[BoondockSaint]

Yes runny under 11 seconds in the 100 meters is excellent. I think he won a State Championship. I don't think he played football. He is for sure the fastest sprinter on the track in JCHS history. I don't agree that he is in the same company as a Tyson Gay or Henry Neal. Running sub 10.5 at the 100m is a whole different animal. Thats world Class. Lots of these low 40 times we hear are not accurate. Guys like D. Green, Randy Moss, Bo Jackson, Herschal Walker even Alfonso Smith all were 4.4 or better forty yard dash guys and each and everyone could walk on a track and run a 10.7 to 10.0 in the 100m. Only guys I ever heard of that could run 4.4 or better but couldn't break 11 at 100m are high school legends. I have read on here in other post about MR. 4.3 who was only 11.2 100m guy.

I agree with what you are saying, with the exception of one part. There are people who are better suited for running the 40 yard than they are the 100 meter. In a 40 you are only at full stride for about the last 20 yards, the start is key. People with longer stride do better at the 100 meter dash, but may not be as apt to run a sub 4.4 40. Its kinda like comparing apples to oranges.

[mr.charlie hustle]

Yes runny under 11 seconds in the 100 meters is excellent. I think he won a State Championship. I don't think he played football. He is for sure the fastest sprinter on the track in JCHS history. I don't agree that he is in the same company as a Tyson Gay or Henry Neal. Running sub 10.5 at the 100m is a whole different animal. Thats world Class. Lots of these low 40 times we hear are not accurate. Guys like D. Green, Randy Moss, Bo Jackson, Herschal Walker even Alfonso Smith all were 4.4 or better forty yard dash guys and each and everyone could walk on a track and run a 10.7 to 10.0 in the 100m. Only guys I ever heard of that could run 4.4 or better but couldn't break 11 at 100m are high school legends. I have read on here in other post about MR. 4.3 who was only 11.2 100m guy.

Of cource a half second is a ton. If my memory serves me just a little Lewis had a best ,much quicker than the 10.97 but that time is quickly verified. When you are under 11 and 10.5 as you stated those are in a different class. Although not playing much on the FB team,my point was this was a pretty quick little EKy whiteboy.

[I Rule The World]

Yes runny under 11 seconds in the 100 meters is excellent. I think he won a State Championship. I don't think he played football. He is for sure the fastest sprinter on the track in JCHS history. I don't agree that he is in the same company as a Tyson Gay or Henry Neal. Running sub 10.5 at the 100m is a whole different animal. Thats world Class. Lots of these low 40 times we hear are not accurate. Guys like D. Green, Randy Moss, Bo Jackson, Herschal Walker even Alfonso Smith all were 4.4 or better forty yard dash guys and each and everyone could walk on a track and run a 10.7 to 10.0 in the 100m. Only guys I ever heard of that could run 4.4 or better but couldn't break 11 at 100m are high school legends. I have read on here in other post about MR. 4.3 who was only 11.2 100m guy.

He won the 100 and the 200 that day... I was there.. Beat Stephan Robinson from Central in both. Don't think he played football, though.

[I Rule The World]

Fastest guy at Leslie Co. was a guy named Jeremy Hendrix (RB/Class of 1997). He has the school record in the 100 at 10.99.

Brannon Caldwell (RB/Slot/Class of '95) was very fast too..

[Hitters_Count]

Speaking of Hurdles.....the fastest player I remember at Knox Central was Mark Canady. He was state 3A runner-up in 110 hurdles in '85 & '86 (14.62). He was a beast on the field and I consider him the best all-around athlete from Knox Central. Played at EKU.

He was Jeffery Canady's uncle.

Dont forget about Oliver White! Played 78-80?? signed with UK and started, drafted by Pittsburg Steelers and made it to the last cut when his father fell ill and Oliver left to be with his dad and never went back. Tremendous track/football/basketball star for KC.

Mark Canady:
One of my best memories was a pick-6 I got on a screen pass against them and it made it extra special that it came when he was at QB.

That must have been in '84

[Bob Seger]

^ Good to see you back Bob

Thanks Dusty.

[Devil09]

Asland Tomcats its a toss up Juan Thomas big and brusing or flat out speed Arlis Beach. Juan did help win the title in 90.

[Jeepman]

The fastest player that I have seen at Russell was Josh Gross. Josh avoided tacklers with the best field of vision of any player I have seen. He could change direction on a dime. I do not recall anyone catching him in the open field. I once saw him run stride for stride with David Jones in 2004 and score.

A lot of Belfrey people will remember this!!! Russell was on the Belfrey 5 yard line and Gross was running in for a TD about at the 1/2 yard line Jones hit Gross from the side the ball went one way and Gross went the other. I later talked to Gross about that tackle and he said he never saw Jones and it was the hardest he was ever hit.

[Crossbones]

The fastest player that I have seen at Russell was Josh Gross. Josh avoided tacklers with the best field of vision of any player I have seen. He could change direction on a dime. I do not recall anyone catching him in the open field. I once saw him run stride for stride with David Jones in 2004 and score.

A lot of Belfrey people will remember this!!! Russell was on the Belfrey 5 yard line and Gross was running in for a TD about at the 1/2 yard line Jones hit Gross from the side the ball went one way and Gross went the other. I later talked to Gross about that tackle and he said he never saw Jones and it was the hardest he was ever hit.

I remember.. They both took a shot on that play. He WAS one of the best backs I have had the honor of watching play football. As said, he had as good of field vision as any runner I have seen.:Thumbs: I don't think he was as fast as Jones or even Matt Maynard of Belfry but fast he was.

[EKUAlum05]

I remember.. He WAS one of the best backs I have had the honor of watching play football. As said, he had as good of field vision as any runner I have seen.:Thumbs: I don't think he was as fast as Jones or even Matt Maynard of Belfry but fast he was.

The cuts, as Jeepman mentioned, were what impressed me. Russell would bring him around on the Wing T and Belfry would appear to have him strung out, then suddenly he'd plant his toe, turn it back up field, and was off to the races.

That game may have been the single greatest collections of RB's in a game in EKY history: Jones, Howard, Gross, and Kasey Clark with Matt Maynard lined up at SE for Belfry. That's a few miles of career rushing yardage on the field.

[Crossbones]

The cuts, as Jeepman mentioned, were what impressed me. Russell would bring him around on the Wing T and Belfry would appear to have him strung out, then suddenly he'd plant his toe, turn it back up field, and was off to the races.

That game may have been the single greatest collections of RB's in a game in EKY history: Jones, Howard, Gross, and Kasey Clark with Matt Maynard lined up at SE for Belfry. That's a few miles of career rushing yardage on the field.

Without a doubt, it was a showcase of athletes. Russell ran the wing T to perfection. I enjoyed watching Gross grab to the shirt of his lead blocker and have the patience to stay there until a small opening came up and then he was gone.

[bac2369]

At Whitley it was probably LaDale Rider.
No, he wasnt a 4.4 guy.
He ran a 4.7, which is still extremely fast. Im not sure if there was ever a quicker guy on the football field though, he could cut like nobody ive ever seen. Vertically, he would get chased down from time to time by a quick d back, but man he could make em miss.

I actually say that kid was faster than that. He not only had speed but his acceleration was out standing. His young brother might a been a 4.7 to 4.8 guy.

[RunItUpTheGut]

I actually say that kid was faster than that. He not only had speed but his acceleration was out standing. His young brother might a been a 4.7 to 4.8 guy.

I watched a combine at Lynn Camp high school he went to his junior year and he ran a 4.7
I always thought he was more of a 4.5 guy and you would think so by watching him on the field, but LaDale had a lot of muscle to carry around unlike a lot of smaller quicker backs.
He definitely relied a lot more on power than speed in most situations and was used as a power back getting 30-40 carries a game his junior and senior year.

He would of had 2000 yards his junior year in 10 games had he not been thrown out on a bull crap call at North Laurel.
He might be the all time leading rusher had he played for a team that went deep in the playoffs every year. His junior and senior year he had close to 2000 in 9 games his junior year and again in 10 games his senior year but had to set out the first game his senior year due to the NL game his junior year.
He only played in 2 playoff games. And in all only got to play 39 games in his career but you also have to consider he broke his ankle his freshman year and missed 5 or 6 of those so all together he only played in about 30 games in his career where he got touches and still amassed almost 4000 rushing yards.

His little brother was a reciever and was very fast as well, but not nearly as quick as LaDale. He was more of a 4.8 or 4.9 guy. He wasnt even the fastest guy on that 08 team, Cody Jones was much faster than him.

[tcb]

Dont forget about Oliver White! Played 78-80?? signed with UK and started, drafted by Pittsburg Steelers and made it to the last cut when his father fell ill and Oliver left to be with his dad and never went back. Tremendous track/football/basketball star for KC.


That must have been in '84

Yes I remember Oliver White at Knox Central. Very fast track athlete and a good triple/long jumper. If I am not mistaken he only played football his senior year at Knox. Went to UK and started at TE. Excellent athlete and good guy.

[honestjchsfan]

The fastest player that I have seen at Russell was Josh Gross. Josh avoided tacklers with the best field of vision of any player I have seen. He could change direction on a dime. I do not recall anyone catching him in the open field. I once saw him run stride for stride with David Jones in 2004 and score.

A lot of Belfrey people will remember this!!! Russell was on the Belfrey 5 yard line and Gross was running in for a TD about at the 1/2 yard line Jones hit Gross from the side the ball went one way and Gross went the other. I later talked to Gross about that tackle and he said he never saw Jones and it was the hardest he was ever hit.

In the late 80's Russell had track athlete by the name of Nate Brown. He was the greatest natural athlete I ever saw in person. He won 4 events at the State track meet that year. He held the class 2A long jump record up until a few years ago. I am not sure if he played football but he could have played any played any skill position.

[honestjchsfan]

I agree with what you are saying, with the exception of one part. There are people who are better suited for running the 40 yard than they are the 100 meter. In a 40 you are only at full stride for about the last 20 yards, the start is key. People with longer stride do better at the 100 meter dash, but may not be as apt to run a sub 4.4 40. Its kinda like comparing apples to oranges.[B]

You may be right, there might be 1 out of a Million people that can run 4.4 at the Forty and not break 11. at the 100 meters. But most NFL and College Scouts will tell you the same thing I am. If you start naming the really fast Guys in NFL history, Willie Gault, Bob Hayes Randy Moss, Doin Sanders, D. Green and many more all were great Sprinters at 100meters. Gualt is 51 years old and still run the 100 meters under 11. Its not apples or Oranges the fact is if someone is gifted enough to run 4.4 they can run under 11. Name me a guy that runs 4.4 or better that don't break 11 in the 100. There are guys that don't run under 4.4 but can break 11 in the 100 but not many the other way around. Not a 4.40 or lower eletronic time.

[BoondockSaint]

The fastest player that I have seen at Russell was Josh Gross. Josh avoided tacklers with the best field of vision of any player I have seen. He could change direction on a dime. I do not recall anyone catching him in the open field. I once saw him run stride for stride with David Jones in 2004 and score.

A lot of Belfrey people will remember this!!! Russell was on the Belfrey 5 yard line and Gross was running in for a TD about at the 1/2 yard line Jones hit Gross from the side the ball went one way and Gross went the other. I later talked to Gross about that tackle and he said he never saw Jones and it was the hardest he was ever hit.

Show the video....it never happened. Gross was the 4th fastest player on the field that day, maybe the 5th. The other corner from Russell was faster than him, too, imo. Horn was his name I believe.

[laker20]

Dont forget about Oliver White! Played 78-80?? signed with UK and started, drafted by Pittsburg Steelers and made it to the last cut when his father fell ill and Oliver left to be with his dad and never went back. Tremendous track/football/basketball star for KC.

Oliver White was a beast, his thighs looked like 5-gallon buckets. He only played football his senior year. From what I've heard, his first game (pineville or cawood i think) he was the 2nd string RB and didn't play until the boy in front of him got hurt in the 3rd Qtr.....Big O ended up with 350 yards or so in less than 2 quarters of action.

If memory serves me correct, he held a number of track records (State & Regional) and was an extremely good basketball player but sat out his senior year after signing with UK Football.

[Santa Monica]

I saw Venable run a 9.8 (100 yard dash) at a track meet once, and it remains a vivid memory over 30 years later. Converted for metric distance, that's about a 10.6 for 100 meters.

The dude was also 6-0 and 195 pounds and looked like he was about 4 or 5 percent body fat. The only similar combinations of size/speed I've seen in Kentucky HS football is Chris Jones from Danville and Al Baker from Trigg County.

Our coach at Pulaski (John Hines) told me he played at Somerset with Venable in the late 70's. Hines says Venable was a 4.4 guy that ran 10.5 in the 100. He later was a sprinter on the UK track team.

Fastest kid at Pulaski was Coach Hines' son Winston. He ran a 10.8 hundred meters in track and a 4.45 or so in the 40. He now plays football at Georgetown College where they have timed him in 4.4 flat, and 4.03 in the pro shuttle.

[thsrocks]

Current Trinity WR and AAA 200 meter champ Jmes Quick has to be the fastest to wear a Shamrock jersey.He was runner up in the 100 last year and 200 meter champ as a freshmen! I have seen at least one Trinity game for 38 years and he is the fastest and a silky smooth receiver/runner.

[southbound]

Asland Tomcats its a toss up Juan Thomas big and brusing or flat out speed Arlis Beach. Juan did help win the title in 90.

juan wasnt even the fastest on the team that year. chris hutt was the speedster. juan was extremely fast though to be 6'4" 240+/-

[RoShamBo]

Our coach at Pulaski (John Hines) told me he played at Somerset with Venable in the late 70's. Hines says Venable was a 4.4 guy that ran 10.5 in the 100. He later was a sprinter on the UK track team.

Fastest kid at Pulaski was Coach Hines' son Winston. He ran a 10.8 hundred meters in track and a 4.45 or so in the 40. He now plays football at Georgetown College where they have timed him in 4.4 flat, and 4.03 in the pro shuttle.

Come on now. I don't doubt that Winston was fast but he was a very subtle 4.4 if that is the case. I feel generous saying he was a 4.6 guy.

[White Feather]

It seems that these 4.3 and 4.4 times are greatly inflated. I compare these times to the baseball player that is a Jr. or Sr. that throws 93 mph until someone puts a Juggs on him and it turns out to be more like 85 or 86 mph, still fast just not 90+ fast.

[tomcatfan722000]

I would also put Angel Gurule And Jason Nichols into the mix at Ashland they could both flat out run.

[FBALL]

Show the video....it never happened. Gross was the 4th fastest player on the field that day, maybe the 5th. The other corner from Russell was faster than him, too, imo. Horn was his name I believe.

Horn was a good little player but was not as fast as Gross and not nearly as quick.

As for running stride for stride with Jones, he did out run him to the end one on a long run but Jones was gaining. Just not gaining fast enough.

Jones was the fastest on the field that game. Gross was second.

[FBALL]

In the late 80's Russell had track athlete by the name of Nate Brown. He was the greatest natural athlete I ever saw in person. He won 4 events at the State track meet that year. He held the class 2A long jump record up until a few years ago. I am not sure if he played football but he could have played any played any skill position.

Nathan Brown was as good of a raw athlete as you will ever see. But a football player he was not. I played football with him. He could run and jump
Like a deer. Could do anything you wanted him to on a track but it did not translate into him being a good football player.

[Santa Monica]

Come on now. I don't doubt that Winston was fast but he was a very subtle 4.4 if that is the case. I feel generous saying he was a 4.6 guy.

Winston could jog 4.6! He ran 4.46 on Joker Phillips watch at UK's Senior Day camp in 2008. On wet grass. The Georgetown staff has timed him at 4.40.

[BoondockSaint]

Horn was a good little player but was not as fast as Gross and not nearly as quick.

As for running stride for stride with Jones, he did out run him to the end one on a long run but Jones was gaining. Just not gaining fast enough.

Jones was the fastest on the field that game. Gross was second.

If I had video I'd post the whole game one play at a time. Jones could outrun Gross backwards, and three other Belfry players were faster than him without question, Matt Maynard, Doug Howard and James Akers.

Gross had great vision, good agility, and was tough to bring down, but a speedster he was not. He reminded me of a bigger version of Micah Caudill, also from Belfry, but he wasn't as fast as him either.

[honestjchsfan]

Nathan Brown was as good of a raw athlete as you will ever see. But a football player he was not. I played football with him. He could run and jump
Like a deer. Could do anything you wanted him to on a track but it did not translate into him being a good football player.

I saw him Long Jump over 23 feet one day at Boyd Co. I think he still holds the Boyd CO invitaional meet record. What Postion did he play in football? He was not a very big guy. I figured he would have been a great WR. I know Russell ran one of them old time running offenses. I also remember a RED headed good looking female High Jumper from Russell around that same time.

[FBALL]

If I had video I'd post the whole game one play at a time. Jones could outrun Gross backwards, and three other Belfry players were faster than him without question, Matt Maynard, Doug Howard and James Akers.

Gross had great vision, good agility, and was tough to bring down, but a speedster he was not. He reminded me of a bigger version of Micah Caudill, also from Belfry, but he wasn't as fast as him either.

Gross was faster than Howard and Maynard. Jones was definitely the fastest guy on the field in that game.

As far as agility goes I've never seen a guy who could cut and change direction in high school better than Gross. The only one that comes close would have been Arliss Beech at Ashland.

I hate giving 40 time but just to give raw data, Gross was timed at 4.5 at Ohio States camp the summer before his senior year.

I don't like excuses either but he played that entire game with a hamstring injury. You may have noticed the stationary bike on the sidelines that game he used to keep the leg loose.

Regardless of who we all think was faster that was two of the most talented backfields you would ever see in a high school football game.