MALDEN – Fans of Notre Dame, Knute Rockne, and Ronald Reagan’s acting career know well the line, “Win one for the Gipper.”Malden Catholic football coach Joe Gaff received encouragement of a different sort before his team’s game against Peabody. Gaff’s encouragement came from a former assistant and MC alumnus, current St. Mary’s coach Jeff Smith.”Coach Smith always liked this class,” Gaff told his seniors after the Lancers’ 35-7 decision over Peabody on Wednesday at Donovan Field at Brother Gilbert Stadium. “It’s the last class he remembers. He said, ‘Beat Peabody.’ The seniors played their hearts out.”Later, Gaff told a reporter, “He is a true Lancer. He coached here, played here, and was on my staff.”Smith’s St. Mary’s team didn’t have as good a Thanksgiving Eve, losing to Lynn Tech, but the Lancers closed their season with a win.Want another Lynn connection? The City of Firsts’ own Ryan Curtis (no relation to another Lynn gridiron player, Harvard star Matt) scored a touchdown for the Lancers (4-7) on a 30-yard run with 5:17 left in the second quarter. Curtis got the ball on first down, and his score put the Crystal Street crew up 22-0 after a conversion rush from teammate Craig Richardson.”Just run the ball hard,” Curtis said when asked about his team’s strategy entering the game, “and put some points on the board.”That the Lancers did in their first Thanksgiving matchup with Peabody, which began with a moving bagpipe march across the field by a six-person band and which was one of five games to be webcast on the WBZ-AM (1030) website on Wednesday. MC put up 14 points in the first quarter and 15 more in the second to take a 29-0 lead into intermission.”Across the board, they were stronger than we are,” said first-year Peabody coach Dick Woodbury. “That’s where we need to be.”MC scored on its first two possessions, both of which ended with Richardson finding the end zone. Richardson’s two touchdowns, sandwiched around an interception of Peabody quarterback Tommy Ciulla, came on runs of five and six yards.After Curtis gave the Lancers their third touchdown of the evening on the ground, MC used an aerial approach to diversify their scoring portfolio. On second and six from his 35, MC quarterback Mike Riley found Tyler James for a 65-yard scoring strike with 2:56 before halftime. Riley kicked the extra point for the 29-0 halftime advantage.The second half saw the Lancers go back to the ground game for their final touchdown, an Andrew Delbec five-yard carry.During the latter stages of the game, MC showed some more of its defensive dominance. Michael Hobbs sacked Ciulla in the third quarter, forcing and recovering a fumble. In the third quarter, after the Lancers scored on Delbec’s run, they got the pigskin back on the ensuing kickoff when Mike Sullivan recovered a loose ball.Peabody averted a shutout when Chris Kerwin ran for a three-yard touchdown with 28 seconds left in the game. Justin Prevencher kicked the extra point for the final score.”Peabody played hard today,” Gaff said. “They’re young ? Their coach got them to play.”