Like a fine wine, The Rivalry just gets better
Staff Report
For many decades, the Fitchburg-Leominster rivalry has brought men, women and children from both sides of the Nashua River to see their respective teams do battle. Ever since the first game back on Oct. 20, 1894, at what was known as "The Park" in Leominster, Fitchburg and Leominster residents have had an annual — and in some cases biannual — football game between rivals to count on. And today, over a century later, the young men from the Scripture Road (FHS) and Granite Street (LHS) schools continue to take to the gridiron before they take to the Thanksgiving table. "The Rivalry" is in its 120th year. Here's a quick peek at the games played so far in the final decade of the millennium. Nov. 22, 1990: at Crocker Field Leominster continued its dominance (only three losses since 1971) by winning its sixth straight game since 1985, this one by a 27-0 score in front of 8,500 frigid fans. With the win, LHS went on to win the Super Bowl against St. John's of Shrewsbury. The Red Raiders were helpless in the game, as senior running back Mark Matthews and junior running back Mike Wallace ran all over the Red and Gray. Matthews (9 carries for 100 yards) and Wallace (13 carries for 169 years) did a bulk of the scoring for Leominster. "I was practicing my cuts all week l long. We kept practicing until we couldn't practice anymore," Matthews said. One of Matthews' touchdown happened pretty easily — on a fourth-and-three from the Leominster 33, Fitchburg quarterback Dan Brasili rolled to his left and tried to find Derek Gendron. Corner back Jay Gagnon stepped in front of the pass, picking it off and bolting down the sideline before being gang-tackled at the Fitchburg 15 by Bill Paskell. Several plays later, Matthews scored from nine yards out for the touchdown. "This game was Leominster football at its finest," Leominster coach John Dubzinski said after the game. Nov. 28, 1991: at Doyle Field The unthinkable happened in the Plastics City on this Turkey Day: Fitchburg won. The Red Raiders won 14-0 for the first time since 1984. FHS coach Ray Cosenza, coaching in his third Fitchburg-Leominster game, said, "This is the best thing in the world. This is the best in my coaching career." Zack McCall rushed for 184 yards on a career-high 39 carries, including the game-winning touchdown, a three-yard run midway through the second quarter. Senior quarterback Tom Kelley added the insurance points on a quarterback sneak on fourth down. Fitchburg went on to the Super Bowl, winning against North Middlesex Regional. Nov. 26, 1992: at Crocker Field Crocker Field was a near quagmire on Thanksgiving morning. Running up the middle was near impossible, so the sides would have to do. And it was perfectly fine for Bobby Williams (112 yards on 18 carries), who scored the game-winning touchdown in a 14-13 win over Leominster. It was the closest game since 1960, when the two schools played to a 14-14 tie. Also, it was the first time since 1971-72 that FHS had won back-to-back games. The game-winning drive started at the Fitchburg 37-yard line, with Williams and Zack McCall (69 yards on 18 carries) exchanging handoffs before Williams, a fullback, followed the lead blocks of Jon "Moose" Salilla and Dave Souza into the end zone. Leominster tried to set up a field goal, but Ish Gelpi intercepted a pass from Ryan Gallagher to pretty much seal the victory. Nov. 25, 1993: at Doyle Field The two schools battled it out under sunny skies, with Fitchburg scoring last for a 44-40 win. It was (and still is) the highest scoring game in the history of "The Rivalry." It was also the first time since the 1920s that FHS had won more than two games in a row. FHS won every game from 1913 to 1924. The game saw 12 touchdowns, 872 yards of offense between the teams, and five fourth-quarter lead changes. The day would belong to Ryan Keenan (222 yards on 30 carries with three touchdowns) as well as junior quarterback Todd Steffanides, who threw for 144 yards including the game-winning touchdown pass to James McCall with 39 seconds left. Leominster again tried to win it, with Bryan Mazzaferro bringing it all the way down to the FHS three-yard line with McCall dragging him down. Quarterback Bob Raxasack spiked the ball before he handed off to John Miller, who made it as far as the line of scrimmage. "I have to look at that scoreboard again," said FHS coach Ray Cosenza. "It was a great game that neither team deserved to lose." Nov. 24, 1994: at Crocker Field Leominster fans were leaving for the greener pastures of the Plastics City in the third quarter, after Fitchburg defeated the Blue Devils 38-14. It was the fourth win in a row for the Red Raiders. FHS broke out to a 22-0 lead at halftime. Fitchburg scored on a 93-yard, nine-play drive which was capped off with a two-yard plunge by freshman Lawrence Yarbrough. Several plays later, after Leominster had fumbled the kick, Steffanides hooked up with Clarence Yarbrough for a touchdown. The "rookie" rushed for 77 yards on 16 carries while Greg Graham ran for 113 yards on 12 carries. Steffanides also ran for 140 yards on 13 carries, as well as running for a touchdown and throwing for another. Nov. 23, 1995: at Doyle Field Ricky Morales was tied for the school record in scoring when he woke up that morning. By 10:15 a.m., he had it. Morales (202 yards on 16 carries) had a career day in the backfield for the Red Raiders, scoring four touchdowns as well as kicking an extra point to lead Fitchburg to a 38-6 win over the Blue Devils. While Morales shattered Billy Mackie's 62-year-old scoring record of 141 points in a season, it was Chris Roy who also had a career morning, rushing for 138 yards on 10 carries. In the process, Roy went over the 1000-yard rushing mark for the season. Morales scored the first of his four touchdowns from 18 yards out on a counter, before Devin Gates rolled out and into the end zone for a touchdown. Morales ended up with 166 points scored, and the final score was the largest margin of victory since 1927, which Fitchburg won 64-0. Nov. 28, 1996: at Crocker Field And it's now tied. Fitchburg claimed its sixth straight win with a 28-19 win over the Blue and White. And even though they came out on the losing end, it finished off Leominster's best season (8-3) since 1990. Chris Roy was the star of the game, rushing for 191 yards on 18 carries to go along with two touchdowns. Devin Gates - who had thrown only one touchdown pass all year - threw three strikes into the end zone, two of which going to Rob Sequin. "Chris Roy played a tremendous football game on both sides of the ball. He's been great on offense all year, but the way he picked it up on defense today. He saved his best for this game," said Cosenza. Nov. 27, 1997: at Doyle Field It didn't stay tied for long. Leominster finally edges past Fitchburg for the first time since the beginning of the decade, defeating the Red and Gray 26-8. The Blue Devil defense did the job, holding Fitchburg to 173 yards offense in the game. Andy LeBlanc had 121 yards of it, rushing for 101 yards while hooking up with Tom Snow for 20 yards on a halfback option pass. Leominster's Skip Collins ran for 125 yards with two touchdowns, while quarterback Shaun Jordan ran for the other one. Corey Adams had 15 tackles for the Blue Devils. "I'm so happy for these kids, so proud of how they played," said Dubzinski following the game. Nov. 27, 1998: at Crocker Field It's tied again. Fitchburg easily subdued the Blue Devils 21-7. All of FHS's points were scored in the first half, as well as having a 251-21 first half advantage in yardage. Dustin LeBlanc went for 169 yards on the ground with two touchdowns, while receiving for 61 yards and a touchdown. Andy LeBlanc rushed for 152 yards. After Dallas Heckel picked off Jon Quinn, the Red Raiders needed only 10 plays to get on the board. Jason Twomley capped off the drive with a one-yard run with 4:31 left in the half. Twomley also connected with Dustin LeBlanc on a 50-yard screen pass before Dustin scored again, which was his 17th touchdown of the season. Tim Nowakunski scored Leominster's touchdown, on a 15-yard run. Nov. 25, 1999: at Doyle Field Fitchbburg regains the series lead with a 38-21 win at Doyle Field, while upping its consecutive streak to seven. Backed by the rushing antics of junior quarterback Jason Twomley (over 200 yards) and senior tailback Jason Quinn, the Red Raiders jump out to an early 14-0 lead before Leominster can respond. But it wouldn't be nearly enough, as Leominster senior quarterback Paul LeBlanc rallied his troops to pull within a touchdown once in the first half and twice in the second half. A key touchdown run by Twomley before halftime gave the Raiders a key, 20-7 lead. After LeBlanc and the Blue Devils cut their deficits to 20-14, and 26-21, however, the Raiders responded behind Twomley, whose 63-yard touchdown run and two-yard run by Norman Cole gave Fitchburg all it would need. Nov. 23, 2000: at Crocker Field The 2000 edition of the storied Fitchburg/Leominster football rivalry — the 117th meeting overall and 95th on Thanksgiving — was a first half battle with Fitchburg leading 7-0 on running back Frank McDonald's 18-yard TD run. When it was all said and done, the Red Raiders won their third straight Thanksgiving Day battle over the Blue Devils, 28-6. But the Super Bowl-bound Red Raiders erupted in the second half, reeling off 15 straight points via a 73-yard TD reception by wide receiver Tim Keenan from quarterback Jason Twomley, and a Twomley 43-yard TD run. The Blue Devils cut the deficit to 22-6 on Joe Henrie's 79-yard kickoff return TD in the fourth quarter, but the Red Raiders sealed the game as junior fullback Norman Cole rumbled in from 18 yards out. McDonald led the Fitchburg offense with 160 yards rushing, while Twomley chipped in with 104 and Cole added 83. Sophomore tailback Kevin L'Ecuyer paced the Blue Devils with 80 yards on 19 carries. Nov. 22, 2001: at Doyle Field In 2001, underdog Fitchburg came into hostile territory and stunned Leominster, who was playing without junior star tailback Kevin L'Ecuyer (mononucleosis), 26-14, at Doyle Field. The Blue Devils led 14-13 heading into the fourth quarter, but senior Fitchburg fullback Norman Cole busted a 50-yard TD run and cornerback B.J. Fitz sealed the win with a 21-yard interception return for a touchdown. Fitchburg freshman tailback William Earley led the Red Raiders with 117 yards on 33 carries and one touchdown, while Cole added 90 rushing yards, 38 receiving yards and two TDs. L'Ecuyer's replacement, Tom Fallon, paced Leominster with 98 yards on 18 carries and one TD. Nov. 28, 2002: at Crocker Field With the game tied 7-7 at the half, the heavy underdog Red Raiders finally got their offense racing on all cylinders in the second half. Fitchburg, backed by a dominant offensive line of Anthony Murray, Brad McNamara, Joe Golden, Steve Marrella and Mark Thomas, paved the way for Fitchburg to score on three straight second-half possessions, highlighted by sophomore tailback William Earley. Earley rushed for 158 of his game-high 226 yards in the second stanza to lift Fitchburg to a stunning, 28-20 victory in the 119th meeting overall and 97th on Thanksgiving. Earley scored three touchdowns on runs of 1, 4 and 48 yards. Leominster, which has lost 11 of the last 12 meeting in the series, got on the board first when sophomore Anthony Bizzotto recovered a fumble in the first quarter and ran it in from 10 yards out. But Earley tied the game with 15 seconds left in the second quarter on a 1-yard TD run. Earley gave the Red Raiders a lead they would never relinquish on a 4-yard TD run in the third quarter, and quarterback Ryan Logan, a Leominster resident, added a 71-yard TD run. Leominster came back as senior quarterback Kevin Barnaby bolted in from 10 yards out, but Earley answered with a 48-yard TD run. Barnaby hit Adam Cordio for a 55-yard TD to end the scoring. Fitchburg outgained Leominster, 329-144. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Rivalry Year by Year 1894 Leominster 40-0 1895 Fitchburg 14-6 1896 Fitchburg 18-0 1897 Fitchburg 4-0 1897 Fitchburg 8-0 1898 Leominster 5-0 1898 Fitchburg 5-0 1899 Fitchburg 10-0 1899 Tie 0-0 1901 Fitchburg 7-0 1901 Leominster 5-0 1903 Leominster 6-0 1903 Tie 0-0 1904 Fitchburg 46-0 1904 Fitchburg 48-0 1905 Fitchburg 10-0 1906 Fitchburg 17-0 1907 Tie 4-4 1908 Fitchburg 2-0 1909 Fitchburg 5-0 1910 Leominster 6-0 1910 Leominster 23-0 1911 Leominster 9-0 1911 Leominster 17-0 1912 Tie 0-0 1912 Leominster 19-0 1913 Tie 0-0 1913 Fitchburg 13-0 1914 Fitchburg 27-0 1914 Fitchburg 33-0 1915 Fitchburg 62-0 1915 Fitchburg 13-0 1916 Fitchburg 49-0 1916 Fitchburg 27-0 1917 Fitchburg 42-0 1918 Fitchburg 20-0 1919 Fitchburg 12-0 1920 Fitchburg 35-7 1921 Tie 7-7 1922 Fitchburg 12-6 1924 Fitchburg 48-0 1925 Leominster 9-0 1926 Fitchburg 20-0 1927 Fitchburg 64-0 1928 Leominster 6-3 1929 Leominster 6-0 1930 Fitchburg 6-0 1931 Fitchburg 24-7 1932 Leominster 25-0 1933 Fitchburg 20-12 1934 Leominster 14-0 1935 Fitchburg 33-14 1936 Fitchburg 7-6 1937 Leominster 26-6 1938 Leominster 14-0 1939 Leominster 18-0 1940 Leominster 6-0 1941 Fitchburg 14-6 1942 Leominster 25-7 1943 Leominster 13-6 1944 Leominster 26-0 1945 Tie 6-6 1946 Fitchburg 7-6 1947 Fitchburg 13-0 1948 Fitchburg 13-7 1949 Leominster 26-20 1950 Leominster 19-13 1951 Fitchburg 12-0 1952 Leominster 20-7 1953 Leominster 7-0 1954 Leominster 27-7 1955 Leominster 39-7 1956 Leominster 44-13 1957 Fitchburg 20-14 1958 Fitchburg 24-10 1959 Tie 0-0 1960 Tie 14-14 1961 Leominster 26-12 1962 Leominster 14-0 1963 Fitchburg 20-0 1964 Fitchburg 12-8 1965 Leominster 27-0 1966 Leominster 14-12 1967 Leominster 16-0 1968 Fitchburg 16-14 1969 Leominster 40-18 1970 Leominster 14-12 1971 Fitchburg 12-7 1972 Fitchburg 27-19 1973 Leominster 15-0 1974 Leominster 36-13 1975 Leominster 19-0 1976 Leominster 38-22 1977 Leominster 7-0 1978 Leominster 3-0 1979 Leominster 34-6 1980 Leominster 43-8 1981 Leominster 27-12 1982 Leominster 41-6 1983 Leominster 28-12 1984 Fitchburg 29-2 1985 Leominster 13-6 1986 Leominster 23-15 1987 Leominster 20-6 1988 Leominster 25-8 1989 Leominster 29-6 1990 Leominster 27-0 1991 Fitchburg 14-0 1992 Fitchburg 14-13 1993 Fitchburg 44-40 1994 Fitchburg 38-14 1995 Fitchburg 38-6 1996 Fitchburg 28-19 1997 Leominster 26-8 1998 Fitchburg 21-7 1999 Fitchburg 38-21 2000 Fitchburg 28-6 2001 Fitchburg 26-14 2002 Fitchburg 28-20 Point totals: Fitchburg 1599, Leominster 1411 Fitchburg leads series: 57-53-9
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