DeSales Dad

QB sack by Male makes it 3rd and 20. Butler gets abuot half on 3rd down but has to punt from midfield.

Bears pick up a first down at mid-field.

Halfway through 3rd, Male executes a fake punt for a first down into Butler territory, but Butler stuffs the reverse on 4th and 4 at the 26.

The Colts look dominant right now. They knew this was a team they had already handled once, but they came out ready to take care of business.

Nice reference Hatz! The Smith boys could play, for sure! Washington County used to be a force to be reckoned with in ALL sports, but not so much these days.

Another stat padder. Here's the case FOR DeSales. DeSales' defense still hasn't given up 100 total points this season. 4th shutout in the last 6 games. In those six games, DeSales has outscored its opponents 251-9. Other than the three district games and rival Holy Cross, all of their games have been against opponents in higher classes, and five of them were either 5A or 6A. The Butler win looks even better now. And the case AGAINST DeSales. The wins against Ballard, Fern Creek, Lexington Catholic, and North Hardin look much less impressive now than they did at the time. The win against CAL was without their starting QB. But, 11-0 is 11-0. Go Colts!

Nice win, especially the margin. Green had a decent season. Congrats, Juggs!!!

Way to go Commanders!!! They had a pretty good season. Glad to see them follow it up with a playoff win.

As I said in the game updates, I am EXTREMELY proud of Thomas Nelson. It is a relatively new football program making its first playoff appearance, and they got the experience of traveling 250 miles to get a first hand look at a program playing at the highest level. GREAT experience for those kids. AND, they didn't get there and roll over. It was 21-14 early in the 2nd quarter. Way to go Generals!!!

Shawnee has 16 players. They literally barely have a team. Having seen them play, I can see how WV scored 72 WITHOUT running up the score. In my opinion, if you have your freshmen in the game and you're telling them not to score on purpose, that is more insulting than the additional points.

Butler had four losses, but they were to Desales, Male, PRP AND St X. They're a good team. Only X and Male beat them by more than a touchdown.

Proud of Thomas Nelson! I know several of those kids. Glad they're making a game of it.

Butler is a very good team that played a RIDICULOUSLY hard schedule. They're battle tested.

All of the above, but I will add consistency. And by that I mean routine. Studies have shown that teens thrive when they find a routine, and upsetting the routine causes problems. Good coaches aren't scattered and unorganized.

1 - Trinity 2 - Beechwood 3 - Belfry 4 - CovCath 5 - Danville 6 - Wayne County

Wow...well done. Extremely thorough analysis.

Well said ATL Cat! Enjoy this experience. In 2013, Thomas Nelson was in the same district as DeSales. The Colts beat them 76-0 using the JV in the second quarter and freshmen the entire second half. It was sad. Kyle Boblitt has improved the program exponentially. No eye-opening wins this year, but they had a 2-point loss to Waggener and a 6-point loss to Bardstown. Now they get a dose of top-level playoff football ON THE ROAD AT BELFRY! Great experience for these guys, and something they will build on.

It's that time of year! Here's hoping for everyone to give it their best, no injuries, and may the best team win.

You know what they say about opinions....anyway, here's mine. After watching the Danvillle-LCA game, it appears that Danville will be at Kroger field with little resistance. Defense wins championships, and LCA is giving up more than 25 points per game. I just can't see them as a threat to defeat the Ads this season. Danville is talented and experienced. The one guy is lightning fast (sorry, can't spell his name), but I'm not sure he ever even had to make a cut on those long touchdowns. The Ads will face a much tougher defense no matter who comes out of the west. He may go off on them also, but he will have earned it. And I do realize that he is far from being their only weapon. However, I feel like if you contain him, it would be trouble for the Ads. Easier said than done, of course. Danville cruises to Lexington. With all due respect to the teams not named CAL, DeSales, or Mayfield, I would be surprised if someone other than those three makes it to Lexington from the West. With Carr back, the DeSales-CAL game is again a toss-up, although this time the Colts have home field. I don't see anyone realistically knocking off Mayfield before Thanksgiving weekend. Then comes the key to the whole thing in my opinion, as TnCatFan mentioned earlier - the four hour bus ride the day after Thanksgiving. Good teams are heavy on routine, and there is no way to maintain your routine in this scenario. DeSales had an unsuccessful trip to Mayfield two years ago, and Mayfield had one to Louisville last year. The advantage for Mayfield this year cannot be overstated. Here's why any of these three could end up in Lexington. 1. CAL - they have Carr back and they have another stingy defense (not as good as last year's D, but not many have been THAT good). Their biggest advantage is that no matter who they play, they will have the best player on the field. That's always a plus. 2. DeSales - they have a significantly improved offense this season with numerous weapons. The biggest difference is game breaking speed. They are still young at the skill positions, but many of these guys got big-game experience last year. If DeSales gets to Lexington, however, it will be because of their defense. They are giving up 9.7 points per game against a REALLY tough schedule, and have given up a TOTAL of 9 points in their last five games. 3. Mayfield - much like the other two, Mayfield doesn't rebuild. They reload. And they've been reloading for decades. The winning tradition is a HUGE intangible, and I could smell it in the air when we were there two years ago. They are lighting up the scoreboard like a pinball machine, AND they are tough on defense. To me, they are the mirror image of DeSales - one team is well above average on offense and elite on defense, and the other is the opposite. But that bus ride.... In closing, I know that coach speak has no place on a site like this, but I know Coach Davis would read this and say "Excuse me, we play Gallatin County Friday." Amen, Coach. One game at a time.

Well said.

Excellent synopsis. I would add that Mayfield has the advantage of hosting the semis.

If you think your team has a chance to win the title, tell us why. Unstoppable offense? Impenetrable defense? Depth? Strength of schedule? Other factors?

Shawnee dressed SIXTEEN players against DeSales.

Not sure which team you are supporting, Sarge, but best of luck to your crew. I wasn't trying to disrespect anybody with that comment. That being said, I stand by the statement. I think it would be a HUGE upset if either CAL or DeSales wasn't driving to Mayfield on the day after Thanksgiving.

The Colts' defense had an entirely new secondary to start the season. As those guys have gained experience, they have improved dramatically. The front seven has been rock solid from day one. DeSales has given up 9.7 points per game for the season, but have only given up a TOTAL of 9 points in the last 5 games. MOST of the time, a good defense will beat a good offense. This year, the Colts have some "game breaking" type of speed on offense that they have not had the past couple of years. This includes a guy who is All-State in track and ran an 11 flat in the 100 meters. These guys are ready for a deep run.