Local Football Teams Set For Thanksgiving Rivalries

Before football fans carve their Thanksgiving turkey and set out the stuffing and mashed potatoes, there will be a full slate of gridiron games featuring the Lower Cape’s three high school football teams. 

 Two of the games will take place in Harwich, as Monomoy (4-6) hosts St. John Paul II (4-4) and Cape Cod Tech (3-7) welcomes Upper Cape Tech (6-5) to town. Both games will kick off at 10 a.m. 

 A little farther west, Nauset (7-3) visits Dennis-Yarmouth (7-3) for the Chowder Bowl. 

 Monomoy swept JP II in their season series last fall, earning a 20-14 victory on Oct. 27 in Harwich before cruising to a dominant 42-0 win when the rivals met on Thanksgiving Eve in Sandwich. The Sharks and Lions met earlier this season at Mass. Maritime, with JP II eking out a 16-14 win on Oct. 26.

 Cape Tech and Upper Cape Tech’s Thanksgiving showdown will mark the first meeting between the rivals this season. A year ago, the Crusaders hung on for a 16-6 win on Thanksgiving in Bourne. 

 Nauset is looking to snap a four-game losing streak against D-Y in Thanksgiving matchups after suffering a 35-32 defeat in last year’s meeting in North Eastham. The last time the Warriors upended the Dolphins was when the 2018 squad earned a 26-20 victory in North Eastham. 

 All three Lower Cape teams roll into Thursday’s games with momentum after earning victories in their penultimate games on Nov. 15. 

Cape Tech cruised to a 33-6 win over visiting Wareham, Monomoy held on for a 20-14 victory over Atlantis Charter, and Nauset defeated Martha’s Vineyard, 18-7. 

 Pick up a copy of the Dec. 5 edition of The Chronicle for full coverage of the Thanksgiving games.