Top Five Football Games in 2022

At times, the 2022 football season was unpredictable, and thanks to that, it led to some exciting games throughout the regular season and playoffs.

The following are the five best games I saw in person this year. There were many others that I wasn’t able to attend, and if you’d like to share yours, please feel free to do so in the comments.

No. 5: Campbell 16, Trinity 14 (Nov. 12)

Campbell completed its revenge tour of 2022 with this two-point win in the Division III championship game, dominating time of possession to beat Trinity. Scott Hershberger had both touchdowns and two-point conversions for the Cougars and came up with the tackle on the Pioneers’ failed conversion that would have tied the game.

No. 4: Merrimack 24, Bedford 21 (Oct. 28)

Merrimack picked up the program’s first ever win over Bedford behind a dominant performance from its offensive line and running back Reimello Hyde. The Tomahawks spent the first half going on a couple of long drives to take an early lead and did enough in the second half to maintain that lead. The Bulldogs recovered an onside kick late to get a chance to win the game, but a turnover on the final possession ended it.

No. 3: Pinkerton 28, Windham 27 (Sept. 3)

On one side, there was Pinkerton, one of the most storied programs in the state and a perennial title contender. On the other was Windham, coming off a one-win season and falling behind 21-0 in the first half of the season opener. When the Jaguars scored on the final play of the first half, it felt like too-little, too-late, but it turned out to be a momentum changer. Windham rallied to tie game at 21 in the second half and was driving with a chance to take the lead late before a fumble wrapped up the Astros’ win.

No. 2: Bedford 15, Londonderry 14 (Nov. 26)

How could a championship game won on a last-second field goal not end up on this list? While it wasn’t the cleanest game played – seven turnovers and 15 accepted penalties combined – it was entertaining throughout the day. And on top of it all, it was capped by something you don’t see too often in high school football: a successful two-minute drill. Bedford started its final drive down two points, on its own 11-yard line with one timeout left and 2:08 remaining on the clock. Colby Snow gave the Bulldogs their only lead of the day with a 27-yard field goal with 13 seconds remaining.

No. 1: Nashua North 35, Bishop Guertin 28 (Oct. 21)

Editor’s Note: Highlights from this game were featured in an episode of The Season: Bishop Guertin Football. 

How could anything top the D1 championship game? Feature the insanity of the final two minutes of this game between Bishop Guertin and Nashua North, that’s how. After the Cardinals scored to take a 28-22 lead with 2:11 to play, they failed on a two-point conversion. It looked like Bishop Guertin’s defense might hold after a sack left North facing a long second down, but Derek Finlay hit Jack Peters for a 61-yard touchdown with 1:26 remaining. The Titans were an extra point away from taking the lead, but the kick was wide left. The Cardinals got the ball back, but couldn’t do anything with it and were forced to punt. A low snap helped give North the ball back at the Bishop Guertin 7-yard line and Amaury Almonte scored the game winning touchdown on the next play with 42.5 seconds left.