article Wilderness Trace-area midseason report card and review

[thegeneral]

You are only promised 10 chances during a high school football season to show what you’re made of — unless you’re in a four-team district — and for most teams, half of those chances have come and gone.

And while half of the season still doesn’t give you the whole picture, it is enough to give us at least an inkling of whether a team might be able to make plans for deep into November and perhaps early December.

So with five weeks of the season down, here’s a look at where the three Wilderness Trace-area teams we feature here weekly stand:

 

Boyle County (5-0)

Midseason grade: A

Progress report: By just about any measure, Boyle’s season has been a success so far. The Rebels have not lost, which is reason enough to give them a high mark, and they have in many ways performed better than expected. A 5-0 first half certainly was a possibility for this team, but it wasn’t a given by any means.

Give ’em a gold star: Boyle’s line play, especially on offense, was one of the team’s biggest question marks before the season but hasn’t really been a problem.

Needs work: The defense has for the most part been effective, but there are vulnerabilities there, some of which have been exposed in their last two games against Anderson and George Rogers Clark.

First-half MVP: It’s hard to ignore the passing and rushing numbers put up by quarterback Josiah Robbins, but I’ll take tight end-defensive end Levi McKinney, Boyle’s leading receiver (11 catches, 203 yards, 2 TDs) and one of its top defenders (49 tackles, 2 INTs, 2 fumble recoveries).

Looking ahead: Just as it seems to every year, the regular season comes down to the annual District 4A-5 showdown with Lexington Catholic, the best team on the Rebels’ schedule, which is Oct. 4 at Boyle. But also keep an eye on the Oct. 25 game at Mercer, a game that many thought before the season could go either way.

 

Danville (1-3)

Midseason grade: D

Progress report: Optimism ran high at Danville after its season-opening win over Franklin-Simpson, but things don’t look so good these days in the wake of back-to-back thumpings by Boyle County and Corbin. The Corbin game was the real eye opener, even though the Admirals were riddled with injuries, because of just how one-sided it was.

Give ‘em a gold star: Shining stars are few and far between at Danville right now, but we’ll note that running back Jawan Grey, the Admirals’ leading rusher and receiver, is the only player on the team who has scored more than one touchdown. He has four of the team’s nine.

Needs work: The offense has been stuck in the mud since the start of the season. The Admirals are averaging 14.8 points and just 242 yards per game.

First-half MVP: The choice here is tight end-linebacker Jacobie Harris, especially for the way he stood out on defense in Danville’s first three games. He is currently sidelined with a broken foot, and the Admirals missed him dearly against Corbin and will continue to do so.

Looking ahead: Coming off an open date, Danville is at a crossroads. If the injury situation improves and the team pulls together, there are a few more wins out there. If things start to crumble, the Admirals might finish with as few as two. This week’s game with Green County, another rebuilding team, will be a good indicator of where they’re headed.

 

Mercer County (3-2)

Midseason grade: C

Progress report: What to make of Mercer, which started the season with three straight wins before coming back to earth with consecutive losses? In short, the Titans are a much improved team that still has a great deal of room to improve.

Give ’em a gold star: Mercer’s passing game is working at least as well as was expected, and maybe better. Quarterback Drew Davis and wide receivers Chris Crawley-Goodman, Layne Peavler and Russell Sims have helped the Titans amass more yards in the air (846) than on the ground (701) to date.

Needs work: The defense needed work last season, and it’s obvious that job isn’t finished. The Titans have given up 163 points — an average of 32.6 points per game — and Pikeville (163) and Lexington Catholic (174) are the only teams in Kentucky with winning records that have given up more.

First-half MVP: Peavler, a wide receiver-defensive back, has played well on both sides of the ball for Mercer. He is averaging 28.5 yards per catch and 68.4 yards per game on offense, and he has made his share of big plays on defense as well.

Looking ahead: The Titans have no trouble finishing third in District 4A-5, but they’d like to do better than that. To do so, they’ll have to win at Lexington Catholic this week and/or beat Boyle County at home on Oct. 25. That looks like a somewhat taller order now than it did three weeks ago, but it’s certainly not an impossible dream.

 

Now for a quick assessment of the other Trace teams:

 

Lincoln County (3-2)

Midseason grade: B

Comments: The Patriots managed to avoid the kind of prolonged first-half slump that has plagued them in recent years by winning three straight once their schedule improved. Once their district (5A-7) shakes out, they could be as high as second or as low as fourth.

 

Garrard County (1-3)

Midseason grade: C-minus

Comments: It has been something a struggle for the Golden Lions so far, though none of their losses has really been a surprise. Their fortunes should improve within their district (3A-5), but a couple of their district foes are ahead of them at this point.

 

Casey County (0-4)

Midseason grade: C

Comments: We’re grading on the curve here, too, because the Rebels have been overscheduled in the first half and overmatched in three of their four games. They’re a young team whose best days will come next year and the year after, but their schedule might also allow them to go .500 the rest of the way.

[Ram]

Great stuff general, I love the "report card" format. Nice.