[LClion4life]

but if you want kids to play without a hassle,

What does that mean? If we want kids to play without a hassle? Again Kids should play for who ever they hire, for nothing more than the love of the game.

Hassle or not Come on!!!

Amen.

[9-POINT]

Amen.

you all know it all....coming from someone who has a one on one relationship with player standpoints, you need to realize transferring is an option here. i don't want that and neither should you. either way copley wont get the job. num num num

[StrayBullet]

The more I talk to people about this subject the more I believe that in the end Coach Cecil will end up with the job with Alan Short coming in as an assistant.

[foxtrot1]

If the players don't like who is hired then it's just to bad. The decision on who is hired won't be made based on players wants. Believe it or not high school kids don't know as much as they think they do. If kids want to transfer then so be it. 99% of the players saying they will transfer will be at LC no matter what next year, simply because neither they nor their parents have the means to move them.

[LClion4life]

I just think it's childish for an athlete to say that they won't won't play or they'll move if they don't get the coach they want or get a coach that they don't approve of.

[Kosar]

Why do the boys not like Copley? The GC boys he had the last two years would have layed in the road for him. He runs a first class team, and really takes care of his boy's.

[STATE CHAMP]

The more I talk to people about this subject the more I believe that in the end Coach Cecil will end up with the job with Alan Short coming in as an assistant.

I think Cecil will be next coach and Alan Short will be on the staff running the offense. Option football coming back to Louisa...:Clap:

[bulldog4life]

I think Cecil will be next coach and Alan Short will be on the staff running the offense. Option football coming back to Louisa...:Clap:

I hope Cecil does get the job!

Is Alan Short a better coach than any of the assistants on Salmon's staff?

[foxtrot1]

I think Cecil will be next coach and Alan Short will be on the staff running the offense. Option football coming back to Louisa...:Clap:

While I think this would be exciting, I'm not sure if LC has an athletic enough QB for this to happen.

[TheUnderground]

Here is the Facts..Our schedule for the last 2 years was soft serve ice cream! However, beating a couple very strong teams in Post season proved our worth. Mr.Cook is very involved in finding us a good coach and I trust he will. Coach Cecil has officially applied for the job. Nuff said. He has been here through thick and thin, through good and bad, his personality or his beliefs never waiver he is the same today as he was 6 years ago, he loves God, he loves Football, and he loves the kids, he has built trust in these kids. He deserves the opportunity to be named Head Coach. If paying your dues means nothing to the parents, to the Administration, to the ones on committee, then what exactly is the message we are teaching our youth? Tony Burchett has applied, it is true. but there is no shot that he will be here in 5 years.. ZERO. he will retire. Maybe sooner than that. and we will be doing this all over again. Maybe Cecil wont give us that same opportunity, maybe he will. Im not willing to gamble on our kids future, lets not forget we had a very strong middle school team this year, LC will rise again. JYD :Thumbs:

[TSSI]

Why do the boys not like Copley? I The GC boys he had the last two years would have layed in the road for him. He runs a first class team, and really takes care of his boy's.

Great comment...Knowing Copley personally, I can comment on this above. He is a classy guy, that really has the respect of the kids. He cares about them so much, Ive seen him drive kids to college workouts, just to get them noticed. At Pikeville he has taken kids in his own house, just to help them in a bad way. Wouldnt you want your child to play for a guy that cares and can coach as well? Sometimes people don't think you are any different from when you where 18. Copley graduated from LC and went on to gain a world of experience college/assistant coaching with Chuke and then HC.

This is my last post about Copley, just open your eyes to these things and asked yourself these question?

1) How long will the next coach want to stay, if he does succeed?
2) How much coaching experience has the guy had?
3) Will he actually care about promoting our kids for college and lead them to be good kids?


In my eyes all things point to hiring Copley...Enough said!!!

[Mr. Sandwich]

Tony Burchett has applied, it is true. but there is no shot that he will be here in 5 years.. ZERO. he will retire. Maybe sooner than that. and we will be doing this all over again. JYD :Thumbs:

Huh.... You must know him on a personal level to make this assumption.... So obviously, you are aware of his age.... 58... An incredibly YOUNG age (these days)for a talented and experienced football coach... I know what kind of guy he is from playing for him in the past and speaking with him recently.... He will be there for the players until they stop depending on him for guidance and the inspiration to win... But I'd say once that happens, It will be the day that he dies.... The man has been coaching for around 30 years!!! And nearly EVERY team he has been a part of has had some of the best offensive lines and rushing stats.... He brings a level of class to a team that is second to none.... To me, that makes one heck of a coach.... And if there is a concern of him retiring, hire an assistant under him to shadow him for the 5 years you claim... When I played for him and Chuke Williams at LC, we wore shirts that said "Tradition Doesn't Graduate"... What happened after Williams and Burchett left??? Several disappointing and sub-par seasons (excluding the past 2. But really? The middle school teams could have had winning seasons with those cupcake schedules.).. Tradition graduated.... Along with the excitement of Friday night... I think Burchett is the spark this community needs to bring LC back to glory and make them one of the most feared football teams in Eastern Kentucky... Just sayin'.:eyeroll:

[StrayBullet]

Huh.... You must know him on a personal level to make this assumption.... So obviously, you are aware of his age.... 58... An incredibly YOUNG age (these days)for a talented and experienced football coach... I know what kind of guy he is from playing for him in the past and speaking with him recently.... He will be there for the players until they stop depending on him for guidance and the inspiration to win... But I'd say once that happens, It will be the day that he dies.... The man has been coaching for around 30 years!!! And nearly EVERY team he has been a part of has had some of the best offensive lines and rushing stats.... He brings a level of class to a team that is second to none.... To me, that makes one heck of a coach.... And if there is a concern of him retiring, hire an assistant under him to shadow him for the 5 years you claim... When I played for him and Chuke Williams at LC, we wore shirts that said "Tradition Doesn't Graduate"... What happened after Williams and Burchett left??? Several disappointing and sub-par seasons (excluding the past 2. But really? The middle school teams could have had winning seasons with those cupcake schedules.).. Tradition graduated.... Along with the excitement of Friday night... I think Burchett is the spark this community needs to bring LC back to glory and make them one of the most feared football teams in Eastern Kentucky... Just sayin'.:eyeroll:

AMEN!! Coach Burchett has been very successful everywhere he goes. The man has forgotten more football than I will ever know. The boys will LOVE to play for him and therefore they will play VERY hard for him. He is the only logical hire.

[crunch1]

I have to say i've never been on this website before today, but IMO if mr.combs leaves, its not going to be a big lost. Seriouslly i've been around these boys for a long time and can tell you his money does a lot of the talkin.

[LuckyEddie]

Crunch1, And what does that post have to do with the topic? That was totally idiotic, unnecessary and untrue. For you to join this site and make that statement as your first post.....sounds like some serious jealousies going on. Pathetic. Grow up. This is what happens when there are too many snow days and LC doesnt have school. Juveniles look for things to get into that they normally dont have time/access too. Unfortunate.

[dbcooper]

Huh.... You must know him on a personal level to make this assumption.... So obviously, you are aware of his age.... 58... An incredibly YOUNG age (these days)for a talented and experienced football coach... I know what kind of guy he is from playing for him in the past and speaking with him recently.... He will be there for the players until they stop depending on him for guidance and the inspiration to win... But I'd say once that happens, It will be the day that he dies.... The man has been coaching for around 30 years!!! And nearly EVERY team he has been a part of has had some of the best offensive lines and rushing stats.... He brings a level of class to a team that is second to none.... To me, that makes one heck of a coach.... And if there is a concern of him retiring, hire an assistant under him to shadow him for the 5 years you claim... When I played for him and Chuke Williams at LC, we wore shirts that said "Tradition Doesn't Graduate"... What happened after Williams and Burchett left??? Several disappointing and sub-par seasons (excluding the past 2. But really? The middle school teams could have had winning seasons with those cupcake schedules.).. Tradition graduated.... Along with the excitement of Friday night... I think Burchett is the spark this community needs to bring LC back to glory and make them one of the most feared football teams in Eastern Kentucky... Just sayin'.:eyeroll:

While I appreciate this post, let's set something straight once and for all... Lawrence County has rarely, under any coach, played demanding non-district schedule and done well with it.
Back in '98, when no one was slamming them for playing "cupcakes" they opened with a pair of teams that went 1-19 between them.
In '99 they opened with a good (not great) Harlan team and then played stiffs - including a not real good Belfry team - until they hit district play.
Let's dispense with the "we played the best to be the best" talk because it simply isn't the case.
In the 90s heyday, the Dawgs routinely played traditional rivals in non-district play and those rivals were rarely any good. With the exception of Shelby Valley and East Ridge, last season's schedule was parallel with a mid 90s schedule. And, frankly, SV and ER might have been an upgrade over some of the 90s opponents.
The thing that made the 90s great was being in situations where LC could compete size-wise in the playoffs and that might return with the realignment. But let's be honest and admit we never, ever played a super non-district schedule and did well with it.

[kyfootball fan]

What do you guys think about Jimmy Skinner? Is he a good coach? Is he good with the kids? Is he knowledgeable?

[StrayBullet]

What do you guys think about Jimmy Skinner? Is he a good coach? Is he good with the kids? Is he knowledgeable?

Jimmy Skinner was one of the best coaches on the staff, wherever he lands he will be greatly apprecited and admired.

[Mr. Sandwich]

While I appreciate this post, let's set something straight once and for all... Lawrence County has rarely, under any coach, played demanding non-district schedule and done well with it.
Back in '98, when no one was slamming them for playing "cupcakes" they opened with a pair of teams that went 1-19 between them.
In '99 they opened with a good (not great) Harlan team and then played stiffs - including a not real good Belfry team - until they hit district play.
Let's dispense with the "we played the best to be the best" talk because it simply isn't the case.
In the 90s heyday, the Dawgs routinely played traditional rivals in non-district play and those rivals were rarely any good. With the exception of Shelby Valley and East Ridge, last season's schedule was parallel with a mid 90s schedule. And, frankly, SV and ER might have been an upgrade over some of the 90s opponents.
The thing that made the 90s great was being in situations where LC could compete size-wise in the playoffs and that might return with the realignment. But let's be honest and admit we never, ever played a super non-district schedule and did well with it.

So you're saying Shelby Valley or East Ridge could have competed with teams like Ashland, Belfry, Breathitt County, Covington-Holmes, Newport, Whitesburg, Mason County or even that Harlan team we demolished? No sir. Maybe now.... But not those teams.

[inspiron]

While I appreciate this post, let's set something straight once and for all... Lawrence County has rarely, under any coach, played demanding non-district schedule and done well with it.
Back in '98, when no one was slamming them for playing "cupcakes" they opened with a pair of teams that went 1-19 between them.
In '99 they opened with a good (not great) Harlan team and then played stiffs - including a not real good Belfry team - until they hit district play.
Let's dispense with the "we played the best to be the best" talk because it simply isn't the case.
In the 90s heyday, the Dawgs routinely played traditional rivals in non-district play and those rivals were rarely any good. With the exception of Shelby Valley and East Ridge, last season's schedule was parallel with a mid 90s schedule. And, frankly, SV and ER might have been an upgrade over some of the 90s opponents.
The thing that made the 90s great was being in situations where LC could compete size-wise in the playoffs and that might return with the realignment. But let's be honest and admit we never, ever played a super non-district schedule and did well with it.

You are comapring apples to oranges when you try bashing teams of the 90's. I remember some very good raceland's, russell's, ashland's, tolsia's. In the early 90's they played in 2A and one year in 1A which would be 4A-3A now and in the late 90's they played in 3A which is 5A now(I guess; it's hard to justify with what was then only 4 classes). The one thing that seperates those teams from the present is that they "beat the best in the playoffs" when it mattered and their soft non-district schedule was overlooked because they could compete with the best the state had to offer; year in and year out!!! They went into the Bell Counties and blew them out by 40, then beat the rockcastle's, breathitt's, newport's, whitley counties, prestonsburg's, and then lost to almost an eventual state champion almost everytime. The team's of the present couldn't even touch the great teams of the 90's because against quality opponents they have failed to even score a touchdown. I know in my post their is alot of mistakes but you get my point!!

From 1995-1999 just a little stats:

1995
1st Round- Lawrence County 9-2 lost to Highlands 12-3(State Runner Up)

1996
1st Round-LC 8-2 Defeated Ryle 7-3
2nd round LC 9-3 Lost to Highlands 15-0(State Champions)

1997
1st round-LC 10-0 Defeated Whitesburg 4-6
2nd Round-LC 11-0 Defeated Newport 6-5
3rd Round- LC 12-0 Defeated Breathitt 12-0
4th Round- LC 13-1 lost to Bourbon 12-3 (State Champions)

1998
1st Round-LC 10-0 Defeated Whitesburg 4-6
2nd Round- LC 11-0 Defeated Prestonsburg 9-2
3rd Round-LC 11-1 lost to Breathitt County 10-3 (Lost in Semi's)

1999
1st round-LC 9-1 Defeated Whitley County 8-2
2nd Round-LC 10-1 Defeated Bell County 9-2
3rd Round-LC 11-1 Defeated Rockcastle County 10-2
4th Round-LC 12-1 Lost to Highlands 14-1 (State Champions)


They were State runner-ups in 1992 and had about the same playoff and regular season wins but the stats weren't available when I tried to get them.

[dbcooper]

So you're saying Shelby Valley or East Ridge could have competed with teams like Ashland, Belfry, Breathitt County, Covington-Holmes, Newport, Whitesburg, Mason County or even that Harlan team we demolished? No sir. Maybe now.... But not those teams.

For one, I said non-district opponents. You can't do anything about who you are assigned to play in the district or playoffs. You only control the non-district.
Most of the teams you listed we NEVER played outside of district or playoff competition.
This season's SV team was dreadful and would've had a tough time scoring on all but one or two of the teams you named.
Last season's SV team was easily as good as that 1-9 Holmes team from 98 that LC played 1 time.
We didn't start regularly playing Belfry or Ashland until 99. Newport, Breathitt, Mason, and Whitesburg were all either district or playoff teams in the 90s.
My point was not to insult the 90s teams - they were the best of what LC has had. Ever.
But the fact remains, they did not go out of their way to play tough non-district schedules. They always played traditional geographical rivals who were sometimes good (Raceland and Tolsia, occasionally) but often dreadful.

[dbcooper]

You are comapring apples to oranges when you try bashing teams of the 90's. I remember some very good raceland's, russell's, ashland's, tolsia's. In the early 90's they played in 2A and one year in 1A which would be 4A-3A now and in the late 90's they played in 3A which is 5A now(I guess; it's hard to justify with what was then only 4 classes). The one thing that seperates those teams from the present is that they "beat the best in the playoffs" when it mattered and their soft non-district schedule was overlooked because they could compete with the best the state had to offer; year in and year out!!! They went into the Bell Counties and blew them out by 40, then beat the rockcastle's, breathitt's, newport's, whitley counties, prestonsburg's, and then lost to almost an eventual state champion almost everytime. The team's of the present couldn't even touch the great teams of the 90's because against quality opponents they have failed to even score a touchdown. I know in my post their is alot of mistakes but you get my point!!

From 1995-1999 just a little stats:

1995
1st Round- Lawrence County 9-2 lost to Highlands 12-3(State Runner Up)

1996
1st Round-LC 8-2 Defeated Ryle 7-3
2nd round LC 9-3 Lost to Highlands 15-0(State Champions)

1997
1st round-LC 10-0 Defeated Whitesburg 4-6
2nd Round-LC 11-0 Defeated Newport 6-5
3rd Round- LC 12-0 Defeated Breathitt 12-0
4th Round- LC 13-1 lost to Bourbon 12-3 (State Champions)

1998
1st Round-LC 10-0 Defeated Whitesburg 4-6
2nd Round- LC 11-0 Defeated Prestonsburg 9-2
3rd Round-LC 11-1 lost to Breathitt County 10-3 (Lost in Semi's)

1999
1st round-LC 9-1 Defeated Whitley County 8-2
2nd Round-LC 10-1 Defeated Bell County 9-2
3rd Round-LC 11-1 Defeated Rockcastle County 10-2
4th Round-LC 12-1 Lost to Highlands 14-1 (State Champions)


They were State runner-ups in 1992 and had about the same playoff and regular season wins but the stats weren't available when I tried to get them.

Good research, inspiron, but I want to point out two things: 1)I was not "bashing" LC's 90s teams at all. They remain my favorite teams to have ever witnessed personally. 2) Your research does not cover non-district opponents, which was the point of my whole post.
If you want to judge solely by playoff competition, then the teams of the last two seasons rank right up there - having eventually lost to a state semi-finalist that was easily the second best team in all of Class 4A and the only teams that surpass the 2009 squad, by that measurement, are the teams LC had that reached the semis.
But the fact remains, LC has never made a big effort to play a rigorous non-district schedule except for during this decade, when they played very good Wayne, Ironton, Prestonsburg and Belfry teams, not to mention a PRP-caliber team here or there.
In the 90s it was mostly Morgan, Raceland, Tolsia and other area teams that would still play them, none of which you'd find in state title games on a regular basis.
We didn't start playing Ashland and Belfry on a regular basis until 99 and with Ashland it was only because they were then in our district. And the Belfry of recent years is WAY better than the Belfry we were playing in 99.
Again, I am not trying to dishonor teams from any era, but I do think it is unfair for people to take shots at the teams from the past two seasons and not admit that we weren't exactly playing Trinity and St. X back in the day, either.
Have a great weekend, all, and I pray we get the coach who loves our kids, our community and wants to work hard to sustain the momentum that's been regained.

[dbcooper]

One other thing, yes the teams from 09 and '10 got thumped by Bell County, but that was a far different Bell County team than the one (and only one) we beat in '99.
And you make it sound like we hung close in losing to the eventual state champions every time - we didn't. We lost to Bourbon, a team we should've beaten, in a close one, but other than that the Highlands losses were extremely lopsided affairs. Extremely.
So, no, we didn't beat the best back then, either. If we had, we'd have the trophies to show for it.

[LClion4life]

Coach Prater still talks about us(Lewis County) upsetting you guys in 1993. That win got us into the playoffs. I believe we were Lawrence's only loss in the regular season that year. Correct me if I'm wrong. But you guys playing us again proves your point, dbcooper, that Lawrence didn't play a tough non-district schedule in the 90s either. I believe we went 1-9 and 2-8 the two years before that season.

[dbcooper]

That was a huge win for Lewis Co., LCLion, I remember being upset there in the 80, too. Of course, this LC wasn't real strong in the 80s yet at that time.
Coach Prater should talk about that still. Great win and Prater is a great LC legend (Lewis County, that is).
Anyway, I am sorry to have sidetracked this one. And again, not bashing the Dawgs. They have always been my team - when we stunk or when we were kicking butt - and always will be. I am quite confident that Mr. Sandwich is someone I watched excel on the gridiron during the Golden Era.
Hopefully we'll have another Era that is comparable soon. We have not seen talent of that caliber in many seasons. While the last two were nice seasons, the 90s were truly the best players we've had and that translated into the most entertaining football by far.

[BBQKING]

As a player that played for the teams during the 96-99 years i will agree that our non-district schedule was weak. But as I recall Coach Williams complaining that nobody would play us back then. I know we scrimmaged Ironton in 97 and Chuke wanted to schedule them for games in 98 and 99 but Lutz refused. We also attempted to schedule Henry Clay in 99 but couldn't. This effect carried over into Goldsmiths tenure here, except we weren't as good as we were in the 90's. And the Harlan game at the beginning of the 99 season was not supposed to be Harlan. The other team dropped the bowl after we signed up.

[VikingFan]

Coach Prater still talks about us(Lewis County) upsetting you guys in 1993. That win got us into the playoffs. I believe we were Lawrence's only loss in the regular season that year. Correct me if I'm wrong. But you guys playing us again proves your point, dbcooper, that Lawrence didn't play a tough non-district schedule in the 90s either. I believe we went 1-9 and 2-8 the two years before that season.

I remember that team from Lewis, very tough, hard hitting kids.

Corky is a master on offense.

[VikingFan]

I was at the Lawrence/ Bourbon game, one of my all time favorite games. Lawrence should have won that game, and a state title that year.

For you guys who remember,,,what a night,,, Thousands of people, Dudley vs Chuke,,,it was like two tanks hitting each other,,,,last one with ball wins, and Lawrence had it ready to score with almost no time on the clock and fumbles.

Smashmouth football...Thats the night I realized how special Dudley was, We played bourbon the year before at bourbon, beat them fairly easy, they had good size and speed, but never in a million years I would have dreamed the turn around. No comparison.

That had to be the best night ever to be a Dawg Fan, even with the loss, Lawrence was on the Map. And years after you can say it was no fluke the Dawgs came up short, they ran into a future Legend.

[LClion4life]

That was a huge win for Lewis Co., LCLion, I remember being upset there in the 80, too. Of course, this LC wasn't real strong in the 80s yet at that time.
Coach Prater should talk about that still. Great win and Prater is a great LC legend (Lewis County, that is).
Anyway, I am sorry to have sidetracked this one. And again, not bashing the Dawgs. They have always been my team - when we stunk or when we were kicking butt - and always will be. I am quite confident that Mr. Sandwich is someone I watched excel on the gridiron during the Golden Era.
Hopefully we'll have another Era that is comparable soon. We have not seen talent of that caliber in many seasons. While the last two were nice seasons, the 90s were truly the best players we've had and that translated into the most entertaining football by far.

We had a couple good seasons in the 80s. What year was that, do you know?

[Mr. Sandwich]

That was a huge win for Lewis Co., LCLion, I remember being upset there in the 80, too. Of course, this LC wasn't real strong in the 80s yet at that time.
Coach Prater should talk about that still. Great win and Prater is a great LC legend (Lewis County, that is).
Anyway, I am sorry to have sidetracked this one. And again, not bashing the Dawgs. They have always been my team - when we stunk or when we were kicking butt - and always will be. I am quite confident that Mr. Sandwich is someone I watched excel on the gridiron during the Golden Era.
Hopefully we'll have another Era that is comparable soon. We have not seen talent of that caliber in many seasons. While the last two were nice seasons, the 90s were truly the best players we've had and that translated into the most entertaining football by far.

You have proven many valid points, dbcooper. And at this point, I am sure you do have a good idea who I am, as do I you. My only beefs with ANY of the LC teams since the late 90's domination is the whole feeling surrounding the program. There was something unexplainable and special about the whole vibe of the team and entire county. It seems like something has been missing since then. Touche', dbcooper. Touche'.