Things From Week One

The first week of high school football has come to an end, and there are several notes worth discussing...

--Some of the margins of victory this weekend were outragously large. For example: Campbell County wins by 70, Mercer County wins by 63, Madison Central wins by 70, Shelby Valley wins by 73, and so on and so forth. We can learn three things from this: 1) there are many unapologetic coaches out there, and 2) there are some teams that are not ready to compete. Don't blame it on the coaches; many teams take a week or two to get the gears going. If these matchups were replayed later this year, I'd bet that many of them would be closer games (say 40-50 points).

--But not every game this weekend was a blowout. Consider the game between Corbin and Rockcastle County at the Bob Allen Pigskin Classic in Danville. The final score (keep in mind we are playing football) was 2-0, with Rockcastle County coming out on top. I'd be willing to bet that this at least ties the lowest scoring game in Kentucky high school football history. The back end of the Pigskin Classic saw hometown favorite Danville outlast 3A power Southwestern 33-30. The Admirals scored on a 72-yard touchdown pass with a minute remaining to get the victory.

--At Western Kentucky University, two teams that fell one game short of a state championship last season squared off in the Rafferty's Bowl. St. Xavier and Bowling Green both looked rusty, but the Tigers were good enough to score a 15-7 victory. In the nightcap, Franklin-Simpson (who is considered to be Bowling Green's top challenger in 3A's District 2) was dismissed quickly by Warren Central.

--Meanwhile, in Lexington, two teams started the season in grand style. Mercer County and Franklin County were dominant over Lexington Christian and Somerset, respectively. Also, don't overlook Tates Creek or Bryan Station, who both got off to great starts this season after disappointing 2005 campaigns.

--But the game of the week might have been in far eastern Kentucky, where A power Newport Central Catholic visited 2A heavyweight Belfry in the Pike County Bowl. Belfry won 7-6, but only because Newport Central Catholic went for two late in the game after scoring a potential-tying touchdown. The gamble did not pay off, but I have to hand it to Coach Bob Schneider for making the call. The old adage says to go for the win on the road, while play for overtime at home. It was a gutsy call, but it was the right one considering the game counts for nothing in the context of district play.

--Another theme I noticed was how many teams faced competition from out-of-state, and got their collective butts kicked. The state of Kentucky was 4-9 against teams from Indiana and Tennessee. Manual, Owensboro Catholic and Middlesboro lost by a combined 105 points! However, testing your team early against the best of what not only the state, but the geographic region has to offer is a fantastic way to identify and correct weaknesses. Look for these teams to improve over the following weeks.

--But who had the best week? Without a doubt, it was Pike County Central. Why? The Hawks notched a 28-21 win over East Ridge, who happens to be a district opponent. This was the only game played this weekend that will affect the state playoff races.

Here is the tentative schedule for next week's previews:

Tuesday: A
Wednesday: 2A
Thursday: 3A
Friday: 4A

Note: Games will be designated into categories by home site. For example, Newport Central Catholic @ Ryle will be previewed Friday, as the home team Ryle is 4A.