In Pasadena — There’s only one football game under the Rose Bowl lights this weekend, and it isn’t UCLA. With the Bruins idle until Nov. 8, the 78th Turkey Tussle between John Muir High School and Pasadena High School takes center stage tonight at 7 p.m.
This year’s storyline is unmistakable: a quarterback duel with matching production. Pasadena junior Dutch Burbidge has completed 152 of 234 passes for 2,439 yards and 29 touchdowns. Across the sideline, left-handed Muir transfer Trey Gamble has 2,172 passing yards and 29 touchdown throws through Oct. 26. “This should be fun, because Dutch and I are both top-five quarterbacks in the area for passing, and he’s always going to do whatever he can to help his team win, so this should be a good one,” Gamble said.
The matchup arrives with a notable milestone for the Mustangs: for the first time in Muir’s 99-year history, it enters the Turkey Tussle as Pasadena’s largest high school, a shift alumni museum curator Pablo Miralles said “adds a new twist to a rivalry that began in 1947.”
League position and form amplify the stakes. Muir is 7-0-1 in Pacific League play and Pasadena is 5-1; the Mustangs lead the all-time series 46–20–2. Recent results favor Muir — 47–13 (2024) and 45–0 (2023) — though Pasadena’s 47–0 win in 2022 ended an 18-year drought for the Bulldogs.
Team profiles are clear from the numbers. Muir has outscored league opponents 289–42 and is on a seven-game winning streak, allowing 9.0 points per game in that span; Miralles highlighted linebacker Ezekiel Rodriguez as a defensive standout. Pasadena has outscored league foes 251–92.
On the Pasadena sideline, head coach Ron Jones frames the rivalry in terms of history and responsibility. “That’s one of the hardest parts of coaching in a rivalry like this. You’re not just coaching football, you’re trying to connect generations. These kids need to know they’re part of something that started long before them and will continue long after,” he said. He added, “I’m a competitor, so I just want to compete. The rivalry is good for the kids, but for me, I just want to win.”
The game also functions as a civic gathering in a difficult year. Coverage has highlighted how students, families and alumni are coming together after the Eaton Fire. “This game connects generations. It reminds me of some college games I’ve attended — the energy, the pride, the history,” said Pasadena Unified School District Superintendent Elizabeth Blanco.
As ever, the winner will claim the Victory Bell, the prize since 1955 after it was gifted by the Santa Fe Railroad; the bell once rang from atop a steam locomotive.
If you go: Gates open 5:45 p.m.; pregame begins 6:30 p.m.; kickoff 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 31. The Rose Bowl is cashless and enforces a clear-bag policy.
Get tickets at:
- PHS General Admission: https://hov.to/5122ee06
- PHS Students: https://hov.to/ea35d0bf
- Muir General Admission: https://hov.to/2d40808c
- Muir Students: https://hov.to/cdb2709d
