NEEDHAM — The word “tradition” gets thrown around a lot in high school football, and there is plenty of it to go around come Thanksgiving. Sometimes it does not always apply.

But in Needham, there is certainly a heaping helping of it when it comes to star running back Tate Hoffmeister.

That’s because his grandfather, George, stood out at that position, too, back in the early 1960s. Hoffmeister’s father, Greg, did the same in the mid-to-late 1980s.

So forgive Needham football fans for having a little deja vu when Tate is running all over defenses this season. It’s just a tradition.

This year, through the Div. 1 quarterfinal round, Hoffmeister has rushed for 1,610 yards and 20 touchdowns. A senior captain, Hoffmeister has helped lead the Rockets to the state semifinals against Xaverian.

George, Needham class of 1963, played in ’61 and ’62, and was also a captain. Greg, class of ’89, played in ’86, ’87, and ’88, and was a captain and Bay State League All-Star, just like his dad.

Greg is a running backs coach on this year’s team, and gave a quick scouting report on the three.

“Actually, I think we have different running styles,” Greg said. “I’m a little smaller than Tate is. I was a little shiftier, maybe a little quicker. Avoided more tackles than took them on. Tate’s a very physical runner. If you watch him, he’s gotten a lot of his yards after contact. It’s just the way he is. He has an aggressive running style. Certainly, when he hits the openings on the outside, he can turn on the speed, but really, a lot of his running is just tough, after-contact runs.”

Tate’s style actually skipped a generation.

“That’s exactly right. My son, Greg, had a wonderful ability to move, to elude the tackler, to get around the corners from people,” George said. “Tate is much more like me: Get your head down and get the yardage that we need one way or another. It’s just wonderful. His legs never stop.”

Tate agrees.

“A year or two ago, my dad actually found some tapes, and he plugged them into my TV somehow and got it up,” Tate said. “I watched a few of them. It was great to see. I did kind of see myself a couple times in there. Great to picture that, and great to see his type of style and how he played the game.”

Needham has been on a steady upward trajectory, after going 2-9 in 2021 and then 5-6 a year ago. Now 9-1, Hoffmeister has been a big part of the Rockets’ turnaround.

“We wouldn’t be where we are without Tate,” Needham coach Doug Kopcso said. “He’s a phenomenal leader. He’s a phenomenal person. He has high character. He has great values. He works so dang hard to put us all in the position where we can be successful. He doesn’t mind if it goes to someone else. He doesn’t mind if he’s sharing the wealth. He’s a great teammate, a great person.”

And it has just been wonderful for all the Hoffmeisters to share in that success. George beams at it.

“I can’t tell you how much I love watching it,” he said. “The end of the game, (Tate will) come over to me, I’ll give him a big hug and just tell him how happy he’s made me to see him do what he’s done.”

As for the end of the season, George has direct advice.

“Beat Wellesley. You’ve got to beat Wellesley,” he said. “I can’t tell you how important that is. I have missed one Wellesley game since I graduated 60 years ago. I’ve missed one. I was at Disney World with my family. That tells you how important it is to the Hoffmeister family.”