The main player in the Marlin Bowl didn’t show up to the game this year. After a tropical storm postponed the game, the game’s trophy, a stuffed marlin disappeared.

“We have received multiple leads and reports about the stolen marlin, but nothing significant has happened,” school resource Officer Mark Mckay said.         

Multiple teachers and volunteers were at the school cleaning up the aftermath of Tropical Storm Hermine Sunday, Sept. 4 to prepare for the following night’s game. During the cleanup, math teacher Jimmy Metzinger noticed the marlin was gone.

“I called coach Twyne to see if he had taken it down. The answer was no, [so] then I called officer McKay and he looked at the cameras [and] made calls and we went from there,” Metzinger said.

With the marlin missing, many in the community began questioning why it was left hanging, unsupervised under the scoreboard in the first place.

“As we were preparing for the upcoming tropical storm, we completely forgot about taking down the marlin from the scoreboard,” McKay said.

The marlin made the trek from First Flight High School, where it has called home the last four years, on Thursday in preparation for Friday’s game. When the decision to postpone the game was made on Friday, the focus was on the pending storm not the marlin.

Rumors began circulating about the marlin’s whereabouts and motives for its removal as soon as it was reported missing.

“I think it was stolen because whoever did it thought it was funny and to bring even more excitement and competition to the game,” junior Hannah Midgette said.

However, other students and athletes have a different theory on why the marlin may have been stolen from the site.

“I think it was stolen because whoever wanted it knew that taking it was the only way they could get it,” junior Maya Flowers said.

Although the original marlin wasn’t there, a replacement was brought in. One of Manteo’s coaches, Don Twyne Jr. secured another marlin for the game in time for kick off.

“My family and I have had this marlin in our house and we thought it would be generous to donate it to the game since their was no other option,” junior Donovan Twyne said.

Unfortunately, the new excitement surrounding this popular match-up didn’t favor with MHS. The team went on to lose the Marlin Bowl 41-7.    

UPDATE: The missing marlin was discovered in a student’s yard. How it got there is still unknown, so the marlin is now at the Dare County Court House.