Administrators will look to keep Gilroy-Hollister on the
schedule
HOLLISTER
Since 1920, there has been only one time when Gilroy and Hollister failed to meet up for a game of football.
It was 1967, and the Mustangs had recently moved up to play in the Santa Teresa Athletic League.
The two rivals met up the following year in a non-league football game, though, and eventually found their way back to joining a common league. They have played a game – called the Prune Bowl – every year since 1968, and the rest is history.
But last Monday, it was announced GHS would be leaving the Tri-County Athletic League beginning in the 2010-11 season for the Monterey Bay League due to the opening of Christopher High in Gilroy.
While questions abound from every angle with Gilroy’s departure, some can’t help but wonder what exactly will happen with not only the storied rivalry between the two towns, but also the Prune Bowl itself.
“I don’t think it’ll change a bit,” San Benito High athletic director Tod Thatcher said. “As long as we’re playing for that (Prune Bowl) trophy, it doesn’t matter if it’s league or non-league. It’s Hollister-Gilroy.”
Thatcher does point out the scheduling difficulty – TCAL teams will need to find a fifth non-league game in 2010 – not to mention the expected enrollment drop at GHS once Christopher High opens its doors in September.
A former GHS coach believes those factors could kill the rivalry.
“I think it’s gonna die,” said former GHS head coach Rich Hammond, who’s also a 1997 graduate of SBHS. “When I said last season at the end that there was a very good chance that it was the last time [the Prune Bowl] would be won in Gilroy, I meant it.”
Hammond added that it’s difficult to compete with a school “twice your size,” which some believe may happen with the advent of CHS. Approximately 2,937 students are currently enrolled at SBHS, 2,484 at GHS.
“It would be like [Gilroy’s] games with Pacific Grove (the last two seasons). At the end of the day we just had more numbers than they did and we just wore them out,” Hammond added. “As a fan and member of the community, I hope they continue to play. My uncle played in the game, my cousins played in the game, I played in the game. People from all over remember games from way back when.”
And that’s what would be so odd if the two schools halted their football rivalry – an annual game that used to shut down each town so the two teams could duke it out on the field.
“It’s tradition. The game has been played for more than 100 years,” said Luis Espinoza, who coaches the junior varsity team at SBHS. “As a fan, as a coach and as a former player, I do hope they keep the tradition going.”
Only time will tell. Although school officials from both sides have stated their desire to keep the Prune Bowl alive, it’s impossible to say what will happen years from now as enrollment figures begin to become more lopsided.
“I don’t want to see that go away at all,” GHS athletic director Jack Daley said. “It’s a great rivalry and it’s great for both communities.”
