article Final Eastern Kentucky Power Rankings 10-31-15

In Honor of Season's End we will switch it up and rank the Top 25, as well as hand out some Eastern Kentucky Superlatives

FINAL TOP 25

25. Whitley County (5A, 6-4)- The Colonels suffered 4 losses all to teams in the Top 25 and capped the season by defeating Leslie County in a battle for 25th spot.

24. Harlan County (5A, 4-6)- The Black Bears rallied for the 2 Seed in their District after a brutal non-district slate with losses to 6 teams in the Top 25. They defeated Whitkey County to edge the Colonels and also played Knox Central tough.

23. Fleming County (3A, 7-3)- The Panthers finished in a 3-way tie for the District title thanks to their victory over Russell.

22. Greenup County (4A, 5-5)- The Musketeers suffered 5 losses to Top 25 teams and beat Fleming County. They also equated themselves well in most of their losses.

21. Powell County (3A, 7-3)- What a season for the Pirates as they win their District outright thanks to a 7 game winning streak. 2 of their 3 Losses came to Top 25 teams and they had a very nice win over LCA.

20. Hazard (1A, 8-2)- The Bulldogs rounded into form and played tough. Both of their losses came to Top 25 teams and they had several quality wins.

19. West Carter (3A, 8-2)- The Comets earned the 1 seed by way of tie-breaker in a record season. They defeated Fleming County and Powell County and both losses were to higher ranked teams.

18. Russell (3A, 7-3)- The Devils defeated West Carter but finished seeded behind them. All three losses were to Top 25 teams and they added a nice win over Ironton and Greenup as well.

17. Raceland (1A, 6-4)- The Rams had a bit of a disappointing regular season and suffered three losses to teams ahead of them, they also have an OT win over Russell and a fortuitous win over Lawrence County, in addition to wins over Greenup and West Carter.

16. Fairview (1A, 6-4)- The Eagles beat Raceland and Hazard but fell to Lawrence Co and Paintsville in-state.

15. Shelby Valley (8-2)- The Wildcats bookended an 8 game win streak between their two losses to solid competition. The best 2A team in EKY.

14. Lawrence County (3A, 7-3)- The Dawgs were close to greatness but could not seal the deal against Belfry and Raceland. Their other loss was also to a higher ranked team in Montgomery Co

13. North Laurel (5A, 9-1)- Perfect through 9 until Montgomery came calling. The Jags though didn't play a World Beaters schedule.

12. Bell County (3A, 8-2)- Two quality losses to Corbin and Boyle County and a solid win over Wayne County.

11. Montgomery County (5A, 7-3)- The Indians had statement wins against Lawrence County, Anderson County, and North Laurel... but took it on the chin hard against Southwestern.

10. Corbin (3A, 6-4)- A difficult schedule out of region but a convincing win over Bell County. Their season finale was not expected as Knox Central white washes them.

9. Knox Central (4A, 6-4)- The Panthers were Jekyll and Hyde against a tough schedule. One of the best wins in EKY beating Louisville Central as well as dominating Corbin, but losses to Southwestern and Wayne leave them in ranking purgatory.

8. Wayne County (4A, 8-2)- The question with Wayne is if the Bell County narrow loss was a fluke? Great wins against Knox Central and Monroe County edge them ahead of the Panthers.

7. Southwestern (5A, 7-3)- Warriors beat two Top 15 teams in convincing fashion but the end the season getting outscored 95-20 in their last two games.

6. Pikeville (1A, 8-2)- Two losses to Top 5 teams was their only blemish, one of which was in OT. A legit 1A Title threat.

5. Ashland (4A, 8-2)- Tomcats trending down after a close loss to rival JC and a blowout to Tates Creek. Great wins against Russell, Raceland, Ironton, Greenup ,and George Washington, WV

4. Paintsville (1A, 10-0)- Historic run for the only undefeated team in EKY. They also own wins over Pikeville, Shelby Valley, Fairview, and Raceland and only Pikeville played them close.

3. Johnson Central (4A, 8-1)- After a huge win over Ashland noone saw Belfry's buzzsaw bearing down. Eagles own a convincing win over LexCath as well as the win over Greenup in blowout fashion.

2. Pulaski County (5A, 9-1)- Great loss to an excellent Scott County team.. obliteration of Southwestern and Henry Clay... but their nasty season finale and overall body of work leaves the door open.

1. Belfry (3A, 9-1)- Pirates put an exclamation point on a great regular season. Their lone loss was to a Top 150 team in the Country, but the Pirates put running clocks on two of the Top 6 teams in EKY. Throw in quality wins over Knoxville Catholic, Tates Creek, NewCath, Lawrence County, and Harlan County

Now some superlatives!

GAME OF THE YEAR

Paintsville 23 Pikeville 22 OT

This was billed as "Must See TV" and boy did it play out that way. As good of a small school football game as you will find these two duked it out for 4 quarters and a late Paintsville comeback forced OT. In OT the Panthers took the lead only to see Kash Daniel take over and willed his team to victory with a TD and subsequent conversion that accounted for around 8 broken tackles combined.

COACH OF THE YEAR

Brandon Brewer, Powell County

Hats off to Brewer as he took a team traditionally scheduled for homecoming games and did amazing things. The Pirates finished with 7 straight wins and won their District Title. Not only that, but they equated themselves very well in games they normally would have been expected to lose by 4 TD's and even beat a couple teams they were not expected to.

Runner-Ups: Joe Chirico, Paintsville Kevin Brown, West Carter Phillip Haywood, Belfry

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

RB Quenton Baker, Ashland

1890 Rushing Yards (210 per game) 26 TD

The State's most prolific rusher was a man amongst boys all season.

Runner Ups: QB Riley Hall, Pulaski County QB Bryce Workman, Johnson Central RB Patric Edwards, Southwestern

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

DT Ray Horton, Belfry

Horton was a manchild all year and came up with big plays every time the Pirates needed it. Most likely one of the State's leaders in Tackles for Loss he also continued his legacy as one of the best pass rushers in EKY History. His knack for playing big in big games was cemented in the season finale when he single handily devoured the vaunted Johnson Central run game

Runner Ups: LB Kash Daniel, Paintsville LB Drew O'Bryan, Ashland DB Austin Elswick, Shelby Valley

EASTERN KENTUCKY MVP

QB/LB Kash Daniel, Paintsville

739 Rushing Yards, 18 TD's

948 Passing Yards, 9 TD's

6 Two-Point Conversions Rushing

130 Tackles

3 Fumble Recoveries

First 10-0 Season for Paintsville in 30+ years

...Say no more

Runner Ups: RB/DB Quenton Baker, Ashland QB Riley Hall, Pulaski County RB/LB Daric Pugh, Pikeville

ALL EKY TEAM- OFFENSE

QB Riley Hall, Pulaski County

RB Quenton Baker, Ashland

RB Kent Phelps, Paintsville

WR Jake Johnson, Pulaski County

WR Luke Trimble, Paintsville

WR Jason Johnson, Hazard

OLINE Belfry

ATH Patric Edwards, Southwestern

ATH George Gregory, Pulaski County

ATH Timmy Dalton, Lawrence County

ALL EKY TEAM- DEFENSE

DE Floyd Fannin, Southwestern

DT Rayquan Horton, Belfry

DT Blake Asher, Leslie County

DE TJ Dotson, Belfry

LB Dalton Frasure, Pburg

LB Kash Daniel, Paintsville

LB Drew O'Bryan, Ashland

DB Austin Elswick, Shelby Valley

DB Bryce Workman, Johnson Central

DB Treyton Humfleet, Bell County

DB Quenton Baker, Ashland

ALL EKY TEAM-SPECIALISTS

PK Tyler Pack, Johnson Central

P Devin Wellman, Belfry

KR Chatlin Jarrell, Pikeville

No mention of Braden Brown? How many kids in KY can match is numbers? Any list of EKY players that doesn't include him is invalid IMO.

Awesome work ATL.

And cut him a little slack Cats, this is a lot for any one person to pull together.

Please tell us about Braden in this thread or even better start a thread on him.

Braden Brown before last nights game had over a thousand on the ground (1,016) and 17 touchdowns rushing. Also was close to breaking a thousand passing (947) with 16 TD passes and only 3 INT.

That'll clear up a little bit, he's definitely going to be the EKC player of the year again. Deserves at least a mention but understand the job is rough!

Good post though ATLCat I agree with most of it!

It is essentially Belfry, Pulaski County, and then everyone else.... Those two have a legitimate shot at State Championships; the rest of the field not so much.

It is essentially Belfry, Pulaski County, and then everyone else.... Those two have a legitimate shot at State Championships; the rest of the field not so much.

Ashland, JC, and the AP Class A number one ranked Paintsville don't have shots at state titles?

Awesome work ATL.

 

And cut him a little slack Cats, this is a lot for any one person to pull together.

 

Please tell us about Braden in this thread or even better start a thread on him.

Raiderpride posted his stats as of week 9. Added a rushing TD and three passing TDs last night.

37 total TDs, 2000+ total yards, a few INTs on defense. Returns punts. Has played three games start to finish as the other 7 were running clocks, in which he maybe played one drive of the second half.

ATL does a great job with this. Just want to make sure a great player is represented.

It is essentially Belfry, Pulaski County, and then everyone else.... Those two have a legitimate shot at State Championships; the rest of the field not so much.

Johnson Central has a legitimate shot to win it. If they make it to WKU I would think that qualifies as a legitimate shot to win it. I think South Warren is the favorite but to say Johnson Central doesn't have a legitimate shot is far fetched IMO. And if Ashland makes it to the rematch and defeats Johnson Central they'd have to have a legitimate shot also I would think.

Raiderpride posted his stats as of week 9. Added a rushing TD and three passing TDs last night.

 

37 total TDs, 2000+ total yards, a few INTs on defense. Returns punts. Has played three games start to finish as the other 7 were running clocks, in which he maybe played one drive of the second half.

 

ATL does a great job with this. Just want to make sure a great player is represented.

Really is a stud. One of the better players to come out of Carter County, if he went to Ashland, Raceland, Russell he'd have his name all over the ADI and maybe even a cute nickname like Baker.

Really is a stud. One of the better players to come out of Carter County, if he went to Ashland, Raceland, Russell he'd have his name all over the ADI and maybe even a cute nickname like Baker.

Great player, great kid. Exactly the kind of kid you want representing your program.

Great player, great kid. Exactly the kind of kid you want representing your program.

I mix this up but help me out here. Is he Kevin's or Brian's son?

Johnson Central has a legitimate shot to win it. If they make it to WKU I would think that qualifies as a legitimate shot to win it. I think South Warren is the favorite but to say Johnson Central doesn't have a legitimate shot is far fetched IMO. And if Ashland makes it to the rematch and defeats Johnson Central they'd have to have a legitimate shot also I would think.

If Asland or Johnson Central play SW in the State Championship it will not be pretty... JC just lost to Coach Smith of SWs Fathers Team by 41 points!!! Boyle played a common opponent in Central Hardin and beat them in a close game. SW played he same team a few weeks later and KILLED them with Souths QB playing on 1 leg... So how in the world would they have a chance against SW??

Great player, great kid. Exactly the kind of kid you want representing your program.

He's as valuable to his team as any player in the entire state is to theirs. He'll surely receive some all-state recognition at season's end, especially if West can get to the regional final and host a big time opponent like Belfry. That would provide him with the big stage he needs to get his name out there.

If Asland or Johnson Central play SW in the State Championship it will not be pretty... JC just lost to Coach Smith of SWs Fathers Team by 41 points!!! Boyle played a common opponent in Central Hardin and beat them in a close game. SW played he same team a few weeks later and KILLED them with Souths QB playing on 1 leg... So how in the world would they have a chance against SW??

JC lost to Belfry not Boyle County and JC didn't play their starters that game last night either. That JC loss is fool's gold. They are very legitimate.

If Asland or Johnson Central play SW in the State Championship it will not be pretty... JC just lost to Coach Smith of SWs Fathers Team by 41 points!!! Boyle played a common opponent in Central Hardin and beat them in a close game. SW played he same team a few weeks later and KILLED them with Souths QB playing on 1 leg... So how in the world would they have a chance against SW??

That's hilarious.