Derby High vs. Shelton High School

Silver Turkey Award Winners

Joe Zoppi of Shelton captured the 2016 award. Zoppi caught a pair of touchdown passes, kicked three field goals and five extra points.

The annual Derby/Shelton Football game doesn't have a Most Valuable Player Award. Instead, it has a tradition all its own in the form of the "Silver Turkey Award" which has been presented every year since the defunct Suburban News first presented the award. The tradition has been carried on by The Valley Times and Valley Publishing.

The award has been given 50 times so far with Shelton players winning 31 times to Derby's 19. Only eight underclassmen have ever won the award, and Jeff Schultz was the only repeat winner having pulled off the feat in 2006 and 2007 until Mark Piccirillo duplicated the feat in 2013. Running backs have dominated the award having won the award 20 times. Quarterbacks are next with nine winners. Shelton players had won the award for seven straight years and ten of the last twelve, until Derby's Ray Kreiger broke the streak in 2011. The seven year streak is the longest by either team in the history of the award.

We want to thank Bill Pucci, former editor of the Valley Times for providing the listing.

Silver Turkey Winners
Year First Last Position School  Class
1967 Mike Carroll QB Derby Senior
1968 Nick Serdenitsky LB Derby Senior
1969 Frank Baczek QB Derby Senior
1970 Danny Allen RB Derby Senior
1971 Dennis Wanzie RB Shelton Junior
1972 Rick Uluski WR Derby Senior
1973 John Pagliaro RB Derby Senior
1974 Dave Krill QB Shelton Senior
1975 Mark Cramer QB Shelton Junior
1976 Tom Biga RB Derby Senior
1977 Ron Diotalevi LB Shelton Senior
1978 Kerry O'Connell C Derby Senior
1979 Bob White LB Shelton Senior
1980 Rick Dunne DE Derby Senior
1981 Bob Orchano RB Derby Senior
1982 Jim Stephan RB Derby Senior
1983 Walt O'Shea DB Shelton Senior
1984 Jeff Roy QB Shelton Senior
1985 Mike Bucci RB Shelton Senior
1986 Tom Oko RB Shelton Senior
1987 Greg Pettinella WR Derby Senior
1988 Steve Anderson DB Shelton Senior
1989 Scott Demarco C Shelton Senior
1990 Jason Palmieri RB Derby Senior
1991 John Eason RB Shelton Junior
1992 Mike Potkay WR Derby Junior
1993 Jemal Baskins RB Derby Junior
1994 Kevin Ranger RB Shelton Junior
1995 Steve Darby DT Shelton Senior
1996 Henry Alicea TE Derby Senior
1997 Mark Novack RB Shelton Senior
1998 Gene DiGiovanni LB Derby Senior
1999 Kofi Wilson RB Shelton Senior
2000 Mike Curran RB Shelton Senior
2001 Tim Samoskevich RB Shelton Senior
2002 Adam  Manning WR Derby Senior
2003 Joe Czarnecki TB Shelton Senior
2004 Semil Desai QB Shelton Senior
2005 Eric Konopka RB Shelton Senior
2006 Geoff Schultz RB Shelton Junior
2007 Geoff Schultz RB Shelton Senior
2008 Doug Cummings DB Shelton Senior
2009 Paul Picirrillo WR Shelton Senior
2010 Frank Camerino QB Shelton Junior
2011 Ray Kreiger QB Derby Senior
2012 Mark Piccirillo QB Shelton Sophomore
2013 Mark Piccirillo QB Shelton Junior
2014 Peter Hoff RB Shelton Senior
2015 Kevin Roberts WR Shelton Senior
2016 Joe Zoppi WR/K Shelton Senior

 

 

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