Across the country, Thanksgiving Day is a day for giving thanks. However, in Westfield, Thanksgiving Day is also a day for Blue Devil football.
For over 100 years, the Blue Devils have faced the Plainfield Cardinals in an annual Thanksgiving Day game that aims to bring the two communities closer together. This year, the teams will meet at 11 a.m. at Westfield’s Gary Kehler Stadium. Being a fun, traditional game, head coach Jim DeSarno looks forward to it every year.
“It’s a tradition between the two communities that has lasted a long, long time,” said DeSarno. “It’s something the two communities really want.”
This traditional game is also extremely popular because it allows alumni who are home for the holidays a chance to watch a football game. This makes the Thanksgiving game a true favorite and gives former Blue Devils a taste of their past high school experience. “It’s an opportunity for a lot of the alumni to come back and watch a game,” said DeSarno. “A lot of former players who are in college right now, people coming home to visit family, and that itself makes for a nice day. It’s also a nice way to end a career for seniors.”
For Blue Devil seniors, this game is much more than a fun matchup and is extremely sentimental. With this game being the official last game of the season every year, many seniors reflect on their football careers and are emotional since they may never touch a football field again in their lives.
“This is our last ride,” said senior co-captain Jack O’Connor. “We are going to make it count. We are very excited as seniors to finish high school football the way we started. With a win.”
“This game is super special for us to end our season on a good note,” agreed senior co-captain Brandon Love. “It’s good for the younger guys to get used to playing at the varsity level.”
When it comes to the game itself, Westfield is the dominant force. For the last 11 years, Westfield has defeated Plainfield on Thanksgiving Day and looks to continue this streak on Thursday. However, the Cardinals stand at 5-5 and the Blue Devils at 7-3, which shows a potentially competitive matchup. Both teams are determined to come out victorious, so there is a lot of built-up tension on both sides.
However, tension is nothing new for the Blue Devils, and Westfield’s hard-working mindset is ready to secure yet another Thanksgiving win. “The mindset coming into this game for seniors is that we want to finish what we started and finish the right way without losing the opportunity to go out with a winning note,” said DeSarno.
While families across the country are hungry for their upcoming Thanksgiving feast, the Blue Devils are hungry for another win.
