The 411 On All Things Middleboro ... or is that Middleborough?

You may not realize this, but the Stoneham and Middleboro football teams have a lot in common.

Both are 8-2, and both finished third in their respective leagues this fall. Both finished the season with disappointing losses (Middleboro's a 20-8 loss to Rockland, Stoneham's a 34-6 loss to Wilmington) and both have made Super Bowl appearances before, although players on today's teams weren't alive back then. Both towns are also in the process of replacing their aging schools and earlier this month at a special election Middleborough residents voted to build a new high school.

Friday night at Woburn High School the two square off at 7:30 in the state semifinals. The winner faces Littleton (10-0) in the Division 6 Super Bowl at Gillette Stadium on either Dec. 1 or 2. Because there is no Division 6 in Western Mass, Littleton has a bye.

And about the ugh thing. Go on the school website and you can order gear from "Middleboro High School Fan Wear" but when your t-shirt arrives it will say "Middleborough." The town itself began as Nemasket, named after a local river. In 1669 it was settled as Middleberry, and later was changed to Middleborough. The town is the second largest town by land area in Massachusetts and bills itself as the cranberry capital of the world. But the team isn't the Middleborough Cranberries as you might expect. Instead high school teams are the Sachems, named after the chief of local Native American tribes.

Stoneham's one appearance in an MIAA Super Bowl came in 1994 when Al Lanni's Spartans lost to Acton-Boxboro, 23-0, in the Division 2B bowl. Middleborough has made four appearances in a Super Bowl. The most recent game was 1983, back when Tom Cruise was dancing in his underwear in Risky Business. The Sachems beat Westwood that year, 28-6, in the Division 4 bowl. They also beat Dom Savio in '79, 21-16, and lost to Hanover in '74, 26-14.

As for the current team, Middleboro's losses came in October in back-to-back weeks against Norwell (8-2) and Rockland (7-3). The Sachems score a little more than Stoneham (31.8 ppg to the Spartans' 28.8 ppg) and they defend a little better (allowing 16.9 ppg to Stoneham's 20.4 ppg). Offensively, Middleborough is led by the passing combination of quarterback Evan Gowzdz (12 TD passes) and Colin O'Brien (7 TD receptions). Gowzdz also has 11 rushing touchdowns. In the win over Old Rochester in the Division 6 South title game, Gowzdz was 6-of-9 passing for 130 yards, and ran for another 102 yards.

Forty-four minutes separate Stoneham from a trip to Gillette Stadium. Beat the Sachems and it's off to Foxboro. Or is that Foxborough?