TCR

I second that congratulations! Two excellent sports programs! What you mentioned at the end I think is the how Franklin County is so dangerous. I briefly touched on it in the prediction thread, but they can come out in so many different formations and lineups whether that be the wishbone or whether they spread it out with the depth of personnel they have. Not to mention they do a great job at finding where they can best attack the defense. Hats off to Covington Catholic for a great season. This was supposed to be a Covington Catholic team that was young, and probably wouldn't have a deep run. They sure didn't get the memo on that as they beat a great Johnson Central team and then pulled a win over Boyle County that will be talked about for many years. The red zone situation has to hurt tonight, no doubt, but after some time I'm sure Covington Catholic will look back on this season as a special one where they conquered obstacles and were able to reach the state semifinals in what is an absolutely loaded 4A class. All the best to Franklin County.

Despite all the unpredictable madness that has gone on in the playoffs, with the way everything is looking one thing seems to be guaranteed in 1A that we knew in the semifinals. We will have a first time champion, regardless of who wins. I will start with Raceland. Coached by Mike Salmons, he has a strong track record of success, having led Raceland to the state championship game in 2017, 2022, 2023, and now 2024 in which he looks for his team to bring in the school’s first state championship. They come into this game having won nine of their last ten, their only losses this season coming to Ashland, Pikeville, Highlands, and Lexington Christian. Two of the teams they lost to made it to the regional finals in their class, the other two the state semifinals. After returning only around 15% of their total offense, it was expected to be a rebuilding year at Raceland although many expected them to possibly put together a deep run in the right circumstances. For the third consecutive year, Raceland has made it to the state finals after a win over Kentucky Country Day. This is a different type of Raceland team from the one last year that slung it around a lot last year with one of the state’s best quarterbacks in Logan Lundy. This Raceland team tends to rely more on a strong defense and controlling the clock on offense. They have several powerful backs that can run the ball and consistently move the chains, running for over 2,500 yards this season. Jacob Waller has made tremendous strides in his passing ability this year as he has thrown for over 1,000 yards while Jonah Arnett, Jaxon Rister, Bryson Rowsey, and Parker Ison have all been reliable targets for them. Against the run Raceland has ranked in the top 5 of 1A and against the pass, they are still in the top 10. While Sayre, named after David Austin Sayre, has existed since 1854 (Known has Transylvania Female Institute until 1885) their football program started in 2018 with former Marshall University and NFL quarterback Chad Pennington hired to coach the team. Sayre has put together an impressive run, being the only undefeated team in 1A and the only team to score over 500 points this season. They are also the only team to have allowed under 100 points to be scored on them all season. Some have questioned the strength of Sayre’s schedule, but they have picked up a couple huge wins in the playoffs, 21-6 over three-time defending champion Pikeville and 35-14 over a Campbellsville team that had a great run this year. Since this is being posted right after the Campbellsville win, we do not have updated stats so I am going to estimate a bit but they have put up some impressive numbers. Luke Pennington either hit his 50th passing touchdown on the season or he came close to it against Campbellsville. In 2023 season Luke Pennington threw for 50 touchdowns. The KHSAA website shows that he threw 0 interceptions. That in itself is superhuman, and considering he has only thrown three this year it’s a believable stat. The backfield of Charlie Slabaugh and Caden Jones have combined for over 1,200 yards and around 20 touchdowns on the season and have been trustworthy to move the chains when needed. Brock Coffman has proven to be more than a capable receiver. If everything flows right, finishing the season with 100+ receptions and 25+ touchdowns is not outside possibility. Defensively, John Luke Minner is approaching double digits in sacks leading the team and Brock Coffman leads one of the state’s best secondaries in interceptions. This should be a hard fought battle that ultimately, will come down to who will establish their brand of football. Raceland, having come short in their final three attempts, badly wants to come in here and pull out a win and if they can control the clock, keep that Sayre offense off the field and make the needed defensive plays they can emerge victorious. Raceland ended Sayre’s season last season in the regional final, defeating them 42-27 and I am sure Sayre would love nothing more than to defeat the team that was a major obstacle for them last season and more importantly for them, to win the state championship. If Sayre can get Pennington going and try to speed this game up, then it has the potential to play out in their favor. The schools have five common opponents. Berea Raceland W 70-7 Sayre W 56-7 Eminence Raceland W 41-13 Sayre W 49-6 Fairview Raceland W 56-6 Sayre W 63-0 Paris Raceland W 28-14 Sayre W 41-20 Pikeville Raceland L 16-13 Sayre W 21-6 It’s state championship week for Kentucky football! What are your thoughts on this matchup?

There are so many factors that can go into this one from an emotional perspective. For Kentucky Country Day no question that 42-6 loss from last season is weighing on their mind. No question they'll be determined to prove themselves. Even though both sides are considerably different from last year, Kentucky Country Day has heard many times that they have a good program but are not yet ready for the programs like Raceland or Pikeville. This year I expect to see a determination from them, stronger than ever, to prove that saying wrong. Raceland, on the other hand, has come so close to that state championship but just haven't been able to quite pull through. Pikeville's elimination has to have Raceland more confident in their ability to win the state championship, and I think they can use that for more motivation as long as it's used the right way - by not overlooking good opponents like Kentucky Country Day. There's another end, emotionally, that even though the Rams are not the underdog in this matchup they still have heard it all season from week one that they are too young, that they just don't have the pieces they have had with the last couple of classes. With the state semifinals approaching, they're looking to prove all that wrong. This is one of those games where something has to give. You have the #4 rushing offense in 1A in Kentucky Country Day going against the defense of Raceland who is ranked #3 in rushing defense in 1A. Raceland's offense, which scored 41 points in their first four games (Although against Ashland, Letcher County Central, Pikeville, and Highlands), has quietly climbed the way to 9th in the class in scoring per game at 32.3 points per game. That is a great sign for them because if they can continue the stellar defensive play, they will have a real shot at this. Defensively they allow 13.3 points per game, ranked #3 in 1A. They rank #3 against the pass and #7 against the run and you look at some of the players they had to compete against. QB LaBryant Strader (2001 yards, 25 passing TD), RB Braxton Jennings of Ashland (1,157 yards, 20 TD), QB Rio Litmer of Highlands (31 passing TD), receiver Adam Surrey of Highlands (54 receptions, 932 yards, 10 TD), and players like Saxton Howard of Lexington Christian Academy (1,308 passing yards, 14 TD, pushing 1,000 rushing yards and 19TD on ground) and Leland Edwards of Lexington Christian Academy (1,277 yards, 19TD on ground). I could name more, but those rankings are very impressive considering the caliber of some of Raceland's opponents. For Raceland to win, I expect them to do what they have this season. Rely on that defense, utilize the running game and continue to build on a passing game that has been improving by the week. The passing game may be utilized a bit more this week against Kentucky Country Day as their pass defense is ranked at the bottom of 1A. Raceland loves to throw the screen pass to and I anticipate Kentucky Country Day will be adjusting a bit to counter something they have struggled against this season. The hard part of defending Kentucky Country Day's running game is they have strong depth in the backfield and they do a GREAT job of hiding the football, causing confusion. Parker Rudolph is the go-to guy with 1,047 yards and 14 rush TD while QB Caden Long, Maclean Cantley, and Tyler Wilson all combine for 1,316 yards and 15 TD on the ground. So that is a pretty solid committee. They'll run a lot of flexbone and they have a back that they seem to go to whenever they need a particular trait. Whether that's somebody to power through for a tough couple yards and a first down, or speed to get to the outside. I am also impressed with Caden Long's ability to throw the football. I think he is an underrated QB. A lot of times when passing he has faced heavy pressure and no matter who the QB is, it's tough to complete passes under pressure. The pass blocking up front has improved and Long does a great job throwing the quick occasional screen pass to the outside to keep the defense off guard. Given how well Raceland defends, I anticipate Kentucky Country Day may have to throw a time or two more than usual and if Long gets time, which that line is improving on that front, I think he can be effective on that end as well. Should be an exciting matchup between two great teams!

Wishing you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving! What I'm saying is probably cliche', but after years of coming here to read from time to time, I decided to join this year and am so glad I did. This site has been a blessing and a joy to be a part of! You all are the best!

If I'm Covington Catholic, I continue to go through Harney and continue that misdirection. It's impressive how the backs carry out their fakes. Dylan Gaiser looks at times like he's going to be caught in a huddle of guys only to find some way to slither threw and get solid yardage. Defensively, turnovers would be the main point of emphasis. While the fumble later on in the game was the wide point of discussion against Boyle County, it was on the first possession for Boyle where Covington Catholic knocked one out when Boyle County drove deep into their territory. Covington Catholic would score on their next drive. Their offense really impresses me, and if you have seen the discussion in the Wing-T thread you would know why. Even though it's primarily shotgun, a lot of the motions, misdirection plays that they run remind me of the Wing-T. Their line does a great job blocking, getting where they need to be and I can tell that they communicate very well with each other. The first part I will mention with Franklin County is special teams. They looked impressive in many ways. Easton Powell is a GREAT kicker and it seems like a majority of the time he kicks off it's a touchback and he set the school record this year with a 50 yard field goal. They do a great job blocking kicks and punts and if they were to win I would say they would pull off a big play on that end. Offensively they bring a lot of different packages. They'll run shotgun with twins or trips wideouts, they'll run shotgun bunching everybody in tight, the times I have seen they have run some off set I formations and even wishbone. Franklin County has a lot of personnel that can do a lot of different things. It was especially interesting how they ran their screens, the way they pulled a couple of their linemen. And that line does a great job hustling downfield and trying to block at the next level on their run plays. I would try to keep Covington Catholic on their toes guessing, if I'm Franklin County and/or if a particular set or play works, I stick with that. Defensively, reading keys is VERY important and staying on tackles until the runner is all the way down because there have been many times I have seen a Covington Catholic runner look down, only for them to pop up or slither through a group of players for a big run. Harney, Gainer, and that bunch have good athleticism but their most impressive quality, in my opinion, is how well they follow their blocks and read the flow of the defense. Should be a good one. Both teams are fun to watch and have interesting elements to their game!

@colonel-fan Russell ended up getting red hot a the right time that year, ripping off six in a row including a 29-27 win against Ashland AT Ashland just three weeks prior to when Ashland beat Russell on the road in the playoffs. That was an Ashland team that started 3-5 and I could see why they would fall under the radar even though they had a sophomore class that would be the impetus behind a state title two seasons later. In the Covington Catholic/Boyle County game thread I mentioned how underrated schemes were. I believe that if a team can cause confusion for their opponent, regardless of the difference in talent with a good scheme it can change the dynamic of the game entirely. Ashland put together an unorthodox mix of zone blitzes that caused confusion even with incredible Covington Catholic quarterback Paul Hladon who would go 4-22 in that game for 28 yards - to be fair, he had some passes that were dropped and was pressured heavily. To combine with that, Ashland had Mike Johnson who at the time was their all-time leading rusher and that helped to keep the Covington Catholic offense on the sideline while Ashland ran some clock. Both teams had it deep in the other's territory in the fourth quarter. Covington Catholic had a first and goal from the three. Two of the plays were half to one yard gains and then Ashland's defense was able to hold against the fullback, with two stops for no gain. Then on the other end Ashland had the ball on the Covington Catholic 12 with little time remaining. Ashland got called for a false start on a missed kick and Covington Catholic was not happy with the call. Then Covington Catholic would get called for being off sides. So it was tried again. Some on the Ashland base say that on the third attempt Covington Catholic jumped again but it was not called. Then in OT Ashland got to the two where the Covington Catholic defense held and then Covington Catholic would score, and win on a draw play. I was in diapers at the time of this game and always have wanted to see footage of it as to this day it's talked about quite a lot in the area. Most of what I know about this game I can recall from reading in various articles over the years, especially the ones written by sports reporter Mark Maynard and hearing from people who either played or coached.

I think NKY is nicely represented as usual. It is more advantageous for them when Highlands and Covington Catholic are in separate classes since both have been placed in the same district/region a lot of times in the past. With one or both always in title contention it further opens up the door for an additional NKY team to win it and at times in the past these two programs have knocked each other off early due to the alignments.

There is one interesting game with Ashland in 1968 that I will add as Ashland was coming off of a state championship in 1967, compared to Covington Catholic being in their first year when they lost 33-0 to the Tomcats. To add a little context to this Ashland team to lead into 1968, Ashland needed something to happen for them to reach the playoffs and they were expecting the season to end at 10-1 before Highlands losing to Campbell County in an upset opened the door for Ashland to have that opportunity at the state tournament. They would beat Belfry handily, pull a massive upset over Henderson County in which (true story) most of the coaching staff pitched cots at the school to stay there all week to study their opponent, and then would defeat Elizabethtown 19-14 as double-digit underdogs Fast forward to 1968 to what was the opener for both teams. Covington Catholic would open up at home defeating the defending state champion 12-0. Ashland was still very good that year, finishing the season 7-3-1. To me, that is a real statement in itself, especially with a program being in its second year. Being in state championship contention was not a regular thing, Covington Catholic had not even won a regional or a district championship at the time but did have a solid winning record in their first season. The reason the 1997 and 2024 upsets stand out is because of (as others mentioned) the level of talent on each teams like the number of Division I players on the 1997 Highlands teams compared to Covington Catholic, who did not have a player who received a Division I offer. By 1997, Covington Catholic I think had four state titles so they were more than an established program by then. The Boyle upset is incredible like the mud bowl because of the boatload of talent Boyle had and the large victory over Covington Catholic the prior season. This was a four-time defending state champion. Their run has been incredible and this is not the only time over the past decade or so that some have said Boyle is the best team in all six classes and some going as far this season as to debate how Boyle County would fare on a national scale - understandable given their success and what was returning. Covington Catholic was talented, but many expected Boyle County to win big like last season in the state finals. However, they were still Covington Catholic. Still the program that had numerous accomplishments, successful players, a program that thrives on these types of games. So to see them pull something like that out, to me, wasn't totally unexpected and many Boyle County fans knew that they were going to be bringing a fight. This year I saw Boyle County on film - like many I was very impressed. But saw ways that, with the right scheme, like with any team there were vulnerabilities. Covington Catholic had a great run blocking scheme for Boyle's defense. All this being said. I would take the 1987 season. First off, think of the Covington Catholic teams in the late 2010's. From 2017 - 2019 they went 44-1. That little stretch in the late 2010's amounts to 17 more wins than in the entire decade of the 1970's when Covington Catholic really struggled. I say this because even though the 1969 win was nice, the program would fall after that season for a number of years. The program would improve in the early and mid 1980's, but Covington Catholic wasn't quite the established program they are now in 1987. Despite only one loss in week one, they were big underdogs against a defensive-oriented Paducah Tilghman team led by Joe Phill and Mr. Football Kurt Barber who would eventually play in the NFL. The 1987 win over Paducah Tilghman was the year Covington Catholic was on put on the map - their only loss being in game one to Boone County who reached the state finals multiple times between 1987 and 1994. Just two years prior to that Paducah Tilghman won the state title over Belfry so this was not a new stage to them like it was to Covington Catholic. There were still players on that Paducah Tilghman team that had the experience of winning a state championship. The next season Covington Catholic capitalized on this experience. The state semifinal game against Ashland in 1988 is still often talked about in this area, one of the greatest games played here where Covington Catholic emerged with a 6-0 victory in overtime. Covington Catholic then would have to play AGAIN in overtime the next week to defeat Paducah Tilghman for their second consecutive title. 1987 - 1989 was a tough stretch for Paducah Tilghman with three consecutive state title losses, the OT loss in 1988 and a 7-3 loss in 1989 to Highlands.

Very impressive. Having 39 rushing touchdowns by itself is incredible, but for a QB to achieve that is unique. That has to be high in the record books for rushing touchdowns by a QB.

This should be a great one! Belfry has a balanced attack and as usual, they are capable of doing damage on the ground. I think they have a different element this year with Varney being so talented throwing the ball. It's much, much harder to key directly on the run. If Coach Haywood can run the ball effectively, he will so. This is a coach that in eight state championship victories, his teams have completed a total of two passes. That is certainly not meant to be a knock (Notice especially I mentioned eight state championship victories) but just to show that if he can find a way to run the ball comfortably throughout the game then he will do so. I did not know a whole lot about Derek Johns being from the opposite end of the state. But after researching him, wow. @WKY_Football is right - this is definitely an underrated coach and one that seems to have his program playing their best ball at the right time. Johnson has great instincts from the highlights I saw. Containing him would be a challenge for Belfry or any defense that competes against him. Abreyan Fletcher seems to be hitting his stride as well as he has had a couple of nice games in the post season. I expect the Belfry defense will fully key on Johnson and likely keep multiple players on him every play to try to prevent one of his patented long runs. On a side note regarding Jarren Johnson as I do not have nearly the knowledge on Union County as some of the other posters on this forum. Is this a QB that is a credible threat running the ball in the mold of somebody like Cash Harney at Covington Catholic, or is he more of a great RB that throws some from a Wildcat formation? I mention this because he has thrown 57 passes this season. If he plays QB primarily, I'm curious to see what the rushing touchdown record would be for a QB in a season as he has 39. This should be an exciting matchup between two powers!

Great observation! Even though this team has thrown the ball more than prior teams under Coach Haywood, they have utilized the pass at times to catch teams off guard and strike quickly. I think back to the regional final in 2019 against Ashland. Brett Coleman had 393 passing yards for the entire state championship season with 84 of that coming against Ashland - including a greatly thrown ball to Isaac Dixon on something like 3rd and 17 when they led 7-0 in the game. It made it a two score game, putting the momentum heavily on Belfry's side as they would go on to win 41-7. Brett Coleman completed 15 passes all season in 2019. Although Belfry didn't throw the ball a lot, they still could when they wanted to. On a historical note and a fun fact, Philip Haywood actually switched to running more of a shotgun oriented system in the 1990's before many schools adopted the offense that is used all over in today's time. It would be later on in the early 2000's when he went back to a more power-running style offense. Great win for Belfry. As usual, they seem to be clicking nicely and at the right time. This is a balanced Belfry team that can defeat their opponents in a number of ways. Russell was clicking on all cylinders coming in and I am one who strongly believes that T.J. Maynard is a great, underrated football coach and this may be one of the best jobs he has done in his storied career. Elijah Hankins made one of the biggest improvements over the course of the season when you factor in his performances in the first five weeks compared to the last eight. This senior class at Russell has so much to be proud of and they kept training despite struggling many times in their young careers in grade school and middle school, sometimes losing and losing big. This is a tough group that was able to walk out with a district championship and get Russell to the final 8.

Congratulations to Covington Catholic on a big win! Cash Harney certainly paid dividends this week with his amazing performance of throwing for over 100 while running for over 200. While I have certainly paid my respects to Covington Catholic sports many times over the years, it is unusual to see them as an underdog in a game. This is an effort that the team and community will be proud of. Covington Catholic started 0-2 and many had solid expectations, but not the same level due to the graduations from last season. It took a gutsy effort last week to defeat a physical Johnson Central team that had them down 13-0 and the Colonels came in this week again putting an admirable effort on display knowing they had another physical matchup. Having the Boyle County name across your chest draws different reactions from opponents as some can play intimidated while others embrace it as an opportunity for a challenge as Covington Catholic did. The game is yet another example of Hall of Fame wrestler Sting's quote that "The only thing that's sure about Sting is nothing's for sure," a quote (That while true about Sting!) I often use replacing Sting with high school football. Some thought Boyle had a fantastic performance in the state finals last season, while others thought Covington Catholic had a rough game at the wrong time. I tend to think that both ends are right. But considering the score of that state finals game, the players Covington Catholic lost compared to Boyle (I may be off a bit but Boyle County lost maybe nine seniors and Covington Catholic lost at least double that), and how well Boyle County has played this season I would consider this an upset and one of the biggest turnarounds. Here are some I compare it to: Highlands 47-0 over Collins in 2012 in the state finals, and the next year Collins pulled a 37-34 win in a state finals rematch as the underdog where a backup QB had to come in and complete a high pressure 4th down pass to put Collins ahead in the end. Although this was in the same season, in 2005 St. X would defeat rival Trinity 48-16 in the regular season with little trouble. Trinity would defeat St. X 14-6 in the finals. Boyle would defeat Corbin 40-21 in the state championship in 2017 and if I remember right that was a sophomore dominated Boyle team whose only loss was to 2A state champion Danville. The next season Corbin would post a 21-0 shutout in the regional finals which shocked many. Another one in the same season, but Pikeville would defeat Paintsville 62-8 in the 2014 regular season. The two would meet again in the regional semifinals where Paintsville would win 30-6 as big underdogs. There were no major injuries the first time the two teams met. As for Boyle County. This has to be tough on them but Coach Haddix, his staff, and the team have nothing to hang their heads about. This is not the first time something like this has happened and trying to win five state titles in a row is difficult for the best of them, and Boyle County is amongst the best. The number that have accomplished four in a row are few and far between. Boyle fought hard for everything in their stretch of four consecutive titles while being in contention for a fifth. Each season Boyle won it they faced a team or two that gave them a big fight at some point like Covington Catholic did this year. It took Boyle an OT in 2020 to win it, in 2021 they beat a highly motivated Johnson Central team that took a while to put away and Corbin gave them gutsy runs that were decided by a combined 13 points the past two seasons. Boyle winning four consecutive championships from 2020 - 2023 is something that very, very few have done and this team going 12-1 with a district title and a regional finals appearance is still very impressive. Last on Boyle County, one doesn't have to be a fan of them to have a smile on their face with how they represented Kentucky football against Ohio this year, defeating three-time defending state champion St. Edward Lakewood who will be competing in the Division I (Largest Ohio class) semifinals this week. All the best to Covington Catholic in their run. Both programs have an outstanding group of players and coaches!

My highest congratulations to Coach Salmons, his staff and the kids on the Corbin team. I am getting caught up on the schedule and a bit late posting. Did not get to see the game but knowing the offense can click, Corbin put together their strongest defensive performance of the season and in this class especially, you want to be playing your best ball on both sides at the right time. Some may not have seen the Cabell Midland teams under Coach Salmons. This has always been a defense first coach and that sometimes may be overlooked due to the success that the offense has had with a Mr. Football candidate in Kade Elam and the team giving up some points at times. Coach Salmons does an excellent job putting together schemes that can confuse even the best of offenses while getting his teams to buy in and execute at the right time of the year. Coordinating great defensive schemes is an underrated part of football and he is one of the best at it. Ashland had a good year, going 11-2 (Especially in this stacked class) and winning the district is something to be proud of. This was a great group of seniors, and ones that will leave a legacy for the Tomcats. After going 13-1 in 1990 and winning the state title, despite several successful teams Ashland would not achieve ten wins again until 2017. Ashland has now achieved at least ten wins in six of the last eight seasons with a state championship in '20, regional championships in '20 and '22, and regional finals appearances in '17, '18, '19, '20, '22, and '24. All the best to Coach Salmons, his staff and players.

Yes!! McGlone is an icon and knew how to perfect the Wing-T. Being a fan of power football, I still go back and watch some of his games on YouTube sometimes. Being a Mason County fan, there are a couple great matchups against Mason County you might like. Although they weren't wins for Mason, the games were certainly classics. Always enjoyed watching him and Coach Buchanan go at it, just with how different their styles were. It's like comparing two different cars but both would get you from Point A to Point B and that was all that mattered. McGlone always had some plays in his back pocket out of the Wing-T formation that he would rarely run when teams did perform well defensively against him and that would be just enough to confuse them and keep them guessing. There was the QB counter play he would run regularly. Watching on film, it looks easy to stop but when you have a back like Kasey Clark or Josh Gross that demand attention then it shifts the defense to their side while the QB takes off the other direction. But there was another form of this he would rarely run - he ran this when Belfry nearly shut the offense down in the second half in the 2005 state semifinal - where he would have the QB hand the ball off but fake the QB counter, leading the defense to the QB while the back broke loose. It was rarely run, but in the particular situation I remember Kasey Clark was able to get a first down and help Russell keep Belfry's offense off the field long enough to help preserve their 20-14 win. The hardest part, from my perspective defending it was the fullback. They handed the ball off so quick. But usually everybody would be focused on the star back whether that was Josh Gross, Kasey Clark, Drew Abrams, whoever he had back there and on the defensive side you would be so focused on them and almost not notice the quick, hidden handoff to the fullback - until he was 30 yards downfield. They executed that play perfectly against Corbin in the 2006 regional final to break free and set themselves up in the red zone for a touchdown. McGlone threw more than some coaches that ran this offense. He had a QB rollout play he often ran where the back would go to the flat and the tight end would run about a 10-12 yard out. Occasionally he had a play action (If I remember right this was successfully executed in the first series on 3rd and 8 he ran this against Belfry in that same 05 game) where he would fake it to the RB and then send them deep. A superstar back like Kasey Clark that had good hands could do some serious damage on this type of play. McGlone had some other formations like the Power I which he would run, but that was pretty straight forward. Usually gave it to his star back but occasionally would do the quick handoff to the wing back. The other two formations he primarily ran, like with the "broken bone" formation that coaches like Philip Haywood or Jim Matney would run altering the wishbone, he would run a lot of near and far but utilize Wing-T concepts. You don't see a lot of that and for those who aren't familiar with it, the fullback is lined up in the backfield about five yards behind the QB. There is one tight end. If the back is lined up side by side to the fullback on the side of the tight end, then it's near formation. If he's lined up side by side to the fullback on the weak side, then it's far formation. McGlone would run this, sometimes with twins wideouts and sometimes they would be isolated but most of the time that was his throwing formation. However, if a team succeeded in stopping the run in the Wing-T he would usually revert to this and could run a variety of plays from it.

Still haven't lost a lot. It was tough last week with a road trip, and instead of using it as a crutch I should have done a better job prepping for it. On the better end, my flexibility is improving tremendously with this DDPYoga. It's quite fascinating. It's not really yoga in a lot of ways. It's more calisthenics. One of the things he highly recommends is getting a heart monitor. My heart rate averaged around 124 for the full workout yesterday, which was in the recommended range. It's a win-win in terms of the impact on the body. My muscles are so shaky today, but I amazed at the development of them and also am so much more flexible than before starting the program. The nice thing about it is that you're standing in place or laying down the whole time and there is zero impact on your joints.

The Rams have come a long, long way from when they started the season and their improvement continues to show. The passing game has grown significantly and the defense has carried the team in big moments this season. I'm sure the Rams will continue to focus on what they have utilized to get to this point. What Raceland has accomplished in recent years is remarkable. For a long time they were in the same region with Beechwood, Newport Central Catholic, or Bellevue knocking them out of the playoffs in the first or second round. It wouldn't be until 2006 when Raceland first won two games in the playoffs and now it's a regular occurrence for them to be in the regional finals. To show how far this program has come, Raceland held Newport Central Catholic to 63 yards when the two teams met - a Newport Central Catholic team that is 9-3 and has also earned the opportunity to play in the regional finals. That was a school that they used to struggle heavily with. Hazard has made some great improvements over the course of the year as well. I do think they will give Raceland a tougher battle than the prior time the two schools met. You never know what could happen. Take 2014 for example between Pikeville and Paintsville. Pikeville would get a 62-8 win at home against Paintsville in the regular season only to lose to Paintsville 30-6 at home in the regional finals, ending what was an undefeated year up to that point. The teams are different, the dynamic is different, but that's the fun of high school football, never knowing what could happen. Hazard wasn't expected to give Raceland a run two seasons ago and their regional final game went down to the wire. As @Bac2369 mentioned, a big game out of Holbrook would be helpful for the Bulldogs. In the two playoff games he has 13 receptions for 185 yards, 4 touchdowns, and as mentioned the kickoff return and the pick 6. A player like that hitting his stride at the right time could make Hazard a dangerous team. Definitely an exciting matchup!

I grew up during the era Ivan McGlone coached at Russell. Coach McGlone was known for his Wing-T offense, winning state championships in 1978 and 2005. When you prepared for Russell and had everything to look at on paper, it looked like a simple offense to stop. Read your keys, line up properly and maintain gap discipline. You compete against it for real, and there is a lot of confusion with ball movement, you have to be disciplined with your keys or you will pay. A QB in this offense can be tough to defend if they can throw the ball well or run the ball, but they can be an absolute nightmare to defend if they can do a solid job of hiding the football and the backs explode to the line when carrying out their fakes. I know of a quarterback in the 1990's who was recruited to play college for the lone reason that he was so talented at hiding the football. Although I know we're going quite a few years back to 2005, Russell played an Owensboro Catholic team in the state finals that ran the offense that a lot of what teams today run. Owensboro Catholic averaged around 38 points per game offensively and pulled a stunning upset of Fort Campbell in the regional finals, who many projected to win 2A that year. Russell would come into the state finals, executing a clock control game plan that kept the more modern Owensboro Catholic offense off the field on the way to a 27-14 victory. @FootballBobcat made a good point about how it feels like some pro teams utilize some of the concepts. I have not watched the NFL as much over the past decade or so, but the times I have I would agree there are more elements of the Wing-T offense being run than in my high school and college years when I often watched it. A fun fact is that the Wing-T was actually used in the NFL at one time as the main offense for a team! It happened in 1978 with the Kansas City Chiefs. The coach was Marv Levy, who would eventually lead the Buffalo Bills to four consecutive Super Bowl appearances. Coach Levy implemented the offense with the Chiefs so that they could control the clock and keep what was 1977's second worst defense in points allowed (and the league's worst defense in yardage allowed) off the field considering they gave up almost 5,000 yards that season. In 1978 team ended going up 4-12, but the offense averaged close to 200 rushing yards per game and the team did move up a few notches defensively moreso due to their clock control offense. In 1979 it was still used but not as much as the team made major strides defensively that season. Although this was mentioned in the other Wing-T thread, a good team to watch that incorporates a lot of the Gun-T elements is Kirtland, OH. They are extremely disciplined. Kirtland is almost always undersized compared to their opponents on the offensive line yet they do an excellent job setting up their blocks. Coach Tiger LaVerde has utilized his power running offense to win seven state championships.

Belfry comes into this game off of a big win against Rockcastle along with a 10-2 record. While their running game is powered behind Jeremiah Austin, JB Wollum, and Ace Caudill who combine for over 2,500 yards and 40 rushing touchdowns, this Belfry team is quite balanced as they are also dangerous through their air with QB Chase Varney completing 59% of his passes and throwing for 12 touchdowns while running for another 7. Cayden Varney averages 27.94 yards per reception and JB Woolum and Ace Caudil combine for 43 receptions and 4 touchdowns receiving. Russell comes into this game off of a come from behind 21-20 win against Lloyd Memorial and reaches the regional finals for the first time in six years. It's hard not to admire the resilience of this senior class at Russell. This is a group that only picked up a couple of wins in their middle school years and with the loss of several key players, Russell was expected to struggle this year. After a 2-3 start, they came around and played some great football. In my opinion, T.J. Maynard is a fantastic football coach and I think this is one of the best jobs he has ever done. One part of that is trusting in QB Elijah Hankins. After only completing 19 of 55 passes in his first five games, he has since completed 55 of 80 from the field for nearly 69%. Freshman Kaiden Benge has stepped it up lately with 11 touchdowns on the season, running for over 100 yards in the district championship against East Carter and 77 yards against Lloyd Memorial. Cayden Pennington is the main receiving threat with 645 yards on 27 receptions, averaging 23.8 yards per reception with 9 touchdowns. I, for one, am highly excited for this one. Not just the two teams now that are both great and fun to watch, but I'm going to throw in some notable games in what has been a series with a great history. 1973: Russell defeats Belfry 26-6 at Belfry in the first ever meeting between the two programs in the regular season. 1974: Russell defeats Belfry 14-12 in a tight regular season game. 1976: Belfry defeats Russell 8-0. This one is notable because it's the first time Ivan McGlone competed against Belfry during his time at Russell. 1978: Russell defeats Belfry 7-6 in the regular season at home. 1984: Russell defeats Belfry 20-0 at Russell. This is the first meeting between coaches Philip Haywood and Ivan McGlone. 1985: Belfry avenges the prior year's loss with a 14-6 win against Russell at home. The two teams would play in the regular season through 1990 but would not meet against until the playoffs in 2004. 2004: Belfry defeats Russell 39-17 in the state semifinals, eventually winning the state championship. Belfry was led by superstar backs Doug Howard and David Jones, while Russell had Josh Gross and Kasey Clark leading the way. Game was closer than the final score indicated. 2005: I was at this state semifinal game. Both teams lost their fair share of talent from the prior year, the only superstar returning from 2004 in the group of backs I mentioned being Kasey Clark of Russell. Belfry defensive back Matt Maynard strips Russell QB Tommy Brown of the football and gains possession when Tommy had a wide, wide open 75 yard run as he is running into the end zone off of a quarterback counter. Belfry also had a goal line stand when Russell had it 1st and goal from the 1 before halftime. Why do I say this? Because Russell led 20-0 at halftime and that prevented it from being an overwhelming blowout. Belfry came back in the second half, nearly shutting Russell down as Russell did Belfry in the first half. Belfry had the ball something like 2nd and 47 late in the game after multiple holding penalties, and Russell would hang on to win 20-14 and advance to the state finals where they would emerge victorious against Owensboro Catholic. 2006: Again meeting in the state semifinals, Russell would emerge with a 19-0 victory at Belfry. It was a close game much of the way. Belfry had a couple of key turnovers, with Russell's first score coming off of a touchdown pass after Russell recovered a Belfry fumble when they had the ball in their own territory. This would be the last time, to this date, Russell would defeat Belfry but would lose 15-12 to Mercer County in the state finals. 2014: Again meeting in the state finals, Belfry would win 33-0. This is the first meeting the two schools had after the retirement of legendary Russell coach Ivan McGlone. Hopefully another classic between two great programs coming up! What are your thoughts on this game?

I am a bit late to this one but congratulations on Covington Catholic on a hard fought victory against a great Johnson Central team. That wishbone offense is load to handle. The Colonels allowed 277 rushing yards which is a lot but considering Johnson Central averaged over 400 yards on the ground per game this season, that is pretty solid. To pull this win off despite having little time of possession on the field against the 8th ranked team in the 4A RPI is an impressive accomplishment. Major cap tip to Covington Catholic for their resilience and composure being down 13-0 and coming back. I was shocked to see that Covington Catholic only picked up 127 total yards offense, but it's hard to generate offense when your offense is only on the field for 26 snaps as CCHFC mentioned. I projected a game where each team would be effective running the football, one that was more high scoring. Although this Johnson Central bunch has been more explosive than last year's team, they still do a great job with the three yards and a cloud of dust offense and keeping control of the clock and utilized that to hold Covington Catholic to 14 points and nearly pull off win the win. Congratulations to Coach Jesse Peck and the Johnson Central Golden Eagles on a great season. Unfortunately there is no asterisk for losing in the second round in a 4A class that is as ridiculously loaded as it gets, but this team fought and these seniors were resilient at many points throughout the year when their defense was questioned. This senior group has endured so much from losing Coach Matney as freshmen to a challenging season in 2023 with an overwhelming amount of injuries. Yet that year they still found a way to win their district and make the regional final. They came back this season to put up one of the all-time great rushing offenses averaging over 400 yards per game and finished second in a district with 4 teams ranked in the top 15 in the RPI.

Ashland travels to Corbin to play in the 4A regional finals. The two schools have one common opponent - Johnson Central. Ashland would defeat Johnson Central 41-36 in one of the all-time great games played at Clark's Pump'n'Shop Putnam Stadium and Corbin would defeat Johnson Central 56-51 in a classic game. Starting with the 11-1 Ashland Tomcats, they are coming off a win against Mason County where they picked up 474 yards on the ground and 6 touchdowns. Braxton Jennings led the charge with 300 yards on 24 attempts and 2 touchdowns while also collecting two receptions. LaBryant Strader ranks as the #13 passer in 4A, having thrown for 1,860 yards and 25 touchdowns with only 4 interceptions and a 70.4% completion percentage. Braxton Jennings ranks #16 in Kentucky in rushing with 1,093 yards on 128 attempts and 19 touchdowns and he leads the charge on an Ashland team that ranks #9 in the state in rushing with 2,725 yards. Ashland will spread the ball around on the receiving end as Cam Davis, Braxton Jennings, and Sam lyons have 33, 33, and 32 receptions respectively - each ranking in the top 50 state wide in that category. Ashland ranks #3 in scoring with 43.4 points per game and have not scored under 40 since their 26-10 loss to Harvest Prep of Ohio early in the season. Defensively, they're ranked in the top 5 allowing 15.3 points per game. Defensively Ashland ranks #6 against the pass allowing 81 yards per game - but while some of that comes against good QBs, Kade Elam is the truly the best of the best and will challenge this defense. The Tomcats rank #12 in the state in sacks with 1.6 per game and #5 in interceptions with 15. Corbin also comes into this game 11-1. Four teams on their schedule (Pikeville, Lexington Catholic, Frederick Douglass, and Hazard) are still playing this week and they are coming off a win against Wayne County where Kade Elam picked up 209 passing yards and 5 touchdowns with only 5 completions. Elam ranks #2 in 4A in passing with 3,144 yards, 38 touchdowns and only 3 interceptions while completing an unreal 76.9% of his passes. Receiving is balanced with Cam Estep, Colton Creekmore, and Noah Cima having 54, 45, and 36 receptions respectively. Although Cima has the least of the three in receptions, he leads in yardage with 912 and averages a whopping 25.3 yards per receptions with 12 touchdowns. Corbin ranks #4 in scoring with 43.0 points per game. Defensively, they rank #6 in 4A having given up 16.6 points per game. The rushing defense in in the middle of the pack having allowed 1,423 yards on the season, but a third that alone came against rushing powerhouse Johnson Central. The passing defense ranks #10 in 4A having allowed 1,009 yards on the season. They rank #7 in sacks in 4A with 21 and #6 in interceptions with 14. These two teams looks like they match up quite nicely and it should make for an exciting game! What are your thoughts?

That makes sense, that we all could be lactose intolerant to a degree with some handling it stronger than others. Glad that you were able to eliminate milk! That was hard for me, with the Granitas I enjoy from a new coffee shop that opened up locally, the Human Bean. What is surprising, Bugatti, at least that I have found, is just how many dairy-free options are available like you mentioned with almond milk. Oat milk, coconut milk, macadamia, soy milk, all kinds of options on the board and these exist at Tim Horton's (Where I get iced cappuccinos a lot) as well. Lately I have gone to the oat milk. Pretty friendly on Weight Watcher points too.

I'm anticipating the winner will be on the road, regardless of who wins. Districts 1 - 4 are grouped together and seeded, as are district 5 - 8. RPI rankings (Which will not change) for districts 5 - 8 Boyle County Corbin Ashland Covington Catholic Johnson Central Letcher County Central Wayne County Mason County I'm always hesitant on predictions, but I will go with the consensus and say that Boyle County and Corbin emerge from their brackets to make the regional final. Here is how the situation would work out based on who wins. Johnson Central vs. Covington Catholic and Ashland vs. Mason County If Covington Catholic and Ashland win: Ashland will play at Corbin, Covington Catholic at Boyle County. Covington Catholic and Mason County win: Covington Catholic at Corbin, Mason at Boyle County. Johnson Central and Ashland win: Ashland at Corbin, Johnson Central at Boyle County. Johnson Central and Mason County win: Johnson Central and Corbin rematch at Corbin, Mason County goes to Boyle County. @Colonels_Wear_Blue Thank you for the kind words, and Glory to God for the memory He gave me. If I'm mentioning numbers, some I do know from history (Like Johnson Central's founding, just about any season under Matney and Peck) but seasons like the 1977 one and the 1995 playoffs I wanted to verify. So I do a lot of fact checking on it....and even then, have been wrong sometimes haha. Love your posts as well and enjoy the conversation! Hopefully at some point I'll be able to make it out to Covington Catholic for an athletic event.

It really does in a lot of ways, when you look at the history of the series. It wasn't until Jim Matney took the Johnson Central job in 2004 that the program really took off and would land opportunities to play schools the caliber of Covington Catholic. Since 1970 (Johnson Central first opened when four schools consolidated in 1968) Johnson Central played 11 games in 1977 going 9-2 and did have an undefeated regular season in 2000 before losing in the second round of the 4A playoffs, but outside of that the program was dominant at the grade school and middle school levels but oftentimes the success would fizzle out by the time the players reached high school. Even with the successful 1977 season, I don't think the program had an official playoff appearance until 1995. With the exception of being placed in the same region, the lack of a deep playoff run probably prevented the matchup and even they may not have met as Johnson Central was in 4A for a number of years (When there were four classes) and if I recall Covington Catholic was mostly in 3A during that time. It wasn't until 2005 Johnson Central went down to 3A. 2006, in my opinion, was the BIG breakout year for Johnson Central. Multiple things happened that year: 1. Beating Ashland 35-7 in the regular season, avenging a controversial 13-10 loss from the prior year. Ashland was 5-1 beforehand against Johnson Central, the lone loss to Johnson Central coming in 1986 when they went 1-9. That 35-7 win Johnson Central had, I don't know if I have seen a team come out so focused like they did that night. They would follow that up with a 28-21 playoff victory over Ashland on a last second reverse pass in the second round of the playoffs in a two year period when the teams would play through their districts to get to the regional finals. 2. Winning the region - something they have never done before and it had to be done against a Rockcastle team that returned a vast majority of a team that defeated Ashland 32-14 the prior year and shut out Bell County 21-0 to win the region in 05. That Rockcastle team had Brad Durham who one year later would earn extensive playing time for UK at tackle as a freshman on an 8-5 Kentucky team that won the Music City Bowl. Johnson Central would hold a commanding lead for much of the game, winning 29-7 and their first ever regional title. 3. The state semifinal against Covington Catholic had an enormous turnout and whether they won or lost by 50, it was a special moment for the program because of the level of attention it attracted and the crowd it drew toward the EKY area. I was at that game - this was before JC had turf and at the time they didn't even have opposing bleachers. Covington Catholic's student section, who was quite organized I remember, came out in full force and the crowd for each team was booming. Shawn Grimm would bust loose early for 50 yards to put JC ahead 7-0 and I think JC led 14-10 at halftime, it really hurt them when fullback Blake Johnson went down with and injury. But Covington Catholic that year, they were as dominant as just about any team that has come through that school and would win the state title the next game against Bowling Green. Their line had the height of a basketball team and they were equally effective with both the run and the pass.

Hard not to go down memory lane with some of the classics Mason County and Russell had! 2002 especially - after Mason County turned their program around they played Russell twice, both meetings decided by a combined eight points including the regional final which was a mud bath. Then fast forward to 2007 with the reclass and if I'm correct they were both placed in the same district. The 2007 meeting in the regular season and then in the regional tournament would be decided by a combined six points, the first of which went to OT and there were great meetings between the two schools in the years that followed. Those rebuilds are intense especially in the off season. Feels like yesterday I was in the weight room as a player. You're always looking back after each weight room and/or practice thinking, "Did I do today what it takes to beat these teams?" It pushes you harder, especially when you're with a program that had a period where they struggled and are looking to catch up and turn it around. Regardless of Friday's result, this Russell group sure has put the work in. As mentioned in prior posts, this is a senior class that really, really struggled growing up and to see them pull off the district and have a potentially deep playoff run is a real statement for them. T.J. Maynard has done some great coaching jobs over the years at Greenup County, Raceland, and now Russell, but this one could go up there amongst his best especially when you consider how he had to keep this team mentally focused after they struggled early in the season.

It came early, but this is the signature win Coach Pope needs and it will really gather some momentum for the team and for the fan base. Although this is an entirely new squad that I believe we are yet to see the best of this group and once they gel they can do some amazing things. This is an excellent showing. On Flagg's end, you hate to see that for the young man and it's a short-term pain but it's games like these that result in long-term gains. I have been preparing for several upcoming basketball games so a big shout out to @16thBBall Fan for the updates. Based on the thread, this game had some similarities to their 1966 matchup when the two programs met for the first time in the Final Four. UK was ranked #1 and Duke #2. UK went on a shooting slump and Duke would lead for a while, only for UK to pull it out in the end with some big plays to win 83-79.