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For one day this week, sixth, seventh and eighth graders in one Massachusetts city got to attend a school named after one of their state's greatest sports figures.

Forest Park Middle School in Springfield, Mass., on Thursday renamed itself "Tom Brady Middle School" for the day and held a school-wide pep rally in honor of the New England Patriots quarterback.

"(The students) wanted to do something creative and fun," principal Tom Mazza told MassLive.com.

And for Mazza, the idea was a no-brainer. Brady, after all, is, in the principal's words, "the greatest American ever born."

The Forest Park name change preceded what's expected to be a highly eventful night less than 100 miles east in Foxboro. The Patriots will raise their Super Bowl XLIX championship banner before hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers in the regular-season opener at Gillette Stadium.

Thumbnail photo via Michael Dwyer/Associated Press