Direct Your Gaze Skyward, Where The Dragons Try To Evade The Swarm

Records: SO (5-1) | Wofo (3-1)

BGP Rankings: Wofo (#5 in 5A)

Week 6 Results: SO beat Anderson County | Wofo had a bye week 

Series History: Wofo leads 6-5 all-time 

Burning Question: Just how good are the Jackets and Dragons? 

Woodford County has already had two byes in a span of five weeks, making it difficult for them to find a rhythm and denying us perspective on how they stack up against the rest of 5A. Their win over a talent laden squad from California highlights the season so far, but the last time we saw them resulted in a rather ho-hum win over a rebuilding Pulaski County. 

South Oldham has won five straight, but lacks a signature win. The schedule of late hasn't afforded the opportunity, until now. On the plus side, the Dragons have put teams away, winning by an average of 43-10 since the season opening loss.

Players to watch: Layton Starks is putting together a monster season off the edge for Wofo. He already has 8 sacks and 12 tackles for loss through four games. He'll spend Friday night chasing South Oldham quarterback Nick Hamilton, who's arm and legs make the Dragons fly. 

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Records/streaks:  South Oldham (5-1), winners of five straight; Woodford (3-1), winners of three straight

Location:   Cy Tucker Field at Mitchell Irvin Stadium in Crestwood, KY on the campus of South Oldham HS.   Highway 329 bypass  Kickoff 7:30 pm

Since 1998, these two programs have met just three times, with South winning two in a row, including a 61-33 win in the 2016 Class 5A playoffs.....

Haven't seen Woodford this year, but South is beginning to develop a clear personality under first-year coach Jonathan Sams - one that (not surprisingly) looks a lot like recent Dragon teams.

Leading the option offense is veteran (2nd-year starter) senior QB Nick Hamilton, who has proven equally dangerous with his arm and his legs.   Hamilton has been particularly prolific over the last three contests, rushing for over 100 yards in each of the three games and scoring multiple touchdowns in each.   At the same time, he's been a very effective 17-29 passing for 284 yards and 3 TDs with 0 picks through the air.

Hamilton had 121 yards rushing and four scores at Spencer County...127 yards and 3 rushing TDs against Oldham County...and 116 yards rushing and 2 TDs against Anderson last week on the road.   For the season, he's averaging 92.2 yards per game on the ground, or 553 yards total, with 13 rushing TDs.   He's added 7 more through the air.

As usual, South is a multi-headed monster on the ground, with multiple viable threats.   Sophomore fullback Cole Greenwell has 472 yards and 3 TDs (rushed for 100 yards / 1 TD vs Anderson last week) and senior slotback Jacob Acevedo has 351 yards rushing and 4 TDs (60 yards / 1 TD vs Anderson).

All three backs have at least one 100+ yard game to their credit, and their combined success has resulted in three consecutive games for South now with over 300 yards rushing, including a 341 yard / 5 TD effort two weeks ago against Oldham County.

Defensively, South has been to answer some pre-season questions.  A painfully young secondary has proven it can compete at this level; the South defensive backfield has picked off 6 passes in the last two games and has held 3 of 6 opponents under 100 yards passing.    

Individually on the defensive side of the ball, Junior Linebacker Parker Ellis has been a beast of late, with 37 total tackles in the last three games.    Sophomore Edge Sam Dawson (26 tackles in the last two games), and sophomore defensive back Juelz Davila (27 tackles in the last three games) have also been very active of late as the underclassmen continue to lead the way for the South "D".

The defensive stood out in the 41-7 win over Anderson County last week, holding the Bearcats to 150 yards of total offense, recording 12 TFL, recovering a fumble, and swiping three passes, including a pick-6.

Hopefully, someone more knowledgeable about the Yellowjackets will fill in the gaps with regards to Woodford; all I really know is what I've read.   WC has won three in a row since an opening loss to defending 6A champ Bullitt East; the Yellowjackets feature a balanced attack that can hurt you on the ground or in the air.   

It's been two weeks since Woodford beat Pulaski, so the Jackets should be rested up and prepared for South Oldham.   WC has put up plenty of points this year, averaging about 35 ppg.

 

The games at Woodford 

At the start of the season I would’ve said Woodford by a lot; but today I’m not sure. 
 

Coach Sams deserves a lot of credit. This is a job many people didn’t want to take because of the district. 

Easy win for Woodford running clock!

Woodford will smoke South. Woodford will have an edge that South's kids won't bring. 

2 hours ago, FLYGUY said:

Woodford will smoke South. Woodford will have an edge that South's kids won't bring. 

Interesting comment.   What exactly do you mean?

South Oldham physically looks like a college team. Unreal size.

12 minutes ago, ColonelMike said:

Interesting comment.   What exactly do you mean?

South is not as physical as Woodford.

53 minutes ago, wingt51 said:

South Oldham physically looks like a college team. Unreal size.

One kid that really has size.

1 minute ago, MaddenCurse44 said:

One kid that really has size.

The Wells kid.   6'7", 375 pounds.   Right tackle on offense.

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22 minutes ago, MaddenCurse44 said:

One kid that really has size.

Their 2 OLBs are 6'2"/6'3" 200+ and love contact. They have a DE whose even bigger. The RG next to #79 is 6'3" 265, the other tackle is 6'2" 300. Their QB is pushing 190, their fullback is 180.

They have more than one kid with size.

1 minute ago, wingt51 said:

Their 2 OLBs are 6'2"/6'3" 200+ and love contact. They have a DE whose even bigger. The RG next to #79 is 6'3" 265, the other tackle is 6'2" 300. Their QB is pushing 190, their fullback is 180.

They have more than one kid with size.

Compared to SK when they scrimmaged they looked very small.

1 hour ago, wingt51 said:

Their 2 OLBs are 6'2"/6'3" 200+ and love contact. They have a DE whose even bigger. The RG next to #79 is 6'3" 265, the other tackle is 6'2" 300. Their QB is pushing 190, their fullback is 180.

They have more than one kid with size.

That and 10 cents won't even get you a coffee these days.