Memorial holds off West, 20-14, for 2024 Turkey Bowl title

[Editor’s note: Photos from this game were taken by Stacy Harrison. Additional photos can be found here at her Smug Mug website.]

MANCHESTER, NH —Senior fullback Mo Olanweraju rushed for 116 yards, including a 35-yard touchdown, leading Memorial to a 20-14 victory in a rain-soaked Turkey Bowl XLII, Thanksgiving morning on Schubert Field at Gill Stadium.

The Crusaders built a 20-0 lead in the first half, then held off a late rally by West to claim their second straight Turkey Bowl win.

Senior quarterback Collin Beaulieu added 71 yards and a pair of touchdowns, as part of relentless Memorial ground attack that rolled up 230 yards.

While Memorial opted for a ground and pound attack, West had success through the air, despite the steady drizzle. Blue Knights’ junior quarterback Gio Doria hit on 13 of 25 passes for 177 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Dorian’s second touchdown pass, from 7 yards out, came 3:56 left in the game, on a terrific diving catch by Jerome Henert. The score, which pulled the Knights to within set up by receptions from Terrance Boville (44 yards) and Ke’Shawn Foster (30 yards).

After forcing a Memorial punt, West (6-5) got the ball back at the Memorial 46-yard line with 2:06 left to play and a chance to pull out an unlikely win.

But on 4th and 4, Crusader defensive back Brandon Weaver stepped into the passing lane and picked off a throw by Doria to lock up the win.

Memorial is now 3-9 in 12 Turkey Bowl appearances. West is now 6-12 in 18 appearances, with the Knights’ last win coming in 2007.

The game marked the 57th meeting in the Memorial-West football rivalry. The Crusaders have won nine straight and lead the series 37-20. West last won in 2007.

Turkey Bowl XLII had more “laundry” than a college student back home for the holidays. Referees threw flags for a whopping 19 penalties, including five for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Memorial, itself, was hit with 11 penalties totaling 77 yards lost.

Memorial (8-4) got off to a fast start, scoring in its first two possessions. An 8-yard touchdown run by Beaulieu was set up by an interception from Bory Bory, who returned it to the West 26.

It was Beaulieu again, this time from 27 yards out, early in the second quarter, giving Memorial a 12-0 lead. The touchdown run capped a 13-play, 69-yard drive that ate up 5:04 of clock.

Down two scores, West got a desperately needed emotional boost from its defense.

Midway through the second quarter, Memorial had a 1st-and-goal from the West 4. The Blue Knights bowed their backs, dug in their heels and made four straight plays to keep Memorial out of the end zone. Senior linebacker Jhystoni Rivera was in on two of the stops, and on fourth down from the 2, Foster and senior linebacker Nono Omol stuffed Beaulieu at the 1.

Later in the quarter, Olanweraju broke free for a 35-yard touchdown run to make it 20-0 but it was clear West was playing with renewed energy and confidence.

That confidence showed when Doria, with no timeouts available,  engineered a 62-yard touchdown drive over the final 90 seconds of the first half.

The big play of the drive was a 34-yard completion between Doria and Foster, who gained most of the yardage after the catch.

After a pass interference call moved the ball to the 10, Doria found Myles Whiter on a 10-yard scoring strike. The same two connected on the two-point conversion to make it 20-8 at the break.

With the West defense doing a much better job on Beaulieu and Olanweraju, the score stayed that way until Doria and Henert’s touchdown connection in the fourth quarter.