Belfry vs. Louisville Central 3A State Championship

[Watusi]

Trust me, Belfry's coaches and team are not underestimating this Central team. They know they will be in for a hard fought game and they will have to give it their all to win. They see Central as big and strong on the line, well coached, with enough speed at skill positions to be very dangerous. They are working hard and preparing for a battle.

[JIM SEYMOUR # 85]

Trust me, Belfry's coaches and team are not underestimating this Central team. They know they will be in for a hard fought game and they will have to give it their all to win. They see Central as big and strong on the line, well coached, with enough speed at skill positions to be very dangerous. They are working hard and preparing for a battle.

 

Good. Hopefully that is what 12 teams are doing. Great games for all with no injuries.

[OutlawJoseyWales]

There's some great locker room fodder out here!

[OutlawJoseyWales]

It's called playing up. Some of the 5A schools really are 3A like Highlands. They chose to play up and it's a good thing for these two teams that they did.

 

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Did Highlands jump two classes? I thought they should have been classed 4A...but decided to move on to 5A?

[EKUAlum05]

Not by much, though ... as a group, Breathitt County, Somerset and Sheldon Clark aren't much above Elizabethtown, Russellville and Paducah Tilghman.

 

I agree with you alot, but not on this. A healthy Sheldon Clark is probably the best 3A team I have seen so far this season besides Belfry.

 

You replace Breathitt, Somerset, or SC with Tilghman and they all make the state-semifinals.

 

Somerset and Etown are comparable, but Russellville was the product of a weak schedule and an even weaker district.

[EKUAlum05]

For some odd reason, Central has only 332 boys out of 1000 students, which is way below the norm. But according to KHSAA enrollment figures, Central has about 25 boys less than Belfry even though they have about 300 more students total.

 

I think I would have liked those odds in high school.

 

I have a feeling al arge part of that has to do with Central being a magnet school with specialized courses offered, won't say for sure but that be would be my best guess as to the number discrepancy.

[Watusi]

Did Highlands jump two classes? I thought they should have been classed 4A...but decided to move on to 5A?

Highlands was 3A under the original alignment but they applied to move up to 5A and the KHSAA granted it. They were either the largest or the 2nd largest 3A school under the proposed alignment.

[EKUAlum05]

I honestly think that this game may all boil down to Defensive Tackles and Offensive Guards and Centers.

 

Belfry has played some very good LB's and DE's this season, but Mister Cobble presents a whole new challenge for Belfry, as they have yet to see a DT anywhere near this kids ability. Cobble is bigger than eithe rof Belfry's Guards and/or Center. With the Pirates dependence on the inside running game and Central's ability to use their speed to prevent Belfry's outside running game, this will be critical. Casey Whetstone and Randy Webb will need to play the games of their life's.

 

Conversely, Phillip Hickman, Corey Coleman, and Randy Webb have practically been unblockable this year. Whereas Central's DT's are huge and strong, Belfry's interior D-lineman are athletic and fast.From what I have seen and heard, Central has been especially vulnerable to penetration by the defense. If they cannot stop this trio of down-linemen, Belfry will disrupt the Yellowjacket offense all night. In fact, the past two games these three kids alone have single handidly been able to disrupt opposing offenses with 5 linemen attempting to block them.

[westsider]

I agree with you alot, but not on this. A healthy Sheldon Clark is probably the best 3A team I have seen so far this season besides Belfry.

 

You replace Breathitt, Somerset, or SC with Tilghman and they all make the state-semifinals.

 

Somerset and Etown are comparable, but Russellville was the product of a weak schedule and an even weaker district.

Sheldon Clark? What the heck did they do this year aside from beating up on a lot of mediocre-at-best teams? In their three games against top-level opposition, they were hammered.

You replace Breathitt, Somerset, or SC with Tilghman and they all make the state-semifinals.

Are you saying that Sheldon Clark, Breathitt and Somerset would have beaten Tilghman, or that they would have made the semifinals with Tilghman's playoff road? The latter I would definitely agree with.

Somerset and Etown are comparable, but Russellville was the product of a weak schedule and an even weaker district.

And Sheldon Clark wasn't?

 

I didn't say the slates were equal, only that Belfry's wasn't that much tougher. The power ratings tend to agree with me.

[westsider]

I honestly think that this game may all boil down to Defensive Tackles and Offensive Guards and Centers.

I agree. The biggest mystery about how this game, given the disparity in their schedules, is how they match up in the trenches.

[westsider]

 

The current alignment is based on boys only enrollment and not total enrollment. For some odd reason, Central has only 332 boys out of 1000 students, which is way below the norm. But according to KHSAA enrollment figures, Central has about 25 boys less than Belfry even though they have about 300 more students total.

 

I think I would have liked those odds in high school.

If I was them I'd be advertising it like crazy ... what better way to attract prospective athletes?

[EKUAlum05]

Sheldon Clark? What the heck did they do this year aside from beating up on a lot of mediocre-at-best teams? In their three games against top-level opposition, they were hammered.

Are you saying that Sheldon Clark, Breathitt and Somerset would have beaten Tilghman, or that they would have made the semifinals with Tilghman's playoff road? The latter I would definitely agree with.

And Sheldon Clark wasn't?

 

I didn't say the slates were equal, only that Belfry's wasn't that much tougher. The power ratings tend to agree with me.

 

I was saying that those three teams would have made the State Semi's with Tilghman' road, for that matter I also think they would have made the State--Semi's with central's road as well.

 

As for Sheldon Clark, I am just calling it as I saw it. It is VERY easy to attack Sheldon Clark for who they didn't beat, but you also must look that their three losses came against Belfry and Bell County (and not three seperate teams). Bell County finished 12-1, Belfry is 14-0 and still playing. Do you think that Tilghman, E-town, or Russelville would have faired any better?

 

I also will agree that there isn't a huge disparity between the two playoff paths, and the real strength's of the paths cannot fully be justified until after Friday. But, the impresison I got of your original statement was the Central did in fact play a tougher post-season schedule.

[westsider]

I was saying that those three teams would have made the State Semi's with Tilghman' road, for that matter I also think they would have made the State--Semi's with central's road as well.

They would have had to beat Tilghman in Paducah, and that wouldn't have been easy. I think Tilghman was very comparable to (and perhaps a little better than) both Somerset and Sheldon Clark. I'd give the edge to Breathitt, but their schedule wasn't exactly loaded, either.

As for Sheldon Clark, I am just calling it as I saw it. It is VERY easy to attack Sheldon Clark for who they didn't beat, but you also must look that their three losses came against Belfry and Bell County (and not three seperate teams). Bell County finished 12-1, Belfry is 14-0 and still playing. Do you think that Tilghman, E-town, or Russelville would have faired any better?.

I certainly don't think they would have fared any worse. Tilghman and Elizabethtown showed they could be competitive with quality competition.

 

Belfry and Bell County ... that's what I meant by "top-level opposition."

But, the impresison I got of your original statement was the Central did in fact play a tougher post-season schedule.

Not at all. I conceded that Belfry's was better, but not by all that much.

[EKUAlum05]

I honestly think that this game may all boil down to Defensive Tackles and Offensive Guards and Centers.

.

 

To correct myself, Randy Webb starts at OT for Belfry and Senior Jimbo Stanley is the other guard. Stanley has been exceptional this season and is the lone Senior on the interior line (Bowens is a SR, but plays TE).

[FB15G8]

Belfry will win the line game. I think Belfry will prove to be much quicker.