bowen and receiver Rocco Roy. “Being able to lean on different kids at times helps,” Nalen said. “We’ve got a lot of guys who have been with us for awhile. So when you’re in there making adjustments at halftime or on the sideline, they understand what you’re saying. That didn’t happen the first two years.”

GAME WILL TACKLE HUNGER

Friday’s South-BG will also be part of th WMUR New Hampshire Tackles Hunger program, and food donations will be accepted at the stadium to support the Nashua South Food Pantry.

Monetary donations may also be made, see the graphic with this story.

NOT EASIER FOR NORTH

The Titans jump from the frying pan (BG) into an inferno (at Bedford) on Friday. The Bulldogs are 5-0 and blew past Exeter 42-7. This one will end a tough four-game stretch of Merrimack, South, BG, Bedford, as they close out the Division I schedule at Portsmouth-Oyster River and home vs. Keene. Penalties hurt the Titans on Saturday.

“We had seven or eight in the first half and it’s hard to be behind the sticks,” North coach Chad Zibolis said. “That’s so hard to come back behind the sticks, especially when you’re (facing) a fast defense and a team that plays well, tackles well, and flies around the field.”

North wanted to get running QB Harrison Joshi going but being behind didn’t help. And the times they did do it, any constant gains would be interrupted by the massive Bishop Kearns on the BG defensive line.

“They clogged that up really well, they’ve got Bishop there in the middle,” Zibolis said. “He’s a really good defensive lineman, he’s tough to block.”

SMILES FOR ALVIRNE, HB

Friday was a huge night for the Broncos of Alvirne and the Hollis Brookline Cavaliers, each with their first win. The Cavs win had more historical significance since it ended a 27-game losing streak. Their last win came early in the 2022 season.

Cavs coach Pat Gendron said his team just needed to play with more confidence, and they did that Friday night. He saw some good things, believe it or not, in a 50-0 loss to Pelham last weekend. He also saw some things in a 12-point loss to Milford the week before.

“At Milford a few weeks ago they knew they were probably the better team,” he said. “But they played timid and scared. … We realized we needed to play tough football and not bow out when times get tough.”

They have a shot to get a win streak going, as 1-4 ConVal comes to Hollis on Friday which should make for a competitive game and then the Cavs are at current winless Pembroke, which has scored just six points on the season.

As for the Broncos, Friday night’s win was big for senior back Mike Landmesser, who experienced the joy of a Division I playoff win last year, the first in program history, to a season with inexperienced players who started out 0-4.

“Obviously you have a bunch of juniors and seniors come in that don’t have much varsity experience, that’s how it’s going to be,” Landmesser said. “You’ve got to get your feet on the ground and start running. It starts in August, June, July, during the summer.”

It was the school’s first ever Blackout Cancer Night, drew a big crowd that was spread all over the facility. Alvirne coach Justin Hufft said some 450 T-shirts were sold during the week, etc. Big success, and the football team’s 28-14 win over Manchester Central added to it. Football, for at least this week, was fun again at Alvirne.

“It was a great environment,” Hufft said. “That’s the Hudson community. The cause means a lot to the Hudson community, they love their kids, love athletics, and that’s what we’re trying to build here. … Football’s the greatest game in the world. It’s fun. It’s fun going to practice. Back to work.”

Unfortunately that means preparing for unbeaten Pinkerton on the road Friday.

This was just a portion of the large crowd at Alvirne Friday night for the school’s first ever “Blackout Cancer” Night with the Broncos playing Manchester Central, one of a few athletic events there. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

SOUHEGAN KEEPS MOVING FAST

What more can the Sabers do? They rushed for over 400 yards thanks to QB Brody Smith and back Ryland Raudulenas and an offensive line that has controlled the line of scrimmage all season, for the most part. “That’s big time,” Sabers coach Robin Bowkett said.

Now the Sabers move on to face rival Milford, and the Spartans took a step back vs. Manchester West on Friday after winning two straight.

Souhegan has to be careful not to look ahead. After Friday the next two weeks are huge, vs. fellow Division II unbeatens Plymouth and Pelham, both on the road.

OTHER GAMES

Other games this week: Campbell finally home (four of first five were on the road) vs. Epping-Newmarket Saturday at 11 a.m.; Merrimack, now 2-2, are at Keene that day at 1:30 p.m.