jbwill2

I think that in order to properly answer the question, once has to consider the specific reason why a program "refuses" to schedule a game against another program. If a school will not schedule an opponent for fear that the game would be a certain loss, then this is quite a bit different than a school refusing to schedule an opponent because the leaders of that program/school strongly feel that the other program is recruiting, cheating or doing something else unethical. In this scenario, it's more like a boycott kind of thing. For me, I don't see too much utility in "boycotting" a program. If there are problems, go to the KHSAA and let them enforce the rules... don't go enforcing your own interpretation of the rules by boycotting teams. There are pros and cons to a team scheduling a game against another team that is certain to beat them. On the pro side, it gives your players and team something to aspire to and provides a good measuring stick for where you are... on the con side it could affect player morale if the loss is really bad (plus, in some situations where the disparity in physical strength and depth is great, there is also a concern for physical safety).

I can't wait for the BGP Class 5A preview to be released! It is the next preview due up. As a note, I am expecting no less than 5 pages about Highlands.

I think you are mixing up two different games. In 2003 Danville beat Highlands on a last-minute punt return for a TD. In 2004 HHS beat Boyle County 21-0 (on the field, at least, as the game was later forfeited), and yes it was Mitchell who laid a huge hit on BC's Givhan.

The other thread about "favorite games" got me to thinking about the most important or most significant games involving KY high school teams that have ever been played. So, let's here some (with explanations)... I have a pretty limited knowledge of the history, but a few more recent ones stick out to me (in no particular order)... 2002 Trinity - Male (Class 4A title game): this game marks the only time in KY history (I believe) that two KY teams ever played each other at a time when both were nationally ranked. Also, Trinity's win led to their USA Today final season ranking of 4th nationally, the highest of any KY team in modern times. 2005 LexCath - Highlands (Class 3A regional finals): LexCath "got over the hump" of defeating a NKY powerhouse when they traveled up to Fort Thomas and blanked defending state champ HHS 17-0 en route to the program's first-ever football title. The previous week LexCath defeated the other NKY powerhouse CovCath. This laid to rest any notion that LexCath couldn't "win the big one" and set the stage for (I predict) many state football titles for the Knights. 2002 Trinity - Cincinnati Elder: as the guru said in the "favorite games" thread, this win over the Ohio D1 champion for that year really set the benchmark for top-level play from a KY team in a big-time venue. 2004 Highlands - Boyle County (Class 3A title game): HHS ended Boyle County's amazing streak of consecutive state titles at 5. If Boyle County had won this game and Chuck Smith then left the high school ranks (which he did), it would have created a lot of speculation around the state about whether the combination of Smith and Boyle County was "invincible" in the state playoffs.

Great post! Guru, I am very curious about what you meant when you wrote that the Trinity-Male 2002 4A title game was "a defining moment for KY high school football." If Male had won this back-and-forth game instead of Trinity, would the significance of this game have been different? PS I fully agree with what you said about Trinity-Elder... even including championships it's likely the most significant modern HS football game involving a KY team. I suspect it's going to be a LONG, LONG time until another KY team defeats an Ohio team that goes on to win the D1 state title that year.

Highlands - Cincinnati Elder (2000) at Paul Brown Stadium... the crowd was HUGE, the weather was perfect, the stadium was very new and (most importantly) the two teams played well. Elder won the game 21-14 and the outcome was up in the air until the very end. Plus, the game even had a very controversial call in it that likely had a big, big impact on the outcome. What a game!

The Macho Man, Randy Savage PS I wear a size large.

I thought this would be of note, especially since this has become a bigger issue in KY with the KHSAA recently. Also of note, Trotwood-Madison is the team Highlands beat this past year in the Herbie... they had several D-I players on that squad. The Ohio High School Athletic Association has concluded its findings pertaining to eligibility issues associated with Trotwood-Madison High School’s football program, COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio High School Athletic Association has concluded its findings pertaining to eligibility issues associated with Trotwood-Madison High School’s football program, Commissioner Daniel B. Ross has announced, and the school and OHSAA have come to an agreement on penalties that will be assessed against the school. The ruling was made following an OHSAA investigation that lasted over seven months. Two senior students have been declared ineligible for interscholastic athletic participation in any OHSAA member school for one year beginning August 1, 2008, in accordance with Bylaws 4-1-2 and 11-2-1, falsification of information for the purpose of establishing eligibility in a member school. The students were in violation of Bylaw 4-7-2, Exception 1, Transfers. Because of the 42-day provisions of Bylaw 11-1-1, there is no requirement to forfeit any contests in which the ineligible students participated.

Thank God that Billy P"ACC"ker is finally out! I can't stand this guy. Now, maybe he can pursue his God-given talent of being a pretty decent turnip farmer.

Well, I sure am glad that the BGP staff puts in the time and effort they do in preparing their annual season previews! Perhaps I've just been really spoiled by BGP! Anyway... bring on the football! Keep up the great work BGP!

True, Tony G. was not a headline-making starter last year, but he got a great deal of varsity playing time this past year. He played well when given the chance in 2007. Heck, he threw the winning TD pass in the big game against Trotwood-Madison at the Herbie last year, playing a lot of QB while Cecil played on defense in that game. Something tells me that Tony G. is just chomping at the bit to get out there and really prove himself as a first-rate high school QB during his senior year. From what I've heard, the competitive spirit runs deep in the Guidugli family and I'd bet he's getting ready to assume his "proper place" within the clan! ...Exciting times at Highlands!

In Class 5A, District 5's preview, they got Holmes' 2007 W-L record wrong.

Certainly, the BGP preview is one-of-a-kind, but I do think that The Cats' Pause could do a better job in their prep football preview coverage.

Forget the family name to live up to, Tony G. has some huge shoes to fill in replacing last year's starting QB Clay Cecil... that guy was not only a great athlete-quarterback but an outstanding team leader! It's not just about what a guy does on the field once the game starts, it's more about what he does to prepare himself and lead his teammates from Saturday through Thursday!

I just recently received my copy of The Cats' Pause football preview in the mail today, and I must say that I was a bit underwelmed with the section on Kentucky high school football. I have purchased this football preview every year for the past five years or so, and it seems to me that the amount of space devoted to HS football drops each time. Some thoughts about this: 1. High school football (or more correctly, the coverage of high school football) has become a much bigger deal recently, with big events like the Herbie, MTV coverage of high school football teams, and ESPN national coverage of high school football games. There are many more national high school football rankings services/polls now as well. It just seems to me that in a state as football-crazy as KY, the state's major publication for football (i.e. The Cats' Pause) would cater to this appetite for prep football coverage by dedicating more time/space to the high school football preview portion of this magazine. Heck, this prep preview (as opposed to the part about UK football) has been the reason I have purchased this magazine for the past several years, so I definitely think that there's a "market" for this sort of thing in KY. 2. Perhaps, in addition to the basic coverage of each team for the upcoming season, the magazine can review some things (like the playoffs) from the previous season. Perhaps it can spend some more time on the best player prospects for the upcoming season, and highlight some marqee match-ups for the upcoming season. Also, and this is more related to UK football instead of prep football, but it deals with The Cats' Pause: I noticed that former HHS player Jordan Nevels was not listed on the roster. Is he no longer on the UK team?

I'd love to see Highlands and CovCath a collective 2-0 vs. Ohio competition after two weeks of regular-season action (granted, the chances of these two being 0-2 is probably much more likely)!

Way to go, JC! It should be an interesting game! Go USA!

The reason I phrased the title of this thread the way I did is because of this: since the 2005 season I have read a ton of posts from Saint X backers about how their team was really the best team in 6A (old 4A) that year, regardless of which team was holding up the state title trophy at the end of the season (which has been Trinity). The thread has nothing to do with Male, Manual, LexCath, Highlands, CovCath, the school for the deaf, etc... it has to do with Saint X. And FYI, I made no effort to mask my interest in Saint X winning 6A titles in the original post... I wish Saint X would take the extra step necessary to wrestle some titles away from Trinity! Heck, I hope that some Saint X players read this, take it personally, work harder to prove me wrong, and take it to Trinity (and everybody else) in the 6A playoffs in 2008!!!! For 5A, I can PROMISE you that this is exactly what the CCH players are doing right now, just as the HHS players did a year ago. Go Tigers!

Interestingly, I tried to provide the link to the thread about Saint Xavier in 2008 and the thread about Class 6A in 2008, but BGP must have done some thread erasing in preparation for the upcoming season, since they are no longer there. I can't remember if they were Saint X fans who wrote it, but I do recall there being BGP'ers writing that "on paper" at least, Saint X has the best team in 6A this year.

Well, if you ask me, BluebirdPreps.com has a much better ring to it!!!!

For the past few seasons, I've read a lot on BGP and elsewhere about how Saint Xavier has possessed the best football team in 6A (old 4A), and yet every December it seems that Trinity is holding up the trophy. Again, I am reading that Saint Xavier will have a very solid squad this season and possibly/probably has the best team in 6A. Any chance that a different team in green (i.e. Saint Xavier) will be hoisting the 6A trophy this December??? I sure hope so... if nothing else it would give Highlands a chance to even up the title count at 18!!!

I also think that Highlands will very likely be beaten at some point this year. The Birds will most certainly be the underdogs heading into the Colerain game. And, the 'Birds will have tough games against a much-improved CovCath squad, a defending state champ LexCath team with a talented returning starting QB and a defending state champ Louisville Central team with a solid returning defense. For sure, the Bluebirds' schedule in 2008 is tougher overall than it was in 2007... the question is: will the 'Birds be as solid in 2008 as they were in 2007??? Also, any word on future 7 on 7 contests or preseason scrimmage dates/opponents??? I, for one, will trade one or two regular-season losses for an 18th state title this year!!!!!!!!

OK, I'm a little concerned about the fact that there hasn't been much talk about Highlands football in the past week. Is the team finished with their "dead period" and back practicing? The last HHS thing I read on BGP was Highlands playing Trinity in 7 on 7... are these passing contests still going on? If so, who has HHS been playing? What happens between now and the two preseason scrimmages? Is HHS scrimmaging Beechwood and Male again this year? Also, is there any reason why the KHSAA doesn't list Highlands' game against Cincy Colerain for week two? Is this not a done deal yet?

Could someone who was there for the whole thing please explain the format of these two 7 on 7 games? Was the first game HHS' 1st string vs. T's 1st string, or what? Also, what were the final scores of these two games? Surely someone knows that!!!!!!!!

Any word on what the "final scores" were to the two HHS-Trinity 7 on 7 contests? LN mentioned something about the second game being 2-1 HHS with a few minutes left. Also, to date, how many 7 on 7 games has HHS played so far, and what is their "record?"