Fall 2025 State Championship Lookahead: Football

The Fall 2025 MIAA championship season is winding down, with champions already crowned in Golf, Swimming, Field Hockey, Volleyball, Cross Country and Soccer.

The last sport on the championship stage is Football, with eight more trophies set to be handed out at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough. Two games each will be played Thursday, December 4 and Friday, December 5, with the final four games slated for Saturday, December 6.

Here is a look at what is ahead:

Division 7: Thursday (5 p.m.)
Cohasset High School vs. Amesbury High School

Both schools are even in their relative inexperience on the championship stage over the years, though both have been at Gillette during the statewide tournament era. This is also the only game of the eight in which neither side was here a year ago.

Cohasset, the No. 1 seed in the bracket, made only its second all-time Super Bowl appearance in 2021, when the Skippers were 27-12 winners over Wahconah. Previously Cohasset played at Gillette in 2013, when it lost to Littleton (Div. 6, 52-35).

The wait has been a little less for No. 2 Amesbury, which dropped a 42-16 decision to Uxbridge in 2023. Amesbury’s only Super Bowl win was a 40-19 conquest of Martha’s Vineyard in Division 3A in 2008.

THE ROAD TO GILLETTE: Cohasset – beat Leicester (35-17), Rockland (42-6), Northbridge (35-15) … Amesbury – beat South Hadley (43-8), Uxbridge (34-13), Clinton (20-14)

Division 6: Thursday (7:45 p.m.)
Norwell High School vs. Fairhaven High School

The difference in experience between these two opponents couldn’t be bigger.

Norwell is the No. 1 seed in the bracket, but the Clippers haven’t been to this stage since the turn of the century. Norwell dropped a 28-26 battle to Bishop Fenwick in the 1999 Division 4 Super Bowl, after previously winning championships in 1987 and 1997.

On the other hand, this is the third straight Gillette appearance for Fairhaven. The No. 3 seed Blue Devils dropped a 21-14 heartbreaker to Hudson here a year ago after pulling out a similarly tight 26-22 win over Salem for the 2023 Division 6 title. Fairhaven is 4-1 all-time in Super Bowls and state championships.

THE ROAD TO GILLETTE: Norwell – beat Joseph Case (30-0), Pentucket Regional (41-14), Hudson (21-7) … Fairhaven – beat East Bridgewater (44-8), Stoneham (34-6), Bishop Fenwick (49-20)

Division 5: Friday (5 p.m.)
Shawsheen Technical High School vs. Foxborough High School

This is the first of two rematches at Gillette this weekend, pitting the top two seeds in the bracket.

No. 1 Shawsheen will be looking to repeat its performance from a year ago, when the Rams pulled out a 14-0 victory over Foxborough. That is part of Shawsheen’s current run of 26 consecutive games without a loss (its last loss was vs. Foxborough in the 2023 semifinals). Shawsheen also fell to North Reading (44-28) in 2022, and is 2-2 all-time in championship games.

Making its third consecutive Gillette appearance, Foxborough will be looking to avenge last year’s loss and get back to the winner’s circle, where the Warriors resided in 2023 after their 48-21 victory over Hanover. Foxborough is 5-5 all-time in title games.

THE ROAD TO GILLETTE: Shawsheen – beat Salem (55-14), St. Mary’s (28-7), North Reading (22-14 in ot) … Foxborough – beat Norton (41-13), Gloucester (28-0), Archbishop Williams (31-0)

Division 3: Friday (7:45 p.m.)
King Philip Regional High School vs. North Attleboro High School

While they have never met in a game of this magnitude, these Hockomock League rivals are no strangers.

King Philip is here for the fifth time in as many tries in the statewide era, but has dropped down to Division 3 and was the No. 1 seed in the bracket after playing in the last four Division 2 title games. The Warriors dropped three of those against Catholic Memorial, including a 39-21 defeat a year ago, and their only win was 42-14 over Marshfield in 2023. KP is 3-4 all-time, all since 2016.

No. 7 seed North Attleboro is the defending champion, having rolled over another Hockomock League rival (Mansfield, 35-0) in 2024. The Red Rocketeers history spans almost the entire Super Bowl era, dating back to 1973, and NA is 8-4 all-time.

The teams already met during the regular season, with King Philip taking home a 21-7 victory on its way to its unbeaten season so far.
THE ROAD TO GILLETTE: King Philip – beat Chicopee Comprehensive (51-0), Mansfield (42-12), Malden Catholic (21-13) … North Attleboro – beat Milford (21-14), Barnstable (42-21), Milton (43-29)

Division 8: Saturday (10 a.m.)
West Boylston High School vs. Randolph High School

The first “Championship Saturday” in several years kicks off with a rematch of the 2024 title game.

West Boylston, the No. 3 seed in the bracket, is gunning for a fourth consecutive state championship. The last three have come in Division 8, including last year’s 22-16 win over Randolph. The Lions also beat Carver in 2023 (41-7) and won the 2022 Division 7 crown (29-6 over St. Bernard’s). West Boylston is 5-0 all-time in championship appearances.

No. 4 seed Randolph will be looking to avenge last year’s loss and get back to the winner’s circle. The Blue Devils won their only other title game appearance in 2021 (20-14 over Hull).

THE ROAD TO GILLETTE: West Boylston – beat Bartlett (42-8), Bourne (41-20), Lee (42-22) … Randolph – beat Oxford (45-6), Hoosac Valley (46-13), Nashoba Valley Tech (20-12)

Division 4: Saturday (12:45 p.m.)
Scituate High School vs. Tewksbury Memorial High School

A matchup of the top two seeds in the bracket, this one pits the defending champion against a relative newcomer.

No. 1 seed Scituate is here for the fourth time in five years, but it is the first time in that span the Sailors will face an opponent other than Duxbury. Scituate won two of those three appearances since 2021, including last year’s 29-12 win. The Sailors are 3-2 all-time as a program.

Tewksbury, the No. 2 seed, has a slightly longer championship history, but hasn’t been to this stage since 2018, when the Redmen dropped a 20-7 matchup to Springfield Central in Division 3. Tewksbury is 3-5 all-time in title games, its most recent win coming in 2013 (42-14 over Plymouth South).

THE ROAD TO GILLETTE: Scituate – beat Tantasqua (33-10), Walpole (34-28), Duxbury (34-21) … Tewksbury – beat Middleborough (49-7), Ashland (34-7), Canton (35-6)

Division 2: Saturday (3:30 p.m.)
Catholic Memorial School vs. Bishop Feehan High School

The game is another matchup of schools at different ends of the experience spectrum.

Catholic Memorial, the No. 1 seed, is making a habit of this with its fourth appearance in five years. This will be the first time in the statewide era the Knights face a team other than King Philip, which includes last year’s 39-21 victory here. CM, which played in one of the first MIAA Super Bowls in 1972, is 5-3 all-time in title games.

No. 2 seed Bishop Feehan had a run of success at the turn of the century that was hard to top, but the Shamrocks haven’t been here since 2012, when they beat Lynnfield (21-7) for the last of seven titles in a span of 12 years. Feehan is 8-2 all-time, all coming in Eastern Mass. Super Bowls under the old format.

THE ROAD TO GILLETTE: Catholic Memorial – beat Wellesley (47-0), Winchester (49-0) … Bishop Feehan – beat Chelmsford (33-12), Bridgewater-Raynham (31-27)

Division 1: Saturday (6:15 p.m.)
Saint John’s Preparatory School vs. Xaverian Brothers High School

You can’t get much more familiar than the final two opponents of the weekend.

The Catholic Conference rivals have dominated the Division 1 bracket in recent years, combining for five of the six championships since 2018. No. 1 seed St. John’s Prep won three of those, its most recent coming in 2022, when the Eagles beat Springfield Central (13-0). Prep is 6-5 all-time in title game appearances.

But No. 3 seed Xaverian has the most recent bragging rights in a couple of ways. The Hawks are two-time defending champions, including a 31-25 win over St. John’s Prep in 2023. Xaverian followed that with last year’s tight 14-7 win over Needham to improve to 10-6 all-time.

To top it off, the teams squared off just nine days earlier in their annual Thanksgiving showdown, Xaverian coming away with a 21-18 win.

THE ROAD TO GILLETTE: St. John’s Prep – beat Framingham (38-0), Leominster (48-32), Central Catholic (48-7) … Xaverian – beat Brockton (33-0), Andover (49-17), Springfield Central (36-22)