Sports

Thanksgiving games at a glance


Published: November 26, 2009

3 keys to victory

Newburyport

1. Play for yourself and not for revenge. Like Amesbury, Newburyport graduated much of its talent from last year. But too often in the past three years, the Clippers have beaten themselves with mental mistakes, especially on turnovers. These seniors do not want to be known as the first class since 1952 to have never beaten Amesbury.

2. Create plays for Kyle LeBlanc. LeBlanc holds virtually every relevant career receiving record for the program. He must make a couple of big plays for Newburyport to win.

3. Hold contain. What has made Amesbury great in the recent years with coach Thom Connors is its misdirection plays on offense. Tyler Lay is excellent in open space and play fakes. If the Clippers overplay, the Indian quarterback could burn Newburyport.

Amesbury

1. Create pressure and confuse the quarterback. This is Ryan O'Connor's first Thanksgiving game at the helm for Newburyport, and the pressure can break some quarterbacks. Forcing turnovers may be the only way to keep the game close.

2. Get the ball in Jesse Burrell's hands. Although Burrell has missed the better part of four games this year, he is by far the Indians' most dangerous threat. Burrell has over 500 combined rushing/receiving yards, as well as five touchdowns.

3. Find the next Steve Serwon. Three years ago, a relatively unknown sophomore linebacker Serwon recovered a punt block for a 38-yard touchdown. Two years ago, he recovered a fumble for a 58-yard score. Although Kyle Uhlarik had the big defensive play last year, Serwon's play at linebacker fueled the Amesbury defense all season.

Did you know?

Newburyport leads the series 44-36-6 ... In 2007, the two schools played their first-ever game to decide who would win the Cape Ann League Small. Amesbury won, 17-12, then repeated the feat last year, 22-7, before winning its first Super Bowl in school history ... These schools first met in 1891. The Clippers won that game, 11-10 ... The last tie occurred in 1939, and the teams have played to six ties total, not counting the games played from 1891 to 1914 ... The game last went to overtime in 1985 when Newburyport won, 20-14 ... The largest margin of victory came in 1951 when Amesbury beat Newburyport, 99-6. The lone Newburyport touchdown was scored by Ralph Eaton, the father of The Daily News photo chief Bryan Eaton ... From 1943-52, Amesbury won 10 straight games, the biggest streak in the rivalry, and had several blowouts, including scores of 33-6, 40-6, 25-6, 51-19, 47-20, and the infamous 99-6 victory ... Ed Gaudiano became the winningest coach in Newburyport history in 2007, passing legendary Clippers coach Jim Stehlin.

3 keys to victory

Triton

1. Feed Brendan O'Neil the rock. Unquestionably one of the greatest Vikings tailbacks will be playing his last game in blue, so there should be no reason not to run O'Neil until he needs to be carried off the field.

2. Channel the energy from the first five games of the season. In those games, the Vikes averaged 35 points and looked to be a potential CAL Large sleeper at 5-0.

3. Control the line of scrimmage. Both teams' offenses come in wanting to rush the ball. Both teams' defenses need to stop the rush. Whoever wins the battle up front will likely win the game.

Pentucket

1. Make the first big play. When the Sachems score 24 or more points, they are 4-0. Momentum will be key for a team that has struggled against CAL Large opponents (1-3) and travels to Byfield.

2. Win the turnover battle. With both teams likely to take a conservative approach, neither can afford ill-fated turnovers.

3. Control the line of scrimmage. The same holds true for Pentucket as it does for Triton. Whoever wins the battle up front will likely win the game.

Did you know?

Pentucket leads the all-time series 20-13-1 ... In 2006, the Vikings ended a seven-year drought in the series when Ben Ferrara scored the only touchdown in the second overtime for a memorable win over the Sachems in West Newbury, 26-20. However, the Sachems have won nine of the last 10 games ... In 2005, Pentucket won 7-6 when Triton missed its extra point attempt ... Neither Pentucket nor Triton has been shut out this season, but the Vikes' defense owns two shutouts, and the Sachem defense owns one ... The series has been very streaky with Triton producing two four-game winning streaks (1995-98, 1981-84) and Pentucket owning four- and seven-game winning streaks (1999-05, 1987-90) ... Triton's offense is averaging 26.1 points per game this season, but has cooled off in the last five games, averaging only 17.2 points per contest in a 1-4 stretch ... Pentucket's offense is only averaging 17.3 points per game for the whole season ... Pentucket assistant coach Shawn McElligott was the Triton coach from 2005-2007 ... Triton assistant coaches Dave Dempsey and Ed Nizwantowski coached together at Peabody.

3 keys to victory

Georgetown

1. Stop the run. The Hornets are loaded in the backfield and like to run ragged on opposing teams not adept at stopping a relentless run game. The Royals need to pressure Hornet quarterback Alex Carr. Georgetown needs to control the line of scrimmage.

2. Consistency. The Georgetown defense has been its saving grace all season long, but an inconsistent offensive unit will need to play well in order to limit the short fields. A balanced attack is imperative for the Royals.

3. Turnover ratio. Look at any game the Royals have made a contest of, and the turnover ratio sways in their favor. If Georgetown can stay error-free, avoid careless mistakes and play with poise, it will only boost their chances of victory.

Manchester Essex

1. Execution. If the Hornets can execute the way they have been all year, Manchester Essex may fill up the score book. Balancing the offense while keeping the Royals off-balance is what the Hornets aim to do.

2. QB containment. Hornets coach Mike Athanas and crew have their eyes on Esposito. They understand that the offense runs through him, so their plan is to make him worry by pressure and playing disciplined defense.

3. Play physical. It will be the name of the game for both teams. The Hornets plan to be the tougher team come Thanksgiving, but if chaos outweighs order, all their toughness may be for naught.

Did you know?

These schools first met in 1906. The Hornets won that game, 22-8 ... The teams have never tied ... The largest margin of victory came in 2000 when Georgetown beat Manchester Essex, 54-0 ... Hornets coach Mike Athanas is an alum of Manchester Essex ... Royals coach Matt Bouchard played his high school ball as a Salem High Witch under legendary coach Ken Perrone and a was a graduate of the class of 1996 ... The four Hornet captains are Ben Kekeisen (running back), Brian Ciccone (running back) Jack Bishop (running back) and Yuri Klypka-Simpson (lineman) ... The four Royal captains are Chris Esposito (quarterback), Mike Wootan (fullback), Andrew Bugler (wide receiver) and Andrew Sinkewicz (linebacker) ... Hornets junior QB Alex Carr has 1,478 passing yards and 14 touchdowns ... Mike Wootan leads the Royals with four sacks ... Brian Ciccone has 851 rushing yards for the Hornets with 12 touchdowns ... Chris Esposito leads the Royals with 82 tackles ... The Hornets moved up from the Commonwealth Small to the Commonwealth Large after their Division 4A Super Bowl win over Tri-County ... The Hornets have 17 seniors on their team.