Page 18 THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, OCTObER 9, 2026 MALDEN-EVERETT HISTORY: Golden Tornados vs. Crimson Tide football battled for the 134th time this year Series started in 1893; Game #134 was played last Friday night at Macdonald Stadium By Steve Freker O ne of the oldest high school football rivalries in America resumed Friday night, as the Malden High Golden Tornados clashed with the Everett High Crimson Tide for the 134th time. Friday night’s game was played at Macdonald Stadium in Malden, resulting in a 35-6 Everett victory over host Malden. The series is now well into its third century of play, over 130 years old, having started back in 1893. It is probably a sure bet that nearly every single fan walked to the Malden-Everett game that year, as only a horse and buggy would have gotten to the field any faster for kickoff. The two teams played continuously for 33 seasons, from 1893-1926. For reasons not known, there was no Malden-Everett game played in 1927. But Malden High and Everett High have banged helmets every year since, on the second or third Saturday in November, from 1928 until 2011, when the MIAA instituted its new playoff system, pushing the Malden-Everett game back into October, for the first time in over 120 years. As of late, due to the new playoff structure, the game has been played on Friday night when it is Everett’s turn to host the rivalry. Malden engineered biggest upset in series history, 21-20, in 1912 over previously unbeaten, unscored upon Tide A prominent, early example of the intense gridiron passion between these two schools occurred in 1912. That year, Everett High possessed a legendary national powerhouse team featuring future Harvard All-American Charles Brickley. Everett outscored their opponents 437 to 21. The “21” MALDEN LEGENDS: The 1974 Malden High Varsity Football team, considered one of the very best in Golden Tornado history, defeated Everett 26-6, on the road, on its way to its first GBL title in over a decade. Shown above, from left to right: Back row: Paul Coleman, Mark Burns and Jack Freker; front row: Steve Carlan and Jeff Sullivan. (Courtesy/Peter Levine on that equation and Everett’s lone blemish came from a highly contested battle with Malden High, who managed a monumental 21-20 upset to briefly claim the Suburban League crown. Because the stakes were so high and the fan bases so passionate, games from this era routinely featured fierce public arguments over refereeing calls, rules and player eligibility. What else is new, 114 years later! The last couple of years have been choppy at best in the rivalry. After a 39-0 win for Everett in 2017, the Tide’s second win in a row after Malden’s streak-busting 22-18 victory in 2015, there was no game played in 2018, with Malden declining the date due to a slew of injured players and other issues. The 2015 win for Malden — 22-19 at Macdonald Stadium — was monumental, as Head Coach Joe Pappagallo’s Tornados snapped a whopping 24game winning streak by Everett, stretching from 1991-2015 — all the wins coached by Tide legend John DiBiaso Jr. DiBiaso would tack on two more wins over Malden, in 2016 and 2017, before departing Everett and taking the reins at Catholic Memorial. The series resumed in 2019 with a 30-6 Everett win, but the series was put on hold once again in the 2020 season, when all of the teams in the Greater Boston League (GBL) canceled all seasons for all sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the Fall 2 season, in the spring of the year, the two teams again did not meet. Then came Game #129, at Eddie Melanson Field in Jack Macdonald Stadium in Malden, and Everett continued its dominance with a 43-0 shutout win. This is a bit of history in itself, as it is believed to be only the eighth time the game has been scheduled in October, ever, due to the new MIAA football format. The 2012 game in Everett was historical, too, in that it was also scheduled for Friday night, a first. In 2021, it was also the second time the game was played on a Thursday night. In 2019, the game was also played on a Thursday night. Even when every high school football game was played on Saturday — until Friday night football came into vogue in the early to mid-1990s — the games were at 1:30 p.m. Malden-Everett was always a 1:00 p.m. start. As for the 1:00 kickoff, you ‘AIR FINN’: Former longtime Malden High Football Head Coach Paul Finn (right) is the only Tornado head coach with a winning record against Everett (14-11-1) who coached for double-digit season years. Above he is shown with three former Malden High quarterbacks, from left to right: Chuck Borstel (1986 season), Billy Roderick (1987 season) and Steve Monaco (1983, 1984 & 1985), who combined for over 5,000 career yards passing. (Courtesy/Malden Athletics) have to think that the Malden and Everett football forefathers must have figured that this annual pigskin classic between the two blue-collar battlers might take a little longer that your usual high school rivalry, hence the one-half hour earlier starting time for the game in all of its previous years. The 2019 game was a memorable one he 2019 game, a 30-6 Everett, was memorable: the first time the two teams played after the game was shelved in 2018. Malden High’s Jerry Mervil stepped in at wildcat quarterback in that game, scoring the game’s first points on a 12-yard keeper touchdown run midway through the first quarter. In a torrential rainstorm, Malden led, 6-0, at halftime, the first time a Golden Tornadoes team owned a halftime lead over Everett in nearly 30 years. The Tide reverted to a double-wing, “groundand-pound” offense in the second half, ate up large chunks of the clock and blanked Malden the rest of the game on their way to a 30-6 win. Everett’s 25-game consecuT STELLAR RECORD: For 26 seasons former Everett High Football Head Coach (shown above in 2003) John DiBiaso Jr. walked the sidelines, and he put up a stellar 25-1 winloss record against Malden. (Courtesy/Everett Athletics) the most consecutive wins for either team since they started playing in 1893 during the final weeks of President Benjamin Harrison’s administration. The longest win streak ever for Malden was 10 games, from 19801989. Malden was actually untive win streak from 1991-2015 is a record in the ancient series: BATTLED | SEE PAGE 19
19 Publizr Home