While Thanksgiving football games are largely diminishing around the state, there’s one new Turkey Day rivalry that’s growing each year. 

Franklin Tech and Smith Vocational began playing on Thanksgiving in 2018 and since that time, both programs are on the rise and getting better each season. 

After a 4-7 campaign in 2022, the Eagles posted an 8-3 season a year ago, tying the record for most wins in a season in program history. This year Franklin Tech has built on that, going 7-1 during the regular season and entering Turkey Day with an 8-2 overall record. 

Smith Vocational on the other hand won just one game in 2022 but came back to record a program record seven wins last fall. The Vikings head into Thursday’s Thanksgiving contest with a 6-3 record, one win away from tying the program record. 

Both teams will be looking to cap their seasons on a high note when they meet at Mountain View School in Easthampton on Thursday at 10 a.m. for the sixth installment of the rivalry. 

“All good things come to an end at a certain point in time but in all my years coaching at Tech, this has been our most successful team,” Franklin Tech coach Joe Gamache said. “We can get the program record for wins if we can take care of business. [Smith] won the first game of this rivalry but we’ve won each year since. I’m hoping we can keep that going, win our fifth straight and keep the trophy here in Turners.” 

While neither Franklin Tech or Smith Vocational made the MIAA state tournament, both qualified and hosted games in the MVADA Vocational Tournament, though both fell in the quarterfinals. 

“I’m super happy with how this season has gone,” Vikings coach Alex Subocz said. “Two of our three losses have come from out of the region. Looking at just our western Mass. opponents, we're 6-1. If we can get that to 7-1 on Thursday that’d be great.”

The Vikings won the first Thankgiving Day contest between the two schools but it’s been all Eagles since, with Franklin Tech winning the last five Turkey Day showdowns. 

After a 30-0 Tech win in 2019, the rivalry took a year off due to COVID-19 and resumed in 2021, with Tech walking away with a 32-16 win. The Eagles won 30-12 in 2022 and last year, Franklin Tech played its best game to date against Smith Vocational to post a 42-6 triumph. 

Still, Gamache knows his squad will be getting the Vikings’ best shot on Thursday. 

“The key is not being overconfident,” Gamache said. “Smith Voc has had a successful season and they’ll be eager, to say the least. They were eager last year and our kids stepped up and had a great game. I’m sure that left a sour taste in their mouths and they’ll be coming in this year with a chip on their shoulder.” 

Following a chippy game a year ago, Subocz said the rivalry is rounding into form. He’s expecting his team to give its best effort Thursday. 

“Last year I said it felt like the rivalry was budding,” Subocz said. “Last year it fully cemented itself as one. This will be a Thanksgiving tradition as long as I’m here. I hope it stays. It feels like both our programs are in really good spots. The scores have been lopsided the last few years but it still feels like a good Thanksgiving tradition.”

If Smith Vocational wants to end its losing skid against the Eagles, it’ll start by finding a way to slow down Franklin Tech running back Josiah Little. 

Little has celebrated Thanksgiving in style the last three years, giving the Vikings defense fits each time out. As a freshman, Little ran for 252 yards and a touchdown on Turkey Day, followed it up with the same stat line in 2022 and last year, he ran for 205 yards and a touchdown. 

“We’re definitely tired of losing to Franklin Tech and each year, the margin has gotten bigger,” Subocz said. “The last three years we haven’t done a good job stopping Josiah Little. I don’t learn a lot of opponents’ names but I’ve gotten to know him well these last three years. The first Thanksgiving I was just wondering who that No. 20 they had was. He’s a phenomenal football player. Similar to our backs, seeing them in street clothes is deceptive because he has a great combination of speed and strength.” 

Each of those performances on Thanksgiving allowed Little to surpass the 1,000 yard mark on the season. He’s well above that mark heading into Thursday, though the senior has other milestones in sight.

For his career, Little has 5,107 yards rushing. That puts him 101 shy of Mahar’s Isaiah Jones’ Franklin County rushing record of 5,208 yards, which was set in 2010. 

Little is also at 1,780 yards on the season, which puts him 220 yards away from reaching the 2,000-yard mark. While that may seem out of reach, the senior has shown he brings his best on Thanksgiving, and after averaging 178 yards per game on the season, no number seems too far out of reach. 

“We’re hoping Josiah can have another big Thanksgiving and reach a couple milestones here,” Gamache said. “Getting 2,000 would mean a big day and is a big ask but it’s not beyond the realm of possibilities. He’s had a couple games with those numbers this year and he’s had some big Thanksgiving performances. We’ll see if we can get him one more turkey leg this Thanksgiving.” 

Little isn’t the only threat Smith Vocational has to worry about. Quarterback Tyler Yetter has seven touchdowns through the air and five on the ground, Max Brunette has rushed for seven scores while receivers Hunter Donahue, Nolyn Stafford and Ethan Smarr are all threats in the passing game. Conversely, the Tech defense allowed just 13.1 points per game this season, with just two opponents reaching the 20-point mark. 

After being excluded from the Div. 8 state tournament — missing it by just one spot — and falling to Assabet Valley in the vocational tournament, expect a motivated Eagles team on Thursday. The last game Tech lost — a defeat to Ware which resulted in Tech sharing the Intercounty League North title — it responded with wins over Mahar (48-14) and Monument Mountain (50-16). 

“Missing out on the statewide playoff was disappointing based on the season we had,” Gamache said. “We had a second chance in the vocational playoff but ran into a solid program in Assabet. We battled but came up a little bit short. The kids are hungry to get back on the field and try to close things out with a win. They saw they can hang with a D6 team like Assabet. I do think this particular group is able to rebound after tough losses in a big way.” 

As with Tech, stopping the Vikings starts with slowing down their rushing attack. 

While the Eagle run game flows through Little, Smith Vocational has three players — Jared Baer, Brayden LaRose and Bryan Leyton — that will split the carries. 

“We’re a pretty simple, straightforward team,” Subocz said. “We want to establish the ground and we’re lucky to have three running backs who can carry the load for us.”

What makes the Viking ground attack so difficult to defend is the different skill sets for each back. With each one running with a different style, it gives opponents much to think about and account for on each play. 

“They’re all similar body types where they’re shorter and fast but they each have a different style,” Subocz said. “Jared is more of a thunder guy who can lower his shoulder. He’s really good at getting five yards if only three yards are there. Bryan is our shifty guy who can make people miss in open space while LaRose is our explosive guy. He had an 80-yard run against Upper Cape [Cod] and does something each week on a football field that I haven’t seen before. He’s so explosive and runs with a lot of determination. They complement each other well.”  

QB Ty Chapdelaine will return under center after missing the Vikings’ state vocational playoff game against Upper Cape Cod, though freshman Spencer Warren filled in admirably which gives Subocz confidence about the future of the program. 

“It feels like we’re starting to get in a reload phase and out of the rebuild phase,” Subocz said. “It was super satisfying doing a rebuild here but I wouldn’t want to start over from scratch again. Having Spencer hop in and play well against Upper Cape, I’m super confident he can man the ship next year.” 

While Subocz has the program going in the right direction, a signature win over their rival remains a missing ingredient.

“It feels like Joe has his program a half step to a full step ahead of us,” Subocz said. “Each year we’re catching up a little. We’re 6-3 and they’re 8-2. We’re just a little step behind. Hopefully on Thursday we can try to catch up and pass them, even for just a day.” 

Franklin Tech is hoping to get out to a fast start in order to earn its fifth-straight Turkey Day victory. 

“For us, we can’t afford a slow start,” Gamache said. “We need to come out, play a physical brand of football and set the tone early. We feel we have a good mix of experienced guys and youth guys who have made an impact on our program. This is a good opportunity for our older guys to close things out in style and our younger guys to make a mark on Thanksgiving.”