By Marc Thaler
Sports Editor

Nothing says Thanksgiving like a plate full of turkey, two scoops of stuffing, cranberry sauce and plenty of pumpkin pie.

But more importantly, Thanksgiving is about feasting on football. It’s the only time when hanging on to the pigskin while running between the tackles is easier than gaining – and maintaining – possession of a drumstick.

So, in the spirit of this holiday and football, I’d like to give thanks to a few high school coaches who, for more than one reason, made the fall of 2005 a memorable season.

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First, I’d like to give thanks to Goffstown High head coach Rob Cathcart. In the program’s fourth year on the gridiron, Cathcart led the Grizzlies to their first winning season and playoff berth.

“We went from one win to two wins to three wins, then took a giant step this year, winning seven,” Cathcart told The Goffstown News after the Grizzlies’ semifinal setback. “Making the playoffs is huge … It’s a measurement of success. Obviously, not every team makes the playoffs, so this is a large accomplishment for us.”

Not bad for a program nearly erased from existence in January 2004. Since then, Cathcart’s club responded with exciting football that’s made reporting fun.

I’d also like to give thanks to a couple of Queen City football coaches, Manchester West’s Travis Cote and Manchester Central’s Jim Schubert.

Cote led the Blue Knights to their first playoff appearance since I was a sophomore attending high school on the city’s west side. My thanks goes out to this coach for turning the pigskin program around and re-energizing a hungry fan base.

However, I’m even more thankful to Cote for his accessibility to always talk football, especially when the questions focused on his club’s lopsided playoff loss to Salem.

“I tried to make it a big point before the game that we’d have to take the good with the bad,” Cote told me. “Regardless of the last play, you had to put it behind you. I don’t think we were able to completely do that. I don’t think we quit, but maybe we lost our edge.”

That answer is all the evidence needed to understand why West football is on the rise. Without throwing any of his players under the bus they boarded in Salem, this coach was critical in a classy manner.

For the same reason, Central’s head coach receives a special thanks.

Schubert led the Little Green to four consecutive state crowns prior to an ’05 tournament loss to Pinkerton Academy of Derry. After the double-digit defeat, his post-game comments could’ve been nothing more than a history lesson in the Little Green’s recent Division I dominance.

It’d be hard to argue against any coach of Schubert’s stature reading from his remarkable resume. But being a straight shooter, Schubert gave an honest assessment of Little Green football in ’05 – the kind he didn’t have to give for quite awhile. “We had a difficult time moving the football this year, and we had a difficult time playing defense at times,” Schubert told The Hooksett Banner after Central was eliminated from the playoffs. “We’re a pretty good football team, but we got beat by a very good football team.”

Lastly, I’d like to give thanks to someone who coaches a different kind of football – George Pinkham, the boys head soccer coach at Bow High.

Although his Falcons found themselves in overtime of a scoreless state semifinal duel with Oyster River of Durham, Pinkham did the unthinkable.

He made sure every member of the team received playing time on Nashua’s Stellos Stadium turf.

“At the high school level,” Pinkham told The Bow Times after the Falcons’ Final Four win, “it’s about letting the kids play … I didn’t care whether we won or lost. I wanted each and every one of my guys to get some time out there.”

Once again, thanks, coaches. Thanks for being stand-up guys.

May your knowledge of the X’s and O’s help each of you devise a game plan to gain possession of one, if not both, of those juicy, Turkey Day drumsticks.