Beginning in Yonkers in the mid 1920s, Thanksgiving Day football was held — or at least scheduled — in Westchester County for more than 90 years. The games drew thousands of spectators and played host to both official and unofficial class reunions.

They soon developed strong traditions in communities such as White Plains, New Rochelle and Yonkers. Games were held on muddy fields and often elevated high school athletes to legendary status among their peers and fellow alumni. For the winners, that night‘s turkey tasted all the better.

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Now, those traditions are part of history. With White Plains withdrawing from its annual rivalry with Stepinac earlier this fall, the county‘s final Turkey Bowl is no more.

Based on research and conversations with past participants, here are some memorable moments throughout the years.

Mid 1920s

High schools in the City of Yonkers were the first to establish a regular, lasting tradition of playing football on Thanksgiving Day. The Roosevelt-Saunders and Yonkers-Gorton Turkey Bowls lasted roughly 60 years until they ended following the 1984 season.

1932

White Plains hosted its first Turkey Bowl against Central High School of South Bend, Indiana. The Tigers began a tradition of hosting teams from various states on Thanksgiving. “A lot of times they would play a team on Thanksgiving and the next year we would travel and open up at their place,” said Don Gano, a White Plains historian and statistician. White Plains hosted its last Thanksgiving game against a team other than Stepinac in 1970 vs. Bishop Gibbons.

That same year — not on Thanksgiving — New Rochelle and Iona Prep met for the first time. New Rochelle, which in 1932 and 1933 finished undefeated and unscored upon, won 14-0 and set the stage for what would soon become a tradition.

1949

New Rochelle and Iona Prep played on Thanksgiving for the first time. The Huguenots won 26-6 and then took the next two before a 6-6 tie in 1952. A rivalry was born.

“It was perhaps the biggest moment of the year every year,” said John Slocum, an Iona Prep teacher who was the assistant coach from 1968-80. “When I first took the job, I was told you had to win three games. You had to beat Stepinac, you had to beat Mount St. Michael and you had to beat New Rochelle on Thanksgiving morning.”

1956

New Rochelle and Iona Prep moved into the spotlight. Their games began being broadcast on Channel 7 and were later broadcast on Channel 11 (WPIX) for decades. Various announcing legends called the games, including New Rochelle‘s own Marty Glickman.

“That was an awesome opportunity,” said Harold Crocker, who coached New Rochelle from 1978-84. “They would come by during the week and talk to you about the teams. Usually we had special jerseys made up for the games. It was a great student experience.”

1971

After 39 straight Thanksgiving Day games, White Plains began its annual Turkey Bowl with Stepinac. The Tigers won 19-7 and dominated the rivalry for three decades. The game was held 42 straight years through 2012 and again in 2016 after a three-year hiatus.

That same year, Iona Prep had to decide whether to play a bowl game against league rival Chaminade or the Turkey Bowl against New Rochelle. The players chose the latter and went out as winners.

“We sat down with the kids and there was no choice,” Slocum said. “They said Chaminade can go and have its championship, but we‘re playing New Rochelle on Thanksgiving.”

1977

Likewise, an undefeated New Rochelle team opted to play Iona Prep instead of a bowl game. Instead, White Plains, which had lost 8-0 to New Rochelle, played Roosevelt in Section 1‘s premier bowl.

1979

White Plains beat Stepinac 44-8 to complete a 10-0 season. The Tigers were the first team in the history of Westchester County to win 10 games in a single season.

1980

Despite its current 15-year run of success, which includes 11 Section 1 titles and two state championships, New Rochelle hasn‘t had an undefeated season in 37 years. The Huguenots capped their last perfect campaign by beating Iona Prep 27-0 on Thanksgiving Day.

Crocker said his team outscored opponents 257-28 and allowed no rushing touchdowns all season. “That was a really good game all the way through,” he added. “We stopped them multiple times near the end zone.”

1980 and 1982

Stepinac won both games 23-20 on field goals in the fourth quarter. Tommy Harris and Pat O‘Brien (who later played at Boston College) were the heroes.

1984

The final year of Thanksgiving football in Yonkers produced an all-time shocker. Days after Roosevelt beat North Rockland to win the Section 1 title, Saunders upset the weakened Indians, who were coached by Tony DeMatteo.

“Saunders hadn‘t won in five years,” Gano said. “It‘s probably the biggest upset in Section 1 history.”

1993

White Plains won a slugfest 8-6 over Stepinac in a dual between two of the county‘s best players, White Plains‘ Quincy Summers and Stepinac‘s Eric Ogbogu. The latter played at Maryland and later in the NFL.

“I thought Quincy was one of the most talented players I had ever seen in our Turkey Bowl rivalry,” O‘Donnell said.

2002

The final meeting in the storied New Rochelle-Iona Prep rivalry belonged to none other than Ray Rice. The sophomore running back piled up 245 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns to lead the Huguenots to a 53-6 victory.

Rice‘s next two teams dominated en route to the Carrier Dome. That success led to a cancellation of Turkey Bowls in 2003 and 2004 and later the end of the tradition altogether. New Rochelle ended with a narrow lead in the series, 28-24-2.

Lou DiRienzo, who coached in 10 Turkey Bowls, said restrictions placed on games played for public-school teams led to the cancellation.

“It definitely had its place and it was definitely a special thing,” DiRienzo said. “When that game was played, the City of New Rochelle was buzzing.”

2009

After its first three-game losing streak in series history, White Plains held off a talented Stepinac team 21-14. The Tigers led 21-0 in what proved to be their last Thanksgiving Day win. Daryl Shuler, who played at Stepinac as a freshman, rushed for over 200 yards in a stirring effort.

2010

Fresh off romping to the CHSFL‘s ‘AA‘ title, Tyrell Goodman and Stepinac dominated 42-14. It was the first of four straight wins for the Crusaders, who ended the series winning seven of eight.

2016

Finally, after a three-year hiatus, the Turkey Bowl returned. It proved to be for the last time. After a strong first half from White Plains‘ Glenmour Osbourne, sophomore Shawn Harris led a rally that resulted in a 49-32 Stepinac victory.

The final Turkey Bowl trimmed the Tigers‘ all-time lead in the series to 27-16. The school announced last month it had decided to end the tradition, citing participation concerns among its fall and winter athletes, who were kept in limbo for weeks between seasons.

“It was great to have football back on Thanksgiving Day,” O‘Donnell said of last year‘s game. “It‘s unfortunate that we couldn‘t keep this game alive.”