With the big game between Johnson Central and Ashland, the fans from each school are only worried about the win, as an outside observer I have some other interest.

 

I love a player that excels at his position, and sometimes the only positions you hear about are QB, RB and LB. I want see what Mr. Pack does to excite.

 

How many, or what percentage, of kick offs will Mr. Pack put through the end zone?

If Johnson Central has to punt, what will be his average punting distance?

What will Ashland's starting field position be after punts?

How many field goals will Mr. Pack have? Distance?

Hoping if JC scores it's him kicking field goals not PATs. Ashland will start every drive after a score at the 20 unless they onside kick. Punting he can really boom them too but the problem with long distance kicks and Brown and maybe Baker back their fielding them is out kicking your coverage. I'm betting when they punt they will angle the ball toward a sideline or out of bounds complety to stop Brown or Baker from getting their hands on the ball.

Having Pack is an advantage few programs in Kentucky can match.

 

In High School Football the ability to force your opponent to start at the 20 after every kickoff, and the ability to consistently punt the ball 40 yards... alone is worth a TD per game IMHO. Either you stop a drive that may have scored on a shorter field, or you end up giving yourself an extra 15-20 yards that helps you score instead.

 

Throw in his FG range and extra point consistency and I would value Pack as being worth anywhere from 8-10 points a game as opposed to his replacement or the opposing kicker.

 

In a game like this week where Baker can return any kickoff or punt he touches Pack's value may be even higher this week.

I will bet that whatever Pack does or doesn't do Matney will fawn like a school girl over it to any newspaper that will listen.

I live the kids game and he seems to be a great person as well. That said I hope he has two terrible games this season, both being against Ashland.

 

Realistically though, I expect Ashland to have poor field position on kickoff returns and punts. I could also see the game being decided by a Tyler Pack field goal.

Tyler is around 90% on Touchbacks and his average punts net 50-55 yards. His range will be determined when he takes the field early. He will start with 40y FG's and move back. He will kick 5 50y FG's as part of his pre-game routine. If he hits them all he is feeling good. This will be your early indicator of his range for this game.

Pack, imo, is the difference maker at some point for JC. Not only does he have a leg, but he can control, place, and pin point where he wants the football to go. Imo, if Ashland is to win this game, they have got to keep JC off the field. So Baker and Co need to churn out 4-6 yards/carry and not only have long runs by Q. If Ashland cant sustain drives that take time off the clock, they cant win this ball game. Bc JC will do just that. With Matney finally opening things up a bit with the shut gun and newly developed passing game, they will methodically mix run and pass and march down the field. Which will in turn, keep Q off the field offensively. Time of possession may have never meant so much in a HS football game as it will Friday night.