History is written on Thanksgiving, recorded in the pages of the Recorder about the triumphs, trials and tribulations of high school football. Flipping the pages of the archives in the basement of our Hope Street building, wins and losses are broken down for each of the 92 years associated with the Greenfield-Turners Falls annual rivalry. Not to mention the pomp and circumstance surrounding the game, complete with crowd estimates, marching band playlists and concession stand specials.
But for the first time since 1926, there will be no recap in this year’s newspaper. The two neighboring rivals will not meet on the field, and folks in their respective communities must figure out how else to spend a holiday that is firmly rooted in the sport of football. Some will venture east, opting to catch the Athol-Mahar game in Orange. Perhaps a few will go south to Northampton and watch the Franklin Tech football team battle Smith Vocational. But many will spend a Thanksgiving devoid of high school football, some for the first time in their entire lives.
“What are you going to do on Thanksgiving this year?”
That was the question at the heart of my inquiries in recent weeks. I reached out to members of the community, those deeply impacted by the loss of the Greenfield-Turners game. For some, memories of a holiday focused on family and togetherness come most prominently in football form. This year will be unlike most in history, to say the least.
Rick “Turbo” Legere, Turners Falls — Class of 1983
“I played (for Turners) in the early ’80s. I was never really much of an athlete, but my older brother played in the late ’60s and my father used to do the chains long before I did. Going with him and the old timers to games when I was a kid, that’s when I fell in love with Turners football. My father died when I was young. The few memories I have of him are around Turners football.”
Bill Phelps, Greenfield — Class of 1965 (Public Address announcer, Vets Field)
“I remember listening on the radio when I was 6, 7, 8 years old. I went to my first game when I was 9 years old, maybe 1956? Greenfield won. That was in the middle of the big streak (Greenfield won 15 in a row from 1950-1964).”
George Bush, Turners Falls — Class of 1944
“I haven’t missed too many Thanksgiving Day games. A couple when I was in the Navy. I probably started going when I was in grammar school, of course. There used to be some great games, great times. It was always something to look forward to because Greenfield in those days, and still is, the big rivalry.”
Adam Graves, Turners Falls — Class of 1996 (Athletic Director, Turners Falls)
“I remember being really young and going. My dad was a Greenfield guy, so I’d sit on that side up until middle school.”
Jeff Tirrell, Greenfield — Class of 1984 (Play-by-play announcer, Bear Country 95.3 FM)
“I started going to that game in the early 1970s as a kid growing up in Greenfield.”
Lew Collins, Turners Falls — Class of 1980
“I moved up from New Jersey in 1971 so that was my first Thanksgiving game. That was a memorable year, we got about three feet of snow and had to play the game on Saturday.”
Stash Koscinski, Turners Falls — Class of 1957 (Ticket taker, Turners Falls H.S.)
“My senior year we got beat (14-6). We should’ve won but I’m not gonna complain about it.”
Bill Phelps
“One of my first really good memories was in 1960. Fran Murphy was a sophomore. I was with (former NFL head coach) Gunther Cunningham, we were in the eighth grade. After the game, we were teenagers, and everyone was tearing down the goal posts. Gunther got a pretty big chunk of it. I probably got a splinter.”
Stash Koscinski
“We scored a touchdown, it got called back. One of the players was clipped. We looked at the film, he was nowhere near him.”
“In every department except passing, Turners Falls had the edge but nullification of a 75-yard touchdown romp, a series of offside penalties on a goal bound thrust and a strong wind that blew a good field goal kick off its course all helped turn the tide against the blue and white wave.” — Bill Steinecke, the Recorder, 1956
Shawn Hubert, Turners Falls — Class of 1986 (Color commentator, Bear Country 95.3 FM)
“I remember Peter Bergeron taking a reverse late in the game his sophomore year at Turners Falls (1993). All of a sudden, he was gone. Went 80 yards for a touchdown and I thought, ‘Wow, this kid might be pretty good.’ That’s the best part of it. Watching these young guys, every year is a new year and you never know what you’re going to see.”
“(Greenfield coach Mike) Duprey immediately went to his bag of tricks from his own 20 and called for a reverse. Fleet sophomore Peter Bergeron took the handoff from (Marc) Zraunig, got key downfield blocks and sprinted away from the secondary for an 80-yard touchdown run. Surprisingly, it was Bergeron’s only carry of the day, but it turned out to be a memorable one.” — Mark Durant, the Recorder, 1993
Rick Legere
“I can recall the ’71 team that went undefeated. Buster Martin was a star. I stood at the end of the driveway, and I wouldn’t let my dad go to the game without me.”
George Bush
“The crowds…. you’d have five or six thousand people. That was very common. You never had to worry about the weather or anything like that. One particular year, we had about 12 inches of snow at the field up in Turners. Everybody volunteered to shovel the snow off and get the field ready for the game.”
“The game, delayed by a heavy snowstorm that struck Franklin County on Thanksgiving Day, was played on a near-perfect football field, cleared by hundreds of volunteers. Snowpiles served as perfect auxiliary stands for the overflow crowd, with many simply spreading blankets on the snow for a perfect sideline seat. The snowpiles also served as ideal refrigeration units for assorted flasks, bottles and thermos jugs.” — Neil Perry, the Recorder, 1971
Jeff Tirrell
“I remember the 1987 game. Kenny Suhl was the quarterback that year. When Greenfield came out, they had Kyle Phelps at QB, Suhl began at halfback. I was on the Turners Falls sideline (covering the game for WHAI) and (Turners coach) John O’Riley yells, “Where’s Suhl?” They had a brief freak out.”
“The only surprise during Greenfield’s 35-0 dismantling of Turners on Thursday was in the visitor’s backfield. There, taking the snaps from center Kevin Moore was wide receiver Kyle Phelps. Behind him, in a three-point stance, was the Green Wave’s usual signal caller, Ken Suhl.” — Chip Ainsworth, the Recorder, 1987
Lew Collins
“I’d have to say my coolest moment was in ’76. We had a freshman football team then. At the end of the season, if you practiced with the varsity for the last 10 days, you got to dress for Turkey Day and get a star on the helmet. It was the coolest thing. So I got to travel with the team to Greenfield that went 10-0.”
“The 1976 Turners football squad etched its name into the school’s gridiron annals Thursday before an overflow crowd of 5,000 at Veterans Memorial Field as it became the winningest team ever in the school’s 51-year history of the sport.” — Bob York, the Recorder, 1976
George Bush
“I remember years ago, prior to that particular game, the rallies we used to have in school, the bonfire of course. I used to remember where the kids would, prior to Thanksgiving Eve, they would parade around town and go into the different businesses.”
Stash Koscinski
“When I was in school, they still had the bonfires, snake dance around town. The night before Thanksgiving, we slept in the gym. Nine o’clock curfew, stuff like that.”
Adam Graves
“Being the (athletic director) since 2014, the past few years, my day started at 6 a.m. on the phone with (Turners coach) Chris (Lapointe). I’m at the school about 6:30, getting things ready, making sure everything is OK. You’re there until 2:30, me and Chris are the last two to walk out of the locker room.”
Bill Phelps
“If you wanted to see people from both sides, back in the early ’60s you’d go to Robustelli’s in Gill before the games. There were a lot of stories from there. You’d get a sandwich, people would have some things to say about the other side. That’s for sure.”
Lew Collins
“It’s gonna be tough to swallow. What’s the night before Thanksgiving gonna be like? Are people gonna be out and happy, disgruntled? This year, I know it’s going to be the talk of the night. I may go to another game but it won’t be the same. Not to take anything away from anyone else’s rivalry, but it’s not yours.”
Rick Legere
“For months I’ve been asking people, what am I gonna do? Honestly I don’t know. I’m hopeful it’ll come back, but it’s always been a part of my holiday. It’s going to be strange.”
Jeff Tirrell
“Bear (Country 95.3) is doing the Mahar-Athol game. We did pick that up. I feel badly about it. Greenfield-Turners is such a big part of the local sports landscape for generations. People may say potentially only missing one year isn’t the end of the world but to me, that doesn’t matter. I couldn’t imagine Michigan-Ohio State missing their matchup, even for one year. Mahar-Athol, I’m glad we do have a game to do. Growing up in Greenfield, doing so many Greenfield-Turners games, they were phenomenal games so it’s tough not to be able to broadcast.”
Shawn Hubert
“I’m almost in denial a bit. Even when Greenfield was really good and Turners was not good, and you knew it wasn’t going to be a good game, it was still a great experience. So it’s pretty sad that we don’t have a game. It’s disappointing in a way, because it’s so important and such a part of the community.”
Stash Koscinski
“I’ll probably put the Athol-Orange game on (the radio). It’s going to be kind of tough, but I’ll try and enjoy the holiday as best as I can. Go to my daughter’s for it.”
Adam Graves
“This will be the first time in 34 years I haven’t either been coaching at a game or been at the Greenfield-Turners game. It’s sad and it’s gonna be weird. There’s that void of what do you do night before, day of, that morning? I don’t see myself sitting around watching the parade.”
George Bush
“All I can say is that we’re all going to miss it, of course. When I would go, I’d go with a group and we’d have a good time not only enjoying the game but also everything that takes place over the course of the game. Ill miss that, of course.”
Bill Phelps
“I’ll probably sleep in until 9. No, I’m not sure. I thought about going to Orange-Athol. It’s really sad. It’s a sad thing, everybody looks forward to that, not only as a little kid watching it but then you become a player, a fan, then a parent, then later, with me, grandsons playing… I run the full gamut.”