District newsletter features article
​about historic Rotary Bowl rivalry

Since time immemorial (it seems), the football teams of McClain High School and Hillsboro High School have battled for gridiron bragging rights against their Highland County rivals. And in 1985 the rivalry was turned up a notch when the Rotary Clubs of Greenfield and Hillsboro created a Rotary Bowl trophy emblematic of gridiron dominance, with the winning team to keep the coveted trophy until the next season's game. In 2023 the great rivalry gained the attention of the Rotary District 6670 newsletter staff asking about the Rotary Bowl and what it all means. 

Since the Greenfield McClain Tigers won the 2023 Rotary Bowl and were in possession of the trophy, the following information was submitted and published by in the December 2023 district newsletter. 

The Rotary Bowl


For years, the McClain and Hillsboro High School football teams have battled for the coveted Rotary Bowl trophy, giving added incentive and bragging rights to the long-standing rivalry between these two Highland County schools. The winner of the annual game gets to keep the trophy until the Big Game next year. 
This Highland County rivalry is important to the communities of Greenfield and Hillsboro. Each team’s record coming into the game doesn’t matter – a win in the Rotary Bowl can make a disappointing season into a successful one, and turn a good season into a great one. Sometimes the winning coach brings the Rotary Bowl trophy to a Rotary meeting to the sound of cheers and congratulations! 
The Greenfield and Hillsboro Rotary Clubs have a good time with the rivalry and remain good neighbors to one another with the shared purpose of serving others. In fact, the two clubs work together each year to raise funds for the Highland County Society for Children and Adults. But it is nice to have that trophy – and corresponding bragging rights – for a whole year following a victory. And after a seven-year drought, the McClain Tigers won the Rotary Bowl on their home field Oct. 20, 2023 with a 21-13 victory over the Hillsboro Indians.
The first “Rotary Bowl” was played in 1985. Some Rotarians are known to keep meticulous records of the results. Below is a summary of Rotary Bowl results down through the years.

Picture
MHS football coach Randy Closson (right) is congratulated by Rotary President Chuck Miller following McClain's Rotary Bowl victory in 2006.

Rotary Bowl Results


YEAR AND RESULT
1985: Hillsboro 37, McClain 0
1986: McClain 3, Hillsboro 0
1987: Hillsboro 27, McClain 8 
1988: Hillsboro 28, McClain 7 
1989: Hillsboro 36, McClain 7
1990: Hillsboro 12, McClain 6
1991: McClain 28, Hillsboro 7
1992: Hillsboro 9, McClain 7
1993: Hillsboro 26, McClain 24
1994: Hillsboro 18, McClain 16
1995: Hillsboro 42, McClain 25
1996: Hillsboro 51, McClain 6
1997: McClain 13, Hillsboro 10
1998: Hillsboro 34, McClain 0
1999: McClain 17, Hillsboro 14
2000: McClain 27, Hillsboro 12
2001: Hillsboro 13, McClain 6
2002: McClain 30, Hillsboro 6
2003: McClain 36, Hillsboro 20
2004: Hillsboro 46, McClain 12
2005: Hillsboro 28, McClain 7
2006: McClain 12, Hillsboro 7
2007: Hillsboro 14, McClain 13 (OT)
2008: Hillsboro 12, McClain 0
2009: Hillsboro 33, McClain 8
2010: McClain 28, Hillsboro 15
2011: Hillsboro 28, McClain 27
2012: McClain 54, Hillsboro 6
2013: McClain 53, Hillsboro 14
2014: McClain 20, Hillsboro 8
2015: McClain 35, Hillsboro 27
2016: Hillsboro 43, McClain 40
2017: Hillsboro 61, McClain 13
2018: Hillsboro 68, McClain 7
2019: Hillsboro 22, McClain 12
2020: Hillsboro 21, McClain 16
2021: Hillsboro 31, McClain 7
2022: Hillsboro 42, McClain 21
2023: McClain 21, Hillsboro 13
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Picture
Greenfield Rotarians share the joy of a McClain Rotary Bowl victory with then-coach Randy Closson.