[common sense]

Belfry has most of the key advantages in this game. The one advantage pcc has is home field/natural surface. Belfry plays very little on grass anymore and as evident 2yrs ago at pcc this can be huge. However I believe Belfry is a different team this year than in 09. We are much more of an inside running team with many weapons to choice from vs. 09 when we were the Thomas Varney show. Pcc has two interesting chances: one Chapman has history if he has quality player of being able to stop/slowdown Coach Haywood's offense. How well Belfry runs it's belly series will be key in this game. I don't believe Belfry well run it's option very much or successfully in this game. The second chance pcc has is a very good passing qb. When the man under center can sling it you always have a chance. I can't wait to watch it should be an interesting game

Belfry 35
pcc 14

[red&white]

You cant just slow down Belfry run game you have to stop it and PCC cant. Ashland couldnt and they have much more speed than PCC. PCC does not have the speed of Ashland or Henry Clay so look out. Load the box and Belfry proved they can beat you with the pass.LC held on with PCC for three quarters but did not for 2 Quarters with Belfry.Belfry needs to show up to win Pcc can upset Belfry but not likely if Belfry dont shoot themselves or ref dont call it fair. Belfry played well in Mud and rain at east Ridge and played well at pburgh so dont play turf into it. If anything it could hurt PCC later cause most teams in playoffs as well as finals are played on turf. The only game changer is rain and wet conditions which we all know favors the run game so look out PCC Belfry has your no. friday night.irateShoirateShoirateSho

[football=everything]

Belfry by 2 TDS

[cuppett777]

Belfry has most of the key advantages in this game. The one advantage pcc has is home field/natural surface. Belfry plays very little on grass anymore and as evident 2yrs ago at pcc this can be huge. However I believe Belfry is a different team this year than in 09. We are much more of an inside running team with many weapons to choice from vs. 09 when we were the Thomas Varney show. Pcc has two interesting chances: one Chapman has history if he has quality player of being able to stop/slowdown Coach Haywood's offense. How well Belfry runs it's belly series will be key in this game. I don't believe Belfry well run it's option very much or successfully in this game. The second chance pcc has is a very good passing qb. When the man under center can sling it you always have a chance. I can't wait to watch it should be an interesting game

Belfry 35
pcc 14

would love to see Belfry run the option out of the pistol or the (pirate)seen Oregon run it out of that and very successful..

[Belfry0304]

While Pike Central having no run game hurt them, last year they undeniably got pushed around on both lines. Will that change this year?

[Panther Thunder]

Belfry 42
Pike Central 21

[#1 Blackcat Fan]

Let me be the first to give my congrats to Coach Haywood on the record this coming Friday. The Pirates win with ease by 3 td's. To strong & deep for the Hawks to handle.

[Stardust]

Pirates by 3 TDs

[loyalhawkfan]

Gonna take the Hawks in this one,anything can happen any Friday night and I have the confidence that the Hawks can/will pull out another win...GO HAWKS...Lets keep it clean and classy Friday night,we DO NOT need a replay of last year(automobiles are expensive to have fixed) hoping for injury free game for both teams

[RunItUpTheGut]

Belfry Big

[F.N.L.]

PCC can score and will make a game of it early but too much Belfry. 48-28 Pirates

[Real Badman]

Pirates roll.

[Nefarious83]

Belfry - 49
Pike Central - 14

[8790]

As much as I hate both teams for many reasons, I'm going to pick Belfry by a lot. As much as I hate to say it Belfry is a 10 to 1 better team then Pike Central.

[jbhatfield]

I've watched all of Belfry's games this year except for East Ridge. An obvious favor to the Pirates on my behalf, but when Belfry is firing on all cylinders their is not a team in 3a that could beat them. I have seen a much stronger defense this year from Belfry than what they have had the last couple of seasons. PC struggled then, and will have the same problems now. Belfry's secondary is what will win this game for the Pirates. Belfry's DB's and safeties are tough this year and will shut down Boggs' passing game.
As for Belfry's offense, their run game is just to strong. Belfry's 5 deep in the run maybe more. PC defense WILL NOT be able to stop them. QB showed against LC, that loading the box is a road better not taken.The pirates have been battle tested and are ready to get Haywood his well deserved record.

DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS..

42 - 8.. PIRATES...irateSho

[EKUAlum05]

What's on the line:

- District Championship
- Homefield Advantage Until the Regional Finals
- Loser has to travel to Breathitt in the 2nd Round, before ultimately playing the District Champion on the road in Rd 3
- All-Time KY Coaching Win Record for Haywood
- Pike Central is 0-for-Existence against the Pirates

[fieldofdreams]

What's on the line:

- District Championship
- Homefield Advantage Until the Regional Finals
- Loser has to travel to Breathitt in the 2nd Round, before ultimately playing the District Champion on the road in Rd 3
- All-Time KY Coaching Win Record for Haywood
- Pike Central is 0-for-Existence against the Pirates

Nice evaluation...
The Pirates will prevail UNLESS something goes so dramatically wrong that it is questionable. I've not missed a Belfry game in the last four years. I have to say that THIS team is by far the fastest I've ever seen. Every Pirate team is full of heart, dedication, work ethic, and "the want" to win, this team is NO exception!

[cuppett777]

I've watched all of Belfry's games this year except for East Ridge. An obvious favor to the Pirates on my behalf, but when Belfry is firing on all cylinders their is not a team in 3a that could beat them. I have seen a much stronger defense this year from Belfry than what they have had the last couple of seasons. PC struggled then, and will have the same problems now. Belfry's secondary is what will win this game for the Pirates. Belfry's DB's and safeties are tough this year and will shut down Boggs' passing game.
As for Belfry's offense, their run game is just to strong. Belfry's 5 deep in the run maybe more. PC defense WILL NOT be able to stop them. QB showed against LC, that loading the box is a road better not taken.The pirates have been battle tested and are ready to get Haywood his well deserved record.

DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS..

42 - 8.. PIRATES...irateSho

i am biggest fan as them come,but i dont know about no 3a team can beat them,Breahitt and Pike Central schedules hasnt been that gr8,Bells is better than both theres and Centrals the best of all 3a, and have 2loses, and could have won both of them,dont know if that could be said of the teams above of the Pirates,but i hope they get there chance in Dec,if so i plan on beening there again this year,with diffrent outcome..

[mr.charlie hustle]

Way too much Pirate for the Hawks to manage. Too much speed.Too athletic. Too well coached. The Hawks only have a shot if they leave the Beef at home and wear really heavy ankle weights. Pirates by a bunch.

[Bleacher_Creature_10]

Belfry in a blow out.

Belfry-42

Pike Central-7

[PaytoPlay]

I can't believe people think Pike Central will only score a touchdown. Their offense is explosive and big play potential is there. I like Belfry by a couple scores, but Central will put some points on the board IMO.

Belfry - 41
Central - 27

[MVP2]

Belfry-34
Pike Central-18

[EKUAlum05]

Count me in the minority who actually thinks this game won't be a high scoring game for the Pirates.

Here's the midset I would follow of Chapman's:
- He knows that if Belfry controls the football on offense and the TOP his team simply does not have the line play or depth the survive 4 Quarters.

- Belfry may be vulnerable to the deep ball, but by going to the well too often it exponentially increases the likelihood of turnovers. It also reduces the odds of completions resulting in higher chances of 3 and Out's. Even if the deep ball produces a couple scores, you just forced your defense into a quick change situation where they are right back on the field against the Belfry grind.

- Pike Central simply does not have the interior DL to stalwart Belfry up the middle and allow the LB's and DE's to spread out and thus take away the outside. In order to shut down Belfry's running game they will need to pick which aspect they want to take away.

If they load the box they could forseeably take away Belfry's bread and butter up the middle, the issue then becomes giving up big plays on the outside and a premium on tackles up the middle. One missed tackle on misdirection = TD. One assignment error on the option= TD.It also means they become increasingly vulnerable to play action and their DB's are on an island by themselves. A corner bits on the playfake and Howie Dotson is wide open for a TD.

The other option is spread his defense out a bit. Belfry is not a dominant outside running team and can be contained as proven by Ashland. This also gives them more assistance in pass coverage and clearer views to watch Williams as he goes through his progressions. The downside is you run the risk of dying the death of a thousand cuts as Belfry rides Tre Willis 4 yards at a time down the field. This means more snaps. The positive for PC means more opportunities for Belfry to fumble or shoot themselves in the foot with a penalty, the negative means the Hawk interior defense will have a much higher chance of fatigue.

Ashland proved you can take away Belfry's outside game, but even if PC stacks the box it doesn't assure they will be able to keep Belfry from grinding yards anyway.

-Based on all this I expect PC to play Belfry wide on defense, and take a fairly conservative offensive approach. IMO, PC will try to shorten the game and keep their defense as fresh as possible. I think PC will try to establish their running game, use intermediate passing routes, and take very calculated risks downfield.

Based on all this I think the score stays fairly low unless PC starts to panic.

Belfry 27
PC 14

[HawksRule]

Oh the Battle of 119 this one is for all the bragging rights of the highway. Both teams will play at the top of their game and fans will be rowdy. Best of luck to everyone Friday Night.

[dirtybird]

I think Belfry will win by 3 TD's before it's all said and done. If Boggs can have a good game it might be a little closer.

[Belfry0304]

Since Gary Runyon was moved to DE and Ghormley was plugged in at linebacker in 2010, the Pirates are 12-1. The KHSAA has tackles listed as 60 for Ghormley, 48 for Messer, 68 for Mullins, and 51 for Runyon. The first three are juniors, Runyon is a senior. Mullins is a 3 year started, Madison Ghormley is a one year starter, Tony Messer is a 2 year starter, and Gary Runyon is a 4 year starter.

This is a very, very good linebacking core. The two outside guys are huge with Runyon at about 6'3, and Messer at about 6'6. Mullins and Ghormley complement each other perfectly on the inside, one with power, one with speed. We'll see how it plays out this week, but I found that very interesting. Especially since in 2009 and 2010 the safeties were our leading tacklers.

[Panther Thunder]

Count me in the minority who actually thinks this game won't be a high scoring game for the Pirates.

Here's the midset I would follow of Chapman's:
- He knows that if Belfry controls the football on offense and the TOP his team simply does not have the line play or depth the survive 4 Quarters.

- Belfry may be vulnerable to the deep ball, but by going to the well too often it exponentially increases the likelihood of turnovers. It also reduces the odds of completions resulting in higher chances of 3 and Out's. Even if the deep ball produces a couple scores, you just forced your defense into a quick change situation where they are right back on the field against the Belfry grind.

- Pike Central simply does not have the interior DL to stalwart Belfry up the middle and allow the LB's and DE's to spread out and thus take away the outside. In order to shut down Belfry's running game they will need to pick which aspect they want to take away.

If they load the box they could forseeably take away Belfry's bread and butter up the middle, the issue then becomes giving up big plays on the outside and a premium on tackles up the middle. One missed tackle on misdirection = TD. One assignment error on the option= TD.It also means they become increasingly vulnerable to play action and their DB's are on an island by themselves. A corner bits on the playfake and Howie Dotson is wide open for a TD.

The other option is spread his defense out a bit. Belfry is not a dominant outside running team and can be contained as proven by Ashland. This also gives them more assistance in pass coverage and clearer views to watch Williams as he goes through his progressions. The downside is you run the risk of dying the death of a thousand cuts as Belfry rides Tre Willis 4 yards at a time down the field. This means more snaps. The positive for PC means more opportunities for Belfry to fumble or shoot themselves in the foot with a penalty, the negative means the Hawk interior defense will have a much higher chance of fatigue.

Ashland proved you can take away Belfry's outside game, but even if PC stacks the box it doesn't assure they will be able to keep Belfry from grinding yards anyway.

-Based on all this I expect PC to play Belfry wide on defense, and take a fairly conservative offensive approach. IMO, PC will try to shorten the game and keep their defense as fresh as possible. I think PC will try to establish their running game, use intermediate passing routes, and take very calculated risks downfield.

Based on all this I think the score stays fairly low unless PC starts to panic.

Belfry 27
PC 14

This is why we love ya EKU. Very nice!

[BCalumni]

I've seen BELFRY play 3 times this year and I said all year long BELFRY is better than last year.I also think BELFRY will go undeafeated this year but my son plays for the HAWKS and I've known these boys for a long time I honestly think they can beat BELFRY if they give it 100 percent.The HAWKS has a lot of talent and for the past 3 years they have had good teams.I just like seeing some good games against BELFRY before the last 3 years PCC hasn't even come close in given BELFRY a good game.I will pick the HAWKS by 7 points.Good luck HAWKS

I agree! I think the Hawks can beat Belfry also. It will be a close game. WYMT game of the week. GO HAWKS!

[oak 76]

Count me in the minority who actually thinks this game won't be a high scoring game for the Pirates.

Here's the midset I would follow of Chapman's:
- He knows that if Belfry controls the football on offense and the TOP his team simply does not have the line play or depth the survive 4 Quarters.

- Belfry may be vulnerable to the deep ball, but by going to the well too often it exponentially increases the likelihood of turnovers. It also reduces the odds of completions resulting in higher chances of 3 and Out's. Even if the deep ball produces a couple scores, you just forced your defense into a quick change situation where they are right back on the field against the Belfry grind.

- Pike Central simply does not have the interior DL to stalwart Belfry up the middle and allow the LB's and DE's to spread out and thus take away the outside. In order to shut down Belfry's running game they will need to pick which aspect they want to take away.

If they load the box they could forseeably take away Belfry's bread and butter up the middle, the issue then becomes giving up big plays on the outside and a premium on tackles up the middle. One missed tackle on misdirection = TD. One assignment error on the option= TD.It also means they become increasingly vulnerable to play action and their DB's are on an island by themselves. A corner bits on the playfake and Howie Dotson is wide open for a TD.

The other option is spread his defense out a bit. Belfry is not a dominant outside running team and can be contained as proven by Ashland. This also gives them more assistance in pass coverage and clearer views to watch Williams as he goes through his progressions. The downside is you run the risk of dying the death of a thousand cuts as Belfry rides Tre Willis 4 yards at a time down the field. This means more snaps. The positive for PC means more opportunities for Belfry to fumble or shoot themselves in the foot with a penalty, the negative means the Hawk interior defense will have a much higher chance of fatigue.

Ashland proved you can take away Belfry's outside game, but even if PC stacks the box it doesn't assure they will be able to keep Belfry from grinding yards anyway.

-Based on all this I expect PC to play Belfry wide on defense, and take a fairly conservative offensive approach. IMO, PC will try to shorten the game and keep their defense as fresh as possible. I think PC will try to establish their running game, use intermediate passing routes, and take very calculated risks downfield.

Based on all this I think the score stays fairly low unless PC starts to panic.

Belfry 27
PC 14

I don't know EKU but he knows a lot about football.

[EKUAlum05]

The other thing I will add is Pike Central's chances of winning increase vastly if they can get up early. A touchdown won't cut it, but a couple early scores and the entire complexion of this game changes much like two years ago when they nearly knocked the Pirates off. Down a TD with a full game ahead is easily able to be overcame by Belfry, but 2 TD's might hasten Belfry's step a bit and cause them to press or deviate from their gameplan.

The blueprint to ebat Belfry is actually quite simple:
- Force them into 3rd and Long
- Create a couple turnovers that you capitalize on
- Show balance on offense
- Be patient, make their time consuming offense work against them instead of for them

The problem is there are a lot of steps between point A and Point B to be able to do these things successfully.