QB duo leads talented West all-stars into Saturday’s CHaD East-West Football Game

Nashua High School South’s Sean Holland and Bedford’s Connor Robert are Exhibit 1A and 1B for why Team West is once again considered the favorite heading into the seventh CHaD East-West All-Star Game at 1 p.m. Saturday.

The quarterbacking duo is expected to rotate by quarter at Wildcat Stadium on the University of New Hampshire campus in Durham, with Holland getting the starting nod in the first and third quarters and Robert closing things out in the second and fourth.

Both are dynamic with their arms and legs, and know how to run Team West’s spread offense with precision.

That’s something West coach Eric Brown (Concord) is hoping adds up to another win for West in a series it leads 4-2.

“Those guys both display great leadership and athleticism,” said Brown, who is coaching in the game for the second time (first as head coach). “They came from a similar system to what we do, so the transition was simple. Terminology is a little different, but they picked it up quickly. But yeah, those guys are definitely leaders for sure.”

Holland and Robert have plenty of toys to play with offensively.

Leading the way are the last two New Hampshire Gatorade Players of the Year in Goffstown slot receiver Andrew Duval (2017) and Plymouth running back Garrett Macomber (2016).

“There’s been a lot of hype about that,” Brown said. “I’m sure that alone is a motivating factor for the East.”

Add Merrimack slot receiver Joe Eichman and Bedford running back Thomas Norfleet to the mix and the big play potential is off the charts.

Holland is certainly liking what he sees heading into Saturday.

“All these guys on our roster are really good kids and great athletes,” Holland said. “A good amount of us come from a spread background, so it’s a bunch of kids on the same page that have picked everything up really quick.”

East coach Craig Kozens says West’s offense can hit the home run every play. That mean’s his defense needs to attack to give his squad the upper hand.

“We are playing that role of underdog and know we need to do something special,” East coach Craig Kozens said. “We need to get a big play, a big turnover, something has to happen. That’s the mentality we have. We need to make our own destiny, create those turnovers, and create things that are going to create an advantage on our end.”

Likewise, West’s 4-4 defense is prepared to hold the East in check. To accomplish that goal, Brown is leaning heavily on his safeties – namely Plymouth’s Nolan Farina and Duval.

“We’ve been steadily improving every day at practice,” Brown said. “You look at quarterbacks on offense as the go-to, well on defense, for us, that’s our safeties. Those are the guys making all the calls for us.”

In the end it comes down to execution on both sides of the ball.

“We are ready on both sides of the ball,” Holland said. “We’ve done all we can in practice and need to take what we’ve worked on in practice on to the field.

“We’ll get together on game day and do the best we can to get the outcome we want.”