Coach Pat Deane ’ 88 P ’ 25 ( left ) holds the Turkey Bowl trophy next to Matthew Moorehead ’ 24 ( right ), who holds the Presidents ’ Trophy for being named game MVP .
The Fordham Prep Rams celebrate their win against Xavier at the historic 100th Turkey Bowl on November 23 , 2023 .
RAMS ’ TURKEY BOWL WINNING STREAK CONTINUES AT HISTORIC 100TH GAME
In front of a crowd of over 5,000 and thousands more watching at home and online via the YES Network , the Fordham Prep Rams defeated their archrivals , the Knights of Xavier , in the historic 100th edition of the Turkey Bowl , one of the oldest high school football rivalries in the nation .
P regame festivities at Moglia Stadium on the historic Rose Hill Campus , which is home both to the Prep and Fordham University , included a Fan Fest with food from vendors Grey ’ s Donuts , Mike ’ s Deli , Pugsley Pizza , and Fox Street BBQ & Grill as well as face painting , balloon making , and bounce houses from Clowns4Kids , and two live rams from All Creatures Great & Small . Before the coin toss , as is tradition , senior players from both teams participated in the tradition of presenting their families with flowers in recognition of their final high school football game .
BOTTOM ROW : Pre-game festivities at the 100th Turkey Bowl included live rams , face painting , bounce houses , balloon making , food , and the presentation of flowers to senior moms .
After an exciting entrance from the Rams and the singing of the national anthem by Noah Rodriguez ’ 24 , it was time for the Rams and the Knights to battle it out on the gridiron .
Fordham Prep won the toss and elected to receive .
The Ram offense came out firing on all cylinders to open up the 100th Turkey Bowl . Quarterback Matthew Moorehead ’ 24 connected with Jake Brodick ’ 24 for a 20-yard completion on the first play of the game . Back-to-back runs by Jack McKillop ’ 25 would bring the Rams deep into Xavier ’ s territory at the 20-yard line . On 3rd down , Moorehead would connect with Kailer Sato ’ 24 for a big gainer that if not for an amazing strip by a Xavier linebacker would have resulted in the first touchdown of the day , as the fumble was induced on the Knights ’ 1-yard line .
This set the stage for the first of many big plays by the Ram Defense on the day . With the Knights backed up on their
own 1-yard line , Will Dessoffy ’ 24 took on three blockers allowing Patrick Sohr ’ 24 ,
James Rice ’ 25 and Sean Rooney ’ 25 to combine for a crushing tackle resulting in a safety .
On the ensuing kick return , McKillop scampered up the Prep sideline taking the ball all the way to the Xavier 15-yard line . Disaster struck again as the Rams fumbled the football on 1st down for their second turnover of the day .
With stellar play from the defensive line , the Ram defense answered the bell . Defensive tackles Albee Cornachio III ’ 24 , Patrick Keeley ’ 25 , and Christian Dimitri ’ 24 dominated the Xavier Knight offensive line , forcing a quick three and out for the Xavier offense .
The Ram offense would struggle to find its footing on the following drive , culminating in yet another turnover in Xavier territory .
This was of little concern to the Ram defense as they were playing with tremendous confidence and physicality . On 3rd down , Sohr made an amazing shoestring tackle forcing back-to-back 3 and outs for the Knights offense .
continued …
WINTER 2024 VOLUME 44 , ISSUE 1
23