Homerun

St. X coach, Mike Glaser, is approaching 300 wins. If St. X wins on Friday, he will become just the fifth football coach in Kentucky to reach this mark. Here is the article in The Courier-Journal about Coach Glaser: http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20090923/SPORTS05/909230433/1002/NLETTER01?source=nletter-news

I am sorry that you seem to be taken aback by my comments, almost blaming me. I hope none of us are beyond scrutiny of our posts on this message board or not open to comments that we may not disagree with or like. I want to make one other comment, then move on. St. X has emphasized that there is no “I” in TEAM. Players even have shirts with “TEAM” on it. That was the underlying basis for my comment about winning and losing as a team. What I hear you saying (whether it is conscious or not), really, is “don’t criticize the coach, don’t criticize the football program, but I can mention how two players did not do as I expected.” Maybe Lamont and Neal did not have the game that you expected of them, but maybe there were factors that played into that. You said that you made statements based on what actually happened in the game? Maybe it might be better to say that your comments were based on your view of what happened in the game. I bet that Lamont’s family does not participate on these message boards and that they might present a different point of view of the game. Nor is Lamont’s family wealthy or socially powerful. That also sometimes makes a difference in how comments are made. I guess I have a propensity to take up for the little guy.

He plays for Trinity. He pitched in last year's state high school tournament in a delayed game. The game was continued but Corey went to his grandfather's funeral and Trinity ended up losing the game. He has given a verbal commitment to U of K. He pitched in the exclusive East Coast Showcase. He played last summer for the Kentucky Baseball Club 17U and had some impressive wins, including one in Cincinnati against a top team from California.

St. X wins as a team and loses as a team. I respect that you declined to comment on play calling because “I really can't comment. I am not a coach.” I am all for complimenting quality play of individuals, but does not the comment “I expected to see the same from Neal and McMurray” fall into a similar category as your comment about play calling?

Was the lack of impact from Neal and McMurray as much do to the defense of Cincy St. X rather than to the efforts of these individuals? How much difference does it make if Louisville St. X is blowing the other team off of the line? How often is St. X dominated on the line? Usually, Louisville St. X can wear down another team and control the line. What about the speed of Cincy St. X’s defensive backs? How much does the St. X play calling have to do with the outcome? Can St. X succeed against teams like Cincy St. X primarily running the ball?--not only just running the ball, but also being very predictable on where and how they run the ball? How much also comes into play psychologically when St. X is not use to playing a team like Cincy St. X?

X and Trinity play at another level compared to local schools, but Louisville is not the center of the football world.

Well said. Highlands' team this year may be one of the best yet, but why don't they schedule games with X and Trinity every year?

That is something to build upon. I would not underrate it. Trinity is playing the toughest schedule in the state of KY I would bet.

Should be a great game. When the discussion was about Trinity and Manual playing Ohio teams this weekend, I didn’t realize that they were both playing in Ohio. St. X should benefit by home field advantage. Trinity is playing a tough schedule this year.

No, they are not related.

Noticed in the paper that Butler did not throw the ball much last week, maybe only four times. Is Lucas playing quarterback? If he is, is he not capable of throwing more passes?

I agree. Don't know when the points were put up, but does Manual have talent in their sophomore class?

Excellent point. "Batting averages" are very relative to the type of pitching faced. This is true in Kentucky. But also, position players in this part of the country have a lot harder time getting looks, partly because the type of pitching that batters face in Florida, California, and Texas is much tougher.

Everything said about Littrell is true. Taking it a step further, with his command of off-speed, that 88 mph fastball looks a lot faster. He can throw three pitches for strikes in any part of the count. This keeps batters off-balance so much more. He can start out the at bat with several effective off-speed pitches. Too, colleges (and pros) love left-handers--especially 6'3"-6'4" like Littrell is.

Although a different position and a different body frame, DeVontae Beach needs to be mentioned. Beach is a "beast."

I would encourage a regular series between St. X and Highlands.

I have not seen Hageman play, but would love to. I've heard a lot about him. I've never seen a ball fly out of a pitcher's hand like it does with Trevor Gott. He seems to creat torque with his body unlike anyone I've seen before. He has, however, gotten by on overpowering batters. His off-speed pitches are underdeveloped. If he would learn to throw a better breaking ball and change-up, he could be a drafted in the top few rounds of the MLB draft. He also creates a lot of torque with his body with the bat. For his size, he can hit with a lot of power.

I bet, though, that Trinity will be doing a lot of learning and making a lot of adjustments so that they will be tough by the end of the year.

Corey Littrell.

This is why, I believe, Friday Night Lights was first written.

I had no idea the difference between the size of schools in the two states.

I have definitely thought about this for college scholarships--the coach can basically leave at anytime, but the student cannot do so without penalty (except to transfer down in division). But this is a great idea. Why not give the student and family one redo. Maybe the high school choice didn't go the way that they planned, that the fit wasn't as good as they perceived before the student started school.

Yes, Jim Bunning has been in the news a lot lately. I had the pleasure of meeting him. It's amazing that he played in the majors for 17 years and the records he set. I knew he was born in Northern Kentucky, but I thought that he went to school in Ohio.

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I agree with Parkway. I think it is interesting to try to understand the KHSAA rules. In the KHSAA handbook, a bona fide change in residence is an acceptable reason for transfer. However, in Bylaw 6, section 3,under “Specific Restrictions Resulting in Denial of Waiver” the KHSAA states “Satisfying of one of the exceptions (in this case a bona fide change in residence) shall not be considered valid and a waiver of the period of ineligibility shall not be granted:…. c) If the change in schools is motivated in whole or part by a desire to participate in athletics at the new school.”