Kingfish Stevens

If Selby doesn't play, it will remove Boyd County from serious contention in the district.

Cubster is, as usual, correct.

Check out the scores when one school's "potential" actually plays the other school's "potential". Ashland cleaned Rose Hill in the second half of the varsity game last year at Ashland. That is past history. Rose Hill, led by 9th graders and 8th graders, beat Ashland's junior varsity in the preliminary game. We can't compare the two freshman teams because they didn't play anjd we all know why. Rose Hill's 7th grade team beat Ashland's 7th grade team and Ashland's 8th grade team each time the teams played last year. RH's 8th grade team was its 7th grade team. Ashland's braintrust won't allow any Ashland elementary teams to play RH and that has been their policy for several years. Does anyone really wonder why? When we look at what is coming, I would say that it is clearly more than "potential", don't you think? As I said earlier, I look for Ashland to win the 64th District this coming season. I base it on the fact that the tournament will be played at Ashland and that Ashland still has Matt Thomas (Who is still, by the way, a favorite with RH people). Where is my analysis wrong?

Boys, I believe we could save a lot of time if we just admit the obvious truth. Ashland people still despise Rose Hill and it has just intensified since Mayo left. Now that Rose Hill appears to be on the rise and Ashland appears to be in a downward spiral, the hate will merely increase. If you doubt this, check out the accomplishments of both schools's younger, but soon varsity, teams particularly when Ashland teams are forced to play Rose Hill. It isn't very pretty for the boys in maroon. And, of course, the feelings from Rose Hill toward Ashland are mutual since they believe that Ashland has spent and continues to spend almost as much time trying to badmouth and undermine Rose Hill as they do building their own program. Neither school is "without sin". There is no mutual love, trust, or respect and anyone who spends time trying to bring peace would have more success with the Arabs and Israelis. And, as a partisan, I must admit that I enjoy it wholeheartedly.

Somehow, I would have to believe playing in national tournaments against the best from all parts of the country is a "bit" bigger than playing in the 64th District. As for the caliber of players involved in AAU, while your team is loaded with talented players, so is the opposition. Otherwise, they wouldn't be there. The 64th District of the last few years is less than mediocre at best and, when compared to the top AAU teams, extremely poor. Remember, no 64th District team has even won the region since Rose Hill did so in 2003 and the odds are strongly against it this coming season. But, since I am no fan of Ashland, I hope their "leaders" continue to believe that they don't need AAU exposure. I applaud their stance.

There would clearly be less false, baseless, and harrassment complaints if you had to stand up and state your case rather than being able to hid in the shadows. It is too easy to cause a rival problems and some tend to keep a hotline open to KHSAA. If you must display your complaint in the light of day, you would be much more likely to have some concrete evidence before you act. Otherwise, all we have is a few valid complaints and a lot of spineless tattle tails and trouble makers. It just seems that due process would require such an approach.

I would venture to say that Euton and Jackson have played in far more "big" games than anyone else in the 64th District. Of course, the EC boys have played in many such games. I think those who play AAU at a high level progress far more from that experience than they do from playing high school ball. As for Ashland, I believe the consolidation of Coles and Putnam into first Coles-Putnam and then into Verity has really hurt the program. Also, I have always heard that Ashland is not particularly "AAU friendly" and that has hurt.

Any school accused of wrongdoing should be informed as to who made the accusation. If the alleged "whistleblowers" were identified so that they could be held accountable for their acts, there would be a lot less complaints filed with KHSAA. I'm not saying this is a frivilous claim but, the process, as now practiced, makes it too easy to cause a rival problems. If we merely want the truth, why would we not include the possibility that the accuser is merely trying to cause problems for another school? It has happened. All should be accountable and, if the complaint is found to be baseless, the accusing school (assuming the complaining party can be tied to a particular school) should be punished. That would serve to somewhat "level" that playing field.

No. I don't think Ashland has the talent to win the region this year. I am saying that they have more talent this year than they will have next year or for several years thereafter. Of course, a few relocations and/or foreign exchangers could change all of this but I am going on what is in the system now. As for Biggs, I believe he is a decent coach. They won't lose games because of him. When they lose it will be because they have less talent. It is amazing just how smart coaches look when they have talent. A poor coach with good talent will beat a good coach with poor talent. For example, I can remember when Mays was seen as a lesser coach in the region. All of a sudden, he looks much more able. What changed? The talent level.

I would think it would depend upon the quality of your experience and the quality of your potential. Elliott County has a measure of both. While they are not likely to be a threat for the state championship, they must be considered the odds on favorite in the region.

What does "season out" mean? The available talent will clearly decrease next year and thereafter. If Biggs can compete for a regional title in the next few years after this coming season, he will be a magician worthy of a major contract in Las Vegas.

All the Ashland posters seem to be big on Biggs. Will they feel the same way in March?

Unfortunately, he did. I think I can safely say that none of the others I mentioned would have done so. Those guys had too much pride in their programs to use such a transparent excuse.

After reviewing the Class 4-A competition in the area, I fully understand why Ashland is hoping to move down a notch. Nonetheless, Ashland has a proud tradition in football going back many years. That tradition was built by coaches like Jimmy Anderson, Fayne Grone, Rex Miller, Jake Hallum, and Herb Conley. All of these guys welcomed tough competition from all around. They didn't seek to play weaker competition when the going was rough. Consequently, it should be disappointing to all true Ashland fans to hear the present coach using the excuse that the school is just six students over the Class 4-A limit. The tradition was not built on making excuses for poor performance. It doesn't enhance one's perception of the coach.

Excellent.

Wow. Was that before or after the Coolidge Administration?

Excellent.

Final. It sounded like an old American Football League game. Has Ashland ever given up that many points in a game before tonight?

Dickie said Ashland will remember this game. I'll bet so. The first half can't be a pleasant experience. Shoot, I picked Ashland in an upset. Good thing there is no money riding on that prediction.

I am surprised. I was under the impression that your boys have played together in the elementary grades, at Verity in the 7th and 8th grades, and as 9th graders at the high school. In fact, I saw those teams play a couple of games last year. Could it be that I am mistaken and didn't really see what I thought I saw? Anyway, I did see on multiple occasions, a group of 7th graders from another school beat both Verity's 7th and 8th grade teams back to back on the same evening. Maybe the Verity uniforms were worn by imposters and, if so, I better understand your post.

Much more realistic analysis.

I would agree with you that Conley and Hallum are considered two of the best coaches from this area. On the other hand, I have seen the adjective "great" applied to Hart and his coaching ability and I am merely pointing out that such a description is not applicable in his case. Of course,"great" is used so indiscriminately on BGP that it has come to have no real significant meaning.

Ashland was the last area team to have five D-1 players on the same team. That was in 1961 and actually there were six since Dale Sexton, the sixth man, played a couple of years at Morehead. Elliott County is a good team. However, they will never accomplish what that Ashland team accomplished. EC may win the 16th Region but they are not a threat to advance very far in Rupp Arena. The 1961 Ashland team won the state championship easily and also beat the state champions of Ohio, West Virginia, and Georgia. No Sixteenth Region team has ever come close to that Ashland team. If Rose Hill had kept all of its talent, it could have done so possibly for a couple of years. However, as we all know, and as we are often reminded, that was not the case.

Who played for Ashland in 1996?

Golden Gopher, we all are aware of your loyalty to Ashland and its schools. However, even in light of that, you surely don't believe what is contained in your post. Teachers and parents in your beloved system certainly tell a different story. I see a lot of Ashland students in juvenile court. On the other hand, it is rare for me to see any from Rose Hill or Holy Family. I'm not knocking your schools. I am merely being realistic. By their very nature, government schools will always have more and more serious problems than will private schools. And, as to the morals vs. ethics issue, if you really believe it holds "no water", you are uninformed and, I suspect, you know better. Still, you are one of the parties "interested" in the motivation of families for sending their children to RH. All I did was to give you a few of the reasons. Now, I again ask, why do you care? I suspect you are aware of how RH's younger athletes have fared against your kids in the last four or five years (even in middle school football) and you are, shall we say, "concerned". Am I not correct?