Thanksgiving Day for PDQ means two things every year: great food with family and of course football. The fifth annual Turkey Bowl was held on Thanksgiving morning in Tampa, with a small twist this year. Two games were played Thursday, with teams from
PDQ Carrollwood and
PDQ Wesley Chapel facing off for the fifth straight year to kick off the day. Later in the morning,
PDQ Riverview and
PDQ Wesley Chapel battled on the gridiron.
In the first game, the PDQ Carrollwood team prevailed in a shootout, knocking off Wesley Chapel 78-66 to end a three-game losing streak in the series. Longtime PDQ Carrollwood team member Sam Piazza returned as head coach for Carrollwood and led the team to victory.
The second game featured PDQ St. Petersburg jumping out to a big lead before holding on for a 42-32 victory over PDQ Riverview.
The St. Petersburg squad scored on each of its three first half possessions and took a 24-12 lead into the intermission. QB Anthony Warren threw touchdown passes to Eddie Burgos (30 yards), Angel Oquendo (55 yards) and Jerel Garcia (22 yards), while Todd Rancke forced a turnover with a first half interception. Riverview quarterback Corey Thornton countered with a 7-yard touchdown run on the game's opening drive and added a 20-yard scoring pass to Herb Herds on the last drive of the half.
St. Petersburg looked to pull away midway through the second half when Garcia intercepted Thornton and then lateraled to Burgos, who completed the 60-yard interception return for a touchdown and a 30-12 lead. But Riverview scored on its next three drives, beginning with Thornton's second touchdown run on a 40-yard jaunt. Thornton added touchdown passes to Sage Sheridan and Herds to cut the St. Petersburg lead to 36-32. But St. Petersburg, which got a much-needed boost on Mike Wilson's 75-yard touchdown reception earlier in the half, put the game away with a 55-yard touchdown run by Burgos.
"It was a great game and I'm extremely proud of our team," said PDQ St. Petersburg Coach/Operating Director Marcus Bailey. "We started fast but Riverview is very well coached and they kept the pressure on us."
"Congrats to PDQ St. Petersburg for today's Turkey Bowl victory," said PDQ Riverview Coach/Operating Director Bob Hanley. "It was a great way to kick off Thanksgiving and our entire team kept fighting until the end but we just came up a little bit short today."