American football on Thanksgiving

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Thanksgiving postcard circa 1900 showing a turkey and football player.

American football is one of the many traditions in American culture that is associated with Thanksgiving Day. Virtually every level of football, from amateur and high school to college and the NFL (and even the CFL on Canadian Thanksgiving), plays football on Thanksgiving or the subsequent weekend.

Contents

[edit] High school football

See also: List of high school football rivalries (100 years+) and List of high school football rivalries (less than 100 years old)

High school football games played on Thanksgiving are often called a Turkey Day Game or a Turkey Bowl (not to be confused with Turkey bowling), as Americans typically eat turkeys on Thanksgiving, although the title varies with each game. Most commonly these games are between high school football rivalries although in many cases, when poor weather requires a shorter season, the game can be the culmination of league play among a high-school league, in which the winners of this game will be the league champions for the year. The custom dates back more than 100 years and is particularly prevalent in the Northeast.

This list is sorted alphabetically, first by state, and then by school, with team leading the series listed first in most cases. If the rivalry involves two states, the rivalry is listed under the school whose state comes first alphabetically (e.g. a New Jersey-Pennsylvania rivalry is listed under New Jersey).

[edit] California

San Jose Big Bone Game
The only Thanksgiving high school rivalry game to be played west of the state of Missouri, this game dates to 1943 and is played in San Jose, California. The game pits Abraham Lincoln High School against San Jose High Academy. The "Big Bone" in question is the femur of a cow that was retrieved from a butcher shop. Lincoln leads the series 38-24.
San Francisco Turkey Bowl
Also in the San Francisco Bay Area, a turkey bowl in San Francisco dates back to 1924, has been played 85 straight years and is currently played at Kezar Stadium. The Turkey Bowl is the city's championship game. Lincoln High School's Mustangs have won the last 4 straight titles, a record streak for the game.[1][2]

[edit] Connecticut

Ansonia vs. Naugatuck
Ansonia High School and Naugatuck High School have played each other since 1900.

Hamden vs. Notre Dame West Haven The annual Green Bowl game that takes place every Thanksgiving.

Norwich Free Academy vs. New London High School
Said to be the oldest high school football rivalry in Connecticut and, in terms of games, one of the longest in the country.[3]
Shelton vs. Derby
Shelton and Derby have played each other since 1904.
Stonington vs. Westerly, Rhode Island
As of 2008, these two schools have met 149 times with Stonington leading Westerly 68-64-17. The two schools at one time played twice a year; hence, these two schools have played more games than any other high school football rivalry.[4]

[edit] Maryland

City's Kurt Schmoke (#10) attempts a pass at the City-Poly game on Thanksgiving Day, 1965
Baltimore City College (City) vs. Baltimore Polytechnic Institute (Poly)
In 1889, the game was played between City and Poly, then located on Courtland Street just a short distance from City. This led to one of the longest continuous public high school American football rivalry in the nation. In the early 1900s the game was played on Thanksgiving Day and when Memorial Stadium was built in 1954 the game was played there until the stadium was demolished in 2000. The games played at Memorial stadium during the 1960s drew an average of 25,000 fans. In 1965, 27,500 fans saw quarterback Kurt Schmoke and team captain Curt Anderson lead City to a 52–6 win over Poly. The Thanksgiving tradition ended in 1993 when both City and Poly joined the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association which held its playoffs during the Thanksgiving week, requiring both schools to move their rivalry to a date three weeks earlier. The game is now played at M&T Bank Stadium, in downtown Baltimore the first week of November. Anderson (City) and Baltimore attorney Warren Brown (Poly) have kept the Turkey Day tradition alive between the two schools by sponsoring a flag football game at 9am every Thanksgiving morning at Baltimore's Herring Run Park. For the past 30 years any former Poly student, football player or not, faces off against a team made up of former City students. Brown and Anderson no longer play, but their sons do.
Calvert Hall College vs. Loyola Blakefield
Calvert Hall College and Loyola Blakefield, two private high schools in Towson, Maryland have an annual football game played on Thanksgiving Day known as the "Turkey Bowl." The 89-year-old tradition is the oldest continuous Catholic prep-school football rivalries in the United States. It is broadcast locally on the local ABC affiliate, WMAR 2. The game is currently held in M&T Bank Stadium, home of the Baltimore Ravens. To date, The Dons of Loyola have the better Turkey Bowl record over the Calvert Hall Cardinals at 48-33-8.

[edit] Massachusetts

In Massachusetts, where high school football is not nearly the draw it is in other parts of the country, the Thanksgiving Day game is a long-standing tradition that brings out thousands of alumni and other fans. Virtually every school in the Bay State has a traditional rival and the holiday game is a focal point for all of them, no matter how unsuccessful the regular season may have been.

Beverly vs. Salem
Salem High School and Beverly High School have played each other since 1891.
BMC Durfee vs. New Bedford
New Bedford High School and B.M.C. Durfee of Fall River have contested this rivalry since 1893.
Chelmsford vs. Billerica
Chelmsford High School and Billerica Memorial High School have faced off against each other annually since 1927.
English High School vs. Boston Latin
The rivalry between English High School of Boston and Boston Latin School dates to 1887.
Fitchburg vs. Leominster
Leominster High School and Fitchburgh High School have played since 1894. As of 2008, it has been contested on Thanksgiving 103 times, out of 125 total matches.
Marlborough vs. Hudson
Marlborough High School and Hudson High School have played since 1904.
Medford vs. Malden
This rivalry has been contested since 1889.
Needham vs. Wellesley
The oldest high school Turkey Day Game rivalry in Massachusetts is between Needham and Wellesley, dating back to 1882.[3] Currently, Wellesley is leading the rivalry with 58 wins to Needham's 54 with 9 ties in the series.
Newburyport vs. Amesbury
Amesbury High School and Newburyport have officially contested this match since 1914, but there were also unsanctioned games dating back as far as 1891.
Newton vs. Brookline
Newton North High School and Brookline High School have contested this rivalry since 1894.

[edit] Missouri

Kirkwood vs. Webster Groves Turkey Day Game
The "Turkey Day Game" in Missouri between the Kirkwood High School Pioneers and the Webster Groves High School Statesmen had its 100th anniversary in the 2007 game (Kirkwood won 49–7), although not the 100th game, due to several games not played in the early 20th century. The game site alternates between Moss Field (Webster Groves) and Lyons Field (Kirkwood). Webster hosted the game in 2008.

The Frisco Railroad Company donated a 400-pound bell from a retired locomotive to be used as a trophy for the game. The winner of the game takes possession of the Frisco Bell for the ensuing year (first awarded in 1952). The loser receives the Little Brown Jug, which is inscribed with the final score.[5]

The term Turkey Day in both Kirkwood and Webster has grown to encompass not only the football game itself, but the festivities in the week prior to Thanksgiving Day. Both schools participate in extensive activities surrounding Turkey Day during Thanksgiving week. The Friendship Dance is held every year at the high school not hosting that year's game, as a gesture of friendship between the schools. Each school names a Friendship Court and selects a Friendship Queen and King from the court. In addition, each grade level at both schools decorate a hallway in a unique theme, and are then judged. At both schools, the activities culminate in respective pep rallies both on the last day of school and the Wednesday night before the game. At both Kirkwood and Webster, there is a bonfire after the Wednesday night pep rally.[6] Drawing thousands of people every year, the game itself has grown in popularity to the likes of the local news and cable broadcasts of the game. As well as being recognized by ESPN, the game has garnered a multi-page exclusive article in Sports Illustrated.

In 1975, when the then-St. Louis Cardinals hosted NFL games on Thanksgiving, the city resisted the move, because the Kirkwood-Webster Groves rivalry had already established itself. The Cardinals gave up on playing Thanksgiving games in 1977 after three games, and the hosting reverted back to the Dallas Cowboys.

[edit] New Hampshire

Keene vs. Monadnock Turkey Tussle
In southwestern New Hampshire, Keene High School and Monadnock Regional High School have had a rivalry for over 50 years. However, the two schools did not play football against each other from the 1960s until 2005, because of the schools' different sizes and hence sports divisions. In 2005, the two schools agreed to play each other in an annual match called the "Turkey Tussle". The first game was played at Keene High's Alumni Field, with the venue alternating between schools in each succeeding year.
Manchester city championship (Turkey Bowl)
Gill Stadium in Manchester, New Hampshire hosts an annual turkey bowl between the city's two top ranked teams in the regular season.

[edit] New Jersey

Phillipsburg vs. Easton, Pennsylvania
Phillipsburgh High School and Easton Area High School have played since 1906. The game has been nationally televised.
East Orange vs. Barringer
East Orange High School and Barringer High School have played since 1897.
Millville vs. Vineland
This rivalry has been contested since 1894.
Westfield vs. Plainfield
Westfield and Plainfield has been played since 1900 and celebrated its 100th game in 2005.

[edit] New York State

State championship weekend
The New York State Public High School Athletic Association, which sanctions all public high school football in the state, holds its statewide football championships over Thanksgiving weekend at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse. Five divisions (ranging from the largest schools outside the five major cities to the smallest districts) each have their own state title decided on the Saturday after Thanksgiving.[7]
Buffalo Harvard Cup
In Western New York, Thanksgiving is the day of the annual Harvard Cup, the city of Buffalo's high school football championship game, in its 105th year in 2008.[8] Games are held at All-High Stadium on the campus of Bennett High School in Buffalo.
Fordham Prep vs. Xavier High School
The Xavier/Fordham Prep annual "Turkey Bowl" is one of the oldest high school football rivalries in New York history. Their very first game against one another took place in the late 1800s when the game was called due to darkness and ended in a tie. Xavier and Fordham Prep used to play many of their famed Thanksgiving Day "Turkey Bowl" Games, at Manhattan's Polo Grounds, until it was demolished following the construction of Shea Stadium in the borough of Queens.

[edit] Pennsylvania

Coal Bucket Game (no longer played on Thanksgiving)
Mount Carmel Area School District and Shamokin Area School District played a game on Thanksgiving beginning in 1951. The rivalry has been annually contested since 1934 and dates as far back as 1893, but is no longer contested on Thanksgiving.
Northeast vs. Central
This game pits two schools from the city of Philadelphia, Northeast High School and Central High School, against each other; the rivalry dates to 1892.
Upper Darby vs. Haverford
Upper Darby High School and Haverford High School, two public schools that are located less than three miles apart, have contested a game since 1921.

[edit] Washington, DC

Gonzaga vs. St. John's
An annual game occurs between Gonzaga College High School and St. John's College High School, two Catholic high schools in the Washington, DC area. The rivalry dates to 1893.

[edit] Turkey Bowl

An example of an informal "Turkey Bowl" game from Redmond, Washington.

Unorganized groups have also been known to partake in American football on Thanksgiving. These informal matches are usually known as a Turkey Bowl (not to be confused with some high school football games that also use the name "Turkey Bowl", see above, and with Turkey Bowling). These games are usually unofficiated with a flag football, street football or touch football format.

While the games themselves are not generally nationally known, Turkey Bowls hold importance for those who participate and it is not uncommon for rivalries to last for decades. [9]. Turkey Bowls are played by a variety of people including college fraternities, volunteer fire departments, and local churches across the country which use the day and the game to have fun, exercise and renew old acquaintances.


[edit] College and professional

See also: Thanksgiving Classic and List of NCAA college football rivalry games

College and professional games played over Thanksgiving weekend are usually referred to as a Classic.

The Turkey Day Classic, a college football game between Alabama State University and Tuskegee University, has been played on Thanksgiving Day annually since 1924. It is also the oldest black college football classic, since the two colleges first played each other in 1901. Another popular black college football classic played on Thanksgiving weekend is the Bayou Classic between Grambling State University and Southern University, which is held the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

Other prominent college football rivalries that take place over Thanksgiving weekend include:

Professional football has played on Thanksgiving since the first all-pro league formed in 1902. It carried over when Buffalo and Rochester, two members of the New York Pro Football League which had held its championship on Thanksgiving 1919, joined the NFL upon its founding in 1920, and as such, the NFL has played on Thanksgiving ever since. The Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions usually play home games on Thanksgiving (and have done so since the 1960s and 1930s, respectively), in a series called the Thanksgiving Classic. The rival American Football League also played on Thanksgiving in the 1960s, as did the All-America Football Conference in the 1940s and the original AFL in 1926.

In the CFL, where games are played on Canadian Thanksgiving, the CFL hosts two games (one of only two weeks each year in which the CFL plays on a Monday) in a matter similar to the Labour Day Classic. The difference between the Thanksgiving and Labor Day games is that the Thanksgiving Day games do not have the same matchups each year.

The World Football League held its lone championship game, the World Bowl, the day after Thanksgiving in 1974. Similarly, the proposed UFL, set to begin play in 2009, is planning on holding its championship over Thanksgiving weekend.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Turkey bowl champions from the San Francisco Examiner. Dates to 2006.
  2. ^ Marman makes statement for Mustangs. San Francisco Examiner. 22 November 2007.
  3. ^ a b "High School Football Records". National Football League. http://web.archive.org/web/20070614184326/http://www.nflhs.com/News/Records/11man_team_misc.asp. 
  4. ^ http://www.rihssports.com/Thanksgiving%20Football/Results/WES%20VS%20STON.htm
  5. ^ St.Louis Public Library - Turkey Day Game
  6. ^ Announcement of 100th Anniversary activities. Kirkwood Special Events
  7. ^ Title Games To Be Televised Locally. The Post-Journal. 28 November 2008.
  8. ^ Monnin, Mary Jo. Riverside showers itself in Cup victory. The Buffalo News. 28 November 2008.
  9. ^ "Pass the Turkey and the Football" - USA Today

[edit] External links

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