LYNN — With summer winding down and fall approaching, the tradition of some Thanksgiving week football is on the horizon. This year St. Mary’s will be participating in a Thanksgiving week football game at Fenway Park.
St. Mary’s game is part of a five-game Thanksgiving week slate at Fenway that will take place over two days Tuesday, Nov. 22, and Wednesday, Nov. 23. St. Mary’s will match up with Austin Prep on Thanksgiving Eve — Wednesday, Nov. 23 at 1:30 p.m. at America’s Most Beloved Ballpark.
“We are thrilled to host high school football once again at Fenway Park,” said Fenway Sports Management (FSM) President Mark Lev in an FSM press release yesterday.
“Thanksgiving rivalry games are always a highlight of the high school football season and adding the iconic backdrop of Fenway Park will only make the occasion more special for the players, coaches, and fans. We look forward to welcoming the communities and football fans to the park to celebrate this time-honored tradition,” he added in the same release.
The process to get the opportunity to play at Fenway was somewhat of a waiting game, according to St. Mary’s Athletic Director Jeff Newhall.
“We were in the mix a year ago, and we were not selected, which is fine — there are only four games usually, this year is the first year with five — but we were told kind of last year that we would probably be in the mix this year on the right side of it — so it is kind of a waiting game,” said Newhall.
Now that the waiting is over, everybody from the top down at St. Mary’s is elated to participate in such a fantastic spectacle.
“It is just a great opportunity for our kids. I am just so excited for them to have this opportunity. I think it is one of the premier high school events in the country — to be able to play at Fenway Park for baseball would be once in a lifetime but to be able to play a football game at Fenway Park is just something these kids will never forget,” said Newhall.
“We are just so grateful to the Fenway Sports Group for selecting our game and giving our kids this — I say once in a lifetime is like a cliché, but just what an opportunity for them,” he added.
Head Coach Sean Driscoll echoed Newhall’s sentiment about how exciting this opportunity is, especially for the players.
“The kids found out when they came in this morning — some saw it late last night online, and they are excited. We think it is a great thing for the City of Lynn and St. Mary’s,” said Driscoll.
“We are excited — it is a long way away, and it was tough keeping the kids focused a little bit this morning on the task at hand — the practice — but I think they are excited, and most of all, the parents, the school and I think the alumni will be excited about it too,” he added.
For anyone interested in attending what will be a spectacular event, general admission tickets are $20 each day. Also, 25 percent of every ticket sold will return to the school you support. Ticket purchasing information and more can be found at www.redsox.com/highschoolfootball.
Michael Coughlin Jr. can be reached at [email protected].
