TRINITY HIGH is the best team in Division IV. Based on the unblemished record the Division IV state champion Pioneers take into Thursday’s holiday clash, they are perhaps best in the Queen City, too.

Central, care to dispute?

The Division I Little Green can make their case Thanksgiving Day, in Manchester’s 31st annual Turkey Bowl. Kickoff at Gill Stadium is 10:15 a.m.

Small-school Trinity (11-0) seeks perfection. Only Central (6-4) stands in the way.

“I think that gives a lot of fuel to the fire,” Trinity head coach Gary Leonard said. “Going into this one, I’m sure their kids would like to ruin our perfect season.”

More pressing, at least from Central’s side, is proving the final score from last year’s Turkey Bowl was a fluke.

Central won, 7-6.

Committing five turnovers inside Trinity’s 30-yard line — four inside the 20 — didn’t help the Little Green’s cause.

“It’s a D-IV team against a D-I team. That’s how everyone looks at it,” said Central senior captain Kyle Brunelle, sidelined for last year’s Turkey Bowl with a concussion. “I guess we’re all high school kids. But we’d still like to put the hurt on them, prove to them (Gill Stadium) is our home field.”

The head coaches for both teams agree on the key to victory. It’s whether the ground-and-pound Pioneers can run clock-chewing scoring drives.

Trinity trio Josh Hughes, Adam Chambers and Ryan Carrier combined for 2,000 yards rushing this season. Hughes accounted for nearly half those yards.

Of course, the Pioneers possess a less-discussed aerial attack as well. Quarterback Carmen Giampetruzzi and 6-foot 7-inch Andrew Lauderdale teamed for 380 of the offense’s 500 passing yards.

Defensive linemen Brunelle and PJ Tremblay, linebacker Malcolm Sutton, and defensive back Troy Pelletier, among others, must be disciplined against the double-wing.

As for Central, Hector Velez and David Weekly combined for 1,179 rushing yards. Wideouts Junior Brown and Jared Chandler have 1,182 receiving yards.

Riley Cote (1,709 passing yards) is one TD toss from 20.

“They’re 11-0. I think they’re the only team that nobody can say shouldn’t be here,” Central head coach Ryan Ray said. “When you go 11-0 ... it’s something that’s very hard to do.”

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FIVE OTHER games kick off Thursday at 10 a.m.

Division II finalist Dover (8-4) hosts Division III champion Portsmouth (8-3) at Dunaway Field.

“Portsmouth has always been very athletic and they are again this year,” Dover head coach Ken Osbon said. “What makes them so dangerous is that they also have size this year.”

Clippers who have Osbon’s attention include running back Billy Lane, signal-caller Billy Hartmann and defensive lineman Ricky Holt.

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DIVISION III Souhegan (6-4) of Amherst hosts Division II Merrimack (2-8).

It’s the 15th-and-final time the teams play on Thanksgiving. Souhegan decided to opt out prior to the 2011 season.

The Sabers lead the holiday series, 9-5. The Tomahawks won last year’s contest, 54-15.

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IT’S UNLIKELY, but possible, that Division I semifinalist Nashua South (7-4) heads into the offseason on a four-game losing streak.

Can Nashua North (4-6) knock off its rival at Stellos Stadium? The Titans lost to the Purple Panthers, 47-0, in Week 6.

“We want to play better than we did the first time,” said North head coach Jason Robie, calling upon D-ends Mike Lynch and Lyle Durant to set the edges. “A lot of teams don’t get a second chance. We do.”

North defensive ends Mike Lynch and Lyle Durant must contain plays on the edges. South’s John Bieren-led offensive line should make the task a tough one.

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DIVISION II semifinalist Spaulding of Rochester (5-5) should win big at Division V playoff squad Somersworth (6-4), right?

This may cause pause: The Hilltoppers own a two-game Turkey Day win streak against the Red Raiders.

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STAR RUSHER Jerickson Fedrick finishes a stellar career for Salem (7-4), which hosts Lawrence, Mass. (4-6).

Fedrick, unofficially, is three carries shy of 200 for the season and 56 yards from 1,500.

Marc Thaler covers high school football for the New Hampshire Union Leader & Sunday News. He co-hosts the “New Hampshire High School Football Show” on WGIR-AM 610 and the Seacoast’s 96.7 every Saturday from 7-9 a.m. Read his New Hampshire GameDay blog and follow him on Twitter: @marc_thaler. His e-mail is mthaler@unionleader.com.