Rivalry-savvy coaches will patrol the sideline for their first Turkey Bowl on Thanksgiving

by Nelson Coffin

For a football game loaded with as much history as the annual Turkey Bowl between Calvert Hall College and Loyola Blakefield, Thursday morning’s showdown at Towson University’s Johnny Unitas Stadium will feature two coaches who have never been on the sidelines for the annual event.

That alone might make the 105th version of the battle unique. 

Although Calvert Hall’s Tyler Ward has not had his Turkey Bowl baptism of fire, he said that “it’s a good thing that the players get to play in a game that so many people care about” with a chance to raise Calvert Hall’s football profile to a great extent.

And he’s no stranger to intense football rivalries, having played for Lehigh University in four — and coached in another three — games of the Mountain Hawks’ mind-boggling 161-year-old gridiron confrontation with Lafayette College.

His counterpart, Rich Holzer, also enjoys some Thanksgiving football memories from his days as a player at Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, NY. Even though that Turkey Bowl only lasted 43 years before ending in 2016, it was a game, much like the Calvert Hall-Loyola clash, that received a lot of attention and engendered a boatload of passion.

During his five-year tenure coaching at Mount St. Joseph, Holzer’s perspective of the annual ritual was that “I always thought it was a cool thing. I think a lot of schools wish that they had something like it.”

Coaching the Dons has not changed his viewpoint.

“It's the right kind of rivalry,” said Holzer, who guided Northern of Calvert High School to the Class 3A state championship in 2021. “It’s heated, but it’s handled well by both schools. I’m leaning into it and trying to learn what it’s like to coach (from former Loyola coaches Blake Henry and Brant Hall) in the game.”

Although neither team participated in the recently-concluded MIAA A Conference playoffs, try telling the rabid fans of the cross-Towson rivals that the game is a meaningless exercise.

Beginning in 1920 and played every year in succession until the pandemic postponed the 102nd version of the showdown, the Cardinals and Dons competed for pigskin bragging rights.

A large crowd is expected to witness the 10 a.m. kickoff with additional viewers tuning in to its streaming services to catch the action.

The Dons, after claiming a 17-14 verdict in last year’s battle, lead the all-time series, 52-44-8.

Trying to gauge which team might have the advantage in this year’s tussle isn’t easy, considering that the Cardinals (5-4, 3-3 conference) and Loyola (5-5, 2-4) were so close in the A Conference standings.

The Cardinals’ signature win was over league runner-up McDonogh, 28-21, a team that whacked the Dons, 48-29.

On the other hand, Loyola solved Gilman, 38-21, while the Greyhounds stifled Calvert Hall, 13-7.

And while it might be clichéd to say that previous games’ results don’t matter when it comes to such an intense rivalry, a long look at what has transpired in the series would show that it has been littered with unpredictable outcomes.

Regardless, according to Ward, the main objective of Calvert Hall’s defense will be to do its best to contain dynamic Loyola sophomore signal-caller Carlos Spencer, who has put up some pretty impressive numbers this season.

“He might be the best quarterback in the league,” Ward said. “We have to limit big plays. The more we make them have long drives, to nickel-and-dime-it down the field, the better off we’ll be. We have to put some pressure on him, too.”

Without getting to Spencer, he might go off like he did while completing 35-of-48 pass attempts for 478 yards and three touchdowns in a 20-7 triumph over Georgetown Prep. He also threw for nearly 400 yards and three scores in the win over Gilman with 265 yards, with all the TD tosses handled by sure-handed senior wideout Brayden Pross. Look for juniors Carston Brown and Logan Furst to get their fair share of targets as well.

To that end, seniors Sean Parker, Hewitt and  Luck Speicher, junior Antonio Sinkford and sophomore Dillon Hardy are a big part of a stingy and determined group that only allowed an average of 15.5 points per game over the Cardinals’ final four A Conference encounters.

Another way to slow down the Dons might be for the Cardinals’ offense to manufacture some long drives of their own with Oliver Noll at the controls and senior running backs Ace Homes, Chris Hewitt and Harrison O’Connell grinding out yardage and moving the chains.

Noll will also try to unlock the passing game with junior Misha Morozov and sophomore Mike Johnson the most likely recipients.

Ward is more than pleased with his junior QB.

“He’s an amazing leader,” Ward said. “He has all the intangibles that you could want. He does everything the right way and has earned the respect of everyone in the locker room.”

Loyola’s ‘D’ is no slouch, either, with senior defensive back Bardy Murn, senior linebacker Jayden Harper, senior captain Cole Mosier, junior lineman Sam Lavin and freshman corner Ethan Wheele leading the way.

“They’re a big, physical team that tries to run the ball down your throat,” Holzer said about Calvert Hall’s offense. “And their quarterback is a great athlete who can run. They try to do what they do best and try to make you beat them.”