Jesuit-Holy Cross to play Oct. 17 in Hammond

September 25, 2020

By Ron Brocato
Sports Editor

When Holy Cross and Jesuit meet on the football field for the 101st time on Saturday, Oct.17, the two longtime rivals will be facing each other 62 miles away from their home base of Tad Gormley Stadium in New Orleans.

Principals of the two local Catholic schools will sign a contract this week to hold their annual clash at Strawberry Stadium near the campus of Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:05 p.m.

The stadium seats 7,408 – 17,000 fewer seats than Gormley, whose capacity is 24,500 – but its rental fee is much less than that charged by the City Park Stadium’s administration.

The two schools have met each season since the rivalry began in 1922. The majority of their games have been played in City Park but have also taken place at Loyola University, Tulane University and Joe Yenni Stadium at East Jefferson High School.

In the early years of the rivalry, Jesuit used Loyola’s stadium as its home field, while Holy Cross hosted its games at Heinemann Park (Pelican Stadium) before 1937, when the City Park stadium was constructed and used as Holy Cross' home field.

The two played for the 1963 Class 3A state championship at Tulane, a game that drew 27,500 bipartisan spectators. The 2005 game was held at Yenni while Gormley was undergoing renovation following Hurricane Katrina.

Jesuit leads the series, 59-40-1.

rbrocato@clarionherald.org