Vermont and New Hampshire Clash for a Cause in Saturday's Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl

The annual all-star showdown between Vermont and New Hampshire returns to Castleton with defensive dominance, roster talent, and a powerful mission to support Shriners Hospitals

Sydney Perkins photo

Defense determines the winner of the Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl, the annual all-star high school football game between New Hampshire and Vermont. At least that’s been the case in recent years.

The Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl winner hasn’t allowed more than nine points in four of the past five games. That includes shutout victories by New Hampshire in 2021 (21-0) and 2022 (7-0).

Rules Loosened, But Defense Remains Strong

That defensive dominance is somewhat surprising since, unlike many all-star football games, Vermont and New Hampshire are not restricted in the number of offensive formations they can use. Years ago the Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl head coaches were forced to reveal their offensive formations to one another, but that is no longer the case.

Lockerby Confident in Vermont's Defensive Grit

“Defense always comes together quicker than offense, but I don’t know much of anything about New Hampshire’s offense,” Vermont coach Bob Lockerby (Bellows Falls) said. “We don’t know what we’re gonna face for offensive formations. I do know we have some very talented defensive ballplayers who are hard-nosed and know how to go to the ball.

“I think it’s like any football game. Turnovers are always huge. Field position is always huge.”

A Game With Purpose: Supporting Shriners Hospitals

This year’s game will be played Saturday (11:30 a.m.) at Vermont State University-Castleton, and the proceeds benefit Shriners’ Hospitals in Springfield, Mass., Montreal and Boston. Each team has been practicing at Castleton since Sunday.

“Money is being raised for the right reason,” Lockerby said. “It’s just tremendous what the Shrine organization puts together for these kids to have this experience along with raising money and helping the Shriners at the hospital. It’s something you would hope they will never have to consider not doing.”

New Hampshire Has History on Its Side, But Vermont Is on A Streak

Vermont has won the last two meetings, but New Hampshire leads the series 50-18-2.

Concord High School’s Jim Corkum is New Hampshire’s head coach. Corkum played in the 2003 Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl, a 37-7 New Hampshire victory.

“It’s going to be about the foundation of good defense, which is getting off blocks and tackling,” Corkum said. “I feel good about that side of the ball. They’ve been doing good all week.

“If we can play well, play crisp and not turn the ball over I think we’ll be all right. It’s a short time to prepare for a single game. I think a lot of it comes down to who makes fewer mistakes.”

Both Teams Bring Experience to the Sidelines

Lockerby guided Vermont to a 19-0 victory in the 2017 Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl. He has also been an assistant on the Vermont coaching staff twice.

“Having some experience really helps as far as preparation beforehand,” Lockerby said. “You learn that you only have so much time to get things in and you can easily overstimulate the  kids, and you can overwork them physically.” 

Dual Threats at QB for Vermont and New Hampshire

Ahmed Diawara (Burlington/South Burlington) and Hayden Boivin (North Country) are the Vermont quarterbacks. “Both are capable of running and throwing,” Lockerby said. “We plan to play both of them, but I think the game will dictate a lot of that (playing time). They both have their strengths, but they do have some similarities.”

Isaac Could Be Game-Changer for New Hampshire

New Hampshire will use Alec Adorno (Inter-Lakes/Moultonborough) and Brady Lover (Bow) behind center. The New Hampshire offense also has a big-play threat in slot receiver/defensive back Jameson Isaac, who was a late addition to the roster. Isaac, who will also return kicks, helped Pinkerton Academy win the Division I championship last fall.  

Tickets for Saturday’s game can be purchased by visiting shrinemaplesugarbowl.com.

It’s Bigger Than Football

“We’re all here because we love football, but I think at the end of the day when you see what the Shriners do you can see that there’s much more important things in life than football,” Corkum said. “At the end of the day it is just a game. Using your talent, your ability and your personality and other things you bring to the table to help others in need is a really good life-lesson for these players to learn.”

Vermont Roster

• Eli Allbee (Bellows Falls)
• Jacob Armstrong (Champlain Valley)
• Gabe Bache (Fair Haven)
• Tyler Benson (Burr and Burton)
• Angus Blackwell (Middlebury)
• Hayden Boivin (North Country)
• Aiden Boyd (U-32)
• Riley Britch (Mount Anthony)
• Carter Bunnell (St. Johnsbury)
• Jack Cady (Brattleboro)
• Carson Clark (Bellows Falls)
• Nick Daniels (Hartford)
• Ahmed Diawara (Burlington/South Burlington)
• Izaih Erno (BFA-Fairfax)
• Ty Ferguson (Fair Haven)
• Dylan Frere (Champlain Valley)
• Wyatt Fuller (Rutland)
• Jayden Garneau (Spaulding)
• Jayden Graham (Rutland)
• Corbyn Hayes (Mount Anthony)
• Sean Kennedy (Champlain Valley)
• Max Kyhill (Fair Haven)
• Coleton Merchant (Rice)
• Kymani Mignott (Essex)
• Tucker Morter (Middlebury)
• Devon Newton (Rutland)
• Darek Noyes (St. Johnsbury)
• Caeden Perreault (Woodstock)
• Hank Potter (Rutland)
• Josh Quad (Champlain Valley)
• Joe Reed (Essex)
• Haydn Richardson (Missisquoi)
• Caleb Scrodin (Champlain Valley)
• Tommy Sheldon (Burr and Burton)
• Austin St. Peter (Hartford)
• Dallas St. Peter (Rice)
• Thomas Vance (St. Johnsbury)
• Isaac Whitney (Otter Valley)
• Ethan Wideawake (Rutland)

Head coach: Bob Lockerby

Assistant coaches:

• Shawn Burke
• Ryan Stoodley
• Donald Laurendeau
• Shawn Burke
• David Capman
• Nick Lawrence

New Hampshire Roster

• Alex Adorno (Inter-Lakes)
• Kellan Bateman (Exeter)
• Tyler Bland (Exeter)
• Gareth Brown (Mascoma)
• Jacob Brown (Kingswood)
• Seth Cortina (Spaulding)
• Andrew Deely (Alvirne)
• Brogan Donnelly (Inter-Lakes)
• Jedidiah Duquette (Merrimack Valley)
• Will Fagan (Portsmouth)
• Nathan Galbraith (Concord)
• Jackson Greene (Exeter)
• Jackson Hall (Bow)
• James Healey (ConVal)
• Jameson Isaac (Pinkerton)
• Ethan Lewis (Mascoma)
• Brady Lover (Bow)
• Tyler Medeiros (Plymouth)
• Kenneth Mercado (Concord)
• Ethan Motyl (Merrimack)
• Keegan Murphy (Hanover)
• Cooper Perkins (Gilford)
• Caiden Paolucci (Portsmouth)
• Kai Reitnauer (ConVal)
• Zach Richardson (Stevens)
• Jaxon Rineer (Plymouth)
• Andrew Rodriguez (St. Thomas)
• Angelino Rodriguez (Concord)
• Tyrese Ryder (Kingswood)
• Dino Savvas (Pinkerton)
• Liam Shannon (Plymouth)
• David Souther (Pinkerton)
• Ashton Taylor (Gilford)
• Caden Tucker (Laconia)
• Dillon Tufts (Londonderry)
• Brett Tuttle (Concord)

Head coach: Jim Corkum

Assistant coaches:

• Ryan Daniels
• Guy Donnelly
• Dave Levesque
• Cory Woodsome
• John Daley
• Mike Abiraad

-- Roger Brown | @603SportsMedia