In June of 2000 our world, and when I say our world I am referring to anything within the Ridley Township borders, was changing.
Matt Marcelli,
Bill Pohlig,
Sean Kelly,
Chris Crooks,
Rich DiNofia,
Tim Dougherty, and
Tom Orio (still spending weekends hunting saber tooth tigers with Dan Gallo) said goodbye to their home of four years: Ridley High School. These young men would leave behind friends like
Mark Marcelli,
Mike Trill,
Jon Hart, and
Kevin Rayer, who were still in the midst of their high/middle school journey. Without going into great detail, The Turkey Bowl would soon be created to keep these young men in contact with each other, solidify the bonds of friendship, and beat the crap out of one another.
Turkey Bowl I was amazing. Ten friends met on Thanksgiving morning at Pritchard Field to do battle. The game ended with a 10-9 victory in favor of
Team Possum. It will forever go down in TFL history as not only the inaugural game of our organization, but one of the greatest games ever played. We now approach Turkey Bowl IX, and even though the faces of the original ten remain, many things have evolved.
THE FIELD:
Drive by Pritchard Field. Take a long look at its splendor. Basically you are staring at grass and a gravel track.
One of many pylons that now adorn the field
Now picture a gorgeous football field standing in its western corner. That picture in your mind is the complete opposite of what the field looked like for the inaugural Turkey Bowl.
Turkey Bowl I featured no midfield, no yard markers, no field markers at all, and no pylons. Piles of clothes were used to mark off the end zone. There were no established field dimensions. It was a pick-up game of football at best.
John Hart, VP of Materials, constructed these uprights out of testosterone and beer
Look at the glory of Pritchard Field now. Driving by it 364 days out of the year it looks exactly as it did 8 years ago, but on that 365th day, Thanksgiving, Pritchard Field transforms into a gridiron heaven. Paint lines illustrate the field dimensions and end zones. Pylons sit at the corners of these end zones, begging to be dove over and around. Field markers identifying mid field, safety, kick off, and touchback positions can be clearly seen by both player and fan. The TFL logo rests at field center demanding our pride and respect. The cou de gras, uprights stand. Look how far we’ve come.
THE PLAYERS:
As stated earlier, there were ten original TFL members and combatants. Since
Turkey Bowl I,
24 individuals have participated in Turkey Bowl play.
The Turkey Bowl started so long ago that Crooks still had hair
Fourteen additional gridiron gang members have at some point joined the “Illustrious Ten”.
Mark Marcelli has grown from a young boy into a young man.
Chris Crooks' hair has matured from a dark brown mane into a flesh colored oval.
Sean Kelly has evolved from a canteen toting, no drinking, Phish fan into a drunken, rap-loving mogul. His virginity has given way to genital slinging that would make a crack dealer proud. Engagements and marriages have made their way onto the scene. Hanging out in
Matt's basement has turned into hanging out at Matt’s house. College graduations have come and gone, and the TFL members have been exposed to “the real world” with new jobs and careers. Look how far we’ve come.
THE WEBSITE:
Do you remember the original website? No negative things will be thought or said about it. It was a masterpiece in its own right.
Remember when the website looked like this?
Scarface pictures and Jaws emblems garnered it, having nothing at all to do with the game. We had blurry photos, cartooning with Crooks, and the original game recaps without titles that were only called “Game Summaries”. The message board came into its own, but was nothing like what we see today.
We now, thanks to Matt, have a website that rivals ESPN’s. The pictures are as clear as the day that they were taken and, with the addition of videos, we can relive some of our favorite Turkey Bowl moments. The
Stats option lets us know who leads in
TD catches,
winning percentage,
games played, as well as many other categories, while
player bios provides us with weights, heights, and just how to spell
Tuna's last name. We can search the headlines to read about our trials and tribulations, and watch the countdown clock slowly tick towards our next battle. The message board fills up with rants and raves faster than Horse can rub one out, and whenever one of us is feeling down, we can take solace in the fact that we have given back to the community through reading through our
Charity section. Look how far we’ve come.
THE HYPE:
There is no arguing that
Turkey Bowl I was an event we were all hyped up to participate in.
This is what "uniforms" used to look like
There’s no downplaying that first time we lined up against one another. But look at us now. There isn’t a weekend that goes by that the Turkey Bowl is not brought up in some way, shape, or form. As soon as the game ends we look forward to playing the next. The Turkey Bowl has become and replaced our childhood infatuation with Christmas. Thanksgiving now holds our highest holiday regard. Mismatched t-shirts have given way to full-fledged team uniforms. Team names have taken on a whole new meaning, secretly throwing insults at one another and embodying each team’s personalities. The draft has provided us with just another way to incorporate the TFL into our lives.
This is what they look like now
Even a combine has been spoken of. Commissioners have been created for those that have participated in every Turkey Bowl, and rules and regulations have given each player guidelines for on and off the field conduct. The post game party allows us to relive the events of the day. The fan base continually grows as we expose more and more people to our love of OUR game. Pranks are played to the point that farm animals have even become members of our fraternity. Team dinners and practices allow us to show our love of the game. I even credit the Turkey Bowl for putting down arguments and aggressions between its players. The hype of the game has kept us together through thick and thin. Look how far we’ve come.
I, no, WE love the Turkey Bowl and the TFL. Throughout history, European soldiers have always said “God, King, and Country”; we proudly say “Family, Friends, and Turkey Bowl”. LOOK HOW FAR WE'VE COME!
