1959

Per some requests I will have a secondary version coming that includes all of the NKY small schools. Had to bump the Boone Co schools, Campbell, SK and Scott.

I don’t know about long term damage, it’s high school football. Yes there was a 3-4 year stretch where things could have or should have been better. But the community and parents still had the same expectations. The junior league was still cranking out players and promoting highlands football. The 7th, 8th and freshman teams were all still excelling. Outside of placing more of an emphasis on weight training and trying to pack more weight onto the boys, I didn’t see anything that couldn’t be fixed fairly quickly. If you have the players, it doesn’t take much to “rebuild”. BW didn’t set the program back ages, or long term. The new staff put in place some things that people wanted to see happen and this senior and junior class are what we all knew they were 4 years ago. Good or bad, Highlands football is bigger than one man.

Love it.

That should be the natural progression if he’s still willing someday. Hindsight is 20-20 but Bert made the most sense to me at the time.

Luke Schneider is a stud. Good to see him being utilized more.

If I could sum up my philosophy on youth football, freshman football, and to some degree, JV football, this would be it ☝️. Their bodies are just starting to develop, and most have just started a serious weight training regimen. You’ll never know what they can become if you cut them off at the knees and crush their spirit before they even have armpit hair.

Has to be sarcasm. Unless someone thinks Scott Wiggins is still on the freshman staff ?

Sad but true. It was both preseason games. Then most of the back end players sat for the first two regular season games as well. Even in a blowout loss to Cooper, I’m not sure the starters ever came out. Took 5 games to get a live rep for some kids. Maybe I’m being naive, or was at the time, but that should never happen in freshman football. And so that’s where where most of my current frustration lies. Not so much in coach Sphire himself, but with the decision making of some of the folks he delegates those responsibilities to. Hopefully it was addressed, but I’m hesitant to believe that when I see them playing 13 and 14 year olds for 8 straight quarters in a 4 hour span. Hopefully I’m wrong, everyone is seeing the field this year, and they all come back as sophomores.

The cupboard was pretty bare when Dale arrived. Duffy’s last season was a mess, and the roster was down to less than 30 players.

It’s important to give credit where credit is due, and the birds looked much improved. Really happy to see the lack of extracurriculars and improvement on defense. That was a great brand of football to watch and root for. Coach Sphire deserves credit for cleaning things up. Let’s keep it going!

Just calling it like I, and many others, see it. I want nothing but the best for the boys. All of them, not a select few favorites. I could write a book about the ineptitude I witnessed last season.

Meh. We’re talking about freshman and JV football. If the kids are going to put in all that work in the off-season, get up at 5:30 to lift before school, and cough up the expected contributions via liftathon, athletic fees, fund raisers, etc., I think coaches can find a way to get kids some game reps. I totally understand that varsity is a different animal. But there were kids who didn’t even even get into preseason freshman scrimmages last year. That’s ridiculous.

I heard they were going to sanction it but couldn’t find anything about when.

That rule has to go.

Lacrosse in NKY is picking up steam, with a number of the larger schools having added it in the last 5 years. Assuming this growth continues, what affect will it have on football turnout? Has this been documented or observed at schools with established lacrosse programs?

Unfortunately it wasn’t only mine. I just don’t want something so unnecessary to become detrimental to the team long term. There are a lot of good football players walking the halls of Highlands looking for another sport to play, or that are playing, at NCC. And I am very happy for the current freshmen, and their success.

Couldn’t agree more. I know there is drop off going into sophomore year, but they went from 50 freshmen to what, 27-28 sophomores. There were a lot of kids getting very few reps last year as freshmen, and the ones who played the bulk of the snaps, also played JV. So did those back end Frosh see the writing on the wall, and know that their JV reps would be given to the incoming freshmen? It doesn’t make sense to me at all. Imagine being a freshman, who’s lucky to even get in the game because they leave the starters in til the 4th quarter regardless of the score. You play 1 quarter if you’re lucky and then see the kids in front of you playing 6-8 quarters a week and dress varsity. Doesn’t instill a lot of confidence or the feeling that they want you to stick around.

Lol, yeah I may have said that but I don’t recall how emphatic I may have been, and I will admit that they underperformed. Especially against Cooper and Ryle. No question, those two games were a disaster and I would argue the Cooper beatdown basically ended their season. As far as the current group, I’ve seen just about every game they’ve played for 2+ seasons and their only loss was in a game that should have been played with fresh bodies. Not with kids who just finished playing an entire JV game. I don’t see them losing a game under normal circumstances. That said, I put less and less stock into freshman football anymore. Especially if some are also playing JV. IMO, those kids should just play JV and let the Frosh get reps. I don’t understand some kids playing 8 quarters in a week and others playing 1 or none, in games that don’t matter.

Nothing. Highlands freshman class is loaded.

Come on. They were up 14-0 and then gassed by half. They played 4 quarters of football immediately preceding the Frosh game in 90 degree heat. If you don’t think that played a major role, you have no concept of how the human body works. That said, I’m really just poking the bear here, and could care less what happens in a freshman game. Frosh should be about getting kids reps and experience, but it is a shame they weren’t able to compete on an even playing field. Good luck the rest of the way, I hope they get to settle it in a rematch.

Highlands isn’t losing another game, outside of maybe Elder. And wouldn’t have lost to CovCath, if not for using their 6 best players the entire JV game prior to the freshman contest. We know this, and deep down so do the Colonels. So, with that, what happens when Highlands beats Ryle? Coin flip for the top 2 spots and newly reinstated Freshman Championship Game.

May as well throw last years game out. Highlands was in disarray all season and by the Ryle game they were out of contention. Rio had just gotten hurt in a JV game and they were starting a new QB for the first time. Ryle was still playing for the fictional freshman championship if I remember correctly, and looked like a team ready to play. highlands, not so much.

Haha. Is it the same one highlands and beechwood had?

So this is what I don’t understand. The last couple of years, rebel youth 7th and 8th grade teams have had a number of good players who now play for Cooper. If boone had districting, would they be at BCHS?

School choice is what makes this messy. I get it in theory, but it doesn’t work. The schools need to be districted, and people that don’t like it can move. I don’t know what’s so hard to understand or unfair about going to school where you live. For the most part, people with kids take that into account when looking at homes to purchase or rent. And if they don’t, that’s on them. Yes, BCHS is in a bad spot but it is what it is. They’re essentially an inner city school now and they will have to deal with what comes with that. Whoever concocted this system really messed it up.