[Gridiron_Raid]

Week 3 Mountain Top Ten 

1. Corbin (3-0) 
   
   
2. Johnson Central (2-1)
   
   
3. Belfry (1-2)
   
   
4. Somerset (2-1)
   
   
5. North Laurel (2-1)
   
   
6. Bell County (2-1)
   
   
7. Whitley County (2-1)
   
   
8. Hazard (3-0)
   
   
9. Pulaski County (2-1)
   
   
10. Perry Central (2-1)
    

The quality of the local coverage for hs sports from WYMT has nose-dived in the last 3-4 years. The crew they had for years was top-notch in covering local athletes. Not so much anymore. I don’t think the top ten made logical sense one week in the last 3 years. Here’s some notes. 


1. Pulaski County. No matter what people say, pulaski county is in the wymt coverage area. I would like to see one person argue that pulaski is not better than every team on this list minus 1 and 2. 

2. Pikeville. Let’s see how many running clocks occur on every other team 4-10 if they played pikevilles schedule. Are my eyes confusing me but is there a 1A school on this list that isn’t pikeville??? Oh wait they play eachother in october let’s see how that plays out. “Oh but they are 0-3”, well our number 3 team is 1-2. 

3. Somerset. We must really be giving knox central credit for that win. I mean for somerset to lose to a 0-2 team with losses to whitley and south laurel, and only fall 2 spots in amazing to me. North loses to a top 10 team in the state, and is below them. Pulaski loses to a state championship power house by 1 point, and then beats the team that had beat belfry, and is 9th. WYMT must really respect wayne or something. But if that’s the case, why does perry make the list instead of Knox?

I mean at some point you have to worry about our community. We are relying on this type of logic to give us our nightly news coverage.

[Big Five-0-]

Agree. They have taken a nose dive in coverage compared to previous years.

[jetpilot]

LOL Pikeville should be 3rd

[jetpilot]

You can't rely on anything you see on TV anymore period. No exceptions.

[Blacksmith]

You can rely on anything you see on TV anymore period. No exceptions.

The media in general....

[64SUR]

Unbelievable top 10

[jetpilot]

You can't rely on anything you see on TV anymore period. No exceptions.

fixed it

[know1]

Let's face it, if the news/sports reporters are doing a good job for a small market broadcaster like WYMT, they are likely going to move on to bigger markets. It's a shame, but it's reality.

[zaga_fan]

I refrained from commenting on the pre-season poll, but there were just a ton of issues and it's showing.

But I will also say that rankings are a reflection of what happens in the win and loss column, and they aren't always a 1:1 representation of the best teams.
For example, if you have two 5-0 football teams playing each other in NCAA college football or basketball and one is ranked 1 and the other is ranked 20, if the top ranked team wins the team ranked 20 is going to fall down in the rankings. It doesn't matter if the teams ranked 21 and 22 are worse teams or the 20th ranked team shouldn't have beaten the top ranked team in the first place, they are going down in the rankings.

So I can see why it's hard to put Pikeville at 3 when they are 0-3. It doesn't matter that they lost to 1 and 2 (and LCA), you can't just lose every week and expect to be one of the top ranked teams on any list. I'm sure Pikeville's goals are much higher than being ranked 3 on WYMT.

[jetpilot]

I refrained from commenting on the pre-season poll, but there were just a ton of issues and it's showing.

But I will also say that rankings are a reflection of what happens in the win and loss column, and they aren't always a 1:1 representation of the best teams.
For example, if you have two 5-0 football teams playing each other in NCAA college football or basketball and one is ranked 1 and the other is ranked 20, if the top ranked team wins the team ranked 20 is going to fall down in the rankings. It doesn't matter if the teams ranked 21 and 22 are worse teams or the 20th ranked team shouldn't have beaten the top ranked team in the first place, they are going down in the rankings.

So I can see why it's hard to put Pikeville at 3 when they are 0-3. It doesn't matter that they lost to 1 and 2 (and LCA), you can't just lose every week and expect to be one of the top ranked teams on any list. I'm sure Pikeville's goals are much higher than being ranked 3 on WYMT.

By that logic Trinity could be 0-3 and not be in the Mountain Top 10 and St. Edwards may have fallen below Hazard after losing to Boyle Co. (Just pretending they are mountain teams for context.)

[Big Boomer]

I think the turnover rate of the staff has really caught up with them in modern times. I don't think they pay them much and most have grown up in bigger cities and the move to Hazard is a big culture shock. It seems like most that work there are from out state and just bidding time for a spot at WKYT or other outlets. I have spoke with several and about the time they figure the landscape of SEKY football they get a better gig and move on.

[M00sejaw64]

Good Golly Miss Molly!! 

Why not  just let the fans vote 
(aka. anybody) for the top 10 on wymt's website. It has potential to be more accurate, IMO

[DangerMouse]

When I think top 10, I consider too many things. I don’t think in a one game scenario, I think in a best of three. How would the teams do at a Home game , away game and a neutral field with each team. (That’s just me)

1. Corbin
2 Pulaski
3. Johnson Central
4. Pikeville
5. Belfry
6. Hazard
7. Whitley County
8. North Laurel
9. Bell County
10. Somerset

Probable leaving someone off the list here that I’m not thinking of when going through the counties.

[zaga_fan]

I refrained from commenting on the pre-season poll, but there were just a ton of issues and it's showing.

But I will also say that rankings are a reflection of what happens in the win and loss column, and they aren't always a 1:1 representation of the best teams.
For example, if you have two 5-0 football teams playing each other in NCAA college football or basketball and one is ranked 1 and the other is ranked 20, if the top ranked team wins the team ranked 20 is going to fall down in the rankings. It doesn't matter if the teams ranked 21 and 22 are worse teams or the 20th ranked team shouldn't have beaten the top ranked team in the first place, they are going down in the rankings.

So I can see why it's hard to put Pikeville at 3 when they are 0-3. It doesn't matter that they lost to 1 and 2 (and LCA), you can't just lose every week and expect to be one of the top ranked teams on any list. I'm sure Pikeville's goals are much higher than being ranked 3 on WYMT.

By that logic Trinity could be 0-3 and not be in the Mountain Top 10 and St. Edwards may have fallen below Hazard after losing to Boyle Co. (Just pretending they are mountain teams for context.)

I'm not saying they shouldn't be on the list. I'm saying it's hard to put them at #3 at this very moment while they haven't won a game.
I think Pikeville is probably the third-best team around here.
This is an anomaly because of their schedule, but in any ranking you typically drop a spot/spots if you lose.
Rankings historically just show you how teams are trending at the time and I'm sure Pikeville will be trending near the top at the end of the year.

Don't let my comment on Pikeville overshadow my overall thoughts about this list though.
Corbin should have never been anything other than #1.
Breathitt has been ranked in the top ten at least the last couple of years and have quickly dropped out.
Perry Central beats Breathitt and gets into the list prematurely in consecutive years.
Somerset is likely not the best team in Pulaski County.
Johnson Central down at #6 to start the season was tragic.
It was a bad list and it's going to take a couple more weeks to shake everything out.

[zaga_fan]

Everything said, I have a long history with WYMT and I know these guys are still the hardest working sports department you will find. The nature of the beast is if you want to make money as a sports reporter or anchor you can't do it in a market this small. I worked at WYMT for about 6 years and went from there to being a classroom teacher at a public school and it was a raise for me and I worked more manageable hours with summers and holidays off. These guys work hard and they put on a good show, even though it's taken some time to get these rankings lined out the last couple of years.

A lot of the teams at the top of the original list made deep runs in the playoffs last year and when all is said and done will be some of the last teams standing this year.

[Bull got out!]

Week 3 Mountain Top Ten 

1. Corbin (3-0) 
   
   
2. Johnson Central (2-1)
   
   
3. Belfry (1-2)
   
   
4. Somerset (2-1)
   
   
5. North Laurel (2-1)
   
   
6. Bell County (2-1)
   
   
7. Whitley County (2-1)
   
   
8. Hazard (3-0)
   
   
9. Pulaski County (2-1)
   
   
10. Perry Central (2-1)
    

Food for thought.....

regular season (neutral field)

[2024] Johnson Central (Paintsville, KY) 28 (75%), [2024] Pikeville (KY) 17 (25%)

[2024] Pikeville (KY) 35 (65%), [2024] Belfry (KY) 28 (35%)

[2024] Pikeville (KY) 19 (77%), [2024] Somerset (KY) 7 (23%)

[2024] Pikeville (KY) 15 (53%), [2024] North Laurel (London, KY) 14 (47%)

[2024] Bell County (Pineville, KY) 24 (57%), [2024] Pikeville (KY) 22 (43%)

[2024] Pikeville (KY) 28 (81%), [2024] Whitley County (Williamsburg, KY) 14 (19%)

[2024] Hazard (KY) 28 (62%), [2024] Pikeville (KY) 22 (38%)

[2024] Pulaski County (Somerset, KY) 27 (62%), [2024] Pikeville (KY) 21 (38%)

[2024] Pikeville (KY) 42 (93%), [2024] Perry County Central (Hazard, KY) 19 (7%)

https://www.calpreps.com/cgi-bin/2024/pr...atchup2.pl

[hawg laig]

I’ve always seen the top ten as speculation, at best. I don’t feel as if they are trying to slight any program in the area. The thing I’ve noticed is how young they all are. Sometimes I feel like I’m watching a very well produced high school news cast. Good grief, I’m old. Guess I need to go out front and yell at kids to stay the hell out of my yard

[jetpilot]

If Pikeville only has a 38% chance of beating Hazard I'll kiss every a$$ on here lol

[Bull got out!]

If Pikeville only has a 38% chance of beating Hazard I'll kiss every a$$ on here lol

 Thats why I said food for thought, not written in stone. 

[Statebound19]

I remember 10 years ago Somerset and Pulaski would say not considered be mountains by a lot fans . I’m honestly for them be in mountains and yes I feel like they should be # 2 or #3 on the top 10.

[Granny Bear]

If Pikeville only has a 38% chance of beating Hazard I'll kiss every a$$ on here lol

Be sure to film that!!

[RunItUpTheGut]

The days of Brian Milam and the old man Keith? Are long gone. It’s just fresh out of college kids that know nothing of mountain sports. Not their fault but wymt is just a pedestal for something bigger. It’s why the turnover is so high.

[OutlawJoseyWales]

IMO the play by play and color guys for WYMT are tragically horrible.

[jetpilot]

IMO the play by play and color guys for WYMT are tragically horrible.

Tolerable. Nearly all the local radio guys are much better.

[Gridiron_Raid]

Everything said, I have a long history with WYMT and I know these guys are still the hardest working sports department you will find. The nature of the beast is if you want to make money as a sports reporter or anchor you can't do it in a market this small. I worked at WYMT for about 6 years and went from there to being a classroom teacher at a public school and it was a raise for me and I worked more manageable hours with summers and holidays off. These guys work hard and they put on a good show, even though it's taken some time to get these rankings lined out the last couple of years.

A lot of the teams at the top of the original list made deep runs in the playoffs last year and when all is said and done will be some of the last teams standing this year.

like I said, WYMT in the past had a very good production and media team. However, in recent years, the hard work and dedication has 100% been forgotten or abandon. The reason I am so harsh on this channel is because it is easier to find or collect information on teams across the world today then what it has been in the past. So many of us can find stats and scores or even film within minutes, but WYMT cannot make logical sense Out of local scores Enough to rank local teams or acknowledge important accolades and accomplishments in the correct manner. I can about guarantee that a production team from UPIKE could very well be an improvement on what we have seen since Covid.

[zaga_fan]

Last thing I’ll say about the station, but they also had to move everyone from salary to hourly.
So the days of Brian Milam or Derek Forrest or the rest of the crew putting in 50-60 hours/week covering things are over.

[OutlawJoseyWales]

IMO the play by play and color guys for WYMT are tragically horrible.

Tolerable. Nearly all the local radio guys are much better.

Jet….tolerable is being too kind

[Old School Hound]

If Pikeville only has a 38% chance of beating Hazard I'll kiss every a$$ on here lol

Be sure to film that!!

Ol' Jet is going to be joining the Old School Hound "Kiss my Ass! Club before long. 

[jetpilot]

^^^The last ass people with 8 state championships would ever kiss is someone's who hasn't sniffed a championship in nearly 5 decades...

[Old School Hound]

From what I've heard while channel surfing football games on Friday nights has been horrific game calling. Mostly just a bunch of local hillbillies who sound like that just emerged from a Make America Hate Again rally or from a local snake handling church revival service.