Title Town Smack Down

Boyle County cemented their place at the top of Class 3A with a 42-20 victory across town at Danville. The Admirals, coming off big wins over Larue County and Rockcastle County, were ranked #6 in Class 2A this week and were being hyped as a potential threat to knock off the Rebels. But Danville fell behind early and the game eventually saw a running clock before the Ads could push across two late scores.

 

Boyle County (3-0) did most of their damage through the air, throwing for 414 yards and four touchdowns. The Rebel defense was their typical stout self on the ground, holding Danville to 62 yards on 19 rushes. The one area of susceptibility for Boyle so far has been through the air and Danville was able to pass for 189 yards, although much of that came with the game out of reach.

 

Boyle will no doubt remain at #1 in the rankings but could face a stiff challenge this weekend when Class 5A #5 Anderson County visits Rebel Stadium in what will be one of the state's best games.

 

Elizabethtown Moving Up

Last week's #8 ranking for Elizabethtown came with something of a caveat. The Panthers had been impressive while winning their first two games but skeptics pointed to opponents West Jessamine and Marion County as hardly proof E-town could be considered a contender. With 4A #6 North Oldham coming to town it would give a better answer to the question of Elizabethtown's legitimacy. Consider the question answered. Elizabethtown romped to a 38-0 victory over the Mustangs with superstar Bernil Cecil running for 241 yards and three touchdowns on the night. The Panther defense held North Oldham to 158 yards of total offense and improved their defensive scoring average to 4.0 points per game.

 

The road gets no easier going forward for Elizabethtown (3-0) as they host North Hardin on Friday and Bardstown on September 18. Those games are followed by a district comprised of Adair County, Hart County, and Edmonson County that is shaping up to be somewhat formidable.

 

Good Losses, Bad Omens?

Both Paducah Tilghman and Lexington Catholic had the difficult tasks of taking on teams ranked #1 in their respective classes this weekend and the results would seem to be inconclusive. Paducah Tilghman took an early 14-7 lead before Class 2A Mayfield scored 30 unanswered points to run away with a 37-14 victory. The Blue Tornado (1-2) have skill players but have struggled to compete along the offensive and defensive lines against superior competition so far this season. While almost unanimously considered the Region I favorite in the preseason, the gap has closed to where both Elizabethtown and Caldwell County may be viewed as more viable threats than Tilghman.

 

In hindsight, the score from the Lexington Catholic/Johnson Central game would appear to be respectable. Johnson Central, #1 in Class 4A, came to Lexington and won 42-28. The Golden Eagles led 21-7 at halftime and would extend that lead to 42-14 in the third quarter before the Knights offense came up with two scores to make it official. While the comeback from Lexington Catholic (1-2) was impressive, the early deficit leads to numerous questions, especially in a class loaded with power running games similar to that of Johnson Central. It is way too early to count out Catholic and I don't expect them to drop in the rankings, but the gap between Boyle/Belfry and Lexington Catholic widened a bit this weekend.

 

Notes from Around the Rankings

#2 Belfry (2-0), playing without two suspended offensive starters and two other players out with injury, had no trouble on the road at Harlan County, defeating the Black Bears 43-0. Freshman quarterback Avery Browning threw for two scores in his first start under center.

 

#5 Central (1-2) rebounded from two losses to start the season with a nice 28-21 win over 2A #3 Christian Academy-Louisville. The Yellowjackets continue their famously difficult non-district schedule next week when they host 6A power St. Xavier.

 

#7 Caldwell County (2-1) had no trouble with North Hardin, taking down the Trojans 49-35. The Tigers got more solid play from quarterback Shane Burns (136 yards, 2 touchdowns) and running back Dee Cain (87 yards rushing, three scores).

 

#9 Russell (2-0) did what so many northeastern Kentucky schools have failed to do over the years and that is win at Ironton. While Ironton was playing without running back D'Angelo Palladino, Russell also went without quarterback Jacob McKee. The Red Devils win over Ironton was their first since 1977.

 

Extra Points

Lawrence County (2-1) returned to a better version of themselves than we've seen in the first two games, whipping 1A #6 Fairview 40-14.

 

Morgan County (2-0) made it two straight to start the season with an easy win over Allen Central, 34-6. The Cougars won only two games in the entire 2014 season.

 

Casey County (2-1) picked up their second straight win in an intense rivalry almost no one knows about, beating Russell County 55-19. The Rebels have a very real chance at being 4-1 when they take on Bell County to start district play.

 

Sheldon Clark (1-2) got their first win for new coach Adam Turner beating Betsy Layne 61-6.

 

Henry County (2-0), like many teams in northern Kentucky, saw their Friday night game with Owen County suspended due to lightning and will make it up on a rare Kentucky version of Monday Night Football. No word on whether Mike Tirico or Jon Gruden will be there, but the Wildcats led Owen 14-0 in the first quarter and the game will resume from that point.

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