Two big Class 5A / District 3 matchups Friday 10-19-18, and Pegasus Sports will broadcast both games LIVE (also archived).

 

Current district standings:

 

South Oldham 4-0 (district record) The Dragons have won six straight district titles, including three in a row since being re-districted into this group of six teams. This year is #7 as South has clinched first place.

Oldham County 3-1 2nd year coach Mike Fox' Colonels have come a long, long way in a very short time. Fox' second squad will get a first round home field advantage with a win over Bullitt East this week.

Bullitt Central 2-2 When their "top gun" went down with a season-ending injury, many wrote the Cougars off. But the Cougars could wind up in a three-way tie for second place (home field advantage) if they defeat Nelson County and Bullitt East beats Oldham.

Bullitt East 2-2 Mark Sander's crew came up with an OT win over North Bullitt last week to re-insert themselves into the post-season talk. In fact, that win clinches a playoff berth for the Chargers, with a likely trip to Crestwood in round 1 against the Dragons.

North Bullitt 1-3 A lot was expected of the Eagles by many prognosticators, but extreme youth may have ultimately been the team's downfall. The Eagles are out of playoff contention, but would get a lot of satisfaction if they could become the first district team in a LOOONG time to knock off the Dragons this week in Crestwood.

Nelson County 0-4 The Cardinals are 0-8 and trying to re-build under a new coaching staff. There will be no post-season for Nelson, but the Cardinals could get some momentum for next year by beating Bullitt Central this week.

 

 

A lot is at stake this week. Although we know that South Oldham will begin the playoffs at home, the #2 spot and home field advantage in round 1 of the playoffs is still up in the air, though Oldham County has the upper-hand heading into this final week of district play. In fact, slots 2, 3, and 4 are all "up for grabs", so these games may determine a lot about the difficulty of each team's playoff path.

 

Pegasus Sports Network will air a doubleheader this week. Oldham County vs. Bullitt East will be covered in Buckner by Mike Montgomery and Kevin Montgomery, while the South Oldham vs. North Bullitt battle in Crestwood will be broadcast by Ed Howard and Tom Hawkins.

 

Both broadcasts go live at 7 pm ET and will be aired live - they will also be archived for one year.

 

When you go to the website The Pegasus Sports Network - PSN and click on any of the school logos, the game that comes up first will be the Oldham game. To watch South v North Bullitt, simply scroll down and find the game among the various icons below the broadcast screen. Double-click the icon to watch that game instead.

 

Predictions:

 

Oldham County vs. Bullitt East

I don't think Oldham has played their best game yet. The Colonels still have to put four quarters together, but this team has vastly improved as the season has gone on. Bullitt East. Oldham has won three in a row, and their only loss was a come-from-ahead 6 point defeat at the hands of South. Lucas Jones has already rushed for 1,034 yards and 11 TDs, but speedy backup Juan Tapia (478 yards rushing / 5 TDs) and quarterback Parker Caudill (373 yards rushing and 7 TDs) make it difficult to key on any one runner. Oldham's passing game is utilized just enough to make the running game work, but WR Jalen Moore is an explosive game-changing receiver with the ability to stretch the field vertically. Defensively, Deven Cancel in the middle of the DL has 6 sacks and 7.5 TFL this year, and freshman sensation Sam Young has four INT. But the strength of the D is probably the linebackers; Bryce Rochet leads the team in tackles with 43, Jacob Ratliff has 39, and Preston Dykes has 35 tackles and 7.5 TFL.

 

Bullitt East struggled to score in their first four games, tallying a total of just 23 points. But the Chargers are starting to crank up the "O" in the last four games, scoring a total of 100 points in those games. In last week's OT win over North Bullitt, the Chargers kept it on the ground, running the ball 40 times while throwing the ball only 5 times. Aeron Adams rushed for 114 yards and 2 TDs and Max Gauthier had 92 yards rushing and 2 TDs. But the passing game was essentially non-existent, as Adams was 3 for 4 for a total of just 14 yards, and Yared Raley was 0 for 1. Choosing a runner to key on will be difficult for Oldham; nobody has rushed for more than 287 yards for BE, but the Chargers have five backs with over 200 yards.

 

Prediction: BE is getting better, but Oldham has too many weapons, and a 3-5 defensive alignment that suits their personnel to a "T". Oldham County 35, Bullitt East 14

 

South Oldham vs. North Bullitt

 

It seems like an awfully long time ago when South opened the season against 2A power Christian Academy of Louisville and got their helmets handed to them in a lopsided affair. The concern was real; was this going to be a rebuilding year? Was the string of district titles over? Would the OL and DL get better? Could South pass the ball?

 

Consider the questions answered satisfactorily. South has motored through the opposition the past 7 weeks, scoring over 23 points in every game while giving up an average of just 10 ppg. (actually, South scored 23 against arch rival Oldham County, while scoring 40+ points against each of the other six opponents). Last week's 70-14 decimation of Bullitt Central clinched the regular season district crown, and proved that, once again, the district goes through Crestwood. Fullback Keaton Martin has 827 yards rushing and 11 TDs to lead South, but South has a talented threesome in their Wing-T backfield that also includes J.T. Benson (462 yards / 4 TDs) and Colton Bowlden (283 yards / 6 TDs). QB Anthony Pierce is also a talented runner, and has rushed for 204 yards and 3 TDs. South is primarily a run-first squad, using the triple option attack, and they've only thrown the ball 63 times this year. But they've been efficient when they have thrown; Pierce has thrown for 676 yards, with 8 TDs and only one INT. Defensively, LB Mason Bowman has emerged as the emotional and statistical leader, with 55 total tackles. LB Luke Clark has 9 TFL.

 

 

North Bullitt was expected by many to have a bounceback year. After make serious runs for the district and regional crowns two years straight, North had taken a step back last year as they experienced a youth movement. This year, the team is still young, but the experience gained last year - and the talent of the youth - had many coaches wary that the Eagles might bounce back earlier than some others thought. Unfortunately, a porous defense and the youth of this team dictated that the bouncback year is at least one more year away. This is a team that can score and score in bunches; the Eagles have reached 50+ twice this year. Unfortunately, they've also given up over 40 points five times. Last week's OT loss to cross-county rival Bullitt East sealed the deal, and this will be the final game of the season for North. Still, a win caps the season at a respectable 5-5, and gives momentum into next season's campaign. And South - who has knocked North Bullitt out of the playoffs so many times - is a prime target for an angry Eagle squad. Talented senior QB Connor Abnee will try to go out in style; the Eagles' gunslinger has completed nearly 2/3 of his passes this year for 1,313 yards, though he has only 8 TDs vs. 10 INT. Abnee is the Houdini of the field; he's hard to corral, very agile, yet strong and powerful with his running. He's rushed for 566 yards and 12 TDs, making him a legitimate dual threat on every play. Last week, against Bullitt East, Abnee completed 20 of 27 passes for 260 yards, 1 TD / 1 INT, and ran for 118 yards and 3 TDs. Cole Durbin leads the team with 731 yards rushing and 12 TDs, and is a hard runner to bring down. Dylan Embry and Drew Hadley are the leading receivers, with 24 catches each, so South won't be able to over-compensate on any one runner or receiver. Defensively, #44 Blas Rios will the player to watch; he has 61 total tackles already this season.

 

Prediction: South Oldham stays unbeaten in the district, with a 49-21 win.

 

 

CM

Great write up CM! Really wanting to go to the BE/OC game but have to work. Nonetheless very excited for the Colonels as they get a chance to host a playoff game for the first time in a long time!