A special Thanksgiving tradition, morning or night
Bob Barikian still remembers walking to midfield before the Thanksgiving Eve game between Collingswood and Sterling in 1999. Barikian was both the coach of visiting Collingswood and the father of Sterling's senior captain.
Bob Barikian still remembers walking to midfield before the Thanksgiving Eve game between Collingswood and Sterling in 1999.
Barikian was both the coach of visiting Collingswood and the father of Sterling's senior captain.
"We got to midfield, and he went one way and I went the other," Barikian said of his son Michael.
That scene underscored the uniqueness of the annual rivalry between Collingswood and Sterling.
The teams will meet for the 49th time Wednesday night at Sterling. Collingswood holds a 24-23-1 edge in the tightest series among traditional Thanksgiving rivals in South Jersey.
One of the things that is special about Collingswood-Sterling is that both schools hold their annual "Senior Day" - or "Senior Night," if the game is hosted by the Silver Knights that year - before the game, honoring players, cheerleaders, and band members from both sides.
The festivities feature an annual pregame banquet for athletes, students, and adults from both schools and communities. The event is a breakfast when Collingswood hosts the game on Thanksgiving, and a dinner when Sterling hosts the game on Thanksgiving Eve.
"It makes it a holiday," said Barikian, the retired Collingswood coach who with Sterling coach Jim Gallagher created the dual senior-day tradition in the mid-1980s.
"It brings both schools and both communities together."
The tradition will continue Wednesday night when Sterling's Advanced Foods class prepares a meal in the cafeteria for around 150 players, cheerleaders, and band members from both schools as well as their parents along with school board members and others.
"It's pretty special," Sterling athletic director Matt Sheehan said. "I know when we've hosted it, I've been caught up in doing a lot of things, but when they had a breakfast at Collingswood, I was able to sit and talk and see some of their older boosters and supporters of the program and you could see the tradition and the history. It makes you appreciate it."
Collingswood coach Jack McConnell, who played for the Panthers from 1985-88, said the annual senior event is special to both schools and communities.
"One of the things I love about football is that it brings communities together," McConnell said.
The other thing that was noteworthy about that game in 1999 was that it was the first time Sterling had hosted Collingswood on a Wednesday night.
Sterling had new lights for its field and wanted to take advantage by starting a new tradition within the old rivalry.
Coincidentally, Collingswood tried the same thing in 1988, the first year of lights at the Panthers' old stadium. But after one year of football on Thanksgiving Eve, Collingswood went back to hosting the game on the morning of the holiday in 1990.
"The school board nixed that," Barikian said of the Wednesday night game. "They said some of the recent graduates weren't able to get back from college in time to see the game."
For Sterling, the Thanksgiving Eve game has become the new tradition - and it has spread to other schools, as well.
This year, there will be six Thanksgiving rivalry games on Wednesday night, including Cherry Hill East at Cherry Hill West, Rancocas Valley at Burlington Township, Penns Grove at Pennsville, Pennsauken at Bishop Eustace, and Glassboro at Deptford.
"What's nice is that the rivalry is different every year," Sheehan said. "The night game at our place and the traditional Thanksgiving morning game at their place. It makes it unique."
The rivalry between the Colonial Conference teams that represent nearby towns along the White Horse Pike in Camden County began in 1965.
It has been an even series, with stretches of dominance by both schools. Collingswood won six of seven from 1966-72 and six in a row from 1993-98. Sterling won six in a row from 1973-78 and from 1982-87.
This year's game has added meaning because both teams enter with 7-2 records.
"The good thing is that we get to play a game after that loss to Woodstown" in the South Jersey Group 2 playoffs, Sterling coach Clint Wiley said. "I know how much our kids want to finish with a win, especially our seniors."
Sterling senior lineman Matt Dockery said the Silver Knights are determined to finish with a flourish.
"This is my last time playing with my brothers," Dockery said. "We want to show what Sterling football is all about."
Collingswood senior fullback/linebacker John Deaner said the Panthers are taking the same approach.
"It's our last game," Deaner said. "We want to make our last game something special."
Sterling vs. Collingswood
The year-by-year results of the Sterling vs. Collingswood rivalry in football. Collingswood leads the series, 24-23-1.
Year Winner Score
1965 Sterling 26-20
1966 Collingswood 34-6
1967 Collingswood 6-0
1968 Collingswood 20-7
1969 Collingswood 14-6
1970 Sterling 28-14
1971 Collingswood 12-6
1972 Collingswood 6-2
1973 Sterling 34-8
1974 Sterling 42-0
1975 Sterling 20-0
1976 Sterling 36-0
1977 Sterling 46-0
1978 Sterling 24-0
1979 Collingswood 48-6
1980 Collingswood 34-6
1981 (Tie) 12-12
1982 Sterling 28-6
1983 Sterling 3-0
1984 Sterling 27-0
1985 Sterling 29-0
1986 Sterling 6-0
1987 Sterling 12-6
1988 Collingswood 22-20
1989 Collingswood 13-0
1990 Sterling 7-0
1991 Collingswood 15-7
1992 Sterling 34-0
1993 Collingswood 15-12
1994 Collingswood 31-0
1995 Collingswood 21-0
1996 Collingswood 22-0
1997 Collingswood 34-6
1998 Collingswood 13-12
1999 Sterling 33-8
2000 Collingswood 19-0
2001 Sterling 51-14
2002 Sterling 33-0
2003 Sterling 33-7
2004 Collingswood 18-6
2005 Collingswood 7-6
2006 Collingswood 19-6
2007 Sterling 27-20
2008 Collingswood 28-13
2009 Collingswood 49-21
2010 Collingswood 39-0
2011 Sterling 14-6
2012 Sterling 28-0
- Phil Anastasia
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