[EKUAlum05]

Show me a team that does each very well (pass/run) and you will see them win championships. With a few exceptions.

Here's the issue though... how many teams fit this description? Specifically in the smaller school ranks?

I completely agree that if you have a team that can throw for 200 yards and run for 200 yards and play great defense every night they will absolutely dominate. Everyone agrees.

EVERY single coach in America would scrap their Wing-T, Flexbone, or Empty Spread in a heartbeat if they knew every year they could do this. Phillip Haywood would run the read option with three WR's. Ivan McGlone would take over Lewis County and run Jet Sweeps, Sluggos, and TE Wheel Routes.

How come it doesn't happen then?

How come the only teams in KY who seem to be able to have this balance are the same teams every year (Highlands, CovCath, Mayfield, Trinity, St. X, Boyle County (during Smith's tenure)?

All of those teams either have the most elite of coaching staffs or have an abundance of talent far surpassing the teams they match up against.


What typically ends up happening instead is you don't have the players to fill in the holes across the board and have a blaring weakness. That or you simply are mediocre across the board.

If you knew every year you had a 75 man roster with 10 skilled offensive guys, 10 skilled defensive guys, a QB with an accurate arm and good footwork, 4 or 5 Stout Linebackers with 4.6 speed, a 6'4 TE with basketball skills, a QB harassing DE off the edge, and a bunch of dominating linemen who were adept and run blocking and pass blocking you would have a balanced system and dominate.. you'd absolutely crush everything in your path. In 99.99% of the country that will not ever happen with an enrollment of 800 students or less. The only way that happens is it you can pull enough talent in from talent pool flow from adjacent areas or you develop talent yourself. Once again, propositions that don't just happen.

Pike Central is a great offensive football team for a smaller school. They typically have a 1000 yard rusher, a duel threat QB, and the ability to put up points passing in a hurry. They play their best players on offense. Their defense is typically awful. Painfully bad. Their lineplay is shotty against quality teams and typically their annual matchup with Belfry is close for a Half before Belfry destroys them. Pike Central simply does not have enough players to go around and an average feeder system.