Butler, defense help Gilford knock off Laconia to win D3 football championship

EXETER – As a physical education teacher at Gilford High School, football coach Brandt O’Hara notices all the championship banners daily that adorn the gymnasium walls.

Not one of them was for the football program.

That will soon change, as his field of vision will likely zoom in on the impending banner Gilford earned on Saturday against rival Laconia.

While junior Liam Butler scored three touchdowns, fourth-seeded Gilford limited No. 2 Laconia to 177 offensive yards during a 20-6 victory in the Division III championship game at Exeter High School’s William Ball Stadium.

Gilford’s other title game appearances were losses to Pelham in 2007 (D5) and Newport in 2010 (D6).

“I see the banners every single day and I can not wait to see that one hanging up,” O’Hara said. “(Laconia) has gotten our number in the past, but it's unbelievable to come out on top in the biggest moment in high school and these kids deserve it.”

Butler ran for 68 yards on 13 carries and scored his first touchdown on Gilford’s opening drive from 5 yards out to give the Golden Eagles (9-2) a 7-0 lead with 3:15 left in the first quarter.

His score was set up following back-to-back completions totaling 37 yards from quarterback Mark Uicker to Lucas Raliegh and a 10-yard run by Lukas Diaz (18 carries, 75 yards).

“This feels incredible,” Butler said. “It takes a team, we needed everyone to execute this and we made it happen. I’m grateful for everyone who has helped us make it this far.”

Gilford held onto the 7-0 lead in the defensive struggle into the fourth quarter when Gilford’s 14-play drive stalled as Laconia’s 27-yard line. Two plays later, Butler intercepted Laconia quarterback Carter Jones and returned it 35 yards for a touchdown to give Gilford a 13-0 lead with 10:46 left in regulation.

“I was having a rough time out there, I let up a couple of passes, but I wasn’t going to let that happen again,” Butler said. “I had that in the back of my head that I wasn’t going to make the same mistake and I just made the play.”

After stopping Laconia (9-3) on the ensuing possession, Gilford threatened to extend the lead but Uicker missed a 35-yard field goal attempt with 5:03 remaining.

With his offense laboring to 97 yards by that point, Laconia coach Nick Ford dug into his bag of tricks in hopes of catching Gilford off guard and it worked. Jones deliberately skipped a pass off the turf behind the line of scrimmage to a split wide Tryon, and Gilford reacted as if it was an incomplete pass.

That left Ryan Walsh wide open for a 58-yard pass from Tyron down to Gilford’s 22. Tyron finished off the drive three plays later with a 5-yard scoring run to bring Laconia within 13-6 with 4:07 remaining.

“It’s called a skip pass and we actually put it in this week,” Ford said. “We were just trying anything at that point. They did a great job of locking us down for most of the game, so we were trying something different and it was the energy we needed.”

Laconia then narrowly missed recovering an onside kick, which gave Gilford the ball at Laconia’s 43. Butler wrapped up his touchdown trifecta five plays later with a 14-yard rush to give Gilford a 20-6 lead with two minutes remaining.

“I didn’t know it was possible, that was great play by them, but we made them pay for it,” Butler said. “It’s never over until that clock hits zero and they can always score. We had to put nails in their coffin and that’s what we did.”