Male vs Manual was a classic on Thanksgiving day when I was young.....funny thing is, it was after the County's Champion met City's Champion for the 3A crown. A week or two later the Male/Manual game on Thanksgiving (both teams were City teams???).....So the State Championship was over before the Turkey Bowl game....Now they play at the end of the regular season. If I'm wrong, someone in the know please correct me, I was just a kid then....

In Cincinnati:

 

For 50 years, one thing dominated the Thanksgiving mornings on Price Hill: The Elder-West High football game.

 

"It really meant a lot to people," the late Father Edward Rudemiller told Bill Koch in his book The Pride of Price Hill. "People would go to church first. The game started at 10 and it would be done a little after 12. Then you'd go to a party or UC-Miami game in the early afternoon and then go home and eat turkey. That's what you did."

 

When the grand tradition of Thanksgiving morning football ended in 1978, it wasn't from lack of interest -- the Thanksgiving finale was played at Riverfront Stadium to accommodate the crowd (estimated at 20,000). It wasn't from lack of competitiveness -- an 8-1-1 West High beat an 8-2 Elder team. The win snapped a 20-game losing streak for West High in the game.

 

The rivalry game was moved from Thanksgiving because of the playoff system, then in its sixth year. The game was too late to be counted in the Harbin Ratings, which determined the playoff berth.

 

"It's not the last one," then West High coach Pat O'Brien said after the 1978 game. "It'll be just as good. It's just going to be on Aug. 31.

 

It was never the same. The schools, in fact, stopped playing the game altogether after 2009.

 

But old-timers on Price Hill still have the memories.

 

Battle for Price Hill pride | retro.Cincinnati.com

I love the idea of Thanksgiving football, although I know a lot of administrators in the state would definitely balk. It would be perfect for that out-of-district game most teams have at the end of the schedule. If you start the 2nd Friday of September and take out the open week, it would work perfectly. Of course, that would put you playing State championship games during Christmas, some years. You could just push it to the next week and give Championship teams 2 weeks to prepare.

 

I am going to say something that might stir the pot a little, though that is not my intent...

 

There is really no good reason to play August football... I know moving the season back would upset the basketball applecart, but if the well-being of the kids is the main concern, I don't see any reason why the season starts so early. It would also have the benefit of pushing baseball out of March, which is ridiculous, anyway.

The Thanksgiving Day game I remember was Bowling Green and Russellville.

@GCHS, if it stirs, it stirs.

 

I agree withe everything you said, except adopt a similar schedule and set up to that of Massachusetts to where the season still ended the 1st weekend of December or the 2nd weekend at the latest.

 

I really never thought in a million years I'd agree to less games, but when you think about it, no colleges (at any level or maybe FCS?) play 15 games no matter how far they go. I could easily live with 12-13 games if done like Massachusetts.

 

As far as August goes, preach on. Better yet, July (in terms of practice, and not just practice, but THREE FULL weeks of it had been completed before August 1st this year..think about that) as well. High school basketball, nor baseball seasons start before collegiate or NBA/MLB season, football though? For some reason, practice starts around 3 weeks and some change before college/NFL. The season starts (at least ours) starts two weeks before the college season and three weeks before the NFL.

 

August = Practice

September, October, November and early December= Season

 

Makes too much sense, though.

The Thanksgiving Day game I remember was Bowling Green and Russellville.

 

I was looking through a program from 1945 the other day of my maternal grandfather. He played at Henderson (well, the actual name of the school then was Barrett Manual Training HS) and it was for their annual Thanksgiving game vs. Owensboro.

 

He passed away a couple years ago, but I always remember him saying how amazing it was. I think they played somewhere around 10am/Noon & it was PACKED. It was something both towns looked forward to. A high school game against two rivals in the morn, then Thanksgiving Dinner that evening.

Male vs Manual was a classic on Thanksgiving day when I was young.....funny thing is, it was after the County's Champion met City's Champion for the 3A crown. A week or two later the Male/Manual game on Thanksgiving (both teams were City teams???).....So the State Championship was over before the Turkey Bowl game....Now they play at the end of the regular season. If I'm wrong, someone in the know please correct me, I was just a kid then....

 

Yes this is correct. Once the KHSAA went to four classes the game moved to the last game of the regular season; however, since the advancement to six classes the game is now the last district game of the season.

In Massachusetts it is somewhat complicated but very interesting. Basically they play an 8-game regular season. Eight teams make the playoffs in a particular region...

 

The process basically assures every school ten games plus a Thanksgiving game, and if a team makes the championship they are only playing twelve total games. Also, Massachusetts doesn't start their season until after Labor Day.

 

Would be all for this in Kentucky.

I like all teams getting 10 games, but I'm against anyone having 15 games.

I'm against starting games in mid August.

I'm against 4th place teams vs. 1st place first round blowouts.