Credit: Grace Zocco

Screaming at the the players, head coach Scott Parseghian yells at the boys to make sure they switch their energy and keep pushing, despite the 0-0 score.

On Thursday, Nov. 27, Thanksgiving day, the varsity football team (3-8) lost a tight defensive battle 10-0 to their rival, the Weston Wildcats (7-3). The rivalry dates back to 1934, with the teams having played on Thanksgiving for over 75 years. Each year, the teams compete for the Thanksgiving Trophy, which Weston took back from the Warriors this year for the first time since 2022.

Hundreds of alumni from both Wayland and Weston came to watch their former teams take the field for the final time this season.

All year, head coach Scott Parseghian speaks about how much this game means to him.

“This is obviously our Super Bowl,” Parseghian said. “It’s just the biggest game we’ve had all year, and we’re fired up and ready to go.”

First half:

The wind and low temperatures made it difficult for both teams to throw the ball effectively in the first half. Therefore, Wayland leaned heavily on the run, with junior captain Brajae Walton leading the team with 82 rushing yards.

Wayland tried to make something happen at the end of the first half, with freshman kicker Cody Schamberg attempting a 53-yard field goal, but the kick was blocked. The game was scoreless at halftime.

Second half:

The second half started out similarly to the first, but when the weather conditions improved, Weston’s senior quarterback Cam Cort fired a 38-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver Luke Betty, putting Weston ahead 7-0 just before the end of the third quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Wayland saw their best opportunity of the game, driving all the way down inside the Weston ten yard line, but the ball was turned over on downs with nine minutes left. Weston then got first down after first down and eventually kicked a short field goal to go ahead 10-0 with virtually no time left.

According to Parseghian, he was disappointed that his team was unable to pull out the victory, but also understood that his players were young and had a bright future.

“Thanks to all the injuries, we basically only had two seniors [on the field],” Parseghian said “So that makes it really hard to compete with a senior-heavy team like Weston.”

Wayland still leads the all time Thanksgiving series 55-31 and has won 10 of the last 13 meetings.

Gallery • 12 Photos

Credit: Grace Zocco

Waiting for the play to start, sophomore defensive linemen Teddy Richter and Peter Papantoniadis line up and get ready to block the Weston players across from them.