Danny V’s high school football Sweet 16

Forgive me for having a senior moment.

Based on everything I was hearing from my beloved Twitter followers, I was fully expecting to see empty stadiums and dispirited performances on Thanksgiving Day. What we got instead was a slew of great games and throngs of people supporting their teams.

Moral of the story: Thanksgiving Day football has been, currently is and will always be a special day.

Part of the problem are the Johnny One Notes (JON) who rears their heads once a year to bemoan what has become of Thanksgiving Day football. They love to repeat the mantra that the current playoff format has ruined the tradition of Thanksgiving, conveniently forgetting the fact that under the old playoff system which rewarded league champions, more than 88 percent of the games contested on Thanksgiving had little or no postseason implications.

While the fact that winning a league title on Thanksgiving does not ensure a playoff berth (the postseason having commenced four weeks earlier), there were several league titles on the line and teams laid it all on the line. Even those who were going to compete in the Super Bowls next week.

Case in point was Duxbury. In the past, the Dragons infuriated the JON masses by not playing starters on Thanksgiving against Marshfield to preserve them for the Super Bowl. This time, it was a different story in Duxbury.

With Marshfield now in the Patriot League Keenan, Duxbury threw caution to the wind and went all out. They were rewarded by winning the game, 38-28, and the Keenan Division title.

Both first-year head coach Matt Landolfi and star quarterback Matt Festa both alluded to that following the game. Both pointed out that the goal was to go in there and win the league. Doesn’t sound like a team that took the tradition of Thanksgiving lightly.

That’s just one of many stories with similar themes throughout Eastern Massachusetts. Undefeated Super Bowl participants Marblehead and Swampscott left everything out on the field, a game that wasn’t decided until Eli Feingold knocked home a 37-yarder with less than three seconds left to give the Magicians a wild 31-28 win.

Whether there is a better system out there is something that people operating at a higher pay scale than you or I can sort out. What I know for sure is something I’ve witnessed since joining the newspaper business in 1986: Thanksgiving Day is always going to be a special day, regardless of what’s on the line.

SWEET 16

1. CATHOLIC MEMORIAL (12-0): Scary to see the young talent on this roster.

2. CENTRAL CATHOLIC (11-1): Raiders jumped out fast and never looked back.

3. FRANKLIN (10-1): Couldn’t have picked a better team to snap the losing streak to King Philip.

4. XAVERIAN (8-3): Another year, another instant classic between Xaverian and St. John’s Prep.

5. MARBLEHEAD (11-0): Eli Feingold might not be picking up a tab in Marblehead for years after his game-winning kick.

6. DUXBURY (10-1): That was an impressive win against a very good Marshfield team.

7. READING (10-1): Survived a wild finish against Stoneham to reach the 10-win mark.

8. KING PHILIP (9-2): Onto Gillette and a date with No. 1 Catholic Memorial.

9. METHUEN (8-3): Rangers capped off a solid season with a big win over Dracut.

10. EVERETT (9-1): Give Rob DiLoreto credit for rallying the troops after the Methuen loss and steamrolling both Andover and St. John’s (Shrewsbury) to end the season.

11. ST. JOHN’S PREP (8-4): Tough way to end the season, inches away from victory.

12. MARSHFIELD (9-3): The season didn’t end the way Marshfield liked, but a nine-win season with this schedule is nothing to sneeze at.

13. LINCOLN-SUDBURY (9-1): It’s not going to be easy replacing some of these senior standouts.

14. SCITUATE (10-2): Sailors can now focus all their attention on Duxbury.

15. MILFORD (9-3): Say this for the Olson brothers, there is never a dull moment around them and we love it.

16. NATICK (9-2): Redhawks were the class of the Bay State Conference once again.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/3cWaIna