MountainThunder

I believe the U18 Sluggers won the Nationals on Sunday if I am not mistaken!

Word has it that the North Laurel vs Harlan County game from North will be broadcast live on Wazoo sports.

I think you nailed it. Nearly every team seems to be taking steps forward. Should make for some exciting football!

North could be better this year than last year. Losing Wardrup, Shears, Miller, Baker, etc hurts, but having Fugate back at QB with all the work he has put in will be a big plus. The O line could be solid, and I think it will be RB by committee which could make them more dangerous as you never know who will be running the ball. A full year under Larkey and Sams and the off season program should make NL better as well. Don't be surprised if a freshman with a familiar name to NL fans comes up a few times this season, .. Gabe Blair. Gabe is a freshman and the younger brother of former all state NL RB Nik Blair. Nik was quicker and had a nose for the end zone, but Gabe has good quickness and speed, and is bigger than Nik. I am not sure if Gabe will be a factor this year, but I wouldn't rule it out. I am sure there is still a Rotundi at NL (has been about every year since the family moved to London) and those kids play hard and smart. I think NL will throw the ball a little bit more this year with the work that Fugate has put in and the confidence that Larkey is beginning to put in him to air it out, and with his running ability, tuck it and run when he needs to. IMHO, the biggest loss won't be Wardrup on offense, but Baker on defense. Baker led the team in tackles and seemingly was all over the field making plays on D. His hustle and natural ability as a LB will be missed.

Year 2 under Coach Welch should show some improvement. He instilled discipline last year and went to something SL was not used to, a running attack. The defense was improved. The key is for the line to really step up and find a 3rd option after Vaughn and Miller, who will carry the load on offense. I have heard that Vaughn is moving to QB and SL could run more of an option attack this fall. That could be interesting to watch.

:thumb: Amen. My understanding is that they are making it tougher and tougher for the schools to get the funding they need to operate. I could be wrong, but I understand that the problems really stem from Frankfort.

I have all the respect in the world for Coach Hilton and the Bobcats football program. But many mountain teams are feeling the pinch of cutbacks in spending. If they money isn't there, it isn't there. And the boosters cannot pay the assistant coaches. 3-4 assistant coaches is very slim, especially for a program like Bell that has competed at such a high level for so long.

This is a big shocker to me. Especially the timing of it. Rains has built a powerhouse program at LCA and when he does decide to get back into coaching, I am sure he will have no problem finding a job.

That's a good one!!! LOL

Another good article on Coach Chris Larkey, ... from an assistant coaches' perspective. Good read. http://thetimestribune.com/sports/x383286153/Jaguar-Rumble

I feel very fortunate to know all three of the Larkey men. And as the saying goes, behind every good man there is a good woman, .... in this case, there are 3 Mrs. Larkeys who are very supportive of their husbands, and one of them also of her two sons. This is a true story, .... Harlan County did not play the friday of Week 0 and Tom was at the North Laurel vs Pulaski County game. I was within 5-10 feet of them the entire game. He was as nervous and excited watching Chris and Dackery coach as I have ever seen him. Towards the end of the game, with North scoring in the final minute to take the lead, Tom made his way to the field. When the game was over and Chris' Jaguars had pulled off the huge upset over the eventual regional champion Maroons, Coach Larkey had tears in his eyes. He was just beaming with pride for his boys. Then I see Mrs. Larkey on the field, taking pictures of her sons & husband, the grandkids, etc. ... just so happy and excited for her boys. You could see the geniune pride and love this family has for one another. It was honestly one of my top 5 moments watching a high school football game.

http://www.sentinel-echo.com/features/x1703935138/Celebrating-Fathers-God-football-family I had the great fortune of playing for Tom at Laurel County High almost 30 years ago. I knew Chris as a young boy. Now I have gotten to know Chris as an adult. This is one family I truly think a lot of.

I didn't get all the results, but the East Senior All stars went 2-1.

Redbird Mission School is officially closed after the conclusion of this past school year due to financial issues. I hate that but understand how the landscape has changed over the years. JD Wilson was probably the most underrated coach in the mountains. He got more with less talent than anyone I have seen.

I am with you there. There is one region with only 4 head coaches as members. Jim does a great job in keeping this information updates (college signees, all state teams, news and notes, etc).

http://www.kyhighschoolsoftball.com/allstate.htm Here are the coaches all state listings.

Here is the link. http://www.kyhighschoolsoftball.com/allstar.htm Jim McAllister does an excellent job at keeping this Ky Softball Coaches website up to date. Below is the coaches all state teams (1st, 2nd & Hon Mention) http://www.kyhighschoolsoftball.com/allstate.htm

I know that Taylor from NL and Gaines from SL will be on the East Sr Squad. I think both NL and SL have a few players on the junior east squads as well.

The issue here doesn't seem to be the call but the exchange between the fan and Tackett. So if I understand it, ... someone can make smartelic comments to Tackett and he cannot respond? Is that about right?

Good for Coach Koogler. Glad to see him promoted. Nice guy.

It most certainly is.

Defeated Mercy 8-6 in the title game. Congrats to Reidland on capturing the KHSAA State Championship! The picture of consistency. They have won 3 state titles (1996, 2002 & 2010), ... including the very first fastpitch KHSAA state title in 1995.

Hate to see GRC lose, but I couldn't cheer for them against the Jags. McCloud has done a fantastic job at GRC and should continue to make these annual visits to Owensboro!!! For North, they are loaded with freshman. The big losses from this year's team to next year will be Taylor (P) and Root (1b). Those are 2 big losses. I would love to see them come out of the losers bracket and bring home another state title. It is an uphill battle as they would have to win 2 more games just tonight so they can play tomorrow. But I think they can do it. Mercy looks like the team to beat in this tourney so far.

Run ends for the Jumpers. What a tremendous season they had!

GRC had a great year. Nothing to hang their heads about here.