New Hampshire may not be going to the FCS playoffs this season, but there’s nothing the Wildcats would like better than to prevent Maine from going as well.

Maine (6-5, 4-3 Colonial Athletic Association) will travel to New Hampshire (5-5, 4-3) on Saturday in what will be the final regular-season game for each team. The Black Bears are riding a three-game winning streak and are hoping a victory over their rival will warrant a selection to the 24-team FCS playoffs. A loss would almost certainly end their season.

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“I’m really just worried about UNH right now,” Maine coach Nick Charlton said. “Obviously we’re very confident and feel the body of work would be enough (to earn a playoff berth), but we have to find a way to get a win against a really good football team this weekend.”

New Hampshire’s playoff hopes may have vanished with last Saturday’s 24-17 loss to Albany. The Wildcats have lost three of their last four games.

“I think the motivation for this game kind takes care of itself,” UNH interim head coach Ricky Santos said. “We’re not worried about going to the playoffs. We’re just trying to get better this week, and trying to put some pieces together and try to find a way to play a complete game in all three phases. The seniors know how important this game is for this program.

“At the end of the day, for us, we want to send the seniors out the right way.”

New Hampshire has a 55-44-8 edge in the series with Maine. The Wildcats had won eight games in a row until Maine prevailed 35-7 last season. The Black Bears haven’t won back-to-back meetings with the Wildcats since 2001 and 2002. 

“There’s no secret we don’t like them [and] they don’t like us,” New Hampshire defensive lineman Robbie Schumacher said. “It’s a rivalry game. It’s for the musket. It’s Maine. I’m not really worried about the playoffs at this point for us or them. Just beating Maine is what’s important right now.”

The Brice-Cowell Musket is awarded to the winner of the Maine-New Hampshire game each year. The musket is named after former Maine coach Fred Brice and New Hampshire coach William Cowell.

“This rivalry has meant a lot to me,” New Hampshire offensive lineman Jeff Carter said. “There are three teams I don’t particularly like, but Maine tops all three of them (he said James Madison and Dartmouth are the others). They’ve always had something about them I’ve never really cared for.”

Backup Plan

Maine wide receiver Jacob Hennie entered last Saturday’s game against Rhode Island with two catches for 23 yards this season, but he made five receptions for 52 yards in his team’s 34-30 victory.

Hennie’s role increased because senior Jaquan Blair was suspended for one game (violation of team rules) and junior Andre Miller was nursing a sore knee. His fifth reception covered 15 yards and moved Maine to the Rhode Island 11-yard line on what turned out to be the game-winning drive. Quarterback Joe Fagnano tossed an 11-yard touchdown pass to Earnest Edwards on the next play.

Hennie, a sophomore from Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., began his college career at New Mexico before transferring.

“He came up big,” Charlton said. “Joe has a lot of comfort throwing him the ball and knowing he’s going to do his job. Jake was waiting for his opportunity, it came and he did a really nice job.”

Zoned Out

New Hampshire’s struggles have primarily been on the offensive side of the ball this season. The Wildcats are averaging 19.4 points per game and enter Saturday’s contest ranked last among CAA teams in scoring offense.

Part of the issue has been a lack of production in the red zone. New Hampshire is 11th in the CAA in red zone offense with 20 scores in 27 trips inside the opponents’ 20-yard line (14 touchdowns and six field goals).

Home Cooking

New Hampshire will be trying to finish the season with a 5-0 record at home. The Wildcats have beaten Rhode Island (27-24), Duquesne (23-6), Elon (26-10) and Villanova (28-20) in Durham this season.

Bidding War

According to Maine athletic director Ken Ralph, the school has submitted a bid to host an FCS first-round playoff game if the Black Bears qualify.

The FCS selection show will take place Sunday (12:30 p.m.).