The Turkey Bowl is one of the oldest and most anticipated high school football rivalries in the country. This Thanksgiving tradition pits Loyola Blakefield against Calvert Hall in Baltimore Maryland. I’ll recap the exciting 103rd edition of the Turkey Bowl, detailing how Loyola captured the win over their longtime rivals.
Turkey Bowl History and Tradition
The Turkey Bowl originated in 1920 and has been played every year since, excluding 1927-1930 and 1943-1945. It is the second longest continuous Catholic prep football rivalry after the Holy War between St. Ignatius and St. Xavier in Cincinnati.
Over its century-long history, the Turkey Bowl has featured legendary coaches and players. Loyola leads the overall series 51-44-8, but Calvert Hall had won 4 of the last 5 matchups coming into the 2023 game.
The game is played every Thanksgiving morning at Johnny Unitas Stadium It’s a highlight of the holiday weekend, drawing sellout crowds despite often frigid conditions Alumni travel from across the country to attend.
Setting the Stage for the 2023 Turkey Bowl
This year’s Turkey Bowl shaped up to be another classic. Loyola came in finishing the regular season 6-4 after some early season struggles. Calvert Hall was 4-6 on the year but had momentum after a big upset victory in their finale.
Loyola leaned on their powerful ground attack, while Calvert Hall featured athletic junior quarterback Jae’oyn Williams. With both offenses capable of lighting up the scoreboard, another high-scoring shootout was expected.
The 103rd matchup had major implications for the rivalry’s legacy. A Calvert Hall victory would give them wins in 5 of the past 6 Turkey Bowls. Loyola was hungry to reassert themselves and even the series lead.
Loyola’s Offense Powers Their Way to Victory
On a crisp November morning, Loyola came ready to play and seized control early. Their senior running back Tommy Tucker scored on a bruising 4-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Loyola quarterback Brad Seiss caught a trick play touchdown pass on a reverse flea flicker to extend their lead to 13-7 at halftime.
But Calvert Hall refused to go away. After Loyola went up 20-7 in the 3rd quarter, the Cardinals responded with back-to-back touchdowns drives led by Williams’ arm and legs. He ran for a 50-yard TD and threw a 47-yard strike to Jackson Gister.
The Cardinals pulled within 3 points, but Loyola had one more offensive explosion left. Junior running back Kendrick Worthington, who finished with 226 yards, scored two straight fourth quarter touchdowns.
Worthington’s third TD with 0:17 left clinched a 40-28 victory for the Dons. Loyola’s punishing ground game proved too much, powering the offense to nearly 500 total yards.
Turkey Bowl Legacy Continues
This instant classic Turkey Bowl cemented Loyola’s status as still an equal partner in this rivalry, despite Calvert Hall’s recent run. The Dons earned local bragging rights for the year while evening the series lead.
Worthington’s monster game added to the Turkey Bowl’s long history of legendary individual performances. Fellow students, teachers, and proud alumni celebrated Loyola bringing the trophy back home.
The Turkey Bowl grows more storied with each passing year. Loyola’s spirited victory only heightened the anticipation for when these two rivals meet again on Thanksgiving morning in 2024 for another chapter in one of high school football’s greatest traditions.
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Fordham Prep leads the overall series 55-41-4. *Note that in November 2020, the two schools did not meet on the field due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Fordham Prep was victorious in the first ever Virtual Turkey Bowl.
During the 1800s, Fordham Preparatory School was officially known as the Second Division of St. John’s College, Fordham’s original name. The school would only begin to be called Fordham Prep in the early 1900s — first as a nickname, and ultimately as our official title. Neither the College nor Prep teams were yet known as the Rams. In fact, the first instance of the word ram in Prep history does not occur until 1906. During the 19th century, the various Second Division teams had a series of colorful names. At first, our varsity squads were known as The Live Oaks. By 1862, Prep varsity would be styled The Invincibles. Maroon, however, was already proudly our school color at the time, and had been since 1874. Go Fordham Prep! Go Rams! Go Invincibles! Go Maroon!
The first recorded Turkey Bowl took place on November 27, 1887, as chronicled in a Fordham Monthly article: “The Xaviers came up on Sunday, November 27th, and played a good game. It grew dark before either team scored a single point.” The author of the piece was David Arellano, Class of 1887, one of our Central American boarding students and a truly fascinating figure in school history, who, incidentally, had been a pitcher for our baseball team – not a footballer. He was still at Rose Hill, but in St. Johns First Division, or Fordham College, when he wrote the article.
While there are earlier Fordham-Xavier football games on record, those games were between the college-level teams, not the high schoolers. (Xavier originally had a college division, as well.) And while Prep football had existed embryonically for a few seasons before 1887, our boys either played against each other, or served as practice squads for the College’s team. Therefore, Fordham Prep also looks to November 27, 1887 as the official launch of our district formal interscholastic football program. In other words, that first legendary “Turkey Bowl” — called on account of darkness — was also our first official football game.
The 1887 game was not held on Thanksgiving itself, but rather, as part of the long holiday weekend. Other early “Turkey Bowls” were also not played on Thanksgiving proper, but at some point over the holiday weekend, or on other long fall holiday weekends. Recall that while Thanksgiving had long been part of the American story, the holiday in its modern iteration as a national observance had only been ushered in by President Lincoln some decades earlier. And so, during these days, other fall celebrations, like Election Day, for instance, were still marked by parades, bonfires, and other festivities that we would associate with Thanksgiving. Some early Prep-Xavier gridiron match-ups would be held on these weekends, as well. As American-style football was still a new sport, it is worth noting that the Prep team did not have official football uniforms, yet. Instead, they were wearing the baseball’s team’s uniforms off-season. As reported after football season in the Monthly, “There has been some talk lately of getting genuine football suits for our eleven. The game is somewhat wearing on the baseball jerseys.”
1887: TIE 0-0 (Called on account of darkness)
1905: Fordham Prep 32- 0
1907: Fordham Prep 61- 0
1908: Fordham Prep 61- 0
1927: Fordham Prep 12- 6
1928: Fordham Prep 19- 6
1929: Xavier 19-13
1930: Xavier 25- 6
1931: Fordham Prep 12- 6
1932: TIE 7- 7
1933: Fordham Prep 13- 0
1934: Fordham Prep 26-13
1935: Xavier 20-13
1936: Xavier 6- 0
1937: Fordham Prep 19-12
1938: Fordham Prep 13-12
1939: Fordham Prep 13- 0
1940: Fordham Prep 7- 0
1941: Xavier 9- 6
1942: Fordham Prep 8- 6
1943: Fordham Prep 19-18
1944: Fordham Prep 12- 0
1945: Xavier 7- 6
1946: Fordham Prep 13- 6
1947: Xavier 13- 8
1948: Xavier 9- 7
1949: Fordham Prep 31-20
1950: Xavier 60- 6
1951: Xavier 32-12
1952: Xavier 6- 0
1953: Xavier 20- 6
1954: Fordham Prep 18-12
1955: Xavier 20- 6
1956: Fordham Prep 14-13
1957: Fordham Prep 14- 6
1958: Fordham Prep 7- 6
1959: Xavier 14- 8
1960: TIE 14-14
1961: Fordham Prep 19-18
1962: Fordham Prep 24- 0
1963: Xavier 14- 0
1964: Xavier 39-20
1965: Xavier 19- 0
1966: Xavier 13- 0
1967: Fordham Prep 19- 0
1968: Xavier 32- 0
1969: Fordham Prep 12- 8
1970: Xavier 22-21
1971: Fordham Prep 21-12
1972: Fordham Prep 29- 0
1973: Fordham Prep 21- 0
1974: Xavier 54- 6
1975: TIE 0- 0
1976: Xavier 40-30
1977: Fordham Prep 12- 6
1978: Fordham Prep 29-20
1979: Fordham Prep 28-12
1980: Xavier 34-12
1981: Xavier 30-22
1982: Fordham Prep 8- 3
1983: Xavier 18- 7
1984: Xavier 12- 7
1985: Xavier 30- 0
1986: Xavier 26-14
1987: Fordham Prep 36-16
1988: Xavier 18-17
1989: Xavier 14-12
1990: Fordham Prep 30-15
1991: Xavier 24-13
1992: Fordham Prep 24-14
1993: Fordham Prep 40-12
1994: Fordham Prep 32-14
1995: Fordham Prep 15-14
1996: Xavier 14-13
1997: Fordham Prep 28- 7
1998: Fordham Prep 12- 6
1999: Xavier 37-16
2000: Fordham Prep 26- 6
2001: Fordham Prep 28- 7
2002: Fordham Prep 34-14
2003: Fordham Prep 28- 0
2004: Fordham Prep 32- 7
2005: Fordham Prep 44-13
2006: Xavier 28-14
2007: Xavier 20-14
2008: Fordham Prep 41-28
2009: Xavier 35-27
2010: Fordham Prep 17- 7
2011: Fordham Prep 15-7
2012: Xavier 38-21
2013: Xavier 33-0
2014: Xavier 35-34
2015: Xavier 15-13
2016: Fordham Prep 21-18
2017: Fordham Prep 28-0
2018: Fordham Prep 21-13
2019: Xavier 40-14
*2020: Fordham Prep 21-14 (First ever “virtual” Turkey Bowl)
2021: Fordham Prep 27-13
2022: Fordham Prep 41-25
2023: Fordham Prep 21-14
First played in 1887 between the then Second Division of St. Johns College (Fordham Preps original name) and Xavier High School, the Turkey Bowl is one of the oldest high school football rivalries in the United States.
Sports Illustrated and USA Today have highlighted the game as one of the premier Thanksgiving Day games in high school football in the country. The Turkey Bowl is the oldest inter-scholastic athletic rivalry in all of New York City. The New York Post called it one of the “cant miss” events in New York City high school sports.
The Madden TURKEY BOWL (K-City Family Battle)
FAQ
Who won the turkey bowl in dc today?
Who won the turkey bowl in Baltimore?
What was the score of the 103 Turkey Bowl?
Who won the turkey tussle at the Rose Bowl?
Who won the Turkey Bowl in 2019?
Marshall was on the team in 2019, which was the last time Dunbar won the Turkey Bowl. He said it was something he’ll never forget. “It’s one of the biggest moments of your life, basically,” Marshall said. “It’s one of the biggest games in D.C. to see who’s the best of the best in high school.”
How many times has Loyola won the Turkey Bowl?
Loyola has won two of the last three meetings, and the team leads the overall series 51-44. There have been eight ties, too. The Turkey Bowl is one of the longest-running Catholic prep school rivalries in the nation. © 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Did Loyola beat Calvert Hall in the Turkey Bowl?
BALTIMORE — Loyola defeated Calvert Hall 48 to 20 in the 103rd edition of the Turkey Bowl at Towson University. The Dons were led by running back Kendrick Worthington who rushed for 226 yards on 27 carries and scored three touchdowns.
Who catches Byron Baldwin in the Turkey Bowl?
Loyola’s Shane Elliott makes a touchdown catch over Calvert Hall’s Byron Baldwin, Jr. in the third quarter of the 102nd edition of the Turkey Bowl at Towson University’s Johnny Unitas Stadium. (photo by Scott Serio for The Baltimore Banner) (Scott Serio for the Baltimore Banner)