Friday, August 23, 2013

Kentucky High-school Football, Week 0

It's football season again, and that means it's time to tune back in Mayfield's WYMC. Appropriately, the first song I heard on it this morning was "Sealed with a Kiss." It was the Brian Hyland version from 1962 and not the Bobby Vinton from 1972. Anyway, I think the song's writers, Peter Udell and Gary Gell, must've been big fans of high-school football:


I'll see you in the sunlight
I'll hear your voice everywhere
I'll run to tenderly hold you
But, baby, you won't be there
I don't wanna say goodbye for the summer
Knowing the love we'll miss
So let us make a pledge
And seal it with a kiss

Here are some of the games this weekend that I'm most looking forward to filling my emptiness from the cold, lonely summer:

Mayfield (defending Class A champ) at Fort Campbell--Next up on WYMC was "The Last Farewell" by Roger Whitaker. So excellent.

Russellville at Trigg County--I'll probably switch over to Oldies 1480 WHVO later this afternoon.

Ashland Blazer at Newport Central Catholic (defending Class 2A champ)

Louisville Central (defending Class 3A champ) at Louisville duPont Manual

University Christian (Fla.) at Fort Thomas Highlands (defending Class 4A champ) on Saturday--The Bluebirds have a new head coach, their old defensive coordinator, and that's not all ...




Lexington Catholic vs. Bowling Green (defending Class 5A champ) at Western Kentucky University on Saturday




Ensworth (Tenn.) at Louisville Trinity (defending Class 6A champ)--This game is scheduled to air live on ESPNU at 7 p.m. Central.

Crittenden County at Fulton City--The darlings of HP Nation make the long trip down to southwestern Kentucky. This is probably my favorite fan-bus trip of the weekend.



Madisonville-North Hopkins vs. Bowling Green Warren Central at Bowling Green Greenwood--It appears that we're going to be sticking around Madisonville indefinitely after figuring when we moved here in 2009 that we'd move somewhere else in Kentucky after a couple of years. Turns out we love it more than we ever dreamed. Plus, we're starting a new weekday-evening worship service some time this fall. Anyway, chase of all this is that I'm going to go ahead and start paying a little more attention to the hometown Maroons, just in case I end up finding myself frying hamburgers in a Badgett Athletic Complex concession stand or loading the Marching Maroons semi in 10 or 12 years. This does not figure to be a good evening for my dad's, my wife's and potentially my daughter's alma mater, however. They were already having to go with a first-year starting quarterback against the perenially-strong Dragons, and now that kid is hurt and Madisonville will be playing the backup.

Webster County at Mortons Gap Hopkins County Central--And because one never knows about stuff like God's calling and school redistricting, I'm also going to be paying a little more attention to the county Storm, too.


Christian County at Caldwell County--If I were going to a game somewhere a little ways from home tonight, this is probably where I'd go. The visiting Colonels are supposed to be very strong, and the home-standing Tigers were the Class 2A runners-up a year ago. They have a stud quarterback, whom UK is reportedly interested in. If he doesn't end up at WKU, I hope that all works out with his eventually turning out to be a big UK star, because Elijah Sindelar would be the best name for a good Kentucky quarterback since Babe Parilli.

Lexington Christian Academy at Christian Academy of Louisville--LCA vs. CAL would probably be the game I'd go to if I were going a little farther away from home tonight. I find these schools to be mysterious and enthralling.

Covington Catholic at Boone County--Boone County's new head coach is Jeff Griffith, a former assistant coach at Bowling Green. I'm interested in this team, as his Twitter feed is pretty entertaining.




Paducah Tilghman at McCracken County on Saturday--I, for one, will be rooting for the Mustangs.



Previous reports:

-- 2012 wrapup,

60 comments:

  1. OK, here we go. Oldies1480.com is bringing us the outstanding "Sara Smile" by Hall & Oates at the moment, but, in less than two hours, they'll be switching to a live remote from the renewal of the Fort Campbell-Mayfield rivalry Here's Tom Rogers's "Sports Edge" from WKDZ/WHVO:

    The off season weightlifting and the summer workouts have come to a conclusion, and the high school football season kicks off tonight across the state. For the Trigg County Wildcats, the 2013 season opens up tonight with a home matchup against the Russellville Panthers. The two teams opened last season in Russellville, with the Panthers coming away with a 25-14 win. Coverage of Trigg County and Russellville, from Perdue Field, on WKDZ 106.5 and wkdzradio.com, will get underway at 6:00 with the Toyota of Hopkinsville "Friday Night Blitz."

    Coming off a tough loss to South Warren in the 2nd round of the Class 3A playoffs last season, the Fort Campbell Falcons will kick things off tonight by hosting the defending Class A champion Mayfield Cardinals at Fryar Stadium. The two teams did not meet in the 2012 season, and the matchup is the first between the teams since the 2008 season opener, which the Falcons won 50-7. Coverage of Fort Campbell against Mayfield, on Oldies 96.5 and oldies1480.com, gets underway tonight at 6:00 with the Toyota of Hopkinsville "Friday Night Blitz."

    In other action around the area tonight, Christian County makes the trip over to Princeton to take on Elijah Sindelar and the high flying Caldwell County Tigers. Hopkinsville travels to Bowling Green to take on Greenwood in the Russell Rivals Bowl. And, Todd County Central goes south of the border to take on West Creek, Tennessee. ...


    In other news, the WKDZ/WHVO email also notes that this weekend's Casey Kasem American Top 40 playback is the Aug. 22, 1970, broadcast.

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  2. Replies
    1. Clay Clevenger is the former Henderson County coach. He replaced Sam Harp at Danville.

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  3. The season has started, by the way:

    Mike Fields ‏@MikeFieldsNotes 14m
    Dunbar QB Emory Thompson finds A.J. Williams open over the middle and A.J. turns it into a 44-yard TD play. Dunbar leads TC 7-0 early 1st Q.
    4:44 PM - 23 Aug 13

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  4. One of iHigh's games is Lynn Camp-Powell County. This is the first high-school football I've actually seen this season, and I just saw one team score a touchdown. Not sure which one. I think this game might be being played at Kentucky Christian University, which is right off I-64 in Grayson. The KCU Knights are coming off their first-ever winning football season, and the new head coach is a Marion County native who then went on to success as Fleming County HIgh's coach.

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  5. Replies
    1. At the moment, Lite 98.7 is playing Justin Timberlake's "Mirrors." I think Justin Timberlake might be the smartest and most talented Tennesseean since Dolly Parton.

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    2. That's a bold call. I'm pretty sure that the smartest and most talented Tennessean since Dolly Parton is Oprah Winfrey, followed by Pat Summit. I'm also not sure I would rank Justin Timberlake ahead of Reese Witherspoon -- I'd have to think about it.

      On the other hand, Tennessee is a state where the women are generally more impressive than the men. I would rank Justin Timberlake ahead of Brandt Snedeker, Al Gore, and Lamar Alexander. So it would be between Justin Timberlake and Philip Fulmer as to who is the smartest and most talented Tennessee man since Estes Kefauver.

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    3. Although whoever started the Cracker Barrel would have to rank pretty high as well.

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    4. And for the record, I'm not counting Peyton Manning as a Tennessean.

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    5. I'll give you Oprah, who I didn't know was from Tennessee, and Pat Summit, whom I stupidly overlooked. I'll put Justin Timberlake at No. 4.

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    6. Oprah was born in Mississippi and spent much of her childhood in Milwaukee. But she went to East Nashville High School, went to college at Tennessee State, won the Miss Black Tennessee Pageant, and started on TV at WLAC in Nashville. So I'm claiming her as a Tennessean.

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    7. Also, Cybill Shepherd is from Memphis.

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  6. Incidentally, I see that a lot of people, including KHSAA commission Julian Tackett, are referring to this as "Week 0" of the season. I don't really get that, because we have a near-full slate of games and they count. But, whatever, I'm going to go ahead and switch our label, too. Week 0, it is.

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  7. Fort Campbell-Mayfield nearing kickoff ... "We've waited and waited and waited for this," says WYMC ...

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  8. My Maroons lead Warren Central by 7-6 in the second quarter way down in Bowling Green ... Dragons reportedly scored on a 74-touchdown run but Madisonville-North Hopkins blocked the extra point ...

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  9. Mayfield is up, 17-7, on Fort Campbell, per WYMC.

    Caldwell is up, 24-7, on Christian, per WHOP.

    And Madisonville-North Hopkins is up, 27-13, on Warren Central, per the two local stations that do play-by-play for the Maroons. The mood on WFMW 730 AM feels more chipper than WTTL 1310 AM. The Maroons were ahead by 21 until just a few minutes ago, but now the Dragons have closed to within two touchdowns and are again deep in Madisonville territory with about 3 minutes to play ...

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    Replies
    1. Fourth-and-1 coming for Warren Central ... quarterback sneak picks up the first down inside the Maroon 15 with 2:26 to go ...

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  10. Manual's up, 17-6, on Louisville Central at halftime ... Henderson County up, 14-7, on Evansville (Ind.) Reitz ... Trinity 14, Ensworth (Tenn.) 7, through one quarter ... NewCath 23, Ashland 17, at half ...

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  11. MAROONS TAKE OVER ON DOWNS! THAT SHOULD DO IT! WOW!!!

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    Replies
    1. That's huge. I always take any team from Warren County against any non-Warren County team from west of I-65.

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    2. And that's in all sports, not just football. Warren County is to the rest of Western Kentucky as Tennessee is to Kentucky.

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    3. Or as North Carolina is to Virginia.

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  12. Russellville is up, 21-7, at Trigg County ... second quarter, Webster County is up, 13-8, at Hopkins County Central ... Ballard Memorial leads visiting McLean County (second-favorite fan-bus trip of the night), 7-0, in the first quarter ...

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  13. Christian County is trailing, 31-7, at halftime against Caldwell County in Princeton. You wouldn't want to be a fly on the wall of the Colonels' locker room, says WHOP's great Todd Hamilton, "because the paint is going to be melting off those walls and you might melt with it!"

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    Replies
    1. Yesterday the U.S. Women's Amateur, tomorrow the World.

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  14. So excited for the Maroons. I was totally uninformed and wrong about their chances tonight, obviously. I'm on the bandwagon now.

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  15. I'm pretty sure that, on WHOP 1230 AM, they just said this is the station's 74th season of broadcasting high-school football games. I definitely heard them say that Hoptown's first game, in 1940, was against Dawson Springs.

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  16. Todd Griffin ‏@toddgriffin100 2m
    Elijah Sindelar hobbles off the field after getting hit following a screen attempt. Just got a lot quieter at Tiger Stadium
    8:52 PM - 23 Aug 13

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  17. Christian County closes to within 16 on Caldwell County. With about nine minutes to play, the Colonels drive inside Tiger territory--but give back 15 yards on an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty. Then, Caldwell blocks the Christian field-goal attempt.

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  18. Channel 6 says Crittenden County was leading, 7-0, at Fulton City in the second quarter.

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  19. 6:56 to play in Princeton, and Caldwell County scores on a 32-yard run. "Folks," WHOP Todd Hamilton says, "they are for real." Tigers lead Christian County, 45-22.

    Incidentally, Todd just mentioned that Pat Gates, a former WKU Hilltopper who coached Crittenden County to its 1985 Class A state championship, suffered a heart attack about three weeks ago. Todd said he subsequently saw Coach Gates about a week later and that he looked good. Best wishes to Coach Gates in his recovery.

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  20. Replies
    1. Tilghman may have the best uniforms in the Commonwealth.

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  21. Week 1, Bowling Green-centric uniform rankings from Channel 13 "Football Friday Night":

    1. Hoptown (great "H" on the helmet)
    2. Butler County
    3. Warren Central
    4. Greenwood
    5. Madisonville-North Hopkins
    6. South Warren
    7. Muhlenberg County
    8. Warren East
    9. Ohio County
    10. Logan County

    (Practice/scrimmage footage does not qualify.)

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  22. Four times in the last five years, Harlan County lost its season opener. Not this year.

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  23. Based on a decisive scrimmage victory over Hazard, BluegrassPreps.com ranks Belfry as the best team in the mountains.

    Also in that same link: Paris's 34-23 win over Bath County was an impressive one, and Letcher County Central's new coach is the dude who coached Breathitt County to state championships in 1995 and 96.

    Other good stuff from BluegrassPreps.com, which is awesome: Clay Clevenger, the ex-Henderson County coach who returned to his alma mater, led Danville to a season-opening victory over Franklin-Simpson in Campbellsville University junior-varsity jerseys.

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