List of high school football rivalries
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A list of long-standing High School Football Rivalries:
| Series Leader | Series Follower | Series Record | Series Began | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Norwich Free Academy (Norwich, Connecticut) | New London High School (New London, Connecticut) | 1875 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. The oldest high school football rivalry in Connecticut, meeting for the 145th time in 2006. | |
| Phillips Academy (Andover, MA) | Phillips Exeter Academy (Exeter, NH) | 1878 | Annual football game. This is one of the oldest football rivalries in the nation. | |
| Wellesley High School (Wellesley, MA) | Needham High School (Needham, MA) | 58-52-9 | 1882 | Annual Thanksgiving Day game. First played Thanksgiving morning 1882 at Morton Field in Needham. The oldest public high school rivalry. |
| Central High School (Philadelphia, PA) | Northeast High School (Philadelphia, PA) | 51-50-10 | 1886 | Annual Thanksgiving game. The Philadelphia area's most recognized Thanksgiving football tradition, the schools play each year for the wooden horse trophy. |
| St. Mark's School (Southborough, Massachusetts) | Groton School (Groton, Massachusetts) | 1886 | Annual football game. Oldest Independent School League Rivalry in the U.S. | |
| Lawrenceville School (Lawrenceville, New Jersey) | Hill School (Pottstown, Pennsylvania) | 1887 | Annual football game. One of the oldest continuous football rivalries in the nation. | |
| Boston Latin School (Boston, Massachusetts) | English High School (Boston, Massachusetts) | 71-36-13 | 1887 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. Oldest continuous high school football rivalry in the U.S. |
| Malden High School (Malden, MA) | Medford High School (Medford, MA) | - - | 1889 | Annual Thanksgiving Day game. |
| The Haverford School (Haverford, PA) | Episcopal Academy (Merion, PA) | 52-41-2 | 1889 | Annual EA Day or Episcopal-Haverford Day football game. |
| Newburyport High School (Newburyport, Massachusetts) | Amesbury High School (Amesbury, Massachusetts) | 44-33-6 | 1891 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. Rivalry includes several unsanctioned games between 1891 and 1914. |
| duPont Manual Magnet High School (Louisville, Kentucky) | Louisville Male High School (Louisville, Kentucky) | 39-76-6 | 1892 | Annual football game. duPont Manual Magnet High School is home to the duPont Manual Crimsons, one of the oldest high school football teams in Louisville, Kentucky. Their rivalry with the Male Bulldogs, dubbed the Old Rivalry, dates directly to 1892 and claims to be the oldest high school rivalry in Kentucky. The rivalry item is The Barrel. |
| B.M.C. Durfee High School (Fall River, Massachusetts) | New Bedford High School (New Bedford, Massachusetts) | - | 1893 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. The oldest high school football rivalry in SouthCoast New England. |
| Vineland Senior High School South/Vineland Senior High School North (Vineland, NJ) | Millville Senior High School (Millville, NJ) | 1893 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. Second oldest High School Rivalry, met for the 135th time in 2006. | |
| Gonzaga College High School (Washington, D.C.) | St. John's College High School (Washington, D.C.) | - | 1893 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. The rivalry is considered the oldest between two Catholic High Schools in the U.S. |
| Fitchburg High School (Fitchburg, Massachusetts) | Leominster High School (Leominster, Massachusetts) | 58-56-9 | 1894 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. "The Rivalry" meets for the 101st Thanksgiving and the 123rd time overall in 2006. |
| Canton McKinley High School (Canton, OH) | Massillon Washington High School (Massillon, OH) | 49-61-5 | 1894 | Annual. Two of the most tradition-rich high school programs in the country square up on the gridiron for the last game of the regular season at either Paul Brown Stadium in Massillon, or Fawcett Stadium, next to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, in Canton. |
| Sandusky High School (Sandusky, OH) | Ross High School (Fremont, OH) | 1895 | Annual battle between the Sandusky Blue Streaks and the Ross Little Giants in the second oldest rivalry in Ohio. | |
| Barnstable High School (Barnstable, MA) | Falmouth High School (Falmouth, MA) | 54-57-8 | 1895 | Annual football game. Traditionally played on Thanksgiving Day, series played on little Cape Cod, MA. |
| New Philadelphia High School (New Philadelphia, Ohio) | Dover High School (Dover, Ohio) | 47-46-9 | 1896 | Annual, last Friday in October. One of the oldest rivalries in the state. These two teams recently had their 100th meeting game in 2004, which coincidentally found the teams tied in their records with each other at 45-45-9. |
| Lower Merion High School (Ardmore, Pennsylvania) | Radnor High School (Radnor, Pennsylvania) | 1897 | Annual football game. Second oldest continuous public high school football rivalry in the U.S. Of special note, the administration of Radnor High School grants the students of the school a half-day on the next school day if the school beats Lower Merion. However, the students of Lower Merion do not enjoy any similar reward. As of 4/3/07, Radnor has won the last seven games running. | |
| Ansonia High School (Ansonia, Connecticut) | Naugatuck High School (Naugatuck, Connecticut) | - | 1900 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. Game regularly draws crowds of up to 10,000. |
| Westfield High School (Westfield, New Jersey) | Plainfield High School (Plainfield, New Jersey) | 51-43-7 | 1900 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. Oldest public school rivalry in New Jersey. Celebrated 100th game in 2005. (Plainfield won 9-0). Westfield won 2006 game 17-7. |
| Woodberry Forest School (Woodberry Forest, VA) | Episcopal High School (Alexandria, VA) | 51-47-8 | 1901 | Annual football game. This is the longest consecutive high school rivalry in the South. |
| Benedictine Military School (Savannah, GA) | Savannah High School (Savannah, GA) | unknown | 1902 | BC vs. High School is the oldest rivalry in the state of Georgia; it used to be played on Thanksgiving Day before 1960. |
| The Peddie School (Hightstown, NJ) | Blair Academy (Blairstown, NJ) | 1902 | Annual football game. Oldest rivalry in New Jersey, has met every year since 1902, with the exception of one year due to a polio outbreak. Now incorporates all fall varsity sports with the Potter-Kelley Cup. | |
| Shelton High School (Shelton, Connecticut) | Derby High School (Derby, Connecticut) | 52-42-7 | 1904 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. It draws upwards of 40,000 people. The Derby/Shelton Rotary Club donates a competitive trophy that the winner of the game possesses for a year.
In the 1980 Thanksgiving Day Game, Junior Matt Gorlewski #54 kicked a 72 yard punt following a Derby safety. It was the longest punt in Shelton High School history and the record still stands to this day. Along with being an All State Punter, he was also the starting Center and Defensive End. NFL Quarterback Dan Orlovsky who is currently on the Detroit Lions roster is also from Shelton High School. In one of the most heated events in all of high school football, "Dandy" Dan Orlovsky rose to the occasion and lead the team to victory in three consecutive years. A feat that took him from average starting quarterback to a place in Connecticut high school football lore. |
| St. Rita of Cascia High School (Chicago, Illinois) | Mount Carmel High School (Chicago, Illinois) | - | 1905 | One of the oldest rivalries in the Chicago Catholic League. Games generally draw crowds of close to 10,000. Both schools have graduated a number of noted NFL players including Dennis Lick and Donavan McNabb. |
| Easton High School (Easton, Pennsylvania) | Phillipsburg High School (Phillipsburg, New Jersey) | 55-40-5 | 1906 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. Game draws some of the largest crowds of any high school football rivalry, sometimes exceeding 20,000 fans. The two cities are located in separate states, separated by a bridge that crosses the Delaware River. The game was nationally televised on ESPN in 1988 and again on ESPN2 in 2006. |
| Sherman High School (Sherman, Texas) | Denison High School (Denison, Texas) | 53-30-6 | 1912 | Annual Battle of the Ax. Oldest rivalry in the state of Texas. |
| Loyola High School (Baltimore, Maryland) | Calvert Hall College High School (Baltimore, Maryland) | 46-33-8 | 1920 | Annual Thanksgiving football game. The rivalry is one of the oldest between two Catholic High Schools in the U.S. The "Turkey Bowl" is played in the Baltimore Ravens' M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland |
| St. Xavier High School (Louisville, KY) | Trinity High School (Louisville, KY) | 32-28-2 | 1965 | The "St. X/Trinity Game", as called by locals, was said to be one of the five biggest high school rivalries in the nation, according to USA Today. The game is played at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium, usually reserved for University of Louisville football games, and draws crowds of around 35,000-40,000 and is played at the end of September. Trinity HS is the defending champion, when they won the game 7-0 on September 22, 2006. The game was ended after only 10 minutes of play due to weather conditions. Because of the huge crowds this game draws, there was no time or place for a rematch, and therefore the game was ended instead of postponed, crowning Trinity the winner. |
