by Bluegrasscard

Lexington Christian Eagles

Head Coach – Ray Graham (Forth season)

2012: 6-6, Lost to Somerset in second round of playoffs.

 

 

Overview

 

The Lexington Christian Eagles come into 2013 on a low overall but with some excellent returning talent. Ray Graham is in his fourth season as head coach. It has been a challenging run for Graham as his Eagles were bumped into the 2A class in his second season while at the same time he has seen declining number in his program. But in 2013 the Eagles will return young starters who may get the Eagles back to championship form.

 

 

Schedule

 

The Eagles were bumped into 2A in 2011 and are in 2A District 7 with Danville, Middleboro and Somerset. LCA will play some challenging games against strong opponents in 2013 when they take on North Oldham and Frankfort. Also on the Eagles schedule is Christian Academy of Louisville and Henry County.

 

 

Outlook

 

The Eagles will rely on returning on some talented returning starters to improve in 2013. Many will play both sides of the ball as last years team leader Sam Maybriar did. Graham has a large hole to file with the graduation of Maybriar as he lead the team in both rushing and tackling in 2012. To do that Graham will look to junior Nick Whitman who had 372 yards on 74 carries in 2012 and was fourth in tackles with 64 last season. Junior Quarterback Dima Ballard should again lead the Eagles on offense. Ballard had 1,526 yards passing with 13 TDs in 2012. Senior receivers Adam Smith and Lincoln Henzman will be Ballard’s likely targets

 

The Eagle defense forced a lot of errors against opponents in 2012 and the good news for the Eagles is that those responsible should return for 2013. Interception leaders with 3 each last year – Ryder Brown, Adam Smith and Nick Whitman all return. Returning senior Smith was second on the team in tackles last year. Returning senior Logan Messner was right behind him. So the Eagles should remain solid and likely improve on the defensive side of the ball.

 

The Eagles have the ingredients to their best run since going to the 2A classification. Depth is the concern. With a short roster 2-way play and injuries could be the concern. But the Eagles can keep play makers fresh in the 4th quarter and avoid injury they should have strong season.

 

 

Players to Watch

 

Nick Whitman, RB/LB. Senior – Whitman ran for 372 yards and had 64 tackles as linebacker. He is a strong all around player.

 

Dima Ballard, QB/DB, Junior – Ballard threw for over 1,500 yards in 2012 as a sophomore. With most of his receivers returning and Whitman in the backfield Ballard should have a strong season.

 

 

Schedule:

 

August 23 @ CAL

August 30 @ Estill County

September 6 Lincoln County

September 13 @ North Oldham

September 20 Nelson County

September 27 Frankfort

Oct 11 @ Middlesboro

Oct 18 Somerset

Oct 25 Danville

Nov 1 @ Walton-Verona

Looks like a very solid schedule that might be a little more than this group can handle.

 

Good luck.

 

Nice report.

I wish my friends at LCA all the best this season and have to say that I miss all the "smack talk"....joking, cutting up plus most of all the friendship and respect that both LCA and Raceland fans, teams and coaches competed with. Good luck again to the Eagles / Fighting Blutos !!

First off, thanks for the great report, BGC! I've been out of the loop for several years, and I appreciate your hard work.

I wish my friends at LCA all the best this season and have to say that I miss all the "smack talk"....joking, cutting up plus most of all the friendship and respect that both LCA and Raceland fans, teams and coaches competed with. Good luck again to the Eagles / Fighting Blutos !!

 

OR, I can always count on you to be the gracious opponent that we have come to expect from Raceland.

 

To quote C. S. Lewis, "Has not one of the poets said that a noble friend is the best gift and a noble enemy the next best?" [from The Last Battle]

 

(And on top of all that, Raceland has the best food of any high school stadium that I have sampled...(!))

Edit.

OR, I can always count on you to be the gracious opponent that we have come to expect from Raceland.

 

To quote C. S. Lewis, "Has not one of the poets said that a noble friend is the best gift and a noble enemy the next best?" [from The Last Battle]

 

(And on top of all that, Raceland has the best food of any high school stadium that I have sampled...(!))

 

 

As I've often said, Raceland and Johnson Central are the two best that I've ever attended.

OR, I can always count on you to be the gracious opponent that we have come to expect from Raceland.

 

To quote C. S. Lewis, "Has not one of the poets said that a noble friend is the best gift and a noble enemy the next best?" [from The Last Battle]

 

(And on top of all that, Raceland has the best food of any high school stadium that I have sampled...(!))

 

:thumb: Thanks and I have to say that we have never had a visiting fan wear a toga and walk in front of the crowd before you. :lol2:

Hopefully the two can work it out to play again sometime. I know that when you guys went 2A there were too many scheduling changes had to be made. You're welcome in Raceland anytime !

:thumb: Thanks and I have to say that we have never had a visiting fan wear a toga and walk in front of the crowd before you. :lol2:

And not since. Good times.

I should point out that I fixed the schedule before this got posted but did not catch that I still had Henry Co instead of Nelson Co in the main article. For some reason I had Henry Co on the brain. My apologies.