[i82much]

I hope Raceland enjoys the 3 players they plucked from Lewis County. I just learned of the 3rd so there may be more at this point, idk. Something fishy is going on over there and if you don’t think anybody from the coaching staff or school talked to these kids and their parents before they enrolled at Raceland then I have some beach front property in Vanceburg to sell you. Win and lose with your own kids. Could have been a special year for Lewis Co football according to our standards and our two best skill players and best OL decide to drive 45 minutes east for school and practice every day. Dirty. When the hammer comes down on Raceland it’s gonna make Fairview of the early 2010’s look like nothing was happening.

I’m an alumni and a lifelong Ram fan but I have to say that I am inclined to agree with you.  If these kids lived nearby or had ties with the community then that would be different but in this case I don’t agree with it.  Raceland used to be a special place where you knew everyone you played with from the time you grew up until you graduated.  Not so much now with kids coming from all over the place and half of the team never living within the school district.  

Also what message does this send to the kids that actually grew up in the district and lose their spot that they worked hard for because the school allowed someone who lives an hour away to come in and take their spot?  This may not be a popular opinion amongst my fellow Rams but we have to do a better job at developing our own kids and not taking talent from other places to make up for our own lack of player development.

I use to think a lot of these same things. Times have changed and I believe this mentality has alot to do with Raceland kids never staying in college on a sports scholarship. They’ve been pampered and sheltered their whole life

Definitely some truth here. Our kids not remaining in school is common everywhere. Most of our "scholarships" are to NAIA/Division III  schools. They don't actually have athletic scholarships, they have financial packages (financial aid and merit scholarships). I think the national average is around $7,000 which covers on average 10-20% of the total cost. Many of these schools have tuition rates much higher than our larger public universities so the scholarships usually don't even cover the added costs. They simply can't afford to stay.

[Ramfan04]

Raceland is a special place most people who are upset by the transfers are just not used to it. Transfers and holdbacks have been a thing for decades at other places like Pikeville , Beechwood heck how many Belfry guys are from WV . It is just the way it is and if the schools they come from don’t like it then be better. Lewis County has been terrible for what 50 years and no they were not good 2 years ago they were competitive against a bad schedule. What a parent or a child want out of a school is their choice. Now no the going to Raceland for a scholarship opportunity is not likely. I think The Burke kid and Wallace are the only 2 from the past 2 years playing at the next level and those 2 guys put in an insane amount of work to get that . Yes NAIA gives scholarships not sure about D3 but NAIA does. I seen the Burke kids offer and he got like 35k a year just for football to Gtown before any of his other stuff. D1 offers around here other than a PWO are just not realistic. The guys who complain about transfers and holdback are the same ones who will push the panic button when the Rams start 1-3 or 0-4 . But unless someone not named Pikeville gets way better then in December they will be back at Kroger . Rams schedule will make all these young guys grow up quick.

[RAM-A-DEVIL]

The transfer thing is so tiring to hear or talk about. Up in the mountains kids and their parents will go to wherever they can to WIN! It ain’t like that down here. Raceland does get some transfers but most kids and their parents won’t transfer here because they absolutely hate us. We don’t get as many transfers as people think we do. And certainly not very many game changing players at all. As for the hold backs…..that’s another laughable topic. I heard the comment…..what are they gonna do now that the super class is gone? Well…..the super class only had about 6 holdbacks. Not an entire class like everybody wants to think. Then there is the COVID year. Another myth. Yes some kids took advantage of it but there again most kids didn’t. There were a boatload of kids that played last year that could have been playing again this year but didn’t take the covid year. And as far as holdbacks go it’s not limited to one class. There are kids all the way down to kindergarten holding back. That’s never going to stop. I have a 3 year old grandson…he will be on the edge of 19 when he graduates. Sorry if it hurts feelings. I’m here to do what’s best for mine.

[i82much]

Raceland is a special place most people who are upset by the transfers are just not used to it.  Transfers and holdbacks have been a thing for decades at other places like Pikeville , Beechwood  heck how many Belfry guys are from WV . It is just the way it is and if the schools they come from don’t like it then be better. Lewis County has been terrible for what 50 years and no they were not good 2 years ago they were competitive against a bad schedule. What a parent or a child want out of a school is their choice. Now no the going to Raceland for a scholarship opportunity is not likely. I think The Burke kid and Wallace are the only 2 from the past 2 years playing at the next level and those 2 guys put in an insane amount of work to get that . Yes NAIA gives scholarships not sure about D3 but NAIA does. I seen the Burke kids  offer and he got like 35k a year just for football to Gtown before any of his other stuff. D1 offers around here other than a PWO are just not  realistic. The guys who complain about transfers and holdback are the same ones who will push the panic button when the Rams start 1-3 or 0-4 . But unless someone not named Pikeville gets way better then in December they will be back at Kroger . Rams schedule will make all these young guys grow up quick.

NAIA does offer a few scholarships that can approach the total cost of attending. Most are just partial awards. You mentioned Georgetown, tuition alone is well over $40,000. Morehead, for example, is about half that. The point I was making was in response to our kids quitting football early in their college careers.

Attending a state university, applying KEE's money and any other merit based scholarships is more often than not the most viable alternative and the reason many athletes leave early and choose this route.  Again, not all, but in many cases.

[ArmChairHC]

I was told by someone that Cooper also visited Mason Co and Rowan Co as well. If this is true, then it’s even crazier than I thought when it comes to kids coming and going. Imo, “visiting” multiple schools suggests things need to be either looked at under a bigger microscope or just open the districts up and let kids go where they want.

[ArmChairHC]

Not even going to acknowledge the drama…

I watched some intersquad 7v7 this past week leading into the dead period. Our size at the skill positions is more balanced this year. Everyone looks to be between 5’10”-6’ and somewhere just south of 200lbs. We look faster this year across the board. I think the ground game will look a little different this year with more of an outside and off tackle game than we have had in years past. That aspect will be huge as the QB play, imo, is still a little hit and miss. But with a 3 year starter in Cooper, there’s experience there. But Waller and Ison have looked just as good as he has in 7v7. I think it’s going to breed competition though.

Waller: Has thrown the deep ball a little better, but doesn’t have as much zip as the others on the speed outs and hitches. Not as big, physically as the other two. Only experience is in clean up last year.

Cooper: Has 3 years under his belt as a starter. Solid passer, pretty solid kid too. Even though he has 3 years as a starter, he has been at a school that has struggled to put wins together against a schedule nowhere near what he would see as the starter this year.

Ison: Imo the most physically gifted of the 3. Has experience as a starter on both sides of the ball last year at WR/DB. From what I have seen, when it comes to consistency throwing the ball, he and Cooper aren’t much different. I do however, think Ison is the better running QB of the three. Which leads me to believe it’s his job to lose based on the system Mike likes to run.

At WR there’s a lot of youth with alot of Sophs seeing reps. But the more I see, the more I like our athleticism and speed on both sides of the ball.

Stiltner will be the bell cow imo, at H RB. Marushi, Lewis, Bloss, Murrell are all likely fighting for that F spot in the two back looks. While the big set we saw last year will likely see Linden Sammons as the up back if I were a betting man.

McKee, Ison (if he isn’t at QB), Rowsey, Goodall, and Lewis I think in some way make up you WR corps. McKee and Rowsey could have really big years. Roster is an unknown thing right now. Kid is fast, with 4.5 speed. But has been plagued with the injury bug as of late.

Upfront it’s all still a toss up. But I expect Bowden, Crum, Elkins, Hunt, Sammons, and J. Litteral to be the starters in some variation. There’s more depth there than I thought though. With several sophs and a Frosh or two that could see some time spelling guys.

Defensively we won’t have the Lbs we have had the last two years. But will be faster at every other position…gotta find the grit though bc losing that LB corps is a huge deal.

[ArmChairHC]

Not passing judgement on if it translates to wins or losses, but from the eye test standpoint, from what I’ve seen out of the kids in the weight room, we look more athletic. We lost some size at almost every position. But tbh, the skill kids all seem to have more of “that look” than we have in years past. What I mean is I can’t really remember a time that we had so many skill guys that look as explosive as they do right now. Like I said, I have know idea if it will be a good or bad thing, but we just look like we are in the best shape I have seen a Raceland team look in the off-season in sometime.

Noah Wallace, Logan Lundy, Jaxon Heighton, Parker Fannin, Brayden Webb, Cam Bell etc…alot of last years seniors were all big, strong, and fast, for nearly their entire athletic careers. And I am very proud of the players they were for us, you can’t replace their experience and leadership with underclassmen and in no way am I saying these boys didn’t work hard in the weight room, but the kids I see this year have more “noticeable” weight room and off-season development. A lot of the lineman have cut weight and turned it into muscle and quicker feet. A lot of the skill kids look thicker and have more of a physical look to them. Maybe it’s because I have had an incoming freshman in the weight room and have seen the kids coming in and out more so than I have in years past, but it just seems like each year our off-season program gets better and better.

Couple that with the fact that I think there are a few kids on the roster this year that can be the type of players we simply haven’t had in the past, and I don’t think you see much of a drop off for us this year. Growing pains? Sure. Schedule is tough as hell. But I lean more towards a 6-4/7-3 season and atleast a state semifinal appearance is realistic and tbh, I will be disappointed if that’s not the case.

I’m excited to a season of “unknowns” rather than “this is the year” talk, tbh. We haven’t been able to finish the ultimate job with any team that had the preseason favorite sticker or atleast were figured to be the best chance to knock off Pikeville.

[Micro-Brew]

Always enjoy your posts Scotty. Very informative and always pretty much on point. It’s always refreshing when you know a poster is a fan of a team but they keep it as real as possible. I, like you, still firmly believe Raceland will be right in the thick of a state championship appearance possibility. It will all depend on RPI and seeding .

[ArmChairHC]

Thank MB! I try to stay realistic. I also agree that RPI and seeding will be a big factor. Possibly more so for Raceland than anyone. There is a real possibility of going into the playoffs at 5-5 and if youth becomes an issue, it could be worse. I don’t think that will happen, but it is in the realm of possibility. If you don’t get one of the top two seeds, it’s tough. That being said, Raceland and Pikeville were both “lower seeds” and we saw how that ended up last year. Even with all Raceland lost, looking at the progress made in the offseason in the weight room, I still think Raceland is physically stronger than anyone not name Pikeville. Which proved to be the difference last year against KCD and Sayre.

[Patriot1]

Thank MB! I try to stay realistic. I also agree that RPI and seeding will be a big factor. Possibly more so for Raceland than anyone. There is a real possibility of going into the playoffs at 5-5 and if youth becomes an issue, it could be worse. I don’t think that will happen, but it is in the realm of possibility. If you don’t get one of the top two seeds, it’s tough. That being said, Raceland and Pikeville were both “lower seeds” and we saw how that ended up last year. Even with all Raceland lost, looking at the progress made in the offseason in the weight room, I still think Raceland is physically stronger than anyone not name Pikeville. Which proved to be the difference last year against KCD and Sayre.

Who do you think will be the strongest contender in Racelands district? Is it Paris?

[ArmChairHC]

Paris without question but I think Nicholas and Fairview will be in the same boat. But Paris lost almost all of their front 5 on offense. All 3 of the most productive skill players and LBs. All they return in their QB.

[bac2369]

Paris without question but I think Nicholas and Fairview will be in the same boat. But Paris lost almost all of their front 5 on offense. All 3 of the most productive skill players and LBs. All they return in their QB.

Paris original starting quarterback got hurt in a scrimmage last season and missed the whole season. The question is does the senior get the nod or do they go back with the sophomore. If they go to the senior look for the sophomore to be on the field as he is a pretty solid athlete.

I look for Parker Ison to be used as a Noah Wallace type player this season. I believe the Cooper kid gets the nod as a senior and Ison will be a wildcat quarterback. But I could be wrong.

How many incoming freshmen Raceland got coming in?

[ArmChairHC]

Racelands incoming freshman group has struggled with numbers at times but come in with a solid 12 or more I believe. Rambo 6’ 260, Burks 5’10 180, Charles 6’0 200 all had really good years as 8th graders up front and all 3 really made strides in the weight room this offseason. Vanderhoof and Short are the standout skill players. But I don’t foresee any of them seeing significant minutes. Atleast I hope not. Simply bc we are at a point as a program that freshman shouldn’t be major factors.

[Patriot1]

With the new facilities and field I could see Paris getting some of the Bourbon County transfers but that is not the only reason which is the main one the class they play in. Don’t know if it’s going to happen but I think it could be a strong possibility but maybe some one close to the programs could let us know

[RAMDAD50]

With the new facilities and field I could see Paris  getting some of the Bourbon County transfers but that is not the only reason which is the main one the class they play in. Don’t know if it’s going to happen but I think it could be a strong possibility but maybe some one close to the programs could let us know

Something happened years ago that flipped all the kids from Paris to Bourbon County. I don’t think there’s anything at Paris that would catch a kids eyes and want them to go there. Paris would have to sustain some success like they had in the past before kids will wanna transfer there

[jetpilot]

Racelands incoming freshman group has struggled with numbers at times but come in with a solid 12 or more I believe. Rambo 6’ 260, Burks 5’10 180, Charles 6’0 200 all had really good years as 8th graders up front and all 3 really made strides in the weight room this offseason. Vanderhoof and Short are the standout skill players. But I don’t foresee any of them seeing significant minutes. Atleast I hope not. Simply bc we are at a point as a program that freshman shouldn’t be major factors.

J. Anderson #44 led Pikeville in total tackles last season as a freshman and also had 11 TFL and 3 sacks. Huge sack in the championship game. Another freshman J. Justice #22 was also a top tackler and led the team with 13 TFL. If a freshman is good enough he should be on the field.

[ArmChairHC]

I agree JP. But for the most part, your better programs don’t have a lot of freshman making a big difference. In 1A ball there’s still special players that can. I’m just referring to relying on Freshman.

[ArmChairHC]

First practice went well last night. We have more size upfront in both physical stature and in numbers than I had previously thought. Still young across the board and lots of holes to fill from the last few years. But the cupboard is far from empty and we have a lot of really nice looking kids. 7 on 7 means nothing, but I look forward to seeing how things go at Boyles passing tourney. We should see some athletic groups and it will be nice to see how our speed looks in comparison to those squads. Also have 3 QBs getting a lot of reps. This weekend gives them a chance to see a lot of good reps in some live work.

[Patriot1]

I think the Rams will be fine probably going to take some loses with that schedule they have but it will do these young men good around at the end of the year and don’t put to much stock in the 7 on 7 with Boyle probably one of the best teams in Kentucky and definitely speed all over the field

[ArmChairHC]

That’s what I want to know. I know what kind of atheletes Boyle has. I was interested to hear any info on the 7v7 simply from a speed standpoint and how we looked.

[bac2369]

Any details?

[bac2369]

Who will be Raceland feature running back this season? Looks like it could be up for grabs.

[back country]

That’s what I want to know. I know what kind of atheletes Boyle has. I was interested to hear any info on the 7v7 simply from a speed standpoint and how we looked.

Any details?

I was at the 7on 7 at Boyle. Boyle was dominant on both offense and defense. They used 2 QBs and used a lot of players both ways. Between the other 3 teams, GRC, Southwestern and Raceland they looked fairly even. Raceland had fewer players than the other 3 but looked well coached and held their own. I think they have lot to look forward to this season. I know this is 7 on 7 and is not a guarantee for overall success but you can't discount it either.

[ArmChairHC]

It will likely be a sophomore, imo. Most likely Landon Stiltner, he has a history of leg injuries though so I don’t for see him being a 15-20 carry per game back. Another sophomore, Landon Bloss, is a strong running kid that will see some Carries. Shannon Marushi has bounced between FB and being a lineman his whole career. But has slimmed down and sped up so I could see him being used at F a lot as well. It will be more by committee this year than in years passed, imo. Stiltner is a very strong and downhill runner with consistent 4.4 speed.

We will need to spread the ball around with the intermediate passing game this year, imo though. We will have to make teams play balanced defensively. I just don’t think we have a kid yet that can handle 15 rushes a game against a 8 man box.

---

Truth be told there are still a lot of unknowns. We will be young, or atleast new at a lot of positions. But, I am carefully optimistic because this sophomore group has alot of talent and we have made major strides in the speed development in the offseason program. Growing pains are expected, the schedule is brutal early on. But if we can stay healthy, I’m not sold on anyone not named Pikeville being that much better than the Rams will be in 1A.

[bac2369]

Who did Raceland use in the 7 on 7 at Boyle County? Or who got the most reps?

[ArmChairHC]

So far it looks like Ison is considered the starter at QB. Stiltner looks to be the #1 RB, atleast for now. WRs are as expected, Rowsey, McKee, Arnett, Rister, and Rister are all incredibly quick and athletic and have looked good in 7v7. Duvall, Murrell, Lockwood, Davidson, and a few others have looked like tough receivers but there’s still a crap ton of questions left to answer lol

[Beagle1]

Well I was there Friday evening for the 7on7 practice. I certainly didn’t see the blistering speed that’s been bragged on recently. Lord god, poor GC beat the lambs by at least two scores!!!!

[ArmChairHC]

So glad to get your input Beagle1. Maybe Greenup will reach out to get us on the schedule now since we suck so bad on our “fall back down the hill”

[Beagle1]

I sure hope not

[ArmChairHC]

Me too. No point in playing against quality competition in your own county…