Belfry leads 27-7 but Huntington makes big plays and continue to keep the pressure on until Belfry starts doing themselves in with mental errors and turnovers.

 

Huntington was very impressive. They controlled the LOS at times and used their exceptional speed to make big plays. Huntington's RB Jadon Hayes was sensational and their Sophomore LB Blair was all over the field.

 

Still pretty happy with what I saw from Belfry for the most part against a school I would compare to a Lafayette. Outside of those mental lapses Belfry played very well at times and showed flashes of brilliance.

 

They won't see anyone in 3A with the mix of size and athleticism that this HHS team brings and there aren't many 3A teams with the ability to close out on Belfry outside.

 

The key play of the game was when HHS had cut the lead to 27-14 and Belfry had the ball toward the end of the Half facing a 3rd and Short. Wellman appeared to have the First Down easily but Belfry made the wrong read and Browning decided to pull it out and the defender jumped him. The LB then made a sensational play to strip the ball from the standing QB and raced to the endzone for the TD.

 

Lots to improve on, but this will only be a building block for a Belfry team who had a lot of new faces out there.

Here is the link to the update thread:

 

http://bluegrasspreps.com/ky-football-high/belfry-huntington-wv-351624.html

Belfry will be fine. HHS is very very good Team and a WVA CLASS 3A championship contender. Like you said Belfry won't see teams like this most of if not the rest of the season unless your name is JC. Good win for Huntington, good Luck Pirates.

Belfry leads 27-7 but Huntington makes big plays and continue to keep the pressure on until Belfry starts doing themselves in with mental errors and turnovers.

 

Huntington was very impressive. They controlled the LOS at times and used their exceptional speed to make big plays. Huntington's RB Jadon Hayes was sensational and their Sophomore LB Blair was all over the field.

 

Still pretty happy with what I saw from Belfry for the most part against a school I would compare to a Lafayette. Outside of those mental lapses Belfry played very well at times and showed flashes of brilliance.

 

They won't see anyone in 3A with the mix of size and athleticism that this HHS team brings and there aren't many 3A teams with the ability to close out on Belfry outside.

 

The key play of the game was when HHS had cut the lead to 27-14 and Belfry had the ball toward the end of the Half facing a 3rd and Short. Wellman appeared to have the First Down easily but Belfry made the wrong read and Browning decided to pull it out and the defender jumped him. The LB then made a sensational play to strip the ball from the standing QB and raced to the endzone for the TD.

 

Lots to improve on, but this will only be a building block for a Belfry team who had a lot of new faces out there.

 

Nice game report, thanks @ATLCat

 

It is nice to see Belfry step up and play a team like Huntington.

Huntington is a very good, very explosive team on both sides of the ball. Was pulling for Belfry but knew it would be a tough game after seeing the Highlanders in a controlled scrimmage versus JC a few weeks ago. This game will only help Belfry as they make a run at yet another state title.

Belfry doesn't seem afraid to play anyone. Haywood will take a loss during the regular season if it helps his team when it counts most. He isn't the all time winningest coach in Kentucky and 6 time state champion by accident. I can't wait to see them make another run.

why was the Hunter kid in much in that 4th quarter?

This score will send shockwaves though 3A but will end up being 3As false sense of security. HHS would beat any 3A team from KY this season.

HHS wins wild affair over Belfry, 45-34 | Recent News | herald-dispatch.com

Additional thoughts:

- Felt like the HHS QB made a huge difference. He was amped up early and his accuracy struggled as a result. After he settled in he started making the throws he was missing early. He showed great patience and used his progressions which lead to twice finding guys for big plays, one a busted coverage for a huge gain, the other a key 3rd down conversion at the 1.

 

- Subsequently Belfry had no pass rush whatsoever. They were only bringing three undersized linemen against a line that averaged probably 6'3 250, so that can be expected, but if you aren't going to create any pressure you can't make coverage busts. Belfry missed Horton and Bentley last night. When you had those two monsters not only could you generate a pass rush only bringing three, but they were always the guys who could find a key stop in the run game.

 

- A by-product of all this is I think that lack of pass rush also cost Belfry a key Offensive possession in the 4th. Belfry wasn't stopping HHS and people were breathing heavy when Belfry got the ball down 8. Belfry went with the Sophomore Hensley at FB as Wellman was cramping a bit and desperately needed at LB.

 

On a 4th and 1 Hensley got shut down on a play that I think Wellman converts. In hindsight I wish Belfry would have called a timeout and brought Wellman in. That short field following the turnover on downs led to the Huntington Field Goal which made it a two score game.

 

- This wasn't Browning's first start at QB, but it was his first against a team (specifically a Defense) of this caliber. I felt he came out and looked great early on. He brought a rushing dynamic I am not sure many expected and probably finished close to 100 yards rushing.

 

With that said, I think Avery had issues with some of the adjustments HHS made and a few of his reads seeing things for the first time will have to improve. The strip and score was a case of missing a read that would have been an easy first down but instead turned into the biggest play of the game. He tried to force a throw that wasn't there that led to an INT that killed a promising drive. He also had an easy first down on a "do or die" drive but got greedy with a pitch. Those are all fixable moments that I would rather have happen now than against Central or Corbin. That's why you play this level of opponent.

 

In all I finished the game feeling optimistic that Browning will continue the play we saw from Corbett and will be a weapon.

It took hhs a Half to adjust to the option which belfry runs so well. Just think it's difficult to beat a team that's bigger and faster with 0 passing yards.

Link to pics(Article will come later. I have done three so far and need a break)

 

 

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Huntington West Virginia 45 Belfry 34

 

This was my reasoning to drive from Buckeye Lake, Ohio to Belfry, Kentucky.

Huntington had been on my wanna see list for awhile now and any excuse to make the drive to Pike County for a weekend is a plus for me. Watching these teams during warm ups, I could tell as could anyone who was watching could tell, that Huntington definitely passed the looks test. The were big, looked strong and was really fast.

 

Belfry would start strong with a 21-yard gain by Avery Bowling, on a fine looking option run, with 10:01 left in the opening quarter.

Bowling picked up 11-yards just about two minutes later, on a quarterback keeper. The 10-play,61-yard drive ended on a 7-yard touchdown run by Bowling, with 6:58 left.The point after kick by Grayson Cook was good to make this a 7-0 Belfry lead at the 7:46 mark.

 

The Huntington quarterback,Luke Zban would pick up a first down, with a 11-yard run, with 6:58 showing on the clock. The kid can move and we would later on find out he can throw the ball very well too. With 5:55 left Zban would be picked off by the Pirates Ben Bentley. A big hit by the pirates Josh Keathley on the receiver for Huntington took him out of the play.

 

With 5:43 showing on the clock Belfry used a powerful, tackle breaking run by, Derek Wellman to pick up 20-yards. Belfry was dominating every aspect of the game at this time.Bowling would be hit for a 2-yard loss by Shymeik Burger and Stephen Perrine, at the 5:25 mark. With 5:00 left Justin Adkins was crushed by the Highlanders, Darnell Wright, that resulted in a 1-yard loss. Sometimes the ball just bounces the right way for a team and with 3:49 left, Belfry attempted a field goad, but the snap was bad causing Devin Varney to scoop the ball up and run 10-yards for another Pirates touchdown.The point after kick was short, leaving this a13-0 Belfry lead.

 

Jadon Hayes fielded the Pirates kickoff and showed some tremendous speed, as he raced all the way to the Belfry 11-yard line.Hayes took it 9-yards for the Highlanders first score. The point after kick was blocked by Varney, but flags gave the Highlanders another kick. Isiah Carpenter connected on the kick to make this a 13-7 game.

 

The Pirates would score on a 70-yard run by #28 Taveon Hunter. Hunter broke a tackle and then told the defense bye, bye as he easily scored. #88 Dylan Brown made this a 20-7 game, with his point after kick.

 

Belfry dropped back in punt formation and the punter #34 Grayson Cook got the kick off, but in the process, he was roughed by Isiah Johnson, the result was an automatic first down for the Pirates, with 8:24 left in the half. From there Belfry worked the ball down to the Highlanders 1-yard and then Bowling plowed in for the score. The point after kick by Brown gave the Pirates a 20 point lead.(27-7) I immediately looked over at their side line and from what I could sense, they did not look defeated nor did they have that dear in the headlights look.

 

Zban would throw a nice tight pass to Mikal Dawson, who sprinted to a 31-yard gain, with 4:10 left in the half. Jadon Hayes electrified the visiting crowd with a fast 22-yard gain and then he got them on their feet with a 7-yard scoring run. Isiah Carpenter hit the point after kick and the score was 27-14.

 

The game really starts changing when Malik Grier took the ball from the Pirates quarterback and sprinted into the end zone from about 33-yards out. The point after kick was good and all of a sudden going into the half, Belfry was clinging loosely to a 27-21 lead.

 

Belfry came out in the third fired up and quickly tried to regain control of the game. With 10:48 left in the period Varney raced out to 39-yards on a nice looking option play, he was brought down by Dezmon Bradshaw. Then Belfry would go to one of their studs,Derek Wellman, who first used a power run right up the guy of the Highlanders defense for a 12-yard gain. He polished the drive off with a 2-yard score. The point after gave the Pirates a34-21 lead, with 9:25 left in the third.

 

The Highlanders big, bad, strong offensive line displayed their superiority, when they gave Zban all day to find a receiver and with that time he waited until, Brett Christian got open and then he fired a strike to him, that was good for a 49-yard gain, at the 8:28 mark of the quarter.

From there is was the talented Hayes diving in from 1-yard out. The point after made this a 34-28 game, with Belfry leading.

 

Belfry got a nice 20-yard run from Justin Adkins, that was shortly followed by a an 18-yard run from #2 Peyton Hensley. The drive came to an abrupt end, when Hensley was picked off by Brocton Blair, with 5:09 left in the quarter. This gave Huntington a first down at their own 44-yard line.

 

The clock read 2:58 when Jack Hiner dove to bring in a Zban pass, at the Belfry 1-yard line. The receiver was wide open on the play and made the best catch of the game. The Newark Catholic Fan player of the game JADON HAYES took the ball the final yard for another score. The point after gave Huntington their first lead at 35-34.

 

The door completely came off of its hinges with 23.5 seconds left in the quarter, when Belfry fumbled the ball and Blair pounced on it for Huntington.

 

The Highlanders would go on to score ten more points in the final frame to post their comeback win.

The first score came with 11:15 left, on a 34-yard run from Hayes. The last came with 5:36 left and it was a 26-yard field goal by strong footed Carpenter, to make the final score 45-34 Highlanders.

 

UNOFFICIAL STATS

 

HUNTINGTON, W.VA

47 PLAYS

331 YARDS

PASSING 6-13 i int

 

BELFRY

72 PLAYS

422 YARDS

PASSING 0-4 1 INT