The old days of HS Football on Thanksgiving Day

[Run Bubba Run]

I do not have the info on the exact date, but in doing my research of the SEOAL I recall Nelsonville travelling to Portsmouth to play a league game. The reason I remember this so well is the fact that the article was not on the sports page of the Athens Messenger, but rather on the Nelsonville page. Back then, different communities had their own page in the Messenger. If you wanted info on football games, you went to the community page. In the article on Nelsonville versus portsmouth, I recall that while the game was lost (NO SCORE GIVEN!!!) all on the trip from Nelsonville had an enjoyable time. As I recall, fans and the team were on the same train to P-town.

Those Thanksgiving Day games had to be fun for all. I know there were several between Wellston/Jackson and Pomeroy/Middleport that were very exciting to read about even years later.

[riverball]

Use to have some GREAT games with all the cousins and friends out in the field every Thanksgiving Day! Full tackle, no pads.

[jottings]

In 1947, when I was an eighth grader in the Gallipolis City Schools system, 1,110 fans boarded a train in the "cut" at the corner of Fourth Ave., and Spruce St. (the cars stretched over to the river side on First Ave., and Spruce St) for a long trip to Logan.

Logan was supposed to have reserved 1,100 seats for the visiting Gallipolitans.

When we got to Logan, it seemed like we had to walk five or six blocks to Hilltop Stadium. When we got to the stadium (LHS still had those old wooden bleachers) there wasn't a seat in the place. I personally sat on the 50 yard line that night (had lime all over my pants) and watched the Blue Devils edge Logan 13-6 in a titantic struggle.

Bob Marchi, who scored the winning touchdown, says to this day he scored, but several Logan alumni who played in the game said he was inches short.

GAHS went on to post a 10-0 record (7-0-0 in thr SEOAL) and win their first league championship in 15 years.

It wasn't a Thanksgiving game, but it was something I'll never forget. After that win, GAHS went on to beat Nelsonville, Wellston and Oak Hill.

[kahn]

Speaking of the Elder-West High game I mentioned above, it seems this is the last year for that 81-year old rivalry altogether.

Cincinnati Enquirer Rankings, mentions the rivalry discontinuing
http://news.cincinnati.com/article/2009 ... o.+2+St.+X

Article I wrote on the history last season
http://www.jjhuddle.com/news/articles/2 ... be-no-more

[loganlocos]

In 1947, when I was a seventh grader in the Gallipolis City Schools system, 1,110 fans boarded a train in the "cut" at the corner of Fourth Ave., and Spruce St. (the cars stretched over to the river side on First Ave., and Spruce St) for a long trip to Logan.

Logan was supposed to have reserved 1,100 seats for the visiting Gallipolitans.

When we got to Logan, it seemed like we had to walk five or six blocks to Hilltop Stadium. When we got to the stadium (LHS still had those old wooden bleachers) there wasn't a seat in the place. I personally sat on the 50 yard line that night (had lime all over my pants) and watched the Blue Devils edge Logan 13-6 in a titantic struggle.

Bob Marchi, who scored the winning touchdown, says to this day he scored, but several Logan alumni who played in the game said he was inches short.

GAHS went on to post a 10-0 record (7-0-0 in thr SEOAL) and win their first league championship in 15 years.

It wasn't a Thanksgiving game, but it was something Ill never forget. After that win, GAHS went on to beat Nelsonville, Wellston and Oak Hill.

Jottings -

Cleon Tucker (Former Logan Daily News Sports Editor) had a great write-up of that game. The article said over 5,000 people were there for the game and that Gallipolis was "one of the most formidable foes ever to sink their cleats in the field."

Logan lost 3 games that year, all by one score or less. Lancaster (18-13), Gallipolis (13-6), and Wellston (6-0). They also tied Pomeroy 6-6.


Speaking of the Logan/Middleport train trips, I have several articles scanned from those late-'30s games that mentioned the train trips. The 1939 game at Middleport is still remembered as one of the greatest games in school history. Logan came back from a 20-7 defecit in the final quarter. No small feat for that era of football.

Logan won the game 21-20 thanks to the heroics of Bob McBride who became a starting tackle at Notre Dame after being a POW in WWII.

[jottings]

Locos...I've got scrapbook clippings of Cleon "Pappy" Tucker. He was one of the original SEOAL news media members (before the radio broadcaters came along in the 1950s).

I always thought he was one of the best sportswriters in the SEOAL until Craig Dunn came along.

The SEOAL media, in those days, made pre-season predictions, then made the All-SEOAL selections following regular season play.

Some of the other original members of the SEOAL Sportswrters Association were J. Sherman (Jaspey) Porter, Gallipolis, Paul (Moon) Clifford and Bob Roberts of Middleport and Pomeroy, John Weber and William (Bill) Thomas and Bob Willis, Wellston, Max Linton, Nelsonville, Ed Belso, Athens and Art Farrar, Jackson.

They usually met at the Sands Hotel in Wellston (center of the league) for the selections and had huge meals and lots of "fruit juce" before and after their selections.

I was 20 years old when I went to my first SEOAL meeting in Wellston. Ate too much shrimp that day. That was about the time Jackson and Wellston were fighting for the SEOAL grid title year after year.

Those are days that I'll never foget.

[loganlocos]

Jottings -

I'd love to see that someday.

He was a great sportswriter. He really made the old games come alive. I enjoyed reading his work.

[PerfectionInPurple]

You guys can wax nostalgic all you want. BUT, we in Racine are NOT in favor of YET ANOTHER football game. That would interfere TOO MUCH with what is important to us: BASKETBALL! Hopefully, Southern alumni have done there job and talked kids into throwing the game against Eastern. They need the win more than us and we don't want to do something stupid like qualify for the playoffs. I hear some of our players realize there is no future in football and plant to stay away at the start of practice next season. THANK GOODNESS!

[Heavy D]

Go ahead and win the game cause you have as much chance of making the playoffs as you always do. If you don't know, that is NO CHANCE!