flyin'intheflag

Jones 30 yard td for Russell. Score puts the Devils up 17 to 7.

Good luck to both Carter County teams in the playoffs on Friday night; however, I have to ask what is going on with some of these internet predictions? People are predicting a Comet victory at Mason Co? Really? Has that ever happened? They had "big" wins over East and Raceland and who else? Are they 40 pts. better than the last game at Mason? I hope so. And people are predicting a Raider victory over Russell? Really? When is the last time that happened? East has struggled offensively against everyone but the same Raceland team that West barely beat and also the hapless Cougars and outmanned Lions of Morgan and Lewis. I guess my point would be for us Carter County fans to keep our enthusiasm under our collective hats about our average football teams until we actually prove that we can play with the Mason's and the Russell's. Maybe we could be leading at halftime or even playing against their starters late in the 4th quarter one time. Then maybe one day we will beat them. Then we could talk a little. Remember It's hard to sneak up on somone when you are making lots of noise! There is nothing I would like better than for both teams to win and play one another in the playoffs at West...but lets just talk among ourselves and keep the bold predictions off the net. It looks pretty silly.

Many high school coaches will coach their entire career and never look across the field facing a coach with over 300 career victories. East Carter's Coach Baldwin, in his first season as head coach, has done this twice already! (Coach McGlone and Coach Haywood) That should serve as an invaluable football lesson for Coach Baldwin, his staff, and his players. Just think that one day both of those legends were in their 20's coaching their first teams and look where they are now. Best of luck to Coach Baldwin and staff.

I didn't even comment on the game as my mind was still clouded with penalty flags in my first post. Anyway, enough of that. Belfry certainly passes the look test. #20 is a monster. There is not a soul under the age of 25 in Carter County that could even remotely resemble that child. He is a man among boys out there. #2 and #3 were no small fries either. Those were the backs for heavens sake. I really liked #78 and #57 for Belfry on the OL. Someone mentioned #20 not playing D...is he recovering from injury? If so I didn't noticed any hurts while playing offense. Belfry is good. I thought #9 and #7 were their most explosive speed athletes and I find out that #9 is only a sophomore...oh boy! I don't think there is much difference between Russell, Mason and Belfry. (Overall Mason looks more athletic from top to bottom. Belfry is bigger and more powerful. Russell is the offensive system that will find your weakness and score on you because of it.) I said it before in talking about Russell and Mason...that I have seen several renditions of Russell and Mason that are better than this years versions...I will also say the same thing about Belfry. But that doesn't really matter. If and when these 3 teams play each other the games will be good, contested, high schoool games that I will be watching. I talked to one person at the game that has seen all three (R,M and B) play and he said that Breathitt is better than all of them. Things will be interesting!

This game was tough to sit through. Have you ever heard someone say "Why the referees could throw a flag on every play in a football game if they really wanted to look for one!" Well I have heard it and now I have seen it. For all the folks from Belfry who made their way to Grayson for the game, guess what, we have had that crew probably 4 times this year and they have thrown flags like that in all games. I find it funny that usually the flags cause one side or other to feel like they are getting the shaft but this group has a way of controlling a game with yellow (now slightly sort of brown) flags that causes both groups of fans to first get frustrated and then work their way into a bit of comic relief (like...hey we just ran two plays in a row with no flag! Reply...wait both teams haven't made it back to the huddle yet...oh no, you're right there's another unsportsmanlike!) to the point of feeling like you are being held hostage and just begging to please let this game get over without anymore penalties. I watched fans from East and Belfy conversing about these very things. This is not a personal slam against any of the officials...they are good,friendly guys; however, they like to throw flags. Of all the penalties that were called I only saw one that I could say now that was a bad call. (Belfry got called on an illegal block on a punt return that was a poor call and cost them a score.) The others were unsportsmanlike calls on both teams (talking smack maybe?), motion penalties as the ball is being snapped? holding calls and illegal blocks well away from any action that the normal fan would be watching. In other words you can't argue with the calls cause nobody sees them. Belfry is a fine team and won going away. The officiating was equally scrutiness for both teams and probably more difficult on Belfry. This is not a post complaining about the officials affecting the outcome of the game. It is a post saying that the officials sucked the life out of the game. Anyone agree or disagree?

Did Sheldon Clark have any offensive success at all vs. the Belfry defense?

Amen to that. With Mason, Russell and Belfry on their schedule has anyone in the state played a tougher 3A schedule than East Carter?

Old Warrior speak'em as if he know'em more about Raiders than he really do! Mav White plays very few snaps at fullback. That is where you will usually find the bullish Kyle Huffine. White is normally at wing/dive back or in the back of the I. There is no big, slow line in sight. Both tackles are >6' and less than 225 pounds. The guards are smaller than that in both height and weight. The center is The field used to be very hard--known as the rock. They put some sort of crushed up rubber on it that has soften it considerably. True, rain would help it even more. As for the team's play...who knows? Lots of high hopes in Grayson with this years Raiders entering the season as evidenced by the fact that they even scheduled Belfry. They have played ok at times but well short of expectations in every facet of play. Belfry is the obvious pick no doubt. Consider this--Mason drilled the Raiders, but East had maybe 8 or more turnovers. Mason was better but the score was deceiving. Russell beat East in a fairly competetive game in which East missed several opportunities especially with Jones on a bum ankle. Not trying to build up East cause they need to play to back anything like that up. I am just saying that I have seen a lot of football in this area (NEKy) over the years and it is about as weak as I have ever seen it. (East Carter is 4th in the 3A district and yet if they were competing in the 4A district they would have already wrapped up the first place seed with victories over Rowan and Boyd. Go figure?) Mason and Russell are the best but compared to previous Russell and Mason teams they are average. Belfry is usually even with Russell and if that is the case this year then Belfry is probably not nearly as good as the Pirate faithful believe. Point being--if this is a good Belfry team by Belfry standards then they can name the score against East. However, if this is a good Belfry team by this years 3A standards then the Raiders of East Carter just may play them closer than expected. One thing the Pond Creek nation needs to know...the field is rough, the seating is limited, but the tailgating area is the best around with new parking areas behind the school. Come early with good eats and I may come and introduce myself to you! That's a warning!

I thought it was win on the road and tie at home. Could we please have a ruling from the United Sports Cliches Association?

Great game with two great coaches...not just as knowledgable football minds but classy gentlemen as well. With that said, allow me to second guess both. First of all I found it very unlike Russell to have the ball on their own 30 in a very hard fought game with under a minute to play and try to throw the ball. Result, interception and return to a spot that should have lost the game for them. I bet if they had it to do again they would have ran the ball and gone to overtime. Second, Mason picks the ball off and returns to the Russell 13 with 20 some seconds left and at least 2 maybe all 3 timeouts remaining. What do they do? Shotgun--sack. Loss of 10+. Out of field goal range. I bet if they had it to do again they would have run the ball and got closer for a chip shot field goal. Isn't it great to be a fan! Here I am at home on a Friday Night questioning the strategy of two programs that have won more games than I have seen! Great game, I wish that I could have been there.

How about telling us what you really think! You seemed to be holding back just a little! HA!

Maybe a pretty good guess by the farawaycomet. East has had some trouble with pass coverage this year and lewis is going to throw it 50 times. Who would of thought that this game would be for spot 4 in the district at the beginning of the year? East should prevail.

Congrats to Mason. Where is the Mason Russell game being played?

Are you serious? Where was that effort against West Carter? Question...I know that the Raiders can only finish 4th in the 3A district if they beat Lewis "we'll throw it every down" County...but do the wins over Boyd and now Rowan make us the Champion of the 4A district? 2 district wins in 4A gives you a district championship does it not? Congrats to Coach Baldwin and his Raiders for righting the ship this week.

I don't remember the year but you are correct. I do believe that it happened when Mike Jones, now assistant coach at Russell was the head coach. He did an outstanding job at West.

I know it has been a long and fairly frustrating rivalry for the folks at West Carter and you may want to crow about each and every football victory; however, there is really no need to feel like you need anymore scores on any level to rub anything in! The thumping delivered by the varsity team was plenty of rubbing for everyone. It is now 4 days AD (after drubbing) and I am still in shock to the point where a jv score and a middle school score are having no effect on me whatsoever. Congrats to the Comets on all levels!

Lewis had 19 on their roster? I bet there were nearly that many Russell players that got to carry the ball! Can anyone tell me if this is close to being true? By the way, congrats to Ivan McGlone on his 300 high school victories. That is a truly incredible accomplishment and couldn't of happened to a better person. For all you bluegrasspreps folks out their, just think about winning 300 varsity football games and how tough that would be! We often times hear about records and say our congratulations and then dismiss the thought to move on with our lives. But think about that for a minute...(simple math--30 years averaging 10 wins a year!) it's remarkable isn't it! Congrats Ivan, your staff and all your players who over the years have made that possible.

Wow! West Carter took East Carter to the woodshed in this game. I think that most area football fans would have looked at this game as a W for the East side of the county heading into the season. West had one of their better teams in school history last year and had to hang on for their first win against the Raiders in several years as time ran out. East was rebuilding last year with a youthful front against a veteran Comet team. Heading into the season West lost a lot with the departure of their senior class. East on the other hand returned 9 or 10 starters on both sides of the ball. Evidently the team from Olive Hill must have really wanted to keep that "Old Oaken Barrell" another year because they came to play football and the East Carter team, as I heard one observer comment on the sidelines, came to pillow fight. It is hard to imagine how only one team came to play when they both had two full weeks to think about it and get psyched up for it. How is that possible? Hats off to the West Carter team and staff for a dominant win. Even though the score was 38-12, it wasn't really that close! How strange is that to say? East Carter never even gave their faithful a ray of hope that they could win this game.

Some thoughts on this issue: First of all there were a large % of the NE Ky. officials who specifically requested this action from the assigning secretary. You may not find many that will go on public record saying that they were in favor of it; however, a large number of officials wanted these split crews at the start of the season. Why? More officials get a chance to work and work bigger games at that. On the one hand how could anyone argue this method, afterall, isn't this the way crews are assigned for the state championships? Then again, I know that the biggest reason that some of these guys do the job locally is because of the bonds they have with their crew. The money and time are secondary thoughts to them. They love to do the games with their partners. I can understand that side of it too! As for the assigning secretary thinking about getting out after one year, well I can understand that too. He is doing what he was hired to do by the athletic council and requested by the officials and many are reportedly acting in such a way that would make any adult throw up their hands and wonder why they are involved. Remember the time and the pay for the secretary isn't anything to write home about either! The solution of doing some split crews and some standing crews should give everyone a chance to see how it works then maybe everyone can find some piece...but then again I doubt it!

I feel your pain farawaycomet. I was just funnin' with the West Carter alumni donation comment. I am sure that the West Carter alumni donations are very similar in number to the East Carter alumni donations! Slim and none. Point being that both programs rely so heavily on gate money to do anything with the program that I think playing on Friday of fall break will not be the best financial move. Any thoughts from the Raider or Comet faithful on game date effect on game attendance? I know of one person who will be there. Me.

Interesting that both Carter County schools had open dates last week and are on fall break this Th and Fr and yet the game is still on Fr. I wonder why they didn't play last Friday so both schools could enjoy fall break? I wonder why they didn't move the game to Thursday? Sounds like both teams wanted all the time they could get to heal up from playing Russell and Mason and then get ready for each other. Probably a good move for both teams but it will definitely hurt the gate $$$ for West Carter's football coffers. WC doesn't need the money I am sure with all their famous alumni (like farawaycomet)who regularly contribute large sums of money to the football program. Look for a low scoring close game with East on the winning end. (This post has been edited to be Rule #13 compliant!)

I don't think that you would find many people, possibly including the Raiders coaching staff and players, that would argue that the offense has been a disapointment to this point. Here's to hoping that the young and energetic staff will burn the midnight oil over the off week and put together something special for the other end of Carter Co. I just hope the kids keep believing. The defense for the majority of the season has given the better effort...true true true.

Both Linebackers are sophomores? That explains their look but not their play. I thought they were very good now! I know Russell has pass routes! c'mon. My point is Russell has all 11 right there. East had people playing man on the receivers. When they blocked it looked like they were coming up to play the run because they were. The amazing thing to me is when they released to run their pass routes they did not cover. The question is how hard should it be to recognize when someone is blocking and when someone is running a pass route. The answer was obvious Friday night because Russell's receivers were being chased and not covered. As for the description of Coach Mcglone...classic!

Thoughts after watching the game.... 1. football in eastern kentucky is quite a bit down this season. Lots of O-fer teams. 2. Russell is solid, not as good as some previous Russell teams but still good. 3. East continues to struggle offensively. They need to add holsters to the uniform to hold the gun that they shoot themselves in the foot with. 4. The comments about East stacking the box with 11 people to stop the run is a bit misleading. East was playing man coverage. The truth of the matter is Russell stacks the box on offense most every down. Russell is amazingly simple and yet very effective. I do not understand how high school kids play man coverage verses Russell's receivers who simply block on run plays and release down the field on pass plays and yet they have trouble covering. It is like they get lulled to sleep and then when they wake up to realize its a pass the receiver is already up on them. 5. There is no staff anywhere in our area that can compare to the wisdom and experience and talent of the Russell staff, particularly the coaching triumvirate of McGlone, Jones, and Morris. They remind me of old farmer's that know their equipment, how to fix it, and how to use it. They will find your weakness and you will pay. East played man coverage and they had a player that they found in the secondary and picked on him time and again. Any time they needed a play they picked on that same d-back. Hats off to the Russell staff. 6. Don't let Russell's linebackers fool you...they fail the look test as they both look like JV kids but they pass the play test...making play after play. Russell had a couple of kids that looked alot like tarzan and they drew your attention; however, those two linbackers kept making plays. 7. I would like a dollar for everytime I heard people saying that Mason County will kill Russell...my reply is "not so fast my friends!" Here is why. First, no matter how many rah, rah posts the Russell fans put on here complaining about the emotional play of the red devils the truth of the matter is they are not going to be "up" for the East game until East becomes a team that requires them to be up for. You can only get up the way the crowd defines up a couple of times a year. This was not the game for the red devil faithful to be worrying about the emotional state of the team. Second, If East would not turn it over in crucial areas of the field the Mason game would have been much closer and the russell game would have been even closer. The first half fumble to give russell the 14-3 lead was huge. Third, the Tyler Jones factor. He played one of the grittiest games I have ever seen on an ankle that was 60% at best. Case in point. The first time he ran the ball he barely got tripped up...which hurt the ankle more...on a good wheel he was gone. If he is healthy the game would not have been as close as it was. So, take the 8 turnovers out of the East Mason game and you have a comparable score of the East Russell game but add a healthy ankle on #8 and the game margin of this game is much greater! So, give a slight nod to Mason but it will be close! I would like to see that game for sure. Best of luck to both teams...the raiders need to heal up, come up with some plays that can score, and take care of the comets in two weeks.