Four local players selected for Maine Shrine Lobster Bowl Classic
Three players from Foxcroft Foxcroft Academy and another from Dexter Regional High School football team have been selected for the 2026 Maine Shrine Lobster Bowl Classic, scheduled for Saturday, July 18 at Lewiston High School.
The East team roster will include Foxcroft Academy defensive end/guard Aiden Bryant, linebacker/running back Finn Holmes and Lucas Sands — who was chosen for the squad but will be unable to play following offseason surgery. Dexter defensive back/wide receiver Bryce Cooper has also been selected for the East. Pony head coach Danny White will be on the coaching staff.
The East cheer team will include Abagail Trafton of Dexter.
LOBSTER BOWL SELECTION — Foxcroft Academy’s Finn Holmes breaks a tackle for a 15-yard touchdown during the 2024 Class D North championship vs. Winslow at Hampden Academy. Holmes is one of three Ponies chosen for the 2026 Maine Shrine Lobster Bowl Classic on July 18 at Lewiston High School.
The Lobster Bowl features the best recently graduated high school senior football players from each of the state’s six different divisions between the 11- and 8-player games. Participants are nominated by their coaches and then selected by the coaches from each side.
This year’s game kicks off at 4 p.m. on July 18 at Don Roux Field in Lewiston with gates opening at 1 p.m.
In the 35th anniversary game in 2025, the West won 41-6 to improve to 23-11 all-time.
SCRAMBLE TO THE SIDELINE — Dexter’s Bryce Cooper runs around Ripley Strout of Ellsworth during an October 2024 matchup in Dexter. Cooper has been chosen for this year’s Lobster Bowl and Cooper’s classmate Abagail Trafton will be on the East cheer team.
This year the organization has set a goal to donate $175,000 to Shriners Children’s and become the top football game fundraiser in the country.
The full list of Maine Shrine Lobster Bowl Classic rosters and coaches are available at www.MaineShrineLobsterBowl.com. The website allows anyone to make a general donation or allocate their donation to a player and their fundraising goal. Each participant is required to raise at least $500 to participate in the game. Proceeds benefit Shriners Children’s in Boston and Springfield
The East team, coached by Dan O’Connell from John Bapst Memorial High School of Bangor, includes 44 players and 26 cheerleaders from across the state.
FORCED INCOMPLETION — Aiden Bryant pressures Belfast quarterback Luke Littlefield into throwing the ball away during a September 2024 game in Dover-Foxcroft. Bryant is one of three Foxcroft players chosen for the 2026 Lobster Bowl with Pony head coach Danny White to be on the coaching staff.
The West team, coached by Joel Stoneton from Winthrop High School, includes 45 players and 24 cheerleaders.
The Maine Shrine Lobster Bowl Game, which operates under the motto “Strong legs run … so that weak legs may walk” was created over three and a half decades ago to raise money and to help raise awareness for the expert orthopedic and burn care facilities available to children who desperately need this specialized care — regardless of their family’s ability to pay.
FIRST DOWN CATCH — Lucas Sands makes a catch in front of Old Town’s Elijah Alston for a first down at the Coyote-9 during a 2024 Class D North semifinal. Sands has been chosen for the Lobster Bowl, but will not play following off-season surgery.