Johnson Central 42 Ashland 7

[Voice of Reason]

I would take 0-10 records over top of a coach like Matney. If I lived in that district, I would get my kids out of there and to a different program.

[Auxier RiverRat]

Behind closed doors, with total anonymity, I wonder how many TCat fans would trade their coach straight up for the JC coach?

 

Good question. I can't defend or won't try to defend the stupid stuff our coach does. I'd bet 90% or more Eastern Ky schools would love to have what JC has going on. Except Belfry who else consistently has 8-10 wins seasons and goes two or three rounds in the playoffs? People forget JC didn't make the playoffs their first 20ish years of having a team. JC are ok with the program right now for the most part.

[Hatz]

Matney is great.. I loved the "ill take a couple of knees, they try to run it in for a touchdown." Someday you guys will figure out how to win and not have such a huge chip on your shoulder. Jc has a great program, but no wonder why they can't find any schools in the hills to play them.

 

Funny. This is the same coach who accused Boyle of running up the score in their first meeting because he kept blitzing the JV squad who was in late so the Rebels passed for a TD. I recall he even publicly said he was not going to honor the contract for the next years game.

 

As Bugs Bunny said : What a maroon.

[tdyballgame]

C'mon people. Coach Matney is brilliant at this sort of stuff. But what baffles me is why he would bring out such a play in this game. It's clearly a play he plans on using to try and beat CovCath in 3 weeks. I mean, nothing else has worked over the years for him.

[Elliot Stabler]

C'mon people. Coach Matney is brilliant at this sort of stuff. But what baffles me is why he would bring out such a play in this game. It's clearly a play he plans on using to try and beat CovCath in 3 weeks. I mean, nothing else has worked over the years for him.

 

You're right, I would say part of the end of the game was maybe getting the kicker another FG attempt at game speed. It's a little different look in a game as opposed to practice. Good snap, good hold, and the kick. As for nothing else working, the overall series is 3-3 so something has worked, but not the past two meetings.

[spindoc]

You're right, I would say part of the end of the game was maybe getting the kicker another FG attempt at game speed. It's a little different look in a game as opposed to practice. Good snap, good hold, and the kick. As for nothing else working, the overall series is 3-3 so something has worked, but not the past two meetings.

He liked it better when he thought nothing worked. Ha

[Tony Cavalier]

So they took a knee on a couple of plays when the game was over, then elected to kick a fg? If they averted the touchdown to "keep from running the score up" what was the need for the field goal?

 

With the game in hand, why not work on an aspect that could be beneficial to them later on? Some people love to nit pick little things, making something out to be much more than what is was after they openly admit that they didn't know the exact situation when it was done. Two knees after the freshmen O took them the length of the field. Line the kicker up on the next play and boot the FG. I guess it wouldn't have been as big of a deal had they decided to leave the starters in the whole game and make the final 50 or 60-0.

[MrKnowitAll]

I don't have sour grapes. But, you obviously don't get it.

 

He took two knees when the clock would not run out. He then ran his FB right up the gut in third and goal. Since he could not ice the clock what was he supposed to do? Bottom line is if you want to stop him from doing that then get better and beat him. I understand Ashland having hard feelings after coming in runner-up to JC the last what 7/8 years. Bottom line is Ashland is now an average program in a horrible district.

[Wireman]

If you want to stop him then get better and beat him...

 

I'm not saying this because of you but statements like this are a pet peeve of mine. First, it's high school athletics. Unless you cheat, you can't just suddenly get better. Second, they are trying their best to beat him. It's not like they are holding back so they can get destroyed then mocked.

[Czar]

Here we go the keyboard warriors are in full force but the only problem is none of you were at the game and are basing your opinion on what JD Easton posted and when he wasn't at the game during the fourth quarter either from what I was told. Easton is probably still crying from his trip to the hills and the most of you are lining up behind him for his cause.

 

What ALL of you don't understand its what truly went down. Johnson Central started subbing heavily late in the third quarter and when the fourth quarter started Coach Matney asked the officials to throw a flag if any of the Johnson Central players scored a touchdown because Johnson Central didn't want to run the score up. They started taking a knee around the 7 minute mark in the forth quarter with an entire backfield of freshmen and a mixture of junior varsity and freshman offensive lineman. The only problem with taking a knee that early was how do you explain to the freshman and JV players who worked so hard during the week preparing our varsity that you're just going to stand out there and kneel?

 

The JV and freshman season has been over for two weeks for JC so the decision was made on third down to run regular plays because they couldn't completely run out the clock. After the play was called the entire Ashland defense was informed that a play was going to be run and what play it was. It was a simple fullback dive play that went for a touch down that was called back for a holding. After repeating the down the defense was told the play again and the stopped it for only a three yard gain. Tyler Pack then kicked his fourth field goal on the night.

 

So there you have it people. There were no evil scheme to show the kids and staff up from Ashland. Coach Love and Coach Matney are actually good friends and the last thing he would do is run up the score on him. There was no fake kneel down play tdyballgame suggested either. It was just a straight full back dive that went for a score that was called back for a holding penalty. Are some of you that naïve to just automatically believe what one whining and crying fan posted? Do you not realize that he was listening to the game on the radio and he wasn't even at the game either? Did you ever stop and think about who he was getting his information from? He was getting his info from perhaps the biggest idiot/homer in radio broadcasting history in Dick Martin. He's also the most appropriately named play by play man in the business.

[Mitch Rapp]

If you want to stop him then get better and beat him...

 

I'm not saying this because of you but statements like this are a pet peeve of mine. First, it's high school athletics. Unless you cheat, you can't just suddenly get better. Second, they are trying their best to beat him. It's not like they are holding back so they can get destroyed then mocked.

Yes, you can suddenly get better at the high school level. After winning 4 games in a three year period, Matney took over Johnson Central's program and went 7-3 in his first season competing in 5A. Although JC has dominated the series with Ashland since Matney arrived, under former coach, Leon Hart, the Tomcats were very competitive in most of the games that decided the district titles.

 

Jim Matney is one of a handful of coaches in Kentucky that could take over almost any program and turn it into a winner in a two or three year period, with the support and patience of a decent administration. His players love to play for him and the overwhelming majority of parents love having their kids playing for him.

 

Matney is a very confident man and he inspires confidence in his players. Johnson Central lost its entire starting backfield and most of its line from last year's team. They just held one of the top running backs in Kentucky to 20 yards on 10 carries. So what does his legion of critics want to spend the entire game thread discussing? A single play that set up a field goal in the closing minutes where most of the JC players on the field were freshmen.

 

Running the score up does not require liberally subbing with freshmen players, letting the clock run down, and passing up opportunities to score touchdowns in favor of field goals.

 

Really, the hatred of Jim Matney that some of you adults express on this website never ceases to amaze me.

[Wireman]

Thanks for clarifying Czar. I'll give my opinion. I think that's too early to start taking knees and ends up sending the wrong message. I think in that circumstance, you play your JV guys and whatever happens happens. No trick plays or anything crazy. It's ok to score with your deep reserves

[Auxier RiverRat]

He took two knees when the clock would not run out. He then ran his FB right up the gut in third and goal. Since he could not ice the clock what was he supposed to do? Bottom line is if you want to stop him from doing that then get better and beat him. I understand Ashland having hard feelings after coming in runner-up to JC the last what 7/8 years. Bottom line is Ashland is now an average program in a horrible district.

 

Good point.

[MrKnowitAll]

If you want to stop him then get better and beat him...

 

I'm not saying this because of you but statements like this are a pet peeve of mine. First, it's high school athletics. Unless you cheat, you can't just suddenly get better. Second, they are trying their best to beat him. It's not like they are holding back so they can get destroyed then mocked.

 

You are right that there is no easy way to get better quickly, but you could work harder and up your off season programs. Attend coaching clinics. Look for different schemes to battle what he does. Ashland had the demographics to compete with JC but more often than not they end up with a running clock against the Eagles. If they want to act like they are better than others then they should at least give optimal effort to actually be better.

[Czar]

Classless individuals on that staff. It's okay because an early departure from the playoffs is coming for JC

 

You've never even met anyone on JC's staff so be quiet. Are you saying that Lexington Catholic would fair any better against Covington Catholic and Highlands? The way they've played this year they most certainly be facing an early playoff departure also.