FINALLY. We finally have an interesting, unexpected result to talk about. After weeks of static ranks and expected results, we got a curveball this week. That came courtesy of Collins, which whitewashed #4 Franklin County 23-0. Perhaps it was the rain. Perhaps Collins took it a bit personally that they’d slipped out of the top 10 after falling to Spencer County the previous week. Whatever it was, it was an interesting result that shook up that district race and the rankings. Franklin County entered the game averaging 41 points per game and had not scored less than 20 points in a game all season. It was the first time they’d failed to put up any points since falling 7-0 to Lafayette on September 5th, 2008, a streak of 87 games. With the result, both Franklin County and Collins sit at 1-1 in the district, while Spencer County leaps into the top spot alone at 2-0. And wouldn’t you know it, Spencer County hosts Franklin County on Friday, easily the game of the week in 4A. If Franklin County can get back on track with a win there, then the district will REALLY get interesting.

 

Much of the rest of the top 10 went by the books. #1 Johnson Central continued to pile on the offense, dropping a 52-7 result on East Carter on Thursday behind 454 yards of offense. Bryce Skaggs put up 132 yards on just 4 carries, two of which went for touchdowns. For you math guys, that’s 33 yards per carry. The Golden Eagles have topped 41 points in every game this season, and are allowing just 10.6 points per game. If you remove the 28 points Lexington Catholic managed to put up against them, it drops to 6.25 points per game.

 

#3 Ashland put up a slightly unimpressive 26-6 result at Boyd County, but Quenton Baker kept up his Mr. Football candidacy with 209 yards on 28 carries. Noah Roberts also chipped in with a healthy 140 yards on 17 carries, and in all the Tomcats had 341 yards on the ground, compared to zero through the air. In fact, their lone pass attempt was intercepted. While it’s not great to have nothing through the air, there’s something special about a team lining up, telling you it’s going to run, and then running right over you. Still, the Boyd County result perhaps sheds some more light on the divide between the top two teams and the rest of the class. Johnson Central had just rolled up Boyd County by the far more impressive 59-12 score the week before. They and South Warren are on a clear collision course.

 

#5 Scott, #8 Hopkinsville, and #9 John Hardin continued their march to district titles in three squash jobs. Each topped 40 points, and Scott and John Hardin each gained running clocks while Hoptown won by merely 31. All three in theory have their toughest district tests still to come, but that’s being generous. It will take a major upset for any to fall in-district.

 

The two best games from top 10 action last week remain. One, was #6 Spencer County’s 13-0 shutout win over North Oldham. They were led by Brandon Leff’s 114 yards rushing on just 9 carries, an average of 12.7 yards per carry. He had the offensive score for Spencer County to compliment a scoop and score in the first quarter of a game marred by rain. According to the Courier-Journal write-up of the game, North Oldham did not get into the red zone until the final play of the game. A year ago, the Bears also beat North Oldham, but the following week stumbled against Collins, losing their grip on the #1 seed, and failing to advance out of the first round of the playoffs. This year, they've knocked both off in back to back weeks, and are the sole 2-0 team in their district. Tough tests against Franklin County and Shelby County still loom, but the 7-0 Bears are the only team in the district that controls their destiny.

 

The second game from the top 10 comes from the last spot, matching two even teams on paper, Franklin-Simpson and #10 Warren Central. Both came into the year with dreams of winning the district, but the first half of the season has beaten those dreams from their heads, both by the schedule and by juggernaut South Warren. This game was and is expected to determine the #2 seed, and it was ultimately Franklin-Simpson that came away with the all-important victory, overcoming an 18 point second half deficit. The Wildcats trailed 25-7 midway through the third quarter, but scored on each of their last five possessions of the game, exhausting the Dragons lack of depth as the game wore on. The key sequence came on a 3rd and 40 for Franklin-Simpson to start the fourth quarter and the game at 25-14. Saul Brady picked up 17 yards on third down, and then a pair of pass interference penalties got the conversion for the Wildcats. They scored on the next play, and it was the only time Warren Central got within shouting distance of a stop. TE Tristen Murray put up a great statline for the Dragons in defeat, hauling in four passes, two for touchdowns, for 134 yards, and throwing for a 71 yard touchdown to end the first half. Depth is clearly an issue for Warren Central, as they have only trailed after the first quarter once, and at halftime three times, yet have lost five games. They’ve been outscored 96-62 in the second half this year.

 

As mentioned before, now-#8 Franklin County at #5 Spencer County is the marquee matchup for all of 4A, the only game this week pitting two ranked teams against each other. Another one to keep your eye on is #6 Shelby County at North Oldham. Shelby County had the narrow loss to Franklin County before their bye week, while North Oldham just fell to 0-1 via Spencer County. One of these teams will be 0-2 and then they’ll be real desperate. Collins at 6A Central Hardin is an interesting out of class matchup, though Central Hardin has faded somewhat from the power that they were expected to be.

Great observation but outside the ranking, I am not sure Collins over FC was an upset. This district has a wow factor every week. FC @ spencer is a huge game for both teams and for anyone else that wants to win the district. Collins needs their game real bad for tiebreaker points.