[Stardust]

BOWLING GREEN, KY. — The debate likely will never be settled, whether this Trinity High School football team is the nation’s best.

But on Friday night, the Shamrocks put the finishing touches on what few would challenge was the finest season ever by a squad from Kentucky.

The Shamrocks got big nights from running back Dalyn Dawkins and quarterback Travis Wright, posted 600 yards of offense and solidified their five No. 1 national rankings by routing Scott County 62-21 in the Russell Athletic Commonwealth Gridiron Bowl Class 6-A championship game.

A crowd of 6,691 at Houchens Industries/L.T. Smith Stadium saw Trinity complete a 14-0 season against what may have been the toughest schedule ever faced by a Kentucky high school football team.

When it was over, Trinity coach Bob Beatty maintained his season-long indifference toward the national title discussion.

“I don’t have any control over that,” he said. “I know we’re going to take a trophy home. We have control over that. Everything else is somebody’s opinion now, but if you take a look at our schedule, I think it sells itself. … It was a great schedule, and we persevered through it.”

Dawkins carried 13 times for 152 yards and four touchdowns, and Wright completed 15 of 19 passes for 298 yards and four scores. James Quick hauled in six catches for 120 yards and two TDs.

The scary part for the rest of the state? All three are juniors.

“We couldn’t have guessed we would accomplish all the things we’ve accomplished this year,” Wright said. “It was all a dream at the beginning, but we made it reality tonight.”

The Shamrocks thrust themselves into the national title discussion after a regular season that included wins over three Cincinnati kingpins (Elder, St. Xavier and Moeller), two Tennessee powers (Brentwood Academy and Montgomery Bell Academy) and an Indianapolis Cathedral team that won Indiana’s Class 4-A state title.

And Trinity didn’t let up in the postseason, winning its five playoff games by an average margin of 49.4 points.

http://www.courier-journal.com/article/2011312020120