By Michael Letendre
The Bristol Edition is in the middle of reviewing all the epic Thanksgiving Day scholastic football wars between Bristol Central and Bristol Eastern over the years.
The Battle for the Bell was contested in both the Central Connecticut Interscholastic League and the Colonial Conference between 1959-1983.
But the Colonial Conference eventually crumbled and starting in 1984-85, the Bristol Public schools joined the new Central Connecticut Conference – a then 25-team powerhouse.
The Bristol and Meriden schools – along with Southington – joined forces with New Britain, Newington and Bulkeley to form the Southern division of the CCC.
And the three-division CCC had some pretty good football programs.
For the purposes of the Turkey Day rivalry in Bristol, the CCC battles will be broken up by centuries.
First up are all the Central/Eastern CCC battles from 1984-1999, the 20th century showdowns.
And towards the tail-end of the 1990’s, both programs had an elite rushing talent that made for some pretty exciting pigskin.
Each squad had at least one three-game winning streak during that stretch of games and here’s how the records between the school’s breaks down:
BC wins: 10
BE wins: 6
Ties: 0
Year/Victor/Score
1984 — Bristol Central, 33-8 – Gerry Ouellette paced the Rams with 189 yards on 18 carries and Central soundly defeated Eastern once again. Overall, the rushers for the Rams combined for 338 total yards. Central’s Jere Merriam made a 95 yard interception return – a Thanksgiving Day record. Eastern’s Rich Musumano carried the ball 18 times for 141 yards. The Lancers were winless against Central since picking up a 7-6 victory over the Rams back in 1974.
1985 — Bristol Eastern, 14-8 – “Yes, We Can” was the phrase Eastern cried as Mike Minella hauled in a 28-yard touchdown pass from Julio Maisonet, leading to a six-point victory for the Lancers. Eastern’s 14-0 cushion in the second half held off a pesky Central aggression. The contest was postponed and eventually played at night because of rotten weather.
1986 — Bristol Central, 31-0 – Central quarterback Steve Lowe collected 79 yards on 15 carries for two touchdowns in the winning effort by the Rams. What more can be said about one of the rivalries largest shutout wins?
1987 — Bristol Central, 22-0 – On the cusp of a Class MM berth, Central blanked Eastern as Kiernan Thurston ran 30 times for 142 yards and two touchdowns to propel the Rams to the Class MM championship game. Central lost that title contest to Middletown, 27-0.
1988 — Bristol Eastern, 14-12 – The Class MM champs slipped past Central by two. On a Central fumble, Eastern’s Craig Ciquera netted a two-yard rushing touchdown to put the Lancers up for good with 7:00 left in the first half. Eastern’s Timmy Gunn (13 carries, 109 yards) paced the offense. Thurston had 21 carries for 146 yards for the Rams. And then in the Class MM title showdown, Eastern defeated South Windsor 22-19 for Bristol’s only state championship in football to date.
1989 — Bristol Central, 20-13 – Central’s Ken Fort busted Eastern for 168 yards on 20 carries as the Rams won the contest in controversial fashion. Grades became an issue as both school’s student handbooks had two different eligibility requirements. The rules forced critical Eastern players (three in all) to sit out the showdown while Fort from Central – who was ineligible per Eastern’s student handbook – ended up playing under its guidelines. During the following week, meetings were held but the game decision was not overturned. The situation prompted several students to walkout at Eastern high school in protest days after the final decision was made.
1990 — Bristol Central, 34-14 – Central’s defense limited to Eastern to only 24 yards on the ground during the 20-point victory. In fact, the Rams held the Lancers to only 148 total yards of offense on the day.
1991 — Bristol Central, 20-14 – The Lancers, going a credible 4-6-1 on the campaign, dropped a hard fought six-point game to their crosstown rival. Central’s Dave Moore scooped up 82 yards on 17 carries but the Rams had to hold on for dear life to seize the win. Eastern quarterback Jude Hinrichs was sacked a half dozen times in the game but battled to the end.
1992 — Bristol Central, 24-0 – Winless Eastern was no match for Central as Micah Zabel nabbed 237 yards on 25 carries and scored three touchdowns. In all, the Rams totaled 375 yards of offense. Over the next three Central victories over Eastern, those would all come via shutout.
1993 — Bristol Central, 18-0 – The Rams, again, took the T-Day game as Gregg Lynt, Dana Thurston and John Gagliardi combined for over 200 yards on 49 carries to lead Central to win.
1994 — Bristol Eastern, 22-6 – For the first time since 1988, Eastern defeated Central as Rich Musumano made 18 carries for 141 yards to lead the Lancers. Central’s John Gagliardi (26 carries, 202 yards) sparked the offense for the Rams. The squads combined for five passing yards in what turned into a real ground battle.
1995 — Bristol Central, 12-0 – Central’s Doug Boelter netted both touchdowns in the game (76 yards on 17 carries) to lead his squad to the win. Freshman Reinaldo Soto scooped in an interception for Eastern – a sign for things to come for the Eastern program.
1996 — Bristol Eastern, 29-14 – With Soto in the fold, he smashed Central for 183 yards on 32 carries while adding three touchdowns in the winning effort as Eastern earned a share of the CCC South Championship. The Rams lost six fumbles – the most ever on Thanksgiving.
1997 — Bristol Eastern, 33-7 – It was more Soto, along with quarterback Pat Brookman, as the duo rushed for a combined 30 times for 215 yards in another Eastern romp. Central’s Craig Capurso scooped in 115 yards on 25 carries.
1998 — Bristol Eastern, 35-7 – This time, Brookman blitzed Central for 134 yards on seven carries and a touchdown while Soto went for 137 yards on 20 rushes in a third straight Lancers’ blowout on Thanksgiving. Eastern’s Ryan Forcier added nearly 100 yards on six tough carries. Lost in the effort was the rushing of Capurso with 29 carries for 183 yards.
1999 — Bristol Central, 28-6 – Central wins the next seven Thanksgiving Day games but in this one, bulldog Timmy Washington rang up 41 carries for 165 yards and three TD’s to lead the winners. He rushed for nearly 2,000 yards on the season.
And finally, Thursday’s BC/BE football showcase will be about the clashes between the schools from the 21st century.
