Bluegrassrivals

I probably go back further than many of you do.  I was born in the sixties and grew up in the seventies and attended college in the eighties.  Of all the memories of my childhood and young adulthood , some of the best are centered high school football on Friday nights. To me, there is nothing like it, especially around playoff time.

The first game I ever attended was 1972 against Boyd County at Corbin's Campbell Field in the first round of the playoffs. It was also the only game I ever got to attend with my papaw. Much to my dismay, we lost that game  42-8 but I cherish the memory of watching it with pawpaw. Also, to this very day, it remains the coldest I have ever been in my life. I literally could not feel my feet for most of the second half and never fully warmed up until sometime after we had returned home.

Between that first game fifty years ago and the one last week between between Corbin and Campbell County, there have been many cherished memories. Some of the best ones were trips to Middlesboro to face our bitter rival at the time, the Middleboro Yellowjackets. The 1976 game between Corbin and MBoro featured a battle between two of the state's best teams. It was also one the best games I've seen in fifty years, as Corbin escaped Middleboro with a 10-9  victory and went on to win the state title over Mayfield on the day after Thansgiving on a bitterly cold, snow flurry day in Commonwealth Stadium.

 I also was lucky to escape Middleboro that Friday night, as me and my friend were threatened with a knife by an irate Jacket fan. You see, my friend was a real smartass, with a mouth to match. He was shooting off at the mouth after the game and a couple of Jacket fans approached us, one brandishing a knife.  Fortunately for us, a 260+ lb. Corbin lineman by the name of Riddle Thomas, Jr.(better known to us as "RC") saw us and came over and insisted that the would -be attackers move along. They saw that he meant business and moved along. If you only knew the irony of that whole situation.  But, scary postgame situation aside, the big district-clinching win was a great Friday night memory from a half century ago.

Many more Friday night memories followed over the decades. More titanic struggles with Middlesboro and some memorable trips to Somerset to play the district rival Briarjumpers. I remember one big district game in the eighties when we went to Somerset against a really good Jumper team. Corbin outgained Somerset something like 4 to 1 in total yardage but lost the game 7-6 , I believe, on a blocked punt.

I'm sure everyone on here can recount their own memories of Friday nights. In my opinion, there is nothing like it in sports. There's just something about being at the ole ball orchard on a crisp Autumn night watching HS football. Some of the best times I remember were freezing my ass off in the cold of late October and November watching Redhound football.  While I love HS basketball and all spectator sports, in fact,  there is just something magical about a Friday night , that chilly air, and that bright Autumn moon forming the backdrop of an intense , win -or- go- home football game. 

Friday night football has , from the time I was just a kid, captured my imagination and been interwoven as an integral part of life in this small Kentucky town.  The Eagles once sang, "Whatever Happened to Saturday Night? ."  I sometimes  fear , if  I oneday become physically unable to attend Friday night games , will I ever come face-to-face with the thought of "Whatever happened to Friday night?  Just the thought of no more Friday nights makes me very sad.

I wrote this thread just to see if there are others who think there is something quite special about a Friday night that's different from anything else you've experienced watching sports. I'm sure you have your own Friday night memories and your own thoughts about Friday nights at the ole cow pasture.  I'd love to hear them . Thanks for reading.

Sorry Old School Hound but I have you beat in age but the playoff game that stands out to me well they are actually 2 . We (Belfry) had to travel to Harlan to play in the playoffs now this was in the 60’s I believe 68 but not sure it was during the game right before halftime and the lights went out. So the coaches made all of us get together and put are helmets on and take a knee on the field. Well needless to say the rocks started bouncing off our head gear and the game was moved to Evarts (I believe that’s how you spell) it and we won on a last minute score. The next one was at Corbin my senior year at Corbin. Now to my knowledge that was the coldest game I have played in. Coach Vipperman (alas Bearmeat) was a tuff as nails coach but that day before the game he went out and bought long handle underwear for all of us but we played and hitting on that field was like hitting on concrete and believe me it was froze solid. We lost that game 6 to 0 or 7 to 0 I am not exactly sure but it was my last game in a Pirate uniform or at least for football but that is some of my memories for my high school playing years.

It’s the cycle of life of Friday night. You from watching it, to playing it, back to watching it.

I can still remember seeing those guys as kids, and thinking they were monsters. Even today on the films they were big. We had full backs as big as gaurds today. As a kid, you could have put our team next to the cowboys and it would have still been the same feeling of awe. As kid, those were the professionals. Then you rounded up all your friends and went to the end zone to battle the visiting teams little kids.

I grew up in the rock castle and Danville days. M’Boro to. But neither were at level they were when you are taking about. I still have people tell me when they figure out where I was born and say that RC Thomas laid the hardest hit on them they ever had.

Then you go to playing which seemed like it lasted only months, not 4 years. But I’m thankful I got to experience what a lot
Of other kids didn’t. I can still remember the old men on the fence screaming and yelling at us. Now we are the old men standing on the fence yelling!

The reason I like football so much, besides tailgating haha! You start out sweating your *** off, then if you’re lucky you end up freezing your *** off. Unlike all the other sports you have to go with what god gives you weather wise. And it totally changes how you have to play. You watch the field go from green, to brown, to snow! Plus what else are you gonna do in the fall outside with friends and family. Friday night football brings a lot of people together. A lot of people and towns don’t have that. I think the pride that was taught to us brings a lot back to get more of that “Friday night feeling”. In a way it’s a drug and a lot are hooked. This town basically shuts down Friday night during the fall. It’s hard to explain to an outsider what it is. People try to downgrade it, but I guarantee you that Friday nights don’t mean as much to
People in Louisville at St X or Trinity. Yea they get excited but they are missing the feeling we get here

There is not a sport better than high school football, especially in Eastern Kentucky. It all started for me soon after we moved to Kentucky when I was in kindergarten. My brother was in the band at Raceland and my parents always worked the concession during the games. I would arrive at the games two or three hours before kickoff and would stay until they turned out the stadium lights. The entire time I was playing football with the waxy cups they used to serve drinks in back in the day.
As mentioned before, I grew up in Raceland and lived several years in Shelbyville attending many Shelby County and Collins games. I now live in Eastern North Carolina. My adopted school probably plays in the toughest conference in the state, four schools have spent time in the top five in the state this season and has represented the east in the state finals six times in the ten years I have lived here. You would think that the communities would be crazy at the games. The atmosphere is not even close to what I experienced growing up in Eastern Kentucky. The games here feels like a social gathering. In Eastern Kentucky it is an event. People cheering, you can feel the excitement even when I stream the games.
I don't miss much about EKY, I certainly miss atmosphere of high school football there.

(11-04-2022, 06:30 PM)Hound05 Wrote: [ -> ]It’s the cycle of life of Friday night. You from watching it, to playing it, back to watching it.

I can still remember seeing those guys as kids, and thinking they were monsters. Even today on the films they were big. We had full backs as big as gaurds today. As a kid, you could have put our team next to the cowboys and it would have still been the same feeling of awe. As kid, those were the professionals.  Then you rounded up all your friends and went to the end zone to battle the visiting teams little kids.

I grew up in the rock castle and Danville days. M’Boro to. But neither were at level they were when you are taking about. I still have people tell me when they figure out where I was born and say that RC Thomas laid the hardest hit on them they ever had.

Then you go to playing which seemed like it lasted only months, not 4 years. But I’m thankful I got to experience what a lot
Of other kids didn’t. I can still remember the old men on the fence screaming and yelling at us.  Now we are the old men standing on the fence yelling!

The reason I like football so much, besides tailgating haha! You start out sweating your *** off, then if you’re lucky you end up freezing your *** off. Unlike all the other sports you have to go with what god gives you weather wise. And it totally changes how you have to play. You watch the field go from green, to brown, to snow! Plus what else are you gonna do in the fall outside with friends and family. Friday night football brings a lot of people together. A lot of people and towns don’t have that. I think the pride that was taught to us brings a lot back to get more of that “Friday night feeling”. In a way it’s a drug and a lot are hooked. This town basically shuts down Friday night during the fall.  It’s hard to explain to an outsider what it is. People try to downgrade it, but I guarantee you that Friday nights don’t mean as much to
People in Louisville at St X or Trinity. Yea they get excited but they are missing the feeling we get here

RC was probably the single most intimidating player I ever saw play HS football. He was mean and angry and he looked the part. Dude just didn't give a damn. Took out his anger on opponents on the football field. He received a four-year scholarship to UK. He lasted less than one day. Got kicked off the team the first day of practice for fighting with a UK running back.  That started the downward spiral that culminated in the horrific tragedy on that cold December night of 1980.  Sad. He could have been a seriously good player at the next level if he could have controlled his demons.