9 Football Traditions to Celebrate This Thanksgiving

By ScoreBig on November 27, 2014

Thanksgiving is all abut the three “F”s: Family, Food, and Football.  With all of the “F”s comes traditions – after all, it’s not Thanksgiving until Uncle Bob falls asleep on the couch with a plate of pie on his belly, and don’t get us started on that year someone other than Grandma Alice tried to make the stuffing.  Of course, when you get football tickets (NFL tickets or NCAA) has its own set of traditions.  We’re sharing some of our favorites here, but let us know the ones we missed in the comments. Happy Thanksgiving!

1. The Lions

Detroit has been playing Thanksgiving games at home since 1934 (save for the exception of a six season gap from 1939 to 1944). The Lions had lost nine Thanksgiving Day games in a row until they beat Green Bay 40-10 last year – what we would have given to have had Detroit Lions Tickets that year! This year they face off against the struggling Chicago Bears.

2. The Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys have been hanging out in people’s living rooms on Thanksgiving Day since 1966 and are 29-16-1, having won six of their last eight games on the holiday. And, since they’ll be busy fighting the Eagles for first place in the NFC this year on Turkey Day, they already took part in another of their traditions: serving an early Thanksgiving dinner to more than 500 less fortunate men, women, and children at The Salvation Army.  That’s a cause worth getting Dallas Cowboys tickets for!

3. A fun musical performance during the Dallas Cowboys halftime

Every year, getting Dallas Cowboys tickets means having a ticket to see a great musical act at halftime. Past performers have included Kelly Clarkson, Destiny’s Child, Kenny Chesney, and Reba McEntire. But it’s not just about a great show. The halftime performance is always part of The Salvation Army show that launches the ‘red kettle campaign,’ the famous street campaign that raises millions of dollars throughout the holiday season. This year, it’s Pitbull.

4. The Boston Latin School / English High School of Boston Rivalry

There are rivalries and then there are Rivalries with a capital R. This annual Thanksgiving Day rivalry is the latter, if only because it is the oldest continuous high school rivalry in all of the U.S. How old? Try since 1887 old. Yeah. OLD.

5. Michigan and Ohio State

Known simply as “The Game,” this annual matchup between the two Midwestern schools has been held at the end of the regular season since 1935 (though the rivalry dates back to 1897).  Sure, the game is on Saturday, but that’s what leftovers are for – get your Michigan vs Ohio State tickets and wash down your turkey with a frosty game-day beer.

6. Claiming your seat at Grandma’s house

There’s nothing worse than showing up to Thanksgiving only to find that all of the good seats (in front of the television, not at the table) have been grabbed. The key is to be close enough to the television so that you can see and hear all of the action, but also not so far away from the kitchen that you miss out on appetizers and sneaking food before it’s ready. Just know two things: 1.) At some point, it is imperative that you help the cooks out and 2.) You move your feet; you lose your seat. How you juggle those two conflicting truths is up to you.

7. Attending NFL games

The first NFL Thanksgiving game was the idea of Detroit Lions owner George A. Richards in 1934. The Lions had just relocated from Ohio, and Richards hoped that people looking for an excuse to get away from their families would buy Lions tickets. This year’s game sold all 26,000 Bears vs Lions box office tickets two weeks in advance of the game, but don’t worry – ScoreBig.com still has tickets. Not everyone is lucky enough to live in a city hosting an NFL game this Thanksgiving, but if you’re near Detroit, or San Francisco, find your Bears vs Lions tickets and 49ers vs Seahawks tickets at ScoreBig for what’s sure to be some exciting matchups. You can even bring your Thanksgiving feast with you and tailgate with turkey!

8. The Turkey Leg Award

In 1989, John Madden created the Turkey Leg Award, with the first one awarded to Reggie White. Madden realized that sometimes more than one or two guys deserve the award, so they started using multi-legged turkeys and would even give them out to guys on opposing teams. Everyone, of course, had to eat their leg. This tradition ended when Madden left FOX in 2001, but there’s no reason you can’t start your own Turkey Leg Award at home. Just remember: you can’t nominate yourself.

9. The family game of touch football

Of all Thanksgiving football traditions, perhaps the family game of touch football in the yard is the most important (that is, if you forgot to score some sweet NFL tickets). Inevitably someone takes it too seriously, someone gets mildly injured, and the winning touchdown is up for dispute, but it’s these moments that you’ll remember forever. Or at least until next year when you get your rematch for redemption.

Right now you can still save on great Thanksgiving football tickets with ScoreBig.com, where you save on every ticket, every day.

By Daisy Barringer