Cherry Hill East is now the only team in the state that has never lost at home. Well, sort of.

The first-ever varsity football game on Cherry Hill East property was held on Saturday in a match-up between the Cougars and the Eagles of Washington Township. It marked the first time that East played at home instead of at Jonas Morris Stadium at Cherry Hill West.

East’s stadium was crowded with many students, teachers, parents and alumni. One special group of people that was there was the Cougars’ 1988 State Group IV Championship team, including Head Coach Bo Wood and star quarterback Glenn Foley, who later played for the Seattle Seahawks and New York Jets of the NFL. The entire atmosphere was remarkable: the field was decorated beautifully, all the fans were in a great mood and the weather felt like the spring season, with most spectators wearing shorts.

“The atmosphere is more special when the game is played at East,” said Dov Halevy (’10).

The game started off poorly for the Cougars. Winslow quarterback Ka’Lial Glaud threw a quick touchdown pass to give Winslow an early lead. But the Cougars got on the scoreboard after a penalty was called on Winslow in the end zone, resulting as a safety. Going into halftime the Cougars were down 12-2.

Perhaps the 1988 championship team’s presence in the haltime ceremony served as a spark for the Cougars, who did not allow a touchdown for the rest of regulation. East trailed 12-5 after a short field goal by Andrew Pursell and then, with time running out in the half, quarterback Sean Gold complted a pass to John Entrekin for 35 yards, setting up a touchdown by Josh Langford.

In overtime, Winslow had first possession and drove easily to score a touchdown but missed the extra point. East answered back with a 30-yard pass to Langford, followed by his one-yard touchdown run. Pursell’s extra point made East victorious by a final score of 19-18. It was the perfect ending to a historic day for the Cherry Hill East football program. The Cougars will now attempt to keep their streak alive against Rancocas Valley High School at noon this Saturday on the East field.