article 2A Midterm

To the best of my recollection, I was pretty much a straight A student from my first day of school up through the midway point of my 4th grade school year. It was at that point that I received my first ever C on a report card. Mrs. Ratliff had rendered her verdict… young DMC didn't do math good.

I was terror stricken at the idea of handing that wretched report card over to my mother. I just knew that I was a dead man walking. I took my sweet time walking home that day after exiting the school bus. After sneaking into my bedroom, I stared in disbelief at the blood red C before my eyes. A C ? A friggin’ C?!?! Suddenly, I heard my mom's footsteps approaching my bedroom door. I started to panic. She walked into the room and asked me how my day went. I didn't see any other options, so I did the only thing a 9 year old boy could do in that situation… I tried to throw the report card under my bed. A genius move, I know. But what else was I supposed to do? I didn't want to die.

Unfortunately, the report card, which was about as aerodynamic as a parachute, didn't fully disappear under the bed. In fact, it was plainly visible from where my mom was standing. She picked it up and looked it over, then shot me a look of disapproval. In the end, all I got was a lecture and some insistence from her that I would do my homework first thing after school every day.

Now that we've taken that little trip down memory lane, let's get to the point of this thread...

I'm certainly not a teacher and the last thing that these teams need to worry about is trying to throw this report card under their beds to avoid certain death. But, I thought it would be fun to pause at the halfway point and give a brief appraisal of the 2A top 10, plus a few other noteworthy teams.

#1 Danville (5-0)

Wins - 6A Frederick Douglass (36-0), 4A Knox Central (52-28), 3A Boyle County (10-7), 5A Pulaski County (34-13), 3A Waggener (49-46)

Grade: A-

The Ads were rolling right along until a near hiccup last week in a wild shootout with a talented, but not very deep, Waggener team. The win over Frederick Douglass looks better and better with each passing week and the win over Boyle County has gone from great to arguably the best win for any team in the class. Danville is probably the most deserving of the top ranking based on their resume so far, but the Waggener game proves that there is still considerable room for improvement on defense.

#2 DeSales (4-0)

Wins - 6A Ballard (37-22), 6A Butler (28-27), 1A Lou. Holy Cross (47-0), 5A Fern Creek (21-13)

Grade: A-

Three wins over much larger, ranked opponents are the backbone of DeSales’ resume thus far. Of the top teams, they're probably the least flashy. But, they just keep winning, and they're doing it against good opposition. One negative to point out… the Colts have a tendency this season to start slowly and fall behind, which is something that needs to be rectified before it bites them. The offense seems to be improved from last year, but I'm still not convinced that it's on the same level as Danville's, Mayfield's, or LCA's.

#3 Mayfield (5-0)

Wins - Union City (TN) (41-0), 4A Hopkinsville (49-20), 3A Paducah Tilghman (47-14), 6A McCracken County (49-27), 5A Graves County (45-31)

Grade: B

The current state of Mayfield's schedule is up for debate. Union City and their own questionable schedule are still something of a mystery, and Hopkinsville, McCracken County, and PT (again!) have all underachieved. The Card’s offense has produced big numbers week after week and has looked extremely impressive considering what they had to replace from last year. On the flip side, the defense has surrendered 58 points combined the past two games. An occasionally spotty defense and questionable schedule strength has kept them from serious consideration for #1 so far.

#4 Lexington Christian Academy (5-0)

Wins - 3A Waggener (40-14), 1A Pikeville (49-21), Vincennes Lincoln (IN) (41-21), 3A Lexington Catholic (56-36), 2A Walton Verona (48-13)

Grade: B+

LCA has really hit their stride the past two weeks. The Eagles possess the most versatile offense in 2A with bruising RB Dillon Wheatley, dual threat QB Logan Nieves, and big play WR Drayden Burton. The wins over LexCath and WV were impressive, but my concern is that they may have a bad habit of playing up or down to the level of their opposition. They didn't exactly fire on all cylinders against Waggener, Pikeville, or Vincennes Lincoln the way you'd expect considering the talent level the Eagles possess.

#5 Christian Academy-Louisville (4-1)

Wins - 5A South Oldham (28-14), 6A Eastern (33-9), 6A Central Hardin (15-0), 3A Elizabethtown (24-9)

Loss - 2A Newport Central Catholic (15-20)

Grade: B-

Through four games, the Centurions stout defense did a fantastic job of covering up for its inconsistent and, frankly, sub-par offense. CAL has only averaged about 250 ypg so far, hardly a championship level offense in comparison to some of the teams above. Against Newport Central Catholic, and without QB Austin Carr, their offensive woes caught up to them. The wins over South Oldham and E'Town will likely continue to look better as the season goes on. The long term status of Carr is of paramount importance. As great and versatile a player as Milton Wright is, he's playing out of position at QB.

#6 Newport Central Catholic (3-2)

Wins - 4A Scott (17-7), 6A Cooper (29-7), 2A CAL (20-15)

Losses - 6A Campbell County (7-27), 3A Belfry (29-54)

Grade: B-

NewCath made the biggest wave of last week with its upset win over defending champ and previously top ranked CAL. That performance has, at least for now, elevated the 'Breds back to contender status. However, it's also hard to ignore the way NewCath took it on the chin against big, physical teams like Belfry and Campbell County, and the win over Cooper really doesn't register at all right now. They're not quite up on the that top line with the teams above them, but the win over CAL proves that they shouldn't be overlooked.

#7 Glasgow (4-1)

Wins - 1A Russellville (21-13), 3A Bardstown (48-9), 3A Fort Campbell (41-3), 4A Warren East (16-14)

Loss - Allen County-Scottsville (35-39)

Grade: C+

The Scotties quietly started 3-0 against a very manageable schedule before falling to a solid Allen County-Scottsville team. They bounced back to defeat an equally solid Warren East. All in all, Glasgow has looked just good enough to hold firm in the top 10, but not exactly a team that will strike fear into the hearts of anyone above them. The Scotties are lacking a great win on their resume (Russellville is down from where they've been in recent years). Through the first half of the season, they're kind of an average team relative to the top of this class. They're basically me in 4th grade math.

#8 Somerset (3-2)

Wins - 1A Williamsburg (25-8), 1A Hazard (20-9), 5A North Laurel (16-14)

Losses - 4A Bourbon County (29-36), 1A Beechwood (0-7)

Grade: B

The Jumpers are just a few plays away from being 5-0 against one of the most challenging schedules in 2A. They have to feel like the Bourbon County and Beechwood games were within their reach. Especially the Bourbon game, where Somerset was up two scores and driving before a huge momentum swing. Their three wins have all come against ranked opponents. On the down side, the offense has yet to find its rhythm. Averaging 18 ppg just won't get it done against what lies ahead, despite the high level of play from the defense lately.

#9 Walton Verona (3-2)

Wins - 4A East Jessamine (43-20), 4A Holmes (41-0), 2A Cov. Holy Cross (56-0)

Losses - 1A Kentucky Country Day (20-21), 2A LCA (13-48)

Grade: C+

After returning the bulk of their talent from last season, the question around the Bearcats this year was, can they take the next step and turn some heads in 2A? They had their opportunity against LCA and found out the hard way that they're not quite ready to have their name on the marquee. Their resume, so far, is devoid of anything resembling a good win. The victory over East Jessamine is hardly noteworthy, and Holmes and Holy Cross are a combined 0-9. This team’s best performance is in a losing effort against KCD.

#10 Owensboro Catholic (2-3)

Wins - 6A Daviess County (33-31), South Spencer (IN) (55-14)

Losses - Reitz (IN) (0-34), 5A Owensboro (12-47), 5A Apollo (24-31)

Grade: D-

Without question, OCath has been the biggest disappointment in this class so far. With talents like QB Will Warren and RB Vonn Williams leading the way, much was expected of the Aces in 2017. Losses to Reitz and Owensboro were perhaps expected, but the Apollo loss certainly wasn't. Obviously, there's a lot of football still to be played, but this team needs to find its mojo (and I'm not talkin’ about the late, great Hollowell) soon. Warren's status going forward seems very much up in the air. They'll have plenty of get-right games in a weak district.

On the outside looking in:

Lloyd (3-1)

Wins - 4A West Jessamine (34-14), 4A Marion County (42-6), 4A Holmes (36-6)

Loss - 1A Beechwood (14-35)

Grade: B-

The only win of note is over mediocre West Jessamine. Both Marion County and Holmes have yet to win a game. But the Juggs have won the games they were supposed to win by three scores or more and gave a respectable showing in their loss to Beechwood.

Prestonsburg (2-2)

Wins - 3A Breathitt County (60-26), 3A Floyd Central (42-22)

Losses - 5A North Laurel (6-28), 3A Lawrence County (32-37)

Grade: B

Most expected Prestonsburg to struggle this year, given the negativity swirling around the program lately. But so far, through four games, they've largely exceeded expectations. The Blackcats didn't fold against a strong, physical North Laurel team and battled Lawrence County deep into the 4th quarter. The win over a badly faded Breathitt County doesn't really count for much, but a 3 TD win over newly consolidated (and previously unbeaten) county rival Floyd Central does.

Metcalfe County (4-1)

Wins - 3A Hart County (46-13), 4A Calloway County (26-7), 3A Adair County (18-12), 3A Edmonson County (14-13)

Loss - 4A Taylor County (0-28)

Grade: B-

Metcalfe's resume is another one that's missing a quality win, but they've done just enough to stay with this group of teams waiting in the wings for a crack at the top 10. The Hornets have rattled off four wins in a row since dropping their opener to Taylor, giving up just 11 ppg in the process.

Murray (2-3)

Wins - 4A Calloway County (42-19), 3A Fort Campbell (34-19)

Losses - 5A Graves County (24-40) , 4A Madisonville North-Hopkins (7-53), 5A Marshall County (35-52)

Grade: D

After a down year in 2016, the Tigers weren't really on a lot of radars coming into this season. But, with several several starters back on defense, they were expected to at least show some improvement. So far, everyone they've played with a winning record has dropped 40+ on them. That experienced defense is giving up 36.6 ppg on the year.

Todd County Central (4-0)

Wins - 4A Breckenridge County (14-6), 1A Fort Knox (26-6), 4A Hopkins County Central (6-0), 1A Fulton City (54-6)

Grade: A++

This year's team is only one win away from matching its win total from the previous four years combined. Included in that stretch is two winless seasons. The defense is surrendering a mere 4.5 ppg. Sure, their opponents this year have one win between them. But, so what? This season has been big for the Rebels program, Coach Les Broady, and the Elkton community.

Yikes at Owensboro Catholic... I know they were expecting an A entering the year. Is it too late to get their grade back up?

Is CAL suffering from "Senior-itis"?

Defense is actually Danville's biggest strength in my opinion.

Yikes at Owensboro Catholic... I know they were expecting an A entering the year. Is it too late to get their grade back up?

 

Is CAL suffering from "Senior-itis"?

I think people were banking on OC and their skill kids but forgot they lost 4 OL and some good DL as well.

Defense is actually Danville's biggest strength in my opinion.

Giving up 41 to Waggener doesn't concern you? I know Waggener's got speed to burn, but still. LCA looms in the distance. I can't help but wonder what they'd do against the Ads with the personnel they've got on offense.

Giving up 41 to Waggener doesn't concern you? I know Waggener's got speed to burn, but still. LCA looms in the distance. I can't help but wonder what they'd do against the Ads with the personnel they've got on offense.

They gave up 46 to Waggener and no, I'm not concerned at all.

One thing to remember is that smart 2A teams use non-district games to find out who can play and who can't and then as District and then Playoff games come around the depth chart narrows.

Stud RB may play 90% of the offensive snaps and 20% on defense at LB and once playoffs come around that goes up to 75%.

Defense is actually Danville's biggest strength in my opinion.

46.

46.

Was you there?

46.

From what I know the ads played without their best d lineman and was not focused at all for the game. But let's not take anything away from Waggener... they have more talent than almost everyone, and they look to be getting better.

So our you saying that Waggener had more overall talent than Danville?

Was you there?

No, but you posted enough videos, its like I was there.

No, but you posted enough videos, its like I was there.

Did my tractor beam suck you in and force you to watch them?

If you wasn't there you should probably listen to people who were.

So our you saying that Waggener had more overall talent than Danville?

Well since Danville did win I would say no.

So our you saying that Waggener had more overall talent than Danville?

Talent is nice to have but it doesn't win games all the time.