Turkey Day Game

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Turkey Day Game is a colloquial American term for an annual football game played on Thanksgiving Day. The term “Turkey Day” is itself a colloquial reference to the American national holiday Thanksgiving Day, on which day the traditional meal is a turkey dinner.

The Turkey Day Game is usually a game between high-school football teams. It may be a game between traditional arch-rival schools, or the game may 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 Turkey Day Game custom dates back more than 100 years, possibly as long as there have been schools with football teams. Turkey Day Games are a widespread American tradition, especially in the Northeast.

The oldest high school Turkey Day Game rivalry is in Massachusetts between Needham and Wellesley, dating back to 1882. Boston Latin and Boston English have met annually since 1887, the oldest continuous meeting between schools. 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.

Pennsylvania and New Jersey also hold a long tradition of Turkey Day games. Phillipsburg High School in New Jersey and Easton High School in Pennsylvania played their 100th game on ESPN2 at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, Thanksgiving 2006.

The Turkey Day game in Missouri between Kirkwood High School and Webster Groves High School is over 100 years old. Drawing thousands of people every year, the game 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 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.

In the NFL, the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions usually play home games on Thanksgiving, called the Thanksgiving Classic.