[Hoot Gibson]

From what I remember, Humphery wanted to run a style of offense that he needed more over all team speed to run. If he would have run the wishbone belly offense he would have been a lot more successful. That team was suited perfect for that, and If Musick would have stayed they would have been a lot more successful. Ole Musick wasn't that great at coaching as far as x's and o's went, but he was a heck of a motivator and his teams were always in good shape.

Under Humphrey, one of my sons noticed that every time that JC called a particular play that they thought would work great against Sheldon Clark, the Cardinals seemed to anticipate the play and stopped it for big losses. Matney later told my son that he noticed on the JC films that they only ran one play out of a particular formation, so his players knew to shift the defense immediately when they saw the formation. My son confirmed that they only had a single play in their playbook for the formation.

Johnson Central should have easily beaten the Cardinals that season and by halftime, everybody in the stadium knew that they had no chance. I think that was the game that sealed Coach Humphrey's fate. If the game had been scheduled early in the season, I think JC would have won easily. Instead, players, coaches, and parents all began playing the blame game and Humphrey's days were numbered at JC.

Matney's teams always improve steadily over the course of a season. During the three years between Musick and Humphrey, I honestly believe that Johnson Central was better each season in its first game than it was in its last game. They looked great in scrimmages against teams like Belfry and Holmes but everything headed downhill once the season started.