Thespade

Not so dominate after last night.

Can we come back to this? Lol. Beechwood's Offensive Line played TREMENDOUS last night and Jonny Lind wasn't a factor in the pash rush at all. He was locked up all night long.

For Beechwood bringing in Center Scotty Lozier from Cooper was a very underrated move in my opinion. He was a starter for 2 years, and from what I’ve been hearing he’s been looking unbelievable so far at practice. He will anchor that interior offensive line. As for the other 4, they return 2 starters in Shaw and Brockett. I expect Lozier to elevate that entire group to a new level.

I also don’t see the black jerseys making a comeback this year or in the future. I do think Volker did a great job maintaining the culture like keeping CSB (Commitment, Sacrifice, Brotherhood) as the motto which was installed under Rash. I also think he did a good job blending in some modern practices like embracing the “Darkside” which is what he called his defense by introducing the black uniforms. I think those uniforms did a great job keeping energy high and having something to look forward too towards the end of the season. But also at the same time this is Beechwood. Tradition is at the center of the program and Rash coming back is the best thing to happen for the 2026 Beechwood Tigers. I’ve heard 2-a-days are back, and the players are gonna be pushed harder than they have ever been pushed before this summer to give them the best chance possible to chase after #19.

Good point. I also think everyone is overlooking the fact that Noel Rash was LCA’s kryptonite and guess what… he’s back… Rash went 2-0 against LCA in the State Championship game in back to back seasons including a thrilling overtime win off a blocked PAT and the other game coming down to a game winning beechwood field goal. Obviously it’s 5 years later but as they say history always repeats itself.

Tigers are bringing in an upcoming Senior Center transfer from Cooper he was a starter last season. Scotty Lozier! He should bring a bunch of varsity experience with him and will help bolster the interior offensive line for Beechwood this upcoming season.

Queen maybe can’t scramble or escape pressure but I don’t think the Cov Cath front 7 will be a major problem because he gets the ball out fast and he makes up with the running by being one of the best Passing QB’s in the state. You don’t get offers from UK, ASU, and Wake Forest by accident. He’s very accurate only 2-3 forget which exact number of interceptions he threw but it was very low. And throws the ball with anticipation. And he has Fryman to throw the ball too. I don’t think Lind and Robinson will be much of a factor as people think. I have faith in Beechwood’s O Line to be able to buy enough time for Queen to get the ball out to one of the best receiving cores in the state which I don’t think will be a lot of time at all. The Colonels are outmatched in the secondary and it’s gonna show on the scoreboard.

I think this is the first time in a while where the Beechwood Tigers roster looks better on paper compared to CCH we will see if it’s enough to finally get over the hump this year though. Seniors Queen, Fryman, Arrasmith, and Pabst aren’t gonna be easy to stop at all and I don’t think that Colonel secondary will be able to stop them. CCH has to establish the run early and slow down the tempo and keep the high soaring Tigers offense off the field. Good thing is they did a really good job with that last year.

Brockett and Shaw obviously are going to come back as year 2 starters so 2 Seniors there. Morris is a candidate for a starting spot as well, I’m assuming he would play center. And I also heard Landry Queen is dealing with an injury that could sideline him for awhile so that shakes things up. I also think Bystry and Wulfeck gotta be in the mix there, one of them or both I see taking a starting spot. Wulfeck is a bit taller so I’d assume he would be a tackle. But the question becomes you got 3 Senior tackles someone has to get moved inside and I am guessing that someone would be Shaw because he is the shortest out of the 3 and would make the most sense cause he’s a strong lineman that could be used in the interior. That would then slot Bystry at the other guard spot but who knows maybe when Landry comes back he takes that spot? So left to right I have Brockett, Bystry, Morris, Shaw, Wulfeck this looks like an experienced offensive line with a lot of potential. You got anchors in the interior and you got length on both of the tackles.

I think the line of scrimmage also won’t be as big of a challenge as people think it will be. They most likely will have 5 senior starters on the Offensive Line and these guys have played with each other for 4 years, they know the system, and have built trust and chemistry with each other. It might take longer than last year to get the ball rolling because it will be some of the guys first time starting at the varsity level, but I think towards the middle of the season this unit will start putting together some strong performances and help bring #19 back to Fort Mitchell.

I'm curious to see in your opinion who takes the biggest leaps this off-season for the up and coming seniors. Could we expect someone surprising to steal a starting spot this season? I feel like it's always the guys with already good frames (long arms, tall, etc) that are able to take the biggest leaps filling out those frames in the weight room.

They got Oliver Tieman listed as a TE/OLB on max preps. Will be very interesting to see what this offensive line looks like next year, I can imagine they would get some transfers that could potentially compete for starting spots like they have done the past 2 years. This year may be different, I think they got enough depth and if these up and comers hit the weight room hard enough could become really good lineman for the tigers this season. I’m curious where you got the list of Bystry, Wulfeck, Tieman, and Greber did they play JV last season?

Give me Beechwood steamrolling the Aces. That OCath QB has a cannon of an arm I’ll give him that but I don’t think he’s got the accuracy to be a big time threat in the passing game. And with the tigers secondary athleticism just one bad ball and it will cost you an offensive drive. They need to not turn the football over to even have a chance in this one. I just don’t think that’s what’s gonna play out and I got that QB throwing 2-3 INT’s beechwood capitalizes and walks into Steele Stadium and takes care of business.

Can't argue against that I think Beechwood has some of the most explosive playmakers in the state but they gotta get them out in open space can't rely running between the tackles

That's true but you also have to take into account that those averages mostly are from inferior competition like Walton Verona or St Henry. Playoff football is different. Pburg is gonna come into Edgar Mcnabb with something to prove and it worries me we haven't seen Beechwood run the football at a high clip in a single game yet. It will be interesting to see how the O Line or running backs handle this heavier than usual load. And that's even if it rains. If not Beechwood airs the ball out all over the Pburg secondary and this is a blowout. The rain is was scares me a little. But maybe I'm wrong and Beechwood's playmakers are able to use their speed to punish them on the ground but I just don't really see that happening.

Forecast is looking to be a rainy one on Friday and if that is the case this game could get interesting. That basically forces beechwood to have to rely on the run because no one likes throwing in the rain. And I give this advantage to Pburg because they are already such a good running team this won’t affect them. It could very well be a big factor for the tigers on offense however. It will be interesting to see if the O Line can step up and establish the run when they have been for the most part a pass focused team this year.

This reminds me of the LCA game last year for the Tigers. Run heavy LCA comes into Edgar Mcnabb with what we thought was a fragile beechwood run defense but they come in and they just can’t get anything going on the ground and beechwood dominates. Gotta give credit to Volker and the defensive staff because judging off that Cov Cath game it looked like they were about to get punished on the ground. Same feeling this year you got one of the best run offenses in the state coming to Fort Mitchell (3 hour drive by the way) and Beechwood still got punished this year by Cov Cath on the ground so maybe the same storylines but I expect this to go the same as the LCA game and even worse because the blackcats passing game is nonexistent and they aren’t on the same level as LCA. Give me beechwood running clock by the 4th.

If they can make it past Belfry/LCA

It does seem like a full circle type of season for the pirates. They definitely have a shot, it would probably have to include keeping beechwood’s offense off the field, focusing on winning the trenches, apply some pressure to Queen and be dominant in the run game. But even if this is executed defensively by the pirates the tigers definitely have the Wideouts who will be able to bail out Queen in the passing game if he’s getting pressure in his face so even then it’s a toss up for me. Also one of the big questions I have offensively for Belfry is if they can contain McDaniel he’s a senior DE for the tigers who is very speedy off the edge and can beat those Big Guys up front in pass pro

Not a bad pick at all but do you think the Belfry defense could match Beechwood’s speed in the state title game?

It’s almost playoff time in the Bluegrass and 2A has been very competitive this year and in years prior. In my eye there is 5 state championship caliber teams this year and those teams are Owensboro Catholic, Beechwood, LCA, Mayfield, and Belfry with RPI rankings coming to a close soon it’s looking like OCath at 1 LCA likely at 2 and Mayfield likely at 3 and Beechwood/Belfry in a toss up for 4 and 5 seed. The best part about having 5 likely state competitors is we will see a big matchup in round 3 which will give us a taste to what could be a very entertaining semi finals and state championship. The defending 2A State Champions the Beechwood Tigers graduated a bunch of starters but were able to reload with a brand new QB (Emmett Queen) and some help in the trenches along with returning production from last year including star WR/DB Tyler Fryman. Right now it’s looking like we will get a rematch from the state championship last year in the semi final round of Beechwood traveling to Owensboro to take on the 2A runner ups from last season the Aces. These are the best 2 teams in 2A this year in my opinion and having them meet in the semi finals and not the State Championship should be a crime. The big thing to watch in this game should be which of these Junior QB’s are able to out dual the other. Carothers from OCath has power 4 interest and has a UK offer. Queen also is receiving power 4 attention from Arizona State who recently just offered him. The X factor I would look out for in this matchup and whoever faces Beechwood in general is WR Tyler Fryman. Currently he is ranked as a 4 star prospect and has a Notre Dame offer. When you watch him play it looks like he’s levitating the way he gets out of his cuts and how he makes his moves when the ball is in his hands. His speed is also deadly and I will be very excited to see how Head Coach Jason Morris gets his secondary ready for this dude and the Beechwood Passing attack. We know Offensive Coordinator Greg Hergott will have that offense ready to light up the scoreboard and Jay Volker will have Beechwood’s defense ready to knock someone out. LCA and OCath seem like they just can’t get over the hump and win a state championship OCath just recently but LCA for awhile now. The Eagles lost 2 straight State Championships in dramatic fashion in 2020 and 2021 against the Beechwood Tigers. And have had disappointing semi finals losses the past couple of years when now Kentucky QB Cutter Boley threw 5 picks against Mayfield in the Semi’s and when they traveled to Beechwood last year and they got steamrolled. Long time Head Coach Doug Charles retired after last season and they promoted their OC Oakley Watkins to Head Coach so we will see if he’s the guy who can finally get LCA over the hump and back into the State Championship. Mayfield on the other hand had an amazing 2023 where they beat Beechwood on a last second field goal in the semi’s and outlasted OCath in a shootout in the State Championship. They haven’t been back since so we will see what happens this postseason. Belfry will also keep it competitive with their first season in 2A where they were a dominating power for the most part in 3A. The ultimate question will be whether Beechwood can win 2 in a row? OCath or LCA can finally get over the hump? Mayfield can make some magic happen just like in 2023? or newcomer Belfry can make a statement in their first year? That question will be answered in the Beginning days of December.

Beechwood will also have a bye round 1 with Jackson County dropping out.

Yes that is the case for some of the less talented teams but I feel like JV games for schools like Cov Cath, Highlands, Beechwood who let the younger kids play helps us understand how these teams could perform when they get to the varsity level. I remember last season when Beechwood was able to pull off the upset against Covington Catholic who ironically had Emmett Queen starting that game against the tigers and it came down to the final 2 point conversion in OT and I remember Queen playing well against a stout tigers defense who only allowed 14 something points against Highlands and that was the first game I pointed to when I found out he was taking his talents to Fort Mitchell.

Thank you! I'm excited to be here.

Heck of a football player that big frame that colleges love definitely helps! I can see Queen leading the Tigers back to the State Championship and winning 2 in a row.