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Inside South-Central Kentucky Football During each week of the year, Inside South-Central Kentucky Football will look at some of the teams from the greater Bowling Green area, and will include the following teams: Allen County-Scottsville, Barren County, Bowling Green, Franklin-Simpson, Glasgow, Greenwood, South Warren, Warren Central, and Warren East. The area will provide a healthy mix of teams with high expectations following successful years last year and teams looking to rebound from down seasons. And in one lonely case, a team that continues to struggle to gain a handle on winning. The belle of the ball is obviously Bowling Green. The Purples return 15 starters, all of them one-way players in the two platoon system. They have the longest current win streak in the state at 30, with an eye on taking down the state record of 50 wins next season. They are the dominant favorite in 5A, and may well cause the top spot in the South-Central Kentucky rankings I will release each week to be a mere formality. The loss of five coaches from an always great staff is the only possible concern. Warren Central does not have nearly the amount of returning starters that Bowling Green has, but what they do return should keep them in the mix at the top of 5A. They will have to deal with an all-new offensive line and having to move their best wide receiver into a quarterback, but still return several weapons that will give them the leg up on almost every team they play. The Dragons will more closely resemble their 2009 team which featured more quarterback runs to take advantage of senior QB Chris Porter-Bunton’s athleticism. After those two we find two teams that will immediately tell us which one is better, as they will line up against each other in the opening game. Warren East will be fairly hard to recognize from the team that was a game away from the state title game in 2012. They replace 22 seniors, their head coach, and their previous QB to a transfer. Veteran coach Steve Long will take the reins of the Raiders, and he’ll have arguably the premier player in the area as his ace on the field, junior Vanderbilt commit RB/LB Eli Brown. They’ll visit South Warren to open the 2013 campaign. Last year the Spartans gave Warren East all they could handle in a close 14-10 decision in that season’s opener, and this year’s edition will be the first chance for our rankings to get shaken up. The Spartans have been building to this year since the inception of the program, and like Warren East, they have an ace on the field in every game. That’s large and in charge senior DL Adrian Middleton, a monster on the field and Kentucky commit. The Spartans are a sleeper to make some significant noise on a statewide scale in 3A. Glasgow is two years removed from a state runner-up finish, and they return the type of team that will threaten to go back. With 31 upperclassmen, 17 seniors, and 15 returning starters, the Scotties are locked and loaded as the favorites in their district and region. At this point, Scottie fans are forgiven for peeking westward at what may be their greater challenge in the larger scheme of things, 2A favorite Caldwell County, a potential state semifinal opponent. Following those five, we have a potentially unknown quantity at this point. Greenwood has a new coach, one of the departed Bowling Green staff Chris Seabolt. Seabolt will have the services of senior QB Josh Dyer, a 2300 yard passer a year ago. But with some new wrinkles in the offense and a new defensive scheme, we may not have a read on the Gators until they get a few games under their belt. They do enter the season off of a 2012 campaign that featured their most regular season wins ever. Two teams that are looking to regain the glory of just a few years ago are Franklin-Simpson and Allen County-Scottsville. Franklin-Simpson played for the 4A state championship in 2011, but struggled in 2012 following the loss of most of their weapons from the 2011 edition and their head coach. New HC Doug Preston’s Wildcats limped to a 3-8 record that saw them win only two games against Kentucky competition. That year’s pain was this year’s gain as they return 17 starters in their attempt to climb back into competition. Allen County-Scottsville has experienced similar hardship, rolling to the 2010 4A state finals where they dropped a close 21-14 decision to Boyle County, but turning in only 4 and 3 wins in the last two years en route to a pair of first round losses. The Patriots will look to 13 seniors and 10 returning starters to take them back to the promised land. Which brings us to Barren County. The Trojans began the 2012 season with a 28-0 shutout win against Metcalfe County, but would drop their next 9 games by an average of nearly 30 points per game, only coming within a TD a single time – a 21-20 loss to Logan County that ended their playoff hopes. That ended a run of five straight playoff appearances for the Trojans. They will have a shot at returning to the playoffs, but they will be hard pressed to add their first playoff win since 1992, or their first winning record since 2000. South-Central Kentucky Rankings 1) Bowling Green 2) Warren Central 3) Warren East 4) South Warren 5) Glasgow 6) Greenwood 7) Franklin-Simpson 8) Allen County-Scottsville 9) Barren County

Last year the Purples featured a team that only returned four starters following their triumphant 2011 season. Everyone knew they would still put out a typically strong team, but 2012 was viewed as a window of opportunity, a time when maybe a team's best shot could knock Bowling Green off the mountaintop. The Purples responded with an emphatic "YOU MISSED." Bowling Green ran the table again to push their win streak to 30 straight wins, which included their second win in two years over vaunted St. X. That Bowling Green is the premier program in western Kentucky is a given. But the whispers around the state have now grown much louder that the Purples rather than the Tigers or even a certain program in northern Kentucky might be backing up Trinity for supremacy in Kentucky football. The Purples enter 2013 with 15 returning starters, including 9 on the offensive side of the ball. Four returning senior linemen will protect 2500 yard passer Devin Hayes who will look for All-BluegrassPreps.com WR and recent WKU commit Nacarius Fant. 1,000 yard rusher Blue Tisdale also returns to lead the rushing corps, as will speedster Blake Pillow who supplied last year's highlight on a hook and lateral TD to rescue the Purples against John Hardin. The Purples will have a little more work to do on the defensive side of the ball with 5 starters absent, including the entire D-Line. They'll also be without new Boone County head coach Jeff Griffith, who served as the architect of the Purple defense for the last decade. Veteran coach Mark Spader will step up to fill the defensive coordinator vacancy, and the Purples should still feature that strong "Jungle D" that shows off their talented LB corps, led by All-BluegrassPreps.com LB Lincoln Quick. Bowling Green also returns all but one member of a secondary that led 5A in passing defense last year. For 2013 the Purples beef up an already challenging schedule, and they have proven willing to travel to do so. They have added two games against Tennessee powers, hosting Blackman out of Murfreesboro and traveling to McCallie School in Chatanooga. They also maintain out of district games against Kentucky titans like St. X, Lexington Catholic, and Owensboro. Their visit to St. X on September 6th in particular is a definite “circle the calendar” game for fans of the teams and casual fans alike. The Purples’ schedule features no out of district games against teams that are within 70 miles of Bowling Green. That probably owes to the fact that they've only lost three games since 2004 to teams within that range - only one was out of district and that was in the postseason. Bowling Green’s largest test in-district should come from rival Warren Central, but the Purples have re-asserted their dominance over the Dragons following losses in 2009 & 2010 to the tune of 23 PPG margins of victory in their four meetings of 2011 & 2012. In all, the Purples have won 50 of their last 52 district games. In short, the Purples are poised to take on all-comers this season with a veteran and dominant squad. In the eyes of many it's really less a question of whether they'll be state champions for the third straight year, but rather by how much along the way, and whether they will again be unbeaten. Another 15-0 campaign would take them into the following year with 45 straight wins, staring down history. Players To Watch Nacarius Fant - WR - 5'10", 174 lbs - Senior - Fant is worth the price of admission all by himself. The electrifying wideout is not necessarily the fastest WR you'll ever see, but you may never see one with better hands or that is more elusive. Nacarius has a knack for simply not being there when the defense goes to tackle him. He'll catch virtually everything thrown to him. He notched 1,250 receiving yards and 18 TDs in his junior campaign, but also rushed for a TD and was 2/3 passing. It was good enough to earn him a spot on the All-BluegrassPreps.com team. Devin Hayes - QB - 6'2", 175 lbs - Senior - Hayes compiled an impressive 2,544 yards passing with 38 TDs in his junior campaign, his first as a starter. While not the runner his predecessor Scooter Hollis was, Hayes is a more polished passer that stands in the pocket with confidence and rarely makes an errant throw. Like Hollis, Hayes is being courted by the Ivy League to play football, and was one of 36 players selected to attend the NFL Wharton Sports Leadership Program which recognizes student-athlete success both on the field and in the classroom. Blue Tisdale - RB - 6'1", 185 lbs - Senior - Tisdale is as comfortable running past you as he is running you over. A star on the basketball court as well, he's the old faithful of the BG offense. Hand him the ball, expect to get more than halfway to a first down. His 1,025 yards rushing may seem low, but that is a byproduct of the balanced and powerful Purple offense. If they so desired, he could easily be a 2,000 yard back. Lincoln Quick - LB - 6'2", 205 lbs - Senior - Quick will be a three year starter his senior year, the defensive anchor spanning the talented Class of 2012 with the Class of 2014. Offenses may find themselves thinking there are three of him as he is everywhere on the field. Bowling Green's "Jungle D" is perfectly suited to a linebacker like Quick who shoots through the gaps so that quarterbacks and running backs find themselves facing him before they've even had a chance to think about their next move. Lincoln compiled 69 solo and 27 assisted tackles last year, good enough to be the leading returning player by nearly 40 tackles.

The 2012 season was an historic one for the Warren East Raiders. They set the school mark for wins in a row at 13. They completed not only the first undefeated regular season in school history, but also became the first school in the Warren County Public School system to ever accomplish that feat. The only black mark on the season was the resounding thud it ended in - a 58-7 drubbing by Collins in the state semifinals. The Raiders will be looking to wipe that taste out of their mouths in the 2013 season. They'll also be looking to a new head coach to lead them to their ultimate goal of not only reaching the state championship game, but winning it as well. Ben Bruni stepped down as head coach of the Raiders following 8 years that saw them win the first two region titles in school history. He was the third longest tenured coach in program history, finished with the second most wins, and compiled the best win percentage of any coach at Warren East ever. Following that pedigree is a tall task but the Raiders pulled in a man with an impressive history of his own. New HC Steve Long spent 18 years from 1977-1995 at Bowling Green as an assistant coach, the last seven as associate head coach and defensive coordinator, culminating with the 1995 state championship. He has worked as head coach at Allen County-Scottsville and been on the staff at Warren East as defensive coordinator the past two seasons. He provides continuity to the program and a strong track record of winning - just the man the Raiders need. The Raiders lost 22 seniors from last season, including big two way lineman Mitchell Cook and wideout Chase Bryant, the team's leading receiver last year. They also must cope with the loss of QB Jimmy Burns, a 2100 yard passer that moved to Butler County during the offseason. But the cupboard is far from bare for Warren East. Leading the way will be stud RB/LB Eli Brown, an all-state selection in his sophomore season and a recent Vanderbilt commit. He'll be the best player on the field in every foreseeable game the Raiders will play this year, a huge advantage to have. The key to Warren East's success in 2013 may be new QB Austin Pagel. He has the big shoes to fill with the loss of Burns and his ability to run the new Warren East offense may be the difference in improving on last year's strong run. Pagel did not throw a single pass for the Raiders last year, nor did any player on the roster this season. The 2013 schedule features a few tweaks from that of the past two years, but continues to have a balance of strong opponents with expected wins. The toughest game on the schedule may be the very first game when they take on the South Warren Spartans. This game was part of Bowling Green's Rafferty's Bowl the past two years, but this year the teams will keep the gate themselves, moving to a home and home affair, starting out at South Warren. The Spartans are led by recent UK commit DL Adrian Middleton, and are expected to be a top 10 team in 3A. Warren East will also continue their series against Monroe County, which after South Warren provided them their closest test of the 2012 regular season, with the Raiders escaping with a 26-18 win. But both of those are returning opponents. The highlight of the new games is a trip to 6A Meade County. The Green Wave is notoriously tough to handle at home, and had several strong showings in 2012 in close losses to Henderson County, Warren Central, and Collins - who they lost to by only 7 in contrast to the 51 the Raiders fell by. In-district, the toughest tests should as always come from Allen County-Scottsville and Franklin-Simpson. Each of those teams advanced to state finals in the last three seasons, and have historically been thorns in Warren East's side, last year notwithstanding. With the loss of Lone Oak on the other side of the playoff bracket, maintaining dominance over District 2 is key for the Raiders' postseason hopes by postponing a potential matchup with expected region favorite Owensboro until the finals. The 2013 season will be about maintaining momentum in the program. They came from 17 wins in 7 seasons to 55 in 8, but they never could accomplish what their district mates did in reaching a state title game. Coach Long will be looking to check that box right out of the gate. Players To Watch Eli Brown – RB/LB - 6'2", 190 lbs - Junior – You and a whole lot of other people will have your eyes on Eli Brown. He verbally committed to Vanderbilt during the summer to clear his recruiting prior to the season, but a host of coaches may not be ready to give up on the long and athletic Brown. As a two way player and the team leader on both sides of the ball, there will be few if any plays that his fingerprints are not on. Austin Pagel – QB – 6’0”, 178 lbs – Senior – His first pass of 2013 will be the 10th one he has thrown in a varsity game since the second game of 2011. He’s an unknown quantity at this point with a career line of 4/9, 38 yards passing, but it can be argued that no player will be more important to the Raiders. Josh Yoebstl – DL – 6’0”, 187 lbs – Junior – Yoebstl will be a co-leader on defense with Brown. He turned in a strong sophomore campaign when he recorded 79 tackles and 6.5 sacks.

If you thought Glasgow would not come close in 2012 to duplicating the success they had in 2011, you were not alone. The Scotties went a sparkling 14-1 in 2011 en route to a state runner-up finish, but lost almost all of their top players and production from that year. On top of that, they only rostered five seniors for the 2012 campaign. But Coach Rick Wood and Glasgow proved their mettle by capturing their district again on the way to an 8-2 regular season, and raised hopes so high that it came as a disappointment when they fell 10-2 to DeSales in the 2A Region 2 finals. Ultimately, Glasgow's only three losses came to teams that reached the state semifinals. And so the yo-yo of expectations swings up again and Glasgow is thinking state finals once again. And this time they'll aim to finish the job they fell short of in 2011. The Scotties will field a veteran and experienced team for the 2013 season. Their roster boasts 31 upperclassmen, 17 of them seniors. They return 15 starters including their starting QB, top four rushers, most of their receiving corps, and six of their seven leading tacklers. In short, these guys have seen plenty of action. Senior QB Ryan Hinkley did not pass often last year, compiling only 782 yards and nine TDs, but will provide a steady hand leading the offense. he'll be greatly aided by a pair of 1,200 yard backs, junior Marquez Trigg and senior Quentel Bradley. Trigg saw 178 carries and Bradley toted it 179 times, by far the most on the team. They are a pair of dangerous runners and give great balance to Glasgow. Protecting Hinkley's dropbacks and opening up the lanes for Trigg and Bradley will be four returning offensive linemen from 2012 that are large and in charge. The Scotties will average at least 260 lbs on the line. Leading the defensive corps will be senior LB Connor Glass, the second leading tackler in 2012 for Glasgow with 51 solos. Three of the front four on the defensive line return, led by senior DT Aaron Witty (44 solo tackles) and senior DE Ben Furlong (41 solo tackles). In all, the defense returns seven starters to a unit that allowed 12 points and less than 200 yards per game in 2012. The 2013 Glasgow schedule is very similar to the edition from the previous two years, featuring 7 games against 2012 opponents. They open the season by hosting Hart County in the TJ Samson Bowl, a bowl game co-hosted with Barren County and played at Glasgow this year. The Scotties also step way up in class, visiting 6A Seneca on October 4th. But 4 games stand out on the schedule the same way they did the past two years. Glasgow will visit long-time rival Allen County-Scottsville on September 13th, always an entertaining game. They'll get another crack at powers 2A Somerset and 3A Monroe County, two of their losses from a year ago, the following two weeks. That all leads to their toughest district game, at Green County on October 18th. Last season the Scotties surprised some by knocking off the Dragons 25-16 in Glasgow. This year the Scotties will not have the advantage of home field, but to them that just means they'll get to crush Green County's district hopes in front of the Dragon crowd this time around. 2013 has very much the same feel as 2011 in Glasgow. A large senior class, tons of returning starters, a better than expected showing the previous year. They'll likely even have the same skepticism they faced in 2011, living in the shadow of a more heralded team to the west, with Caldwell County likely to be the pick of most to reach the state finals. The Scotties may just have a surprise for them come Black Friday. Nothing that comes before should be a surprise to anyone. Players To Watch Marquez Trigg - RB/DB - 5'11", 190 lbs - Junior - Trigg is the co-star of the Scotties for now, and will take full ownership off the star role in 2014 when he's a senior. Trigg amassed a staggering 21 touchdowns in 2012 to add to his 1,212 yards, averaging just shy of 7 yards per carry. Quentel Bradley - RB/DB - 5'10", 165 lbs - Senior - He may be slight in size, but that doesn't mean he's easy to bring down. It's not uncommon to see Bradley drag a defender or two for some extra yards, or simply run them over and continue on his way. Oh, and he's more than fast enough to simply run around them too. Milas Norris - WR/LB - 6'2", 185 lbs - Senior - Norris is the leading returning receiver for the Scotties, leading the team in receptions last year while coming in at #2 in terms of receiving yards. He'll have a large impact on defense too where he notched 34 tackles from his linebacker position, sometimes also lining up as more of a defensive end. Matt Boston - C - 6'2", 270 lbs - Senior - Boston was selected as a 2nd team AP All-State lineman in 2012, and will anchor the veteran Scottie offensive line.

Series History: Hopkinsville Leads 11-3 Series at Warren Central: Hopkinsville Leads 5-3 It's finally football season, and for Hopkinsville it starts in the exact same place that their last season came to a close, at Warren Central. This time it's a regular season matchup in the Rivals Bowl, a bowl co-hosted by the Dragons and Greenwood, who will play in the first game. The Dragons have won two straight against Hopkinsville, eliminating them from the playoffs the last two years, including a 48-10 score last season. But in a bit of an anomaly, the Dragons have never won a regular season matchup with the Tigers. They're 3-2 in the playoffs against Hoptown, but have been blanked 9-0 in regular season meetings, the last coming in 2008, a 27-25 Hopkinsville victory. Both teams come in looking to improve on relatively disappointing campaigns in 2013. For Hopkinsville, they are continuing the slow road back to the program that they once were, and limped to a 4-7 record last season. But even that was an improvement from a 3-7 campaign the year before, and it wasn't so long ago that they suffered a 14 game losing streak. In their scrimmage they showed well against Owensboro, a team that is coming off a state semifinal appearance in 4A. Perhaps respectability is on the way, and a win in this first game would be another huge step. Warren Central, meanwhile, finished 6-6 last season, failing to make the region finals for the first time since 2009. There are a lot of familiar faces on the field returning, but almost none on the sidelines. Only Carlos Quarles returns from the previous Warren Central staff, and new coach Howard Feggins has brought a completely new offensive system and philosophy. With that, came new coaches, including former UK head coach Guy Morriss, recently added as OL coach. Last season started on the wrong foot with an ugly loss to Madisonville North-Hopkins, but the Dragons had a strong showing against perennial power John Hardin in their scrimmage. This game is a bit of a must win as far as the record goes, as it will only get more difficult from here.

The last two years for Allen County-Scottsville have been challenging to say the least. From 2008-2010 the Patriots made three straight region title games, compiled a 33-6 record, all culminating in a run to the 2010 4A state championship game. The past two years have brought no playoff wins and lost more games in each individual year than they did combined in 2008-2010. The 2012 season was not without positives. The Patriots had a strong win against surging 3A South Warren. They battled 2A power Glasgow to the wire and gave another 2A power Monroe County all they wanted in a loss on the road. Most importantly, the Patriots knocked off district rival Franklin-Simpson to gain a home playoff game and moving back up the ladder towards the top spot in the district that they consider their rightful home. Coach Brad Hood will enter his eighth season at the helm, and he will look to 13 seniors that have been in the program for four years to lead the team back to the promised land. The Patriots return five starters on each side of the ball, possibly none more important than senior RB Charlie Trapp. Trapp averaged 5.4 YPC in his junior campaign, gaining 664 yards and 6 TDs along with adding 226 yards and a TD receiving out of the backfield. He’ll be the bell cow, as no other Patriot runner returns that carried the ball more than 22 times. Those 22 rushes came from junior QB Colton Oakes, who will take the helm of the offense from departed seniors Kasey Johnson and Connor Ross. Those two combined for 86% of all passing yards for the Patriots last year, but Oakes did start a pair of crucial district games against Franklin-Simpson and Warren East last year, and threw for 164 yards and a TD on the year. His development will be crucial to Allen County-Scottsville’s success on the year. Protecting Oakes and blocking for Trapp will be a veteran offensive line, the deepest at Allen County-Scottsville since the seminal 2010 season. The Patriots return three starters, RG Michael Burton, RT Gabe Whitney, and LT Elijah Perea. The line was almost even more experienced, but two year starter at LG Jordan Keen was lost to an ACL tear during spring ball. The Patriot aerial attack will be aided by the return of leading receiver senior Jacob Howard. Howard accounted for a little over 25% of all receiving yards for the Patriots a year ago, and nearly half of their receiving TDs with 4. Howard is also the primary playmaker on kickoff and punt returns. Defensively, the Patriots will have the tough task of replacing all-purpose player Austin York, who led the team in tackles in addition to handling punting duties. The Patriots additionally lost their #2 and #3 leaders in tackles from a year ago and return no starters on the defensive line. The Patriots return a pair of linebackers in seniors Tanner Mutter and Wes Cornwell that combined for 101 tackles in 2012. The linebacking corps should also be bolstered by two way player junior OLB/WR Jordan Moss, who is anticipated to have a big impact on the defense. Allen County-Scottsville also returns almost their entire secondary with junior CB Cainan Cox, senior CB Caleb Vernon, and senior S Gage Link. Cainan Cox was co-leader on the team for interceptions in 2012 alongside Tanner Mutter. The Patriot 2013 schedule is a half and half mix of new and old faces. To open the year, Allen County-Scottsville will play Mercer County, a rematch from a year ago in Boyle County’s bowl game. This time, it will take place on the field that every team in Kentucky hopes to be playing on in December, at WKU’s LT Smith Stadium as part of Bowling Green’s Rafferty’s Bowl. They will then meet Greenwood, which returns to the schedule after a two year hiatus that followed a four year stretch where the teams split 2-2 in their matchups. In mid-September comes the customary rivalry game against Glasgow. Outside of a 4 year span from 1999-2002, the two teams have played every year since 1997. Glasgow has won two straight, including last year’s heartbreaker 7-6. The season closes with the same 4 game stretch as 2012, when the Patriots go through the crucial games against their three district foes. The schedule does them no favors there as they will have to travel to the two teams that are their biggest competition in striving for the district title, Franklin-Simpson and district favorite Warren East. Their regular season closes with another staple of the schedule when they host Monroe County. 2001-2004 were the only years in Monroe County’s history that the two schools did not meet, with the Patriots trailing the series 16-8. Players To Watch Charlie Trapp – RB – 5’7”, 200 lbs – Senior - Trapp will be heavily leaned on to carry the offense, especially as the new quarterback develops. He’s a compact but explosive player. Tanner Mutter – OLB – 5’10”, 190 lbs – Senior - Mutter is the leading returning tackler for the Patriots, with 32 solos and 7.5 tackles for loss in 2012. He was also a team leader in INTs with a pair. He’ll be counted on even more this year to marshal the defense. Wes Cornwell – MLB – 6’1”, 225 lbs – Senior - Cornwell looks the part more than some of the other Patriots with a little more typical height and weight for the linebacker position. Last year he did a little bit of everything, forcing two fumbles, blocking a kick, and hauling in one INT to go with 18 solo tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss.

Entering their third year as a varsity program, South Warren has thus far met or exceeded every goal they have set for themselves. In 2011, their goal was to make the playoffs in their first season. Check. In 2012, their goal was to host a home playoff game. Not only did they meet that goal, they won that game for their first postseason victory and won a second to advance to the region finals, far exceeding expectations. And so they find themselves entering 2013 with loftier goals than ever. Their senior class began the South Warren football program, which fielded only JV/Freshman teams in 2010. They are the forerunners of the Spartan program and they will seek to leave a lasting legacy at South Warren, a legacy that includes a regional title. Head Coach Mark Nelson will enjoy a team that will boast the most experience and talent yet in the short Spartan history. He'll have the services of senior QB Jay Eblen, a dual-threat who will be in his third year starting under center. Also returning are the two primary ball carriers from 2012, seniors Drew Wilken and Joel Iyiegbuniwe. Wilken is the leading returning rusher in terms of per carry average and Iyiegbuniwe has generated interest from several colleges this offseason, including an offer from hometown team WKU. Protecting Eblen and opening the running the lanes are three returning interior linemen, all seniors. Defensively South Warren will have the services of the recruiting jewel of the team, recent UK commit Adrian Middleton. Middleton checks in at a healthy 6'4", 275 lbs. Middleton is one of the few Spartans that does not play on both sides of the ball, so he remains fresh to blow up the interior of the offensive line. If he is not double teamed, good luck keeping him out of the backfield. Another defensive standout returning is ILB Cody Chaffin, the team leader in tackles in 2012 with 78 solos and 47 assists. Wilken will also return to shore up the linebacking corps, while Eblen and Iyiegbuniwe will see time in the secondary. South Warren's 2013 schedule sees a few slight tweaks from a year ago, with one very significant rival added. The Spartans will continue their rivalry with Warren East in the season opener, moving it from Bowling Green's bowl game at WKU to a home and home matchup, this year playing at South Warren. They'll also continue their series against close neighbors Logan County and Russellville. But the most significant pickups on the schedule are Daviess County and Greenwood. 6A Daviess County represents the largest school the Spartans have ever met on the field. Greenwood is the highlight of the schedule. South Warren was formed from a large portion of Greenwood, and many of these players played on the same middle school team, so the faces will be familiar. South Warren has enjoyed many successes that Greenwood did not attain for many years, and the Spartans will look to rub more salt in that wound with a victory in the first meeting between the schools. The schedule has a much greater balance between small schools and large schools than the first two years. This should help prepare the Spartans for their inevitable bump up as high as 5A following the 2015 realignment. In district play, the keystone game is their October 18th meeting with Monroe County. The Falcons are the one team the Spartans have been unable to solve, losing by an average of more than 27 PPG in their three meetings so far. That included an embarassing 41-0 loss at home last year in the de facto district championship game. With a pair of D1 recruits leading them, South Warren will be ready to ground the Falcons in 2013. Above all, 2013 is a window of opportunity for South Warren. They enjoy a significant enrollment advantage over the other 3A teams, with an enrollment that would actually place them among the largest 4A teams in the state. They will reap the benefits of one of the more experienced rosters in the state, with several three year starters on both sides of the ball. There will be added pressure to achieve even greater success before the window closes and they find themselves on a playing field with schools more their size. Players To Watch Adrian Middleton - DT - 6'4", 275 lbs - Senior - Kentucky commit Middleton is the monster of the team, the best player in the very short South Warren history. He only compiled 40 solo tackles last year, but every one of them was a highlight. It was not uncommon to find him charging through the line, reaching out with one arm, and flinging the quarterback to the ground with ease. Jay Eblen - QB/SS - 5'11", 180 lbs - Senior - Eblen is the general on the field for the Spartan offense, and their leading producer on the ground and through the air. Last year Eblen threw for 1,433 yards and 15 TDs in addition to racking up 700 yards and 12 TDs on the ground. Eblen is a scrambling quarterback, which can at times lead to trouble, but just as often keeps plays alive for much longer than they otherwise would, leading to open receivers downfield. In either case, he's entertaining as hell to watch. Joel Iyiegbuniwe - RB/FS - 6'2", 205 lbs - Senior - Iyiegbuniwe doesn't have a name that exactly rolls off the tongue (most call him by his nickname "Iggy") but you'll hear it often during a South Warren game. Iyiegbuniwe is the big play threat for the Spartans, be it on a kickoff, run around the end, or even when jumping a route on defense to take an interception back to the house. Look for the Spartans to get the ball in his hands often, preferably in the open field where he will blow by opposing defenses or just simply make them miss. Cody Chaffin - OLB - 6'1", 195 lbs - Senior - Cody is officially listed as a TE along with his linebacker duties, but sees very little time outside of his linebacker position. Which suits him just fine. Chaffin has a nose for the ball and there are very few defensive snaps you won't find him near the outcome or making the play.

You might not be aware of it, but Greenwood turned in one of their best seasons in school history last season. The Gators opened up the season 5-0, their best start and longest winning streak in school history. Their 8 wins were the most ever in the regular season for the program, and second most in a complete season despite falling in their first playoff game. The Gators averaged more points per game than any season before. But when you play in the shadow of a team like Bowling Green, a team that you haven't beaten in 21 all-time meetings, you tend to get overlooked. The Gators are annually faced with the challenge of not only overcoming Bowling Green, but Warren Central as well, a team that they are only a marginally better 3-17 against. Their new coach will bring with him a philosophy that begins with the base thought that they must believe they can compete to then move on to beating these two teams. And if they can beat those two, a world of possibilities unlocks. Chris Seabolt takes over as head coach at Greenwood from Greg Cavanaugh, who recently took a coordinator position in Portland (TN). Coach Seabolt comes from a program that knows a thing or two about entering every game believing they can and will win, having coached on the Bowling Green staff for the last three years, the last two as offensive line coach. Seabolt will bring with him two rings that are proof of what happens when you buy in to a program and philosophy. Prior to that he coached at Grayson County for 6 years, the last five as offensive coordinator and two as associate head coach. During that time, Grayson County saw a program renaissance that led to them hosting their first playoff game in 26 years and beating Warren Central twice, so he's no stranger to a program lifting itself to another level. Seabolt's goal for the season is to get the kids to buy into the way the coaches do things and to instill a blue collar, punch the clock atmosphere. Do that, and the wins will come. Greenwood will have to replace several strong players from 2012, chief among them #1 tailback Tanner Thompson and the team’s three leading tacklers, LB Dakota Madison, DL Josh Cavanaugh, and LB Isaiah Thomas Turner. Most of the secondary departs from the previous season as well. The biggest returning weapon is senior QB Josh Dyer, who passed for 2,332 yards and 25 TDs in his first season starting under center. Dyer has had a strong showing in the early 7 on 7s that Greenwood has competed in, and looks to be poised for a big year. Probably the only worry is who will he throw the ball to after the loss of his top 4 receivers. Also returning is two way player RB/LB Joey Hughes, the team’s leading rusher and the second leading returning player in tackles. Other notables include the leading returner in tackles ILB Stewart Windham, who notched 56 tackles in 2012, as well as DL Marquis Cornelius who will help clog the interior in the new 50 defense Seabolt is installing. The Gators have a dedicated but small senior class, which will place some added pressure on the large junior crop to fill some leadership roles on the team. Greenwood’s 2013 schedule is virtually identical to 2012. Their final seven games of the year are against the same opponents in the same weeks. 5A mate Hopkinsville moves from a third week bowl game in 2012 to the season opener in the Rivals Bowl, a bowl game jointly run by Greenwood and Warren Central that will be played at Greenwood this season. The Gators add Allen County-Scottsville back to the schedule after a two year absence, having played them previously from 2007-2010. The most significant addition is ready made rival South Warren, which was formed from roughly 40% of Greenwood’s population in 2010. This will be the first meeting of the two teams, and besides being the most exciting game of Greenwood’s non-district schedule, should prove to be the stiffest test. How serious is this game being taken? These two teams met in South Warren’s 7 on 7 tournament in mid-July and drew a very large, vocal crowd and at times moved from simple two hand touch to unsanctioned full contact. Both programs want that game, very much. The key district games remain a September 27th matchup at Warren Central and an October 25th showdown against Bowling Green at home. The Gators have not hosted a playoff game since 2009 and have had to take to the road in each of their first two years in 5A. If they hope to host one this year and avoid a potential trip to Christian County or Graves County, one of these two games is a must win. There’s a lot of excitement surrounding the Gator program as we approach the season. Coach Seabolt brings a winning mentality and culture to Greenwood. They are more concerned with the process than the wins and losses right now, but make no mistake, the pattern has shown that with Coach Seabolt involved, the wins will come sooner rather than later. Greenwood has all the tools to start winning at a higher level. Now they just need to do it. Players To Watch Josh Dyer – QB – 6’2”, 185 lbs – Senior – Dyer is the unquestioned leader of this year’s Gators. Dyer posted a 25:11 TD:INT ratio last season, and should continue to flourish in Greenwood’s spread option offense. As Dyer goes, so goes the Gator offense. Joey Hughes – RB/LB – 6’0”, 165 lbs – Senior – Joey had to suffer through a myriad of injuries and setbacks in his first two years that included a fractured back, but it was an injury to lead back Tanner Thompson that finally gave Hughes a chance to become the lead back on offense, posting a 5 YPC mark and leading the team with 8 TDs on the ground. He’s also the leading returning player in receiving yards. Stewart Windham – ILB – Junior – With the departure of Dakota Madison, Windham becomes the de facto leader on the defense, and should continue to establish a significant presence in the interior of the linebacker corps. An added bonus is that he is just a junior, which means the Gators will have a defensive anchor for the following year as well.

Over the past two years, the Dragons have established themselves as arguably one of the top 10 teams in the state regardless of class. They have played in three straight region title games, and have only one loss to a team in those three years that didn't play for a state title. Unfortunately for Warren Central, they have six losses to teams that did, and three of those losses prevented them from winning even a single region title during that time. In the last two years, the prevailing feeling on Morgantown Road is that Bowling Green prevented them from not only winning a region title, but a state title as well. This leaves Warren Central entering 2013 with many questions about what to do moving forward. They've seen a lot of success but they have not gotten to where they feel they are capable of going. They'll have a lot of gaps to fill as well in their quest to achieve those goals. Gone is the advantage of five senior lineman that the Dragons graduated last year. Gone is a three year starter at quarterback. And gone are their top two rushers. But enough about what Warren Central lost, what do they return? Their primary returning offensive weapon in their Wing-T offense is WB Rondell Green who averaged 8.3 YPC last season on 61 rushes. He'll likely be complimented on the opposite wing by junior Daryen Ross who posted 260 yards in limited work last season. The likely quarterback for Warren Central will be senior Chris Porter-Bunton, who has actually generated a fair amount of college interest as a wide receiver, the position he played primarily last season. With Porter-Bunton in the backfield, the Dragons will look more like the team featured in the first season under HC Mike Rogers when he came to Warren Central in 2009. That team threw much more sparingly but confused defenses with three speedy and talented backfield runners in addition to a bruising fullback. Porter-Bunton's mobility may help make up for an inexperienced line, especially in the early part of the season. Defensively the Dragons should return six starters, anchored by junior MLB Emmitt Smith and senior WLB Byron Carver. Of all the players on Warren Central's team, no player passes the eye test more than these two bruisers. They'll be called upon to tighten up a defense that allowed an average of 29.5 points in two games to Bowling Green last year, their only two losses. The Dragons have only once ever beaten Bowling Green when allowing that many points in a game. The 2013 schedule sees a fairly significant uptick in difficulty for the Dragons as they are beginning to experience a taste of what Bowling Green has been dealing with - no one close wants to play them. The Dragons had great difficulty finding a game for Week 10, so they were able to jump at the opportunity to play arguably the most tradition rich program in the state, the Highlands Bluebirds. Warren Central has also added games against 2A Semifinalist Louisville DeSales, traditional powers Owensboro and North Hardin, as well as an appearance against Boyle County in the Rebels' bowl game. This gauntlet may find Warren Central with a few more bumps and bruises as well as more entries in the loss column than the past few years. They're hoping that it will pay off in preparation for where they want to go. In-district the Dragons are the clear #2 team behind Bowling Green, and will be strongly favored in all games except that one. The game against Bowling Green is October 18th, two weeks before their matchup with Highlands. Few teams, if any, can boast of two games that challenging so close to each other. Few teams, if any, would WANT two games that challenging so close to each other. Warren Central remains confident that they can win a state title in 5A, but they will have to find a way to reach even the semifinals before they can truly be seriously considered a threat for the title. Will they ever be able to escape the Purple shadow of their "big brother"? Players To Watch Chris Porter-Bunton - QB/WR/FS - 6'4", 200 lbs - Senior - In a perfect world, Porter-Bunton would be playing in his more natural position of wide receiver rather than throwing the ball, but look for the Dragons to still look for ways to split him out wide. As QB, Central will look to take advantage of his athleticism and the greater opportunities provided by the ball being in his hands on almost every snap. Byron Carver - TE/OLB - 6'2", 230 lbs - Senior - Carver's size gives him a matchup advantage over most teams the Dragons will face, and should be the favorite passing target on the team. Last year he notched 374 yards and 8 TDs in an offense that threw sparingly. Defensively, the Dragons seek ways to get Carver matched 1 on 1 on the edge with offensive lineman, where his size and speed can yield maximum results. Emmitt Smith - MLB/FB - 6'3", 240 lbs - Junior - Emmitt Smith has half the battles won already. He has the frame of a football player, and he has a name synonymous with football. Smith has begun to generate some more interest in recruiting circles, and will be leaned on to continue the strong play he exhibited late last season to lift the Dragon defense. Smith also saw spot work at the fullback position in 2012, and may be called upon to carry the ball more this season. Rondell Green - WB/CB - 6'0", 180 lbs - Senior - After a strong sophomore campaign Green was expected to be the lead wing for the Dragons, but a hand injury kept him from carrying the ball as much as the Dragons would have liked last season. He still put up 507 yards rushing with 8 TDs on the ground, as well as hauling in 4 TD receptions and running one kickoff back for a score. Defensively, Green is the standout in the secondary where he notched 6 interceptions, one of which he took back for a score.

Series History: DeSales 1-0 Series at DeSales: First Meeting Both teams enter this matchup undefeated and highly ranked in their respective classes. It's a contrast from last season when Warren Central entered at 0-2, hoping to stave off their first 0-3 start in 18 years. They found early success, jumping out to a 14-0 lead just 9 minutes into the game, and led 21-14 at the half. But DeSales dominated the second half of the matchup, taking their first lead just before the end of the third quarter en route to 26 straight points and a 40-27 victory. This season the series shifts to DeSales, the home opener for the Colts. They have won 5 straight at their field, dating to a 43-31 loss to Caldwell County in the 2012 state semifinals. The Dragons lost their last three true road games last season, and will have a tough opponent in the defending 2A state champions to try to avoid a fourth straight loss on the road. However, this season has been all good for both teams so far. The Dragons opened with a home win over Hopkinsville 54-16 in new HC Howard Feggins' debut, before notching an impressive 28-14 victory over then-3A #2 ranked Bourbon County. The new offensive strategy for Central has worked so far, with Chance Shanklin already throwing 6 TDs, half the total for the entire team in their 2013 campaign. Meanwhile DeSales has continued business as usual, shutting out Louisville Holy Cross in a weather-delayed 31-0 victory, before following up with a 30-6 win over Grayson County at Central Hardin on a short week. This should be one of the marquee matchups in the entire state this week.

Series History: Warren Central leads 9-6 (Won 3 Straight) Series at North Hardin: North Hardin leads 4-3 Last year when these two teams met, it was a battle of desperation. Both teams entered at 0-3 in search of their first victory. The Trojans utilized an uptempo attack much like the Dragons are looking to feature this year, but had very little success in the game. North Hardin amassed only 176 yards of offense and one offensive score in getting blown out 49-14. Neither went on to have dominant years, but the Dragons did recover to finish at .500 while the Trojans limped to a 1-10 campaign, their only victory coming over Iroquois. This season, the outlook has been much brighter for each. The Trojans may be just 1-2, but they're not winless, and had a very strong showing in their opening loss to Central Hardin, falling only 28-21. They beat Western two weeks ago, and enter off what was essentially a road loss to a much improved Southwestern team. Meanwhile the Dragons enter having taken a beating at the hands of defending 2A champion DeSales. If it's true you learn more from a loss than a win, Warren Central will be quite learned after last week. This will be the last game of a quasi-road trip for the Dragons, who have been away from Bowling Green since their first game of the year. After this, they will play 4 of 6 at home.

Series History: Warren Central leads 14-9 Series at Warren Central: Warren Central leads 7-4 Playoff Meetings: 11/10/1989 - at Warren Central 39 Christian County 12 11/10/1990 - at Warren Central 28 Christian County 14 11/12/2004 - Warren Central 30 at Christian County 24 3OT 11/18/2005 - at Warren Central 36 Christian County 35 11/13/2009 - at Christian County 13 Warren Central 7 11/19/2010 - Christian County 27 at Warren Central 26 OT 11/11/2011 - Warren Central 49 at Christian County 0 Once a seemingly annual meeting in the playoffs (to go along with annual meetings in the regular season), this is the first matchup of the Dragons and Colonels since their last playoff meeting three seasons ago. In that game Warren Central unloaded years of frustration on the Colonels to advance to the region finals. The teams have been up and down since that meeting, and neither enter this meeting at the peak of their game. Christian County has fallen in three consecutive games while the Dragons lost three of four. The Colonels will be the second straight air attack team to visit Dragon Stadium. Will this one go better than the last?

Inside South-Central Kentucky Football (8-25-13) Week 1 in the area saw a mix of expected results and head turners. -Bowling Green (1-0) was up to their usual dominance in a 48-21 shellacking of highly regarded 4A #4 Lexington Catholic. The Purples gained 461 yards offense and the Hayes to Fant connection accounted for 4 TDs. The Purples look every bit the favorite they are. -Meanwhile Warren Central (0-1) stubbed their toe in their season opener against 4A #7 Madisonville-North Hopkins in a 27-13 loss. The Dragons were undone by 4 turnovers and a pair of blocked punts, with the Maroons scoring 21 points off of those turnovers. -South Warren (1-0) made a statement in a 35-0 victory over Warren East (0-1), the first victory over a Warren County team for the Spartans. All 35 points came in the first half as South Warren took advantage of two bad snaps on punt attempts and absolutely shut down the Warren East offense in the first half. The news for the Raiders got worse from there as their QB Austin Pagel was knocked from the game and may have a broken collarbone. -Glasgow (1-0) won easily 48-0 over Hart County, which was no surprise. Running backs Marquez Trigg and Quentel Bradley combined for 218 yards on just 21 carries as they ran all over the hapless Raiders. -Franklin-Simpson (0-1) had a decent showing in a 25-7 loss to Danville at Campbellsville University. The Wildcats trailed just 13-7 and had possession midway through the 4th Quarter, but a fumble at midfield was returned for the TD to put the game out of reach. -A key interception was the undoing for Allen County-Scottsville (0-1) in their loss to Mercer County in the Rafferty’s Bowl at WKU. Trailing 21-14 just before halftime, Colton Oakes threw an INT that was returned 73 yards for a backbreaking TD. Instead of potentially tying the game, the Patriots were down two TDs and never recovered. -Greenwood (0-1) turned in what may have been the most shocking result of the first week in the area when they were crushed 35-6 by Hopkinsville. It was the largest win for the Tigers since 2009 and least points allowed since 2006. The teams played to a scoreless tie in the first quarter and the Gators led 6-0 in the second quarter, but very little went right from that point on. Greenwood was outgained 308-48 in the second half. -Barren County (1-0) looked to be on their way to a laugher against Metcalfe County as they had a 19-0 halftime lead, but some Trojan turnovers began to make things tough immediately in the third quarter as the Hornets closed the gap to 19-13. Barren County bore down in the fourth, surviving a last ditch drive by Metcalfe County that reached the Barren 26 in the closing seconds. An INT sealed the game. South-Central Kentucky Rankings (8-25-13) 1) Bowling Green vs. 6A Bryan Station at Lexington Catholic (8/24) 2) Warren Central at 4A #5 Boyle County 3) South Warren at 5A Logan County 4) Warren East vs. 5A Barren County 5) Glasgow vs. 3A Garrard County at Danville 6) Franklin-Simpson at 5A #9 Graves County 7) Allen County-Scottsville vs. 5A Greenwood 8) Greenwood at 4A Allen County-Scottsville 9) Barren County at 4A Warren East

After a strong run in the first four years under coach Mike Rogers, Warren Central took a step back in 2013. The Dragons limped out of the starting gate, losing their first three games for the first time since 1994. Ultimately the Dragons went 6-6 against a difficult schedule that included two state champions and a runner-up, failing to reach the region finals for the first time since 2009. What followed was an offseason that saw the departure of Mike Rogers to Paducah Tilghman – the third straight Central football coach to leave after exactly five seasons – as well as turnover of the entire staff of assistants. In April, Howard Feggins became the ninth head coach in Warren Central history. Coach Feggins comes to Warren Central having spent most of his coaching career in the college ranks, most recently as the offensive coordinator at Norfolk State for three seasons. His career also included stops at Wingate University, Miami of Ohio, Northwestern, Eastern Michigan, and South Carolina State, in addition to his playing career at North Carolina and appearances with the New England Patriots and New York Giants. It’s that experience at the next level that brings excitement to the program, helping to boost numbers on the roster. Coach Feggins has spread the word that he wants what is best for the players – to get them to that next level. But the turnover in coaching leaves us with a lot of uncertainty as to exactly what to expect in the upcoming season. Coach Feggins is installing an entirely new offensive scheme. Out is the Wing-T attack that is a hallmark of Mike Rogers, and in is the more and more popular spread offense. Coach Feggins expressed a desire to run a flavor of the offense in the vein of the Oregon Ducks, with focus on the no-huddle and up tempo to leverage the athleticism and speed that the Dragons typically possess. They’ll be running it without the services of three of their best offensive weapons from last year, the graduated QB Chris Porter-Bunton, RB Rondell Green, and TE Byron Carver. We may not know who will be the replacement at QB until the start of the season, with a battle of up to 4 players currently taking place for the position. Last year’s backup Chance Shanklin and newly eligible transfer Tristan Murray are considered the favorites for the position, with sophomores Chauncey Greer and Chance Hunt also seen taking reps at the spot. Aiding the development of whoever wins the job will be incoming transfer Jensen Feggins, the son of HC Howard Feggins. Last year at Highlands, Jensen amassed 51 receptions for 1,100 yards and 15 TDs in a state runner-up season. On the other side of the field will be Sr. Chris Amos, an athletic WR that unfortunately saw his season cut short last year with a broken ankle six games in. With the scheme changes it will be difficult to project other returning starters, but other expected skill position contributors on the offensive side will be track star Jr. Damani Walker, Jr. Malik Peele, and Sr. Colin Burnham. The Dragons will be aided in their efforts by several returning linemen that saw time last season. Defensively Warren Central will run a 3-4 scheme, and any discussion of the defense has to start with Sr. Emmitt Smith. Emmitt is the highest rated prospect to come through Central in quite some time, typically playing MLB. Several sets last season saw Emmitt put a hand on the ground as part of the DL, something he can comfortably do thanks to his 6’1”, 230 lbs frame. He’s expected to serve some time in each spot. The Dragons have a lot returning on the defensive side of the ball, losing only Rondell Green in the secondary from last season, a spot that will be filled by Jensen Feggins. That returning experience will be crucial as last season when they were a young, inexperienced unit, they allowed an average of 40 PPG in their losses, with none of those winning opponents scoring less than 26 in that game. The 2014 schedule is a virtual mirror of last season with the exception of their first two games. They’ll open the season in the Russell Rivals Bowl at Warren Central, hosting Hopkinsville, who the Dragons eliminated in the playoffs last year 48-10. After that they’ll face a tough pair of games back to back against Bourbon County (13-1 3A state semifinalists in 2013) in the Boyle County bowl game and at Louisville DeSales (14-1 2A state champions in 2013). Much like last year, we’ll know pretty quick what Warren Central is made of. Other highlights on the schedule are three big home games in October. They’ll host Owensboro (10-4 4A state semifinalists in 2013) in a rematch of a 28-7 Dragon win at Rash Stadium last season, easily the best win by the 2013 Dragons. Then comes the 1-2 punch of Bowling Green (15-0 5A state champions in 2013) and Highlands (13-2 4A state runners-up in 2013) in two of their last three games. This challenging schedule will likely lead to some losses and bumps and bruises, but will hopefully pay off in Central being battle tested. That’s as opposed to last year, where the bumps and bruises ended up taking their toll and the Dragons limped into the playoffs with a wide swath of injuries. The stated goal remains the same this year as it was in most years previously – Coach Feggins and the Dragons aim to win state. As with all the other years, they must first find their way past the goliath of 5A, their district mates and crosstown rivals Bowling Green. The Purples have won 44 games in a row and five of those wins came over Warren Central. Coach Feggins expressed that he believes they have to become a team that believes in each other as well as become disciplined and fundamentally sound to overtake Bowling Green. Do that, and anything is possible.

Series History: First Meeting South Warren is statistically the most dominating defense in the state. They have not allowed a point this season, the last in the state to have that honor. Their three shutouts equal the total they had in their first two seasons combined. They make their hay with a ferocious rushing defense, which has yet to allow positive yardage in any game. The Spartans are even tougher at home, carrying a 9-3 all-time record in the friendly confines, including winning 9 of their last 10. Only Monroe County last season beat them during that stretch. Five of the last seven games at home have ended in Spartan shutouts, and one of the other games they allowed only 7 points. By any measure, it's a daunting task that faces Elizabethtown. The Panthers are no slouch themselves, entering the game with an unblemished 3-0 record of their own, and have allowed merely 17 points in those three games. It's a huge turnaround for the program, which had lost 22 of their previous 23 games coming into this season.

Series History: Warren East Leads 7-1 Series at Warren East: Warren East Leads 3-0 Warren East has won seven consecutive games in the series, but this is the first meeting between the two since 1990. The only win for the Eagles in the series came in 1975, and was played at Bowling Green High School. Ohio County has not won any meetings played at either home field. After going undefeated during the regular season a year ago, the Raiders have already dropped two games out of their first three, most recently a 25-20 decision at Monroe County. Counting their loss in the 2012 playoffs, they have lost 3 of 4 overall. On the plus side, they have not lost at home since being eliminated by Owensboro in the 2011 playoffs, a streak of 8 straight wins. That streak is the second longest in program history. They have won 12 of 13 at home. Ohio County enters at 2-1, having just dropped their first decision 55-26 to 2A #1 Caldwell County. Those two wins are already just one shy of their total from last year when they dipped from their strong 9-2 campaign in 2011.

Series History: Glasgow Leads 27-7 Series at Allen County-Scottsville: Glasgow Leads 15-2 The Scotties and Patriots have met every year since 2003, but the Scotties have won two straight in the series, both extremely close affairs. Last year the Scotties won 7-6 in a game that saw some key injuries for Allen County-Scottsville. This year it is Glasgow that enters a little banged up, suffering a few minor injuries against rival Barren County last week, causing the Scotties to cautiously maneuver their way to a 28-0 victory in that game. They enter 3-0 ranked very highly in 2A, and are considered a sleeper for the state title. The Patriots have had a more difficult time, but they are coming off their first win of the year, a road victory over Marshall County 35-28.

Series History: Franklin-Simpson Leads 8-4 Series at Franklin-Simpson: Franklin-Simpson Leads 4-3 The two county neighbors meet for the fifth consecutive season and second straight year at Shadetree Stadium in Franklin. In a bit of an oddity, the road team has won the last five meetings in the series, including last year's 21-14 victory for the Gators. Both teams are 1-2, with Franklin-Simpson coming in off their first victory of the year, a 49-7 win over Logan County. Meanwhile Greenwood was shellacked 38-0 in their first meeting with new rival South Warren, with all points coming in the first half. The Gators are managing only 7.67 points per game, being outscored 73-6 in their two losses.

Series History: Owensboro Leads 38-31-2 Series at Bowling Green: Series Tied 18-18-1 The Purples and Red Devils renew one of the oldest rivalries in the state, with 71 meetings dating back to 1932. This will be the seventh consecutive year the teams will play, something that is increasingly hard to find for the Purples out of district. The Purples have won 5 consecutive against Owensboro, last losing in the 2008 playoffs. That was their last loss to Owensboro at home as well. The teams both enter unbeaten, the Purples at 2-0 while Owensboro is 3-0. This is the first game for the Devils outside of their City-County schedule, where they swept their fellow Daviess County teams to take that title. The Purples of course are on a 32 game winning streak and added another marquee win with their third consecutive win over St. Xavier. That game was perhaps not even as close as the 39-25 final would make it seem. Last year the Purples slammed Owensboro 31-3 at El Donaldson Stadium.

Series History: Warren Central Leads 8-6 Series at Warren Central: Warren Central Leads 5-2 Scrimmage mates for the last couple of years, these two square off for the first time since 2008 in the regular season. The Dragons have won two straight in the series, those coming in 2007 & 2008, each with very unique attributes. In 2007 the Dragons won 20-18 despite a staggering 6 turnovers in the first half. In 2008 they won 34-19. They led that game at halftime despite having negative offensive yardage thanks to turnovers and a kick return TD. Each team enters the game at 0-3, desperately seeking their first win. The Trojans were blown out in games against rival Central Hardin and Pulaski County, sandwiched around a 1 TD loss to Doss. This is part of a month-long road trip for North Hardin, which will not return home until October 4th. Meanwhile the Dragons dropped games to Madisonville, Boyle County, and DeSales, all ranked, but all losses by 2 scores. The Dragons are trying to avoid their first five game losing streak since they lost 7 straight in 1995. They are already in the midst of their worst start since that same year.

South-Central Kentucky Football - Top 5 Running Backs So Far A quick look at where we stand for the best runners in the South-Central Kentucky Area. 1) Blue Tisdale, Sr., Bowling Green – 30 Rushes, 222 Yards (7.4 YPC), 1 Touchdown. 5 Receptions, 111 Yards, 1 Touchdown. – The most talented back in the area running behind the most talented line. It’s really not fair to the teams he squares off against. Tisdale lost a chance to boost his stats when Bowling Green’s second scheduled game against Bryan Station was rained out, but is still averaging north of 100 yards per game and boasts a strong YPC. What sets him apart from most of the other backs in the area is he is a huge receiving threat as well. In Bowling Green’s 39-25 win over St. X, he had an 82 yard TD reception while lined up in the slot. 2) Joel Iyiegbuniwe, Sr., South Warren – 16 Rushes, 73 Yards (4.6 YPC), 4 Touchdowns. 2 Receptions, 38 Yards, 1 Touchdown. – Tisdale’s line is a little under because of a lost game. Iyiegbuniwe’s line is a little under because the Spartans quite frankly haven’t needed him to rack up the stats. Thanks to a strong defense, Iggy hasn’t had to face many long fields, so when he breaks his runs he hasn’t had to go too far. What’s most impressive is that he is averaging a touchdown every four carries or every 3.6 touches when you factor in the receptions. Joel has been South Warren’s most impressive player all-around in the young season. 3) Marquez Trigg, Jr., Glasgow – 24 Rushes, 263 Yards (11.0 YPC), 5 Touchdowns. 2 Receptions, 45 Yards. – What a luxury Coach Wood has in Trigg. It’s not every day you have a running back that when you hand him the ball averages gaining a first down. It’s no wonder that he is averaging a touchdown every 4.8 carries. He essentially compiled his stats in the first two games of the year, leaving with a minor injury after only three carries for 18 yards against Barren County, netting a touchdown and “only” 6 yards per carry. 4) Eli Brown, Jr., Warren East – 49 Rushes, 378 Yards (7.7 YPC), 2 Touchdowns. 1 Reception, 8 Yards. – You knew the Raiders were going to have to lean on their bell cow, but possibly they’ve had to do so even more than they thought they would after losing their starting QB in the very first game of the year. He is already almost halfway to his total carries from the 2012 season, in which Warren East played 14 games. Brown has continued to excel in all facets of the game, knocking down opponents from the defensive side as well as running them over on the offensive side. His numbers include a mammoth 202 yard effort against Barren County. 5) Charlie Trapp, Sr., Allen County-Scottsville – 66 Rushes, 410 Yards (6.2 YPC), 5 Touchdowns. 4 Receptions, 23 Yards. – If you go see a Patriot game this year, chances are you are going to see Trapp carry the ball A LOT. He’s currently seeing a carry on roughly 40% of the offensive plays AC/S runs, and still averages an incredibly strong 6.2 yards per carry. Trapp accounts for 45% of all offensive yardage for the Pats right now. The next opponent to hold him under 100 yards rushing on the game, will be the first one. Honorable Mention (Listed Alphabetically) Quentel Bradley, Sr., Glasgow – 50 Rushes, 327 Yards, 3 Touchdowns. 5 Receptions, 86 Yards. – Bradley is the thunder to Trigg’s lightning for Glasgow. Rondell Green, Sr., Warren Central – 26 Rushes, 141 Yards, 3 Touchdowns. 5 Receptions, 130 Yards, 1 Touchdown. – Central has had a rough start, but continue to get reliable play out of their best back. Blake Pillow, Sr., Bowling Green – 13 Rushes, 99 Yards, 3 Touchdowns. 5 Receptions, 82 Yards, 1 Touchdown. – Pillow may actually be the most dynamic weapon the Purples have. If you don’t tackle him before he hits the jets, you won’t. DeMarcus Potter, Sr., Greenwood – Stats Unavailable – Potter has been something of a surprise for the Gators. He transferred from South Warren and has given the Gators a strong presence in the backfield. South Warren is the only team to hold him down so far.

Revenge will be on Glasgow's mind entering this game, in addition to looking to continue their unblemished streak of four straight wins to open the year. Last year Somerset came into Glasgow and knocked off and shut out the Scotties by a score of 20-0. This year Glasgow will try to return the favor to a Somerset team that enters at a surprising 1-3. The Briar Jumpers (who have one of the most unique nicknames in the state) have only defeated Southwestern this year, but all their losses come to BGP ranked opponents. While they will likely leave the BGP 2A rankings this week, they still present the stiffest challenge Glasgow has faced this year. The Scotties' opponents are a mere 5-11 combined this year, and only Garrard County has managed to score a point.

Series History: Hopkinsville leads 1-0 Series at Warren East: First Meeting The Raiders host the Tigers in the second meeting ever between these two teams. The first was a 52-35 Tiger victory in a first round playoff game in 1996, when Hopkinsville was a dominant power in the west. The times have changed. Hopkinsville started the season with a pair of wins, including one over East's nearby neighbor Greenwood. But since they have allowed over 40 points in each game while notching only 26 ppoints per game of their own. Meanwhile Warren East carries a 2-2 record of their own, alternating wins and losses with each game. They are currently on the upswing following a 50-18 victory over Ohio County. Most importantly, the Raiders have still not lost at home since 2011, a span of 9 straight wins. Homefield has been a huge strength.

Series History: South Warren leads 2-0 Series at Hart County: South Warren leads 1-0 The only team in the state that has not allowed a point this season puts that streak on the line against one of the teams they shut out in 2012 when South Warren visits Hart County. Last year the Spartans thumped Hart County by a score of 50-0, and look to be a strong favorite to win. Probably the only suspense in the game will be whether South Warren can extend their scoreless span north of 205 minutes of game time. Hart County has already been shut out twice this year, but they are 2-2 while averaging just over 11 points per game.

Series History: First Meeting The reeling Patriots are home for the third time in four weeks, but are still seeking their first victory on their homefield. They've dropped a 17-6 decision to Greenwood and were blasted 37-0 by Glasgow in the friendly confines. They'll welcome 2-2 Marion County which enters off a 24-7 win over Woodford County last week. Marion County's losses have come to a pair of BGP ranked teams, Bell County & Bardstown.