gchs_uk9

I liked the old Lincoln County helmet. White, with the old New England Patriot logo on both sides (Pat Patriot!)

*Garrard County used to have solid maroon helmets with a gold facemask.

*Then they adopted an old gold helmet with maroon facemasks and a maroon center stripe (Boston College-style)

*Now they have an old gold helmet with a maroon lion on the side (Detroit Lions-style)

Hancock had Lafayette on the schedule ... I'm guessing they dropped the Generals.

 

Lafayette, looking to replace Hancock, picked up ... Fulton County, one of the smaller football schools in the state. The Pilots were a game short and will get a long road trip for a Saturday afternoon game ... and hopefully, a big check.

Fulton County?! Wow. Actually, Lafayette has a little history of playing some "obscure" teams early in the season. Not saying these teams are bad, just odd opponents for a AAAA school in Fayette County.

1998: Breathitt County

1999&

2000: Both North & South Laurel, although they had previously been district opponents

2001: John Hardin

2002: Logan County & John Hardin

2003: Boyd County & Louisville Western

2004: Louisville Eastern, along with Boyd & Western

2005: Jeffersontown & Hancock County

2006: Jeffersontown & Fulton County

Holy Cross will play Hancock County in the Ray Adams Classic.

 

So now Hancock County has 11 games???

The KHSAA website shows Hancock County playing ten games. They must have dropped someone.

http://scoreboard.12dt.com/scoreboard/khsaa/kyfb6?source=khsaa&did=&tid=22545&action_name=

Has Walton-Verona ever had a football team? It seems like I've seen Walton (no Verona) listed in some old district standings, 1950s and 60s. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong.

I know they have been talking merger for atleast 20 years. So we have created a monster. I can't wait till it's unleashed august 19th.

Maybe "created a monster" is a little strong. Remember, the Harrodsburg team last year finished 3-8 and Mercer had one of its best seasons ever at 10-2. Mercer should be a good team, but I'm not prepared to concede the Class AA title just yet, although many (especially in Mercer County!) think its a foregone conclusion.

I didn't think Mercer would play russell or belfry until the finals this season?

 

So far the Titan report says they look REAL good.

 

Be interesting to see how they fair against Danville. It is easy to look tough against yourself although they do have close to 100 athletes.

Mercer County is in Region III, District 5. Under the old playoff system, they could have potentially played Russell in the first round or second round, or in the regional final, depending upon where each finished in the district standings. With the new format, however, they can't meet until the regional championship game, which is week 3 of the playoffs. If that game is played this season, it would be on the banks of the Ohio River in Flatwoods. Mercer couldn't play Belfry until the semi-state, which is Thanksgiving weekend. If that game is played this season, it would be in Pike County.

Even though Mercer should have a solid team this year, the road to a state championship will be extremely difficult because of where the games will be played.

Wow. That took some work. Thanks Strike-3. It seems to me the problem comes from population shift from rural to urban, creating a "haves and have-nots" situation. Does anyone know if any of the five classes in Wyoming are 8-man titles?[/QUOTE]

 

State Football Championships

 

 

 

 

It doesn't state that any of the divisions were less than 11 man football. In states that have 8-man championships they were labeled as such on the site.

 

This is for the good people at Trinity. If you click on the list of state champions from across the country (click on the link above), you'll notice that apparently St. Xavier was the Class AAAA champion last season in Kentucky. Seems like a good laugh, although I'm sure there will be countless debates after reading this about who was the better team!

It doesn't state that any of the divisions were less than 11 man football. In states that have 8-man championships they were labeled as such on the site.

Just because it doesn't label it as 8-man or 6-man, doesn't mean that it isn't. In some cases, 1A or Class D can mean 8-man, they just don't label their title as such. Even with that, I think there are only about ten states that hold 8-man championships.

I was thinking when I first saw this that travel might be an issue for Tilghman, considering Webster, Union and Muhlenberg South are in the district, but a quick look at their current district shows similar travel. The only difference would be that the teams in their district right now are much more competitive with them (Hopkinsville-always; Madisonville and Hopkins Central-occasionally) and theoretically would have a larger fan base.

The positive of this alignment would be the seven open dates on the schedule. Perhaps Tilghman could get Mayfield, Graves, Marshall, maybe Calloway from the Purchase area on the schedule. Maybe Hopkinsville, Christian County, Henderson County, Owensboro...two or three of the traditional western Kentucky powers on the schedule. And maybe even squeeze in a game or two with teams from Illinois, Missouri or Tennessee.

The other positive is that they should annually contend for a trip to Louisville.

Finally...A question for westsider: What is the talent level like at Tilghman right now? I know they were annually a state title contender back in the 1980s and early 90s, but it seems like they aren't at that level any more. Is there a chance of their program slipping, losing players to the other area schools (Heath, Lone Oak, Reidland)? Is their enrollment dropping? Just curious.

If/when Providence is absorbed by Webster County, the enrollment will be in the same range as Tilghman's ... that is what the new numbers are based on.

Does the student body at Providence have a number of (maybe a few?) kids who could contribute to the football program?

Only invite multiple state champs to the Pike County Bowl.

Is the Pike County Bowl so well regarded throughout our state and others that you can annually get a multiple state champion to come play? Just curious.

Didn't Somerset cry for years to get out of the Danville district? Now they are in with all of Harlan County, plus traditional "powers" Williamsburg and Pineville, along with Lynn Camp.

With the new alignment, they're complaining again? Whether it was done behind closed doors or not, they will absolutely love the gates from Corbin, Middlesboro and Leslie County compared to Cumberland, Evarts and Pineville. Might they be more upset at the thought of having to open the playoffs at Prestonsburg?

Between this and Mr. Sears' constant public-private ranting, they really are making themselves look whiny. That's truly unfortunate because the Jumpers annually are extremely competitive at every sport.

So the 4 teams that have been mentioned in Lawrence Countys district is how it will look FOR SURE next fall?????:confused:

Unless something changes with the play-up scenarios. After hearing complaints/suggestions from the coaches and administrators about the district alignments, there might be some changes as well. But looking at this geographically, I don't see many other teams besides Boyd, Greenup and Rowan that are nearby to Lawrence County.

I hope that this doesnt come to be at all, Lawrence Countys district needs more teams in it.

Maybe I misinterpreted your comment, but isn't this the exact same District set-up Lawrence County is looking at in the actually KHSAA alignment?

I will agree that the districts need more teams in them, but there is no way to make that happen with six classes.

This is a simple class plan designed by a fan. There is no indication that this will be followed by the KHSAA. I'm not allowing any schools to play up under this plan, although the KHSAA apparently will. I think this might make travel a bit better for some. Also, it keeps some consistency in who will play whom in what region during the playoffs.

I've tried to place all of the "Independents" from last season and the three schools starting varsity football this season into a district with five teams, which would allow for a possible dropout. That would keep those districts from only having three teams (needing four for the playoffs).

Finally, as many would agree, Class 1A is impossible. I've tried every way in the world to make things fit geographically and nothing works!

Again, this isn't perfect and probably isn't happening. Just an idea.

CLASS 6A

Region I

District 1: Apollo, Daviess County, Graves County, Henderson County, Marshall County.

District 2: Central Hardin, Greenwood, Meade County, Nelson County, North Hardin.

Region II

District 3: Bullitt Central, Fern Creek, Pleasure Ridge Park, Southern.

District 4: Butler, Male, Manual, St. Xavier.

Region III

District 5: Ballard, Eastern, Seneca, Trinity.

District 6: Boone County, Campbell County, Conner, Ryle, Simon Kenton.

Region IV

District 7: Dunbar, Henry Clay, Lafayette, Tates Creek.

District 8: Clark County, Madison Central, Scott County, Shelby County.

CLASS 5A

Region I

District 1: Christian County, Hopkinsville, Madisonville-North Hopkins, Ohio County, Owensboro.

District 2: Barren County, Bowling Green, Grayson County, Warren Central.

Region II

District 3: Doss, Iroquois, Jeffersontown, John Hardin, Waggener.

District 4: Dixie Heights, Holmes, Oldham County, Scott, South Oldham.

Region III

District 5: Anderson County, Bryan Station, Grant County, Montgomery County, Woodford County.

District 6: Lincoln County, Mercer County, Pulaski County, Pulaski Southwestern.

Region IV

District 7: Clay County, North Laurel, South Laurel, Whitley County.

District 8: Ashland, Johnson Central, Letcher County Central, Perry County Central.

CLASS 4A

Region I

District 1: Calloway County, Hopkins County Central, Logan County, Lone Oak, Muhlenberg North.

District 2: Allen County-Scottsville, Franklin-Simpson, Russell County, Warren East.

Region II

District 3: Atherton, Fairdale, Valley, Western.

District 4: Breckinridge County, Bullitt East, Larue County, North Bullitt.

Region III

District 5: Bourbon County, Covington Catholic, Harrison County, Lexington Catholic, Pendleton County.

District 6: Boyle County, East Jessamine, Franklin County, Marion County, West Jessamine.

Region IV

District 7: Bell County, Knox Central, Madison Southern, McCreary Central, Rockcastle County.

District 8: Boyd County, Greenup County, Lawrence County, Rowan County.

CLASS 3A

Region I

District 1: Muhlenberg South, Paducah Tilghman, Union County, Webster County.

District 2: Adair County, Butler County, Edmonson County, Hart County.

Region II

District 3: Central, Elizabethtown, Moore, Shawnee, Spencer County.

District 4: Casey County, Garrard County, Taylor County, Wayne County.

Region III

District 5: Henry County, Highlands, North Oldham, Western Hills.

District 6: East Carter, Fleming County, Lewis County, Mason County, Russell, West Carter.

Region IV

District 7: Breathitt County, Cawood, Estill County, Jackson County, Powell County.

District 8: Belfry, East Ridge, Magoffin County, Pike County Central, Sheldon Clark.

CLASS 2A

Region I

District 1: Caldwell County, Heath, Murray, Reidland, Trigg County.

District 2: Fort Campbell, Hancock County, McLean County, Owensboro Catholic, Todd County Central.

Region II

District 3: Clinton County, Glasgow, Green County, Metcalfe County, Monroe County.

District 4: Bardstown, Christian Academy-Louisville, DeSales, Fort Knox.

Region III

District 5: Carroll County, Danville, Owen County, Washington County.

District 6: Bath County, Covington Holy Cross, Lloyd Memorial, Newport, Newport Central Catholic.

Region IV

District 7: Corbin, Leslie County, Middlesboro, Somerset.

District 8: Knott County Central, Morgan County, Prestonsburg, Shelby Valley.

CLASS 1A

Region I

District 1: Ballard Memorial, Fulton City, Fulton County, Mayfield.

District 2: Campbellsville, Caverna, Crittenden County, Russellville.

Region II

District 3: Bethlehem, Frankfort, Kentucky Country Day, Louisville Holy Cross, Trimble County.

District 4: Berea, Lexington Christian, Lynn Camp, Pineville, Williamsburg.

Region III

District 5: Beechwood, Bellevue, Dayton, Gallatin County, Ludlow.

District 6: Bracken County, Fairview, Nicholas County, Paris, Raceland.

Region IV

District 7: Cumberland, Evarts, Harlan, Hazard, Jenkins.

District 8: Allen Central, Betsy Layne, Paintsville, Phelps, Pikeville, South Floyd.

Not Competing: Beth Haven, Eminence, Evangel Christian.

Mr. Network

Is the deadline still December 4th or has it been moved back closer to Christmas? How many scholarships are available now and when do we find out who won?

Garrard County High School opened its doors in the fall of 1964, welcoming students from five high schools within the county. County high schools Buckeye, Camp **** Robinson, and Paint Lick consolidated with city high school Lancaster. The fifth school was Mason High School which was the black high school in Garrard County prior to desegregation. The campus was built on land donated by the Duncan family and in fact the large tree in front of the school was a bargaining tool in the school board obtaining the land—if the school was to be built there, the tree had to remain. It is still there today! The first season of football was played just up Maple Avenue at Leavell Field at Lancaster Elementary. That field is now home to GCHS soccer. Grateful for the Duncan families generosity, the new football field that would be opened the following season (1965) was named Duncan Field. Several years later it was renamed Duncan Field at Dyehouse Stadium in honor of longtime Lancaster High School and three year Garrard County High School coach Coy Dyehouse.

Waddell Murphy, a former standout at Western Kentucky, was named the first head coach in Golden Lions history. Garrard debuted at old Irvine High School and played to a 6-6 tie, one of three ties in the first season for Garrard. The other two were both in Lancaster, against Knox Central and Nicholas County. Garrard County would only be involved in one more tie game, another 6-6 game, this time at home against the Kentucky Military Institute in 1968. The KHSAA would adopt a national tie-breaker system soon after. The 1964 squad would finish the season with an awkward record of 3 wins, 3 losses, and 3 ties. They allowed only 99 points that season (11.0 per game), which still ranks fifth all-time at Garrard after 39 seasons.

After a 3-7 campaign in 1965, Coy Dyehouse moved from assistant to head coach and promptly led the Golden Lions to a 7-3 record. Highlighting the season was the first ever victory over Boyle County, 20-6. This was truly remarkable when considering that the Rebels had defeated Garrard 56-6 the season prior. With a solid crop of seniors, the 1967 season promised to be a successful one. The Golden Lions didn’t let anyone down, compiling an undefeated 10-0 regular season, which included six shutouts, four of which came in a row (Jessamine County, 41-0; Berea, 27-0; Anderson County, 39-0; Madison Central, 40-0). The streak ended the next week against Harrodsburg, although the Lions still were victorious, 57-6. Ranked #8 in the ENTIRE state, a classes encompassing, the Golden Lions met Bardstown in Lancaster to decide the regional championship. Garrard was a prohibitive favorite, lead by Central Kentucky Conference Coach of the Year Dyehouse and first-team all-stater, the late Norman Davis. It wasn’t in the cards, however, as Garrard fell to the Tigers 26-20. Bardstown would go on to win the Class A state championship leaving many Lions fans to ponder what might have been.

Dyehouse would coach one more season before his untimely death in 1968 sent the program into a downward spiral. A 7-3 campaign in 1969 under Charles Harkleroad was the zenith before five straight losing seasons (four 3-7's, one 4-6). Two of Garrard’s worst offensive seasons came during this stretch, scoring only 74 points in 1970 and following that with only 72 points in 1971. The streak would end in 1975 under Coach Sam Burke although it technically wasn’t a winning season, a 5-5 mark. The next actual winning season wouldn’t come until 1978, when led by first-team all-state Wilbur Dunn, the Lions finished 8-2. Garrard County High School had went eight seasons without a winning record! Normalcy returned the following season when GC finished 2-8 and were shutout three times in their last five games.

Things didn’t look much more promising in the eighties as Garrard County posted losing records in seven of the first eight seasons. A 7-3 campaign under Steve Sullivan in 1985 was the lone highlight. Several dubious distinctions came with the 1980s at Garrard. The 1983 team scored the fewest points ever with 71, including four consecutive shutouts midseason (Anderson County, 21-0; Paris, 28-0; Harrodsburg, 35-0; Lincoln County, 6-0). The 1982 team allowed 67 points against Somerset, a record that would last eighteen years, while the 1984 team allowed 61 points to a dominant Paris team. The lowest point was in 1987 when Garrard County completed their worst season in school history. A suprise 20-0 upset victory over old Madison High School was the lone win in an otherwise brutal season. The offense sputtered to only 88 points, while the defense allowed 322, the most ever at Garrard. Seven times in ten games the opponent scored over 30 points. The tide, however, was about to turn.

Garrard County roared to an 8-2 season in 1989, including losses to Harrodsburg and Frankfort. Controversy marked the Frankfort loss, a 14-9 decision, in which a tough call gave the Panthers a first down late and stole away any chance Garrard had for a final score. Away with it went the hopes of the first playoff berth in 21 years. The ‘88 team allowed only 63 points all season, eclipsing the mark of 65 set in 1967 by the last playoff team. Two years later Garrard County wooed Danville assistant coach Jerry Perry to Lancaster and with him came the makings of the finest era in Garrard County High School football history. In Perry’s first season the Golden Lions finished the regular season with an 8-1 record. Included in that was a tight 15-13 victory at Harrodsburg which secured Garrard’s first playoff berth in 23 years. This was the last year only two teams per district made the playoffs and would be Garrard’s first of seven consecutive trips to the playoffs. An obviously over-hyped and over-matched Golden Lion club fell victim to Paris, 33-7. It was the tenth loss in ten meetings with the Greyhounds.

Garrard would win its first playoff game the next season, a close 35-28 win over Campbellsville. The Lions and Eagles would meet four more times in the playoffs in the next five years. Riding a 10-1 record, Garrard traveled to Springfield to meet Washington County in the regional semifinals. A lightning storm the season before had cancelled the Garrard/Washington game. Earlier in the 1991 season Garrard had defeated Washington County 19-17 on a late safety. A nip-and-tuck affair saw two horrendous calls make the difference, a 14-13 victory for the commanders. Washington County head coach Jimmie Reed walked onto the field to reverse a fumble call which Garrard had recovered. Not only that, the ball was placed about ten yards closer to the goalline. Still in the game, Charlton Jeffrey trotted out to kick the winning field goal. One goalpost official slipped during the kick and the second official looked down at his partner instead of the goal. But looked at one another and eventually signalled “no good,” much to the disbelief and chagrin of the Garrard faithful. Eleven seasons have since passed but no one in Lancaster has forgotten!

Perry brought perhaps his finest team to the field in 1993. Lead by freshman quarterback and future all-stater and Eastern Kentucky standout Nick Sullivan they would score 474 points on the season, shattering the old record of 421. A close 13-12 win at Harrodsburg sealed the district title and two playoff romps over Green County and Campbellsville set up the regional final at Bardstown. Garrard was ranked #1 in Class A while Bardstown was coming off a state runner-up appearance in 1992. A late run by Sheldon Burnside got Garrard in position to try a 42-year field goal. Junior kicker Adam Montgomery’s kick fell just yards short and Bardstown escaped with a 14-13 win. Twice now Bardstown had taken away potential state titles from ol’ GC.

The 1995 campaign saw Garrard return to the regional final, this time against Harrodsburg. A week earlier Garrard had finally defeated Bardstown, leading an over-joyed Coach Perry to exclaim “ding-dong the witch is dead!” The joy wouldn’t last long, however, as Garrard fell to Harrodsburg 14-6. A telling stat during Perry’s tenure was the inability to consistently beat Bardstown and Harrodsburg. Garrard was a combined 3-9 against the two schools during that seven year stretch, although it must be noted that the average score in those twelve games was 18-9. Perry would leave following the 1996 season. He took with him the best record by a coach in Garrard history: 65-18. The 1993 team had the most victories (12), while two other times he won 10 games. Two Garrard players, Nick Sullivan and Gordon Crowe would be all-state. Both went on to stellar collegiate careers, at EKU and UK respectively.

Jeff Hester, a former Garrard County and Morehead State player, took over the reigns in 1997. After seven seasons as assistant coach under Jerry Perry, Hester finally got his shot. What he got was a tough Class AA district and a sharp drop-off in talent. Hester’s first team finished 2-8 and the next season saw a 3-7 mark. 1999 would mark a return trip to the playoffs for Garrard County, this time as a #4 seed. On the road at Newport, the Golden Lions pulled off a remarkable upset, winning a double-overtime thriller, 28-27. A second consecutive upset seemed too tough and the Lions lost at Lexington Catholic. While earlier in the season GC had lost at Catholic 43-14, the playoff game proved much closer, a tight 22-7 ballgame. The next year Garrard could not sustain the momentum it had obtained the year before and bottomed out at 2-8. Hester left that offseason to become an assistant at Boyle County. While many could complain that Hester was unable to maintain the foundation Perry had built, it must be noted that three state champions came from GC’s district during his four seasons (Bourbon County, 1997; Boyle County, 1999 & 2000). Also, Danville finished runner-up to Caldwell County in 1998. Many could argue as well that Lexington Catholic was the best team in the state each of those four seasons! More than anything, Garrard just inherited an impossible district.

Steve Stonebraker was hired away from Casey County in the summer of 2001 in hopes of leading Garrard back to being a state-wide power. In his first season, Stonebraker lead the Lions to a 7-4 finish, losing a rain-soaked playoff game at eventual state semifinalist Mason County. The second season under Stonebraker was a disappointment that saw the Lions open the season a promising 3-1 only to struggle in district play and finish off 4-6. A new year in 2003 awaits with a move to a new district. Casey County, Russell County, Wayne County and Corbin make up the new district which includes many old foes. Gone are the long trips to Northern Kentucky. Hopefully better days lie ahead for Garrard County football.

In all, Garrard County has played 39 seasons of football. At the end of the 2002 season they had compiled an all-time record of: 203 wins, 199 losses, and 4 ties...a winning percentage of .505. Ten seasons have ended with playoff berths, three times finishing regional runner-up. While the tradition and history at Garrard might not be as storied as other schools in the state, it certainly is exciting to fans from all over the county. Buckeye to Camp ****, Paint Lick to Lancaster.

Mr. Network, your inbox is full.

Does my very detailed post about Garrard County football from a while back on the board qualify me? Remember, I'm a student at UK, studying to be a teacher. Not only do I have no money now, I won't have any money in the future either!