LAKEVILLE — Not only did the Apponequet Regional High School varsity football team score a 36-21 win against Old Rochester on Thursday, Nov. 23, player Brody Joly broke a school record completing 1,501 rushing yards in a single season.

Now that’s a lot to be thankful for.

“[Joly] can do it all,” said Apponequet football coach Zane Fyfe. “He can run the ball, catch the ball [and] return the ball. When we need something he’s the guy to give the ball to.”

Joly’s performance on Thursday led him to beat the 1,371 rushing yard record set by Nate Michael in 2010. According to Fyfe, Joly also set the record for single-season touchdowns earlier in the season when he scored his 26th touchdown.

But football isn’t won by single players, it’s a team effort.

“Our guys really wanted this one bad,” said Fyfe. “I thought the execution on our side was key … we gave up a couple of big plays and that led to their three scores. We limited them in what they could do, but when they did execute, it hurt.”

From a touchdown early in the first quarter, the Lakers kept pressure on the Bulldogs throughout the game, keeping a gap between the teams’ scores.

But Thanksgiving football is about more than the game, “it’s a time-honored tradition,” said Fyfe.

“Everybody remembers their last Thanksgiving day game,” said Fyfe. “For most people it's the last time they ever put on a pair of pads, it’s the last time you’re ever with this group of guys [you have] spent countless hours with … That bond is special, you don’t get it anywhere else.”