Man About Canton: Canton/Stoughton Rivalry – 84 years

DID YOU KNOW…

Canton will face Stoughton in the classic Thanksgiving Day matchup tomorrow at 10 a.m. at Memorial Field in Stoughton.

Each year, MAC publishes some facts, figures, and trivia from the Canton-Stoughton rivalry that started in 1926. So here we go for this year:

The Canton-Stoughton rivalry is 84 years of football action since the two teams started playing each other in 1926, and this year, the rivalry now stands in Stoughton’s favor with 41 wins, 39 losses and 4 ties … and that’s official.

Stoughton High moved ahead by beating Canton 13 of the last 15 years.

Last year, Stoughton again beat Canton by another lopsided score of 25-0.

Stoughton High’s last nine wins over Canton have been by scores of 35-0, 39-0, 33-0, 27-0, 42-6, 34-0, 47-14, 28-2 and 25-0 … ouch and ouch!

Canton last beat Stoughton in 2004 (7-6) and in 2003 (27-12) with Owen Hughes setting a CHS record by rushing for 251 yards on 34 of Canton’s 58 total plays, breaking the rushing record of 203 yards held by Mike Toomey (1984).

Twelve seconds into the 2007 Stoughton-Canton game, the score was 7-0 in favor of Stoughton, as Stoughton High superstar Joe Jeudy took the opening kickoff right up the middle for 80 yards and a touchdown. The SHS senior scored the Black Knights’ first five touchdowns to lead Stoughton to a 47-14 clobbering of CHS. Stoughton scored 28 points in the first quarter and led 40-6 at halftime. Jeudy scored 26 points against Canton in 2006 and set a new Stoughton-Canton game scoring record of 30 points in 2007; that is 56 points in two years, which, by the way, is the exact number of points Canton has scored against Stoughton in the last 11 years.

Stoughton running back Aaron Bascon holds the rushing record of 305 yards on 32 carries, set in 1993. In that game, won by Stoughton 30-15, Stoughton scored all 30 points in the third quarter, the most points ever scored in one quarter in a CHS/SHS Thanksgiving Day game.

Since the Canton and Stoughton high school football teams started playing against each other in 1926, 42 games have ended in shutouts. That is half of the games played in this 84-year rivalry. In fact, out of the first 17 games played between Canton and Stoughton (1926-1942), 15 ended in shutouts.

The longest undefeated streak in the series was 10 straight years (1983-1992) by Canton. In six straight years (1984-1989), Canton shut out Stoughton.

Between 1965 and 1992, Canton won 21 games while losing only four and tying three.

Between 1950 and 1965, Stoughton lost only three games to Canton, and between 1995 and 2009, Stoughton won 13 of the 15 games played.

The undefeated 1935 team scored 176 points while giving up only six points to beat Stoughton 20-0.

In 1930, Canton beat Stoughton 20-0, with junior quarterback Charlie Stevenson and fullback “Bull” Thomas scoring touchdowns. The win capped off Canton’s first undefeated season (9-0) as the Bulldogs outscored their opponents 241-13.

It is interesting to note that Charlie Stevenson quarterbacked CHS to three straight wins in 1929, 1930, and 1931 over Stoughton. He also helped Canton compile a 25-2 record over those three years. Today, at 96 years old, Charlie is still going strong, still driving, and is still a very active member of the Canton Hall of Fame Committee.

In the 1931 game, which was played at the Messenger Street field, Canton High’s Joe Radzveich blocked a Stoughton punt in the fourth quarter; the football then bounced out of the end zone for a safety that provided Canton with an 8-6 victory. It was the only safety points scored by Canton in the 84-year rivalry.

In 1936, Canton came into the game 8-1 and was expected to win big, but it took a blocked punt by Bob Danahy, who then recovered the ball in the end zone, to get the only score of the game. Canton won that game 6-0.

Fans will remember the 1967 game as one of the wettest and muddiest ever. Both Canton and Stoughton came into the game with strong teams. Canton (6-2) needed to win to ensure them their best season in 15 years. It was the mud that saved Canton near the end of the game when Stoughton fumbled while driving for the winning score. Jim Bolgerrecovered for Canton. Dick Decembrele scored the only touchdown, and John Ihlenburg was voted the MVP of the game.

Between 1949 and 1951, CHS won 25 games and lost only twice — and both were Thanksgiving Day losses to Stoughton, in 1950 and 1951. In 1950, Stoughton snapped the Bulldogs’ 17-game winning streak with a 7-6 win.

Between 1979 and 1981, CHS went undefeated for 29 straight games, one of the longest streaks in Massachusetts’ high school football history.

Between 1977 and 1990, Canton won eight Hockomock League football titles; that is eight titles in 14 years. Since 1990, the CHS football team has not had a winning season in the Hockomock League.

This year’s Thanksgiving Day game will have Canton High (0-9-1) traveling to Stoughton as the underdog. MAC predicts a 27-7 Stoughton win, but one never knows what might happen when these two old rivals meet on the football field for the 85^th time.

The Canton-Stoughton game is the only game played with 12-minute quarters; all other games use 10-minute quarters.

This is all for now folks; see you next week.

-Happy Thanksgiving-

Joe DeFelice can be reached at manaboutcanton@aol.com.

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