Bridgewater State Meets Mass. Maritime in Cranberry Bowl

By Jim Fenton, The Enterprise (Brockton)

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Finishing with a losing record has been almost unheard of the past 26 years for the Bridgewater State University football team.

Since 1988, the Bears have wound up below the .500 mark only once, going 4-5 in the 2002 season.

That means there will be added incentive for BSU when its finishes the season in the 36th annual Cranberry Bowl against the Massachusetts Maritime Academy on Saturday at noon at Swenson Field.

Not only will the Bears be looking to maintain possession of the Cranberry Scoop, but they will also be bidding to avoid finishing with a rare losing record.

BSU (4-5, 3-4 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference) opened the season with two wins in the first three games before going on a three-game losing streak.

The Bears have won two of their past three games, falling to first-place Framingham State University last weekend.

BSU has dominated the Cranberry Bowl, winning 24 of the past 26 meetings with the Buccaneers, and has a 26-8-1 edge dating to 1979.

This is the 17th straight year that the game is being played on the final day of the regular season with the winner getting the Cranberry Scoop.

"It's always a good time when we play them,'' said Bears senior wide receiver Matt Green of Stoughton, who ends a record-setting career this weekend.

Said BSU coach Chuck Denune: "It's the last game of the year and it's potentially the last game for all seniors on both teams. Regardless, you get a chance to play for a trophy at the end of the year against a school you respect but you want to beat.

"You don't want to be that team that lost the Scoop and that is the mentality.''

Mass. Maritime (3-6, 2-5) last defeated BSU in 2010, 23-7, and Bears quarterback Mike McCarthy won the Lee Harrington most valuable player award three straight years after that.

Buccaneers senior captain and defensive back Kevin Stanton of Abington, a Cardinal Spellman High graduate, is fourth on the team with 51 tackles and has forced a fumble.

Stonehill on road: Stonehill College (4-6) finishes the season on Saturday afternoon by playing at Saint Anselm College (6-4) as part of the Northeast-10 Conference championship weekend.

The Skyhawks finished sixth in the conference at 4-5 while the Hawks were fifth at 5-4.

Stonehill held off Saint Anselm, 23-16, two weeks ago in Manchester, N.H., after building a 23-3 lead.

Skyhawks quarterback Matt Foltz was named the NE-10 rookie of the week for a second consecutive week.

Stonehill senior linebacker Brian Harrington of Rockland will be playing his final game. Harrington, who set a NE-10 record with 151 tackles in 2013, is third in the conference with 100 and has seven for a loss of 30 yards plus two interceptions.

THE PREDICTIONS:

• Alabama 24, Mississippi State 21: The Crimson Tide knock off the top-ranked team.
• Ohio State 31, Minnesota 21: The Buckeyes make it eight straight wins.
• Harvard 35, Penn 14: The Crimson remain perfect.
• Bridgewater State 28, Mass. Maritime 17: The Cranberry Scoop remains in Bridgewater.
• Stonehill 21, Saint Anselm 14: The Skyhawks close out with a win on the road.

LAST WEEK: 3-2 / SEASON TOTAL: 32-18