ryanparker

Yeah...I figured it might just have been where they were looking at the game as a glorified practice, but anyone would have to agree Alber could have gone for record setting yards this evening had they kept giving him the ball.

:laugh: Starting spot? I would certainly hope so!!!

Maybe some of you Ashland fans can answer this for me. Why did Ashland go away from Josh Alber? No one on Russell's team could tackle Alber, yet Ashland gave away possession several times by either (a) bringing in other backs to replace him or (b) trying to go to a passing game that isn't very good. I don't say this to stir the pot or anything. I'm just honestly curious. It could be that Ashland knew Russell wasn't much competition and was just wanting to work on some different plays, but it was obvious Alber could have had a record setting night if they had constantly fed him the ball.

They scored late in the game against the 2nd string. It was a pass from backup QB Sparks to WR Taylor.

My goodness, what a big win for the Greenup County program. It's rather ironic after all the "transfer talk" about Greenup players going to Raceland that a transfer wins this game for Greenup. From what I understand, Rashard Carter was the player of the game. I can't wait to hear more about this one.

Pretty simple. Two things defined this game. 1) Just as Ashland did to Russell last year, the Tomcats defense dominated Russell in every way possible. Russell had nothing on offense to compete with Ashland. Multiple Ashland tacklers in on every play. They know where the Russell plays are going and they get there before Russell does. 2) Josh Alber.

http://www.dailyindependent.com/localsports/local_story_253222618.html “It’s Raceland and Greenup. (Both teams) are going to be hungry,” Copley said. “These two hate each other.” There might not be another game in the area this season with as much intensity as this game is going to have tonight. I would be really surprised if both teams don't come out as fired up as they can possibly be.

OldRambler would probably return that present.

You have been slowly building in excitement for this game all week. Hopefully some of your passion for this game carries over to the Raceland team tonight. Oh..and yes happy birthday, OldRambler.

Whew...this is like the Browns with Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson! I haven't seen Rister play yet, but I did think Farley looked really good in the Boyd County game. Raceland is probably OK with either one of them under center.

I do need the help. It gets lonely on here. :cry:

Give up. Getting this sort of information out of these guys is like pulling teeth.

From all the talk about the Tomcats speedy defense this year, it sure sounds like Russell better run right at the speed or get the speed moving in the wrong direction. The first option would require them overpowering Ashland, which is admittedly doubtful given that this isn't one of the bigger and stronger Russell teams. The second option would require perfect execution by all 11 guys on offense. It sounds like it's the only option Russell has in this game, though. I saw Ashland defend the Russell running attack last year. It looked like the picture you posted above Painter. Last week was much the same for Russell against Ironton. If they are to move the ball any at all this week, the players are going to have to execute to perfection and the coaches are going to have to call a genius game. Good luck to the Devils!

Very good point. It definitely needs a name.

This should be a good game. I pick East Carter in a close one.

With over 130 posts and over 1000 views, the popularity of this thread is indicative of the type of rivalry game this is turning into. I think Greenup and Raceland has always had the potential to be a good rivalry, but the series has suffered from the same team winning for several consecutive years. First Greenup, and then Raceland the past few years. I think all of the "transfer talk" really ignites some hard feelings between the two schools and is going to make for an intense environment at Ram Stadium this Friday. This would be a great game to watch. I pick Raceland by the narrowest of margins.

I think this should be a very close game. I'm taking Boyd County.

Completely!

You're right! My error! I forgot. For some reason, I automatically associate Ashland's opening game as being against Raceland. I probably should go to bed. :-)

If Rashard Carter gets to play Friday, would this be the only time in history that a player has played against the same team for two different teams in a matter of 4 weeks?

Every time I have seen comments on the 16th region favorites this year, I have noticed that Russell is usually left out. It is good to see someone who thinks the same as myself! I think this team has the potential to be very good this year. I look for them to have probably up to 10 guys who can contribute quite a bit. They have a lot of players who can handle the ball and shoot 3's. They just lack the size underneath other than Davidson.

I like your candor tonight, Ram. After predicting Russell would hang close with Ironton, I've taken off my maroon colored glasses and am going to approach my predictions a little more realistically. I honestly had no idea Ironton would look like they did. If anyone ever has a free week when their team isn't playing, I promise it will be worth the price of admission to go watch them play. They are phenomenal. Before the season, I predicted Ashland would be the best in our area and they have done nothing to prove otherwise so far. Russell has been playing pretty well, even considering their loss to Ironton. They have a lot of heart and I see them coming out really ready to play, sort of like Ashland did against them last year. It will really surprise me if this game looks like the Ironton game did. I'm going to wait until later to actually predict who wins, but I look forward to an exciting atmosphere.

I like Ram's straightforward and honest answers to the many questions posed by Coupon21. I think I'll wait until later in the week to make a prediction on this one, though, since Barr and Carter are likely to be such gamechanging players. I know many of you are close with the Raceland program and know exactly what is going on, but let me throw in my outsider's perspective just for discussion: 1) Raceland lost what was obviously a very special senior class last year in both physical skills and leadership qualities. Those types of players are not easily replaced. Expectations seemed to remain the same, though. 2) Raceland has several transfers on the team this year. It could be possible that it is difficult to integrate guys who are coming in with guys who have been there for a while. 3) Raceland increased the difficulty of their schedule this year. They've played Boyd County (which is a much larger school), Ashland (which is the best in our area), and Fleming County (which apparently is a pretty good 3A team). They also played these first 3 games away from home. 4) Raceland then lost several of the key players they were counting on to injuries for the first few games. They either didn't play or were limited in action. So they've had a lot going against them so far this season. Maybe they can get it together over the next few weeks going into their district games. These first few games are really meaningless except for some bragging rights anyway. I don't know. I just figured I'd throw some alternative reasons for their slow start out there other than the lack of motivation cited by a few.

Russell hosts Ashland this week in what is sure to be another good environment for high school football. Russell is coming off a 45-0 drubbing at the hands of Ironton (OH). Ashland is coming off a 22-20 victory over Belfry at Pond Creek. Russell comes into the game 2-1 while Ashland comes into the game 3-0. Most say that Ashland is the team to beat in Northeastern Kentucky this year while traditionally strong Russell is expected to be a bit down. Ashland beat Russell last year 36-10 in what was one of the widest margins of victory for either side in this series. Does Russell surprise with a win or does Ashland continue on their roll?

I agree. This is a very intriguing game. It will be interesting to see how it turns out. I don't see how anyone could make a prediction without knowing the answers to some of your questions, particularly the first 3. Given all the transfer drama between the 2 schools, this is probably shaping up to be quite a rivalry game.