[Woodsman]

Where is my buddy FOSHoooo? I have a couple questions for him. First and foremost, I’d like to know if he was the Boyle county administrator that made the disparaging comments about eastern Kentucky?

[Iknowall]

Everyone on here talking about Boyle and this great class!!!what about JC, this group of seniors are something like 54-6 with 4 state championship appearances and two state championship wins, how they were such underdogs to begin with baffles me a little, Boyle was a really good team but JC was the more physical and tougher team and they smacked Boyle in the mouth, as far as the turnovers, that’s part of the game, Congratulations to JC, they are just hard nosed tough kids and at the end of the day they wanted it more and made plays when it mattered the most

[Diogenes]

Everyone on here talking about Boyle and this great class!!!what about JC, this group of seniors are something like 54-6 with 4 state championship appearances and two state championship wins, how they were such underdogs to begin with baffles me a little, Boyle was a really good team but JC was the more physical and tougher team and they smacked Boyle in the mouth, as far as the turnovers, that’s part of the game, Congratulations to JC, they are just hard nosed tough kids and at the end of the day they wanted it more and made plays when it mattered the most

Turnovers don’t just magically happen. You force them!! Clean strip on the first fumble by Smith. Interceptions off tip drill. Alert plays when the ball bounces off a returner’s foot. Hard hits to jar balls loose. You make your own luck sometimes by being prepared and opportunistic and alert.

[Woodsman]

Phenomenal win. Congrats to those ol boys who can’t add from down in the hollers! Eastern Kentucky has so much to be proud of and you can add playing really good football to the list. Nice work to all the mountain teams.

[Iknowall]

Exactly, JC just out played them on this day

[Hatz]

Jackson Smith is a sophomore.

That’s was the point I was making. :Thumbs:

[Hatz]

THIS!!!!!! It blows my mind. Boyle might not get the yardage on runs like they normally have been accustomed to, but every play seemed like a pass the whole game. And as I mentioned before like you did, the other side of the field with colwick was ALL DAY. But rarely ever thrown that way. If you look at the drive log for Boyle it tells the story you just did. They were successful getting 5-7 yards a majority of the time, and then they’d take a shot down the field to a double covered smith twice in a row and then punt??!! I just don’t get it.

You do realize that Colwick had 14 catches, right?

[Hound05]

You do realize that Colwick had 14 catches, right?

Yea I saw the stat line. How many times was smith targeted with double coverage all night? My point in all of that was, those quick slants and outs were working on that side of the field, then they’d go away from it, even though JC was basically giving it to them to stop the big deep plays. Eat away at it. But I’m not a coach and don’t know what they do, it’s just my opinion.

[Hound05]

Other than not kicking the field goal at the end, I thought Chuck Smith's calls were on the money most of the night. Everything they called as far as routes, kids were open, but then either got whacked by a crazy good Johnson Central corner, or linebacker, or uncharacteristic drops from Smith, or uncharacteristic accuracy by Reed. Some of that was pretty good pressure put on the QB and he was slightly off. The only bad thing I felt coach Chuck Smith did, was not try the field goal. Everyone in the house that knew about that kicker I'm sure questioned coach about that. Why, why, why? But I was sort of pulling for Johnson Central so I was more happy Smith didn't call for a kick. I still remember beating these guys in the 5th grade...:-) Seriously, I feel for anyone that loses a game like this, either team.

So the answer to the question in your opinion is the class.....?

[Hatz]

So the answer to the question in your opinion is the class.....?

Merely conjecture on my part.

Maybe he wanted to let his Seniors decide the game.

As for me, I'd have been very tempted to go for the FG. I remember last year Corbin did and I didn't understand it because there was no way their kicker was going to get close to that one.

I think Jackson had a shot, even on College Posts.

Lots of "ifs and buts." I still congratulate JC for winning the game. :Thumbs:

[Hoot Gibson]

Curious. What’s the difference between arrogance and confidence ?

Arrogance is ignoring objective measures, such as the CalPreps rankings and not only arguing that Boyle County was the best 4A team by a wide margin but insisting that they were the best team in any class. Confidence is believing that your team is well coached and that if the players execute the coaching staff's game plan to the best of their ability, then they are capable of beating any team in the state on a given night but recognizing that a win is not guaranteed in any case.

I thought Pikeville was overrated all season long but the fact that CalPreps placed them in the top ten told me to keep my opinion to myself. :biggrin:

[know1]

If you think Johnson Central played a perfect game, then you know absolutely nothing about them. I asked in the prediction thread if Boyle County had some players hurt last year for them not to win 3A, or did they get that much better for all of the predictions for them to win 4A. I thought it was a legit question. Most of the replies were that they got that much better since last year. Hell some even tried saying they were the best team in the state, all classes. Both teams made mistakes that I’m sure were very uncharacteristic, I know some of JC’s were. To say JC pretty much played a perfect game and Boyle didn’t is pretty much a slap in the face to the program that just made their 5th straight Finals appearance.

So saying a team played a perfect game is a slap in the face? No wonder people spend so much time and energy being offended these days.

[Granny Bear]

Surely you haven’t been under a rock in one of those hollers the last couple of days!😂

He has been unconscious since Ethan played his first defensive set and stopped that 2 point conversion!!!! He left and drove back to Belfry in that condition and missed both the Somerset and JC game!! He also hasn't slept since he got home!!
nicker:

Everyone knows what smith has, I think Colwick was underutilized in this game. Several big and SMART plays by him and the other WR opposite from smith. But they just kept going back to smith when he was double teamed? I honestly don’t get it? Obviously if you have smith double covered someone on the other side is going to have a better chance. Chuck will forget more about football than I’ll remember. But this one puzzles me?? It was like he was playing madden and kept going to his “99” overall WR even when his other players were pretty much open??

No question about it!!! Colwick impressed me from the get go, and kept impressing me the entire game.

Hey I have married two of my cousin. I think. :biglmao: I can count, just can’t spell :lmao:

You said it!!!!!

Granny I was trying to be nice and not say holler and you had to cut me, bad bad Granny.

That sounds like a porn movie!!! Bad Bad Granny
:lmao:

I wouldn’t say either team played perfect. But I listened and didn’t see, so my opinion isn’t very insightful haha.

The FG at the end, all I can think of is, he is young and just missed an XP not too long before that.

The live stream kept saying that he hit a 58 yard field goal when he was in 8th grade!!!!

That’s what I’ve been asking, 45 yds is well within his range.

I was wondering about that too. The commentators kept talking about the strength of the kicker and questioning why he wasn't used.

Jackson Smith kicked 50 yard plus field goals against Corbin in a middle school title game 45 yds is well within his range and believe me there’s a lot of Boyle fans wanting to know why they didn’t try a field goal.

According to the announcers, it was a 58 yard field goal. That's remarkable!!

We've always claimed to be a mountain team even though the mountains haven't always wanted to claim the Jumpers.

I have always considered Somerset a mountain team!! The only folks I've ever seen that disputed that were a couple of Jumper fans.

Curious. What’s the difference between arrogance and confidence ?

Confidence is driven by actions from talent.
Arrogance is driven by ego and not backed up with talent.

You do realize that Colwick had 14 catches, right?

Yes I do!!!!!


Okay, I've slept so maybe I can make some sense now. Yesterday's games plus UK basketball game plus LSU/GA SEC championship game nearly put me in a coma!!

Boyle was all that I expected them to be and more. Most of what I heard about them included Smith (AMAZING player) and Lanter (EXTREMELY talented QB)!! BUT, I hadn't heard of Jackson Smith or Colwick. Lord have mercy!!! J Smith will write his own ticket and I can't wait to see where he goes. As far as Colwick is concerned, I don't even know where to start. He was everywhere!!! On both sides of the ball!!! I would LOVE to have a team of Colwicks!! So, congratulations to Boyle and their amazing season.

Johnson Central was all that I expected them to be and more, as well. When HC played them, Coach Creech told me they were the best team he had ever coached against. That was very impressive to me. The announcers kept talking about the discipline and poise that were the fabric of this team. I agree. Then, add the talents of Preece, the RBs and the linemen!!! JC did not play a flawless game, but it was damn close!! I am very proud to be a supporter of mountain football and Johnson Central, Belfry, Pikeville and Somerset.

It's a GREAT day to be a hillbilly!!!!

Now that football season is over, I'll probably go through withdrawal symptoms! I've also heard a "RUMOR". Can anyone confirm the story going around about Chuck Smith stepping down, or is this just a spreading lie?

[Granny Bear]

Oh and one last thought. Somerset was in a very similar situation, and chose not to kick a field goal that would tie their game. It worked out for them. Boyle did the same thing, and it didn't work out for them. It's why you play the game, and hindsight is always 20/20.

[SCHS98]

This post is from a relatively outside observer. Boyle Co gave eastern Ky a gift. A part of the mountain way of life is a sense of community. Man you should have seen the way these mountain communities came together the last few days to support our holler sons and brothers. Jim Matney is a class act. He’s a Belfry native son, a Martin co legend and mentor, and a Johnson Co hero. He is ours. His kids are ours. These communities rose up with great pride for our boys! Thanks Boyle Co for that gift. For a few days every single person up and down US 23, 119, and up every rural dirt road considered the Eagles their team! In closing please dial 606 for football. Congrats JC and all of eastern Ky loves you.

[Hound05]

Merely conjecture on my part.

Maybe he wanted to let his Seniors decide the game.

As for me, I'd have been very tempted to go for the FG. I remember last year Corbin did and I didn't understand it because there was no way their kicker was going to get close to that one.

I think Jackson had a shot, even on College Posts.

Lots of "ifs and buts." I still congratulate JC for winning the game. :Thumbs:

I tbink I’d reasonable the seniors should decide.

Corbin had NOOOOOOOO business kicking that FG!!!!

Yes I do too!

[Hound05]

Regarding that FG I will day in all fairness to other kickers in HS, those long FGs he made against us in that title game were kicked off a block, which to my knowledge they don’t allow in HS. But you also have to think the kid was probably 13 or 14 at the time as well. Either way it’s over. It was a questionable decision but if he made it the whole dynamic of this thread would change. Still a great game. I think RPI was once again a step in the right direction as it showed in just about every game except one so far. So with that, congrats JC hope to see ya next year😉

[eagles2011]

Other than not kicking the field goal at the end, I thought Chuck Smith's calls were on the money most of the night. Everything they called as far as routes, kids were open, but then either got whacked by a crazy good Johnson Central corner, or linebacker, or uncharacteristic drops from Smith, or uncharacteristic accuracy by Reed. Some of that was pretty good pressure put on the QB and he was slightly off. The only bad thing I felt coach Chuck Smith did, was not try the field goal. Everyone in the house that knew about that kicker I'm sure questioned coach about that. Why, why, why? But I was sort of pulling for Johnson Central so I was more happy Smith didn't call for a kick. I still remember beating these guys in the 5th grade...:-) Seriously, I feel for anyone that loses a game like this, either team.

My take on the game Boyle county is heck of a team. People giving Smith down the road for no field go attempt.
Say he goes for field go and miss,
Than people would of said should of went for hell Mary, enough about field go,

Johnson central coaching won this game
Jc qb played with one leg couple of those runs when qb broke lose he would of took it to the house if healthy
Jc starting full back was out since belfry game so this wasn't jc full run strength team
Have to give credit to freshman Mason and Jr Dillon
For stepping in helping the running game,
Have to give credit to Johnson central offense line coach most of central kids
Are sophomore ,
Finally jc linebacker McCloud Devin Johnson
Is the leaders on the field kids never
Gives up on play always keeping there teammates fierd up,

Wow Jimmy Preston what can you not say about this kid ,
Cody and Grant rice played well on defense what is crazy most of jc defense back are sophomore

[Redneck]

So saying a team played a perfect game is a slap in the face? No wonder people spend so much time and energy being offended these days.

Apparently that went over your head. Did you read anything after that? JC has been to 5 straight championships. To say they played perfect AND Boyle County didn’t, insinuating that was the only reason JC won, yes that is a slap in their face. No one is offended here. JC played nowhere near the perfect game. Credit Boyle to a lot of that. Boyle apparently didn’t play perfect, according to their fans, credit JC to a lot of that.

[Hoot Gibson]

Apparently that went over your head. Did you read anything after that? JC has been to 5 straight championships. To say they played perfect AND Boyle County didn’t, insinuating that was the only reason JC won, yes that is a slap in their face. No one is offended here. JC played nowhere near the perfect game. Credit Boyle to a lot of that. Boyle apparently didn’t play perfect, according to their fans, credit JC to a lot of that.

A perfectly executed offensive play results in a touchdown. A perfect game results in more than 28 points.

[BoltCoach9]

This morning is the last morning that I will ever pull that Central Speedflex out of his bag to clean it, to carry his pads & cleats outside to spray and disinfect them and wash his #1 jersey. This time has gone so fast, much faster than I anticipated or ever wanted. I wish I could live these moments for eternity but that isn't God's plan, for us, or for our children. When he was born, he had a large hemangioma over his left eye, it was very noticeable and deforming. Dr's assured us it would go away and we trusted that it would. He still laughed, he still played and to us it became invisible because we only saw what he was-our little boy. Folks would stare from time to time and some well meaning folks would ask "what's wrong with him?" My wife would bristle and fire back, "There's nothing wrong with him!" I've carted him to many camps and combines where he consistently performed in the top 5 of every measurable metric for QBs, only to be shuffled off to the side because he wasn't 6'4" or because he came from a school that wasn't a "spread team." On the rides home he'd ask, "What's wrong with me? Why does no one see me?" I didn't have an answer. We bought in to Coach Matney's style of play, knowing up front that Ryley's role was to manage the game and run the offense rather than put up gaudy stats. We knew, Coach Matney knew, that at any other school Ryley would throw 30-40 times a game because he was capable of being that guy, even at 5'11". Rather we chose to remain faithful to the people and communtiy that pay our bills and put food on our table. We were all in, and Ryley would be an Eagle till he graduated. So here we are, 2 Middle school state championships, 2 high school state championships and 2 state runner ups, a record of 54-6 as the QB for Johnson Central, state tying record for INT return for TD of 104yds, several local and regional awards for individual performance but always not quite good enough for most prognosticators to mention him among the states elite. To date he is our all time most accomplished QB in the 50yr history of Johnson Central for passing, rushing and scoring. His heart is champion, his mind is champion, his grind is champion. Exactly what he was raised to be- a champion. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to any member who has given my boy a compliment over the past four years, but an even bigger thanks to those who've overlooked him, doubted his ability and scoffed at his "meager" statistical portfolio. You helped fuel his grind & his drive to pursue his legacy with fire and I'm thankful for that.

This game was one for the ages. Boyle County, you have a special group of young men who will serve your community well in the years to come. Best of luck to all those Rebels, whether they head off to college or choose to stay at home and go to work. Raise your families in your hometown and be proud because you come from tradition rich, honorable, hard working set of people. You are Kentuckians and that makes you strong enough to accomplish anything this world throws at you. You are warriors, you are overcomers, you are exceptional.
So, farewell Bluegrass Rivals. It's been an awesome 4 years. Its on to baseball now for Mr. Preece. Go Eagles!!!

[Bull got out!]

I picked Boyle 35-21 a week ago. After watching these two heavyweights play. I think as always the pressure of the final game plays a roll unlike the regular season games. Turn overs are just hard to overcome. I think Johnson Centrals hard hitting defense played a big roll in those turnovers. My opinion is the player touching the punt and Johnson Central recovering that set up field position and score was the biggest momentum swing. Then the missed extra point by Boyle. From where I was sitting I didn't know it was a miss till the refs waved no good. So what a game. Johnson Central after that was in lock down mode. The pressure on the QB was there, the pressure on the receivers was there. Just a awesome game. All in all, it lived up to the hype. I hate it that one team in all these championship games has to lose. Again Congratulation to Johnson Central. I was wrong in my prediction. Awesome game!

[Hoot Gibson]

This morning is the last morning that I will ever pull that Central Speedflex out of his bag to clean it, to carry his pads & cleats outside to spray and disinfect them and wash his #1 jersey. This time has gone so fast, much faster than I anticipated or ever wanted. I wish I could live these moments for eternity but that isn't God's plan, for us, or for our children. When he was born, he had a large hemangioma over his left eye, it was very noticeable and deforming. Dr's assured us it would go away and we trusted that it would. He still laughed, he still played and to us it became invisible because we only saw what he was-our little boy. Folks would stare from time to time and some well meaning folks would ask "what's wrong with him?" My wife would bristle and fire back, "There's nothing wrong with him!" I've carted him to many camps and combines where he consistently performed in the top 5 of every measurable metric for QBs, only to be shuffled off to the side because he wasn't 6'4" or because he came from a school that wasn't a "spread team." On the rides home he'd ask, "What's wrong with me? Why does no one see me?" I didn't have an answer. We bought in to Coach Matney's style of play, knowing up front that Ryley's role was to manage the game and run the offense rather than put up gaudy stats. We knew, Coach Matney knew, that at any other school Ryley would throw 30-40 times a game because he was capable of being that guy, even at 5'11". Rather we chose to remain faithful to the people and communtiy that pay our bills and put food on our table. We were all in, and Ryley would be an Eagle till he graduated. So here we are, 2 Middle school state championships, 2 high school state championships and 2 state runner ups, a record of 54-6 as the QB for Johnson Central, state tying record for INT return for TD of 104yds, several local and regional awards for individual performance but always not quite good enough for most prognosticators to mention him among the states elite. To date he is our all time most accomplished QB in the 50yr history of Johnson Central for passing, rushing and scoring. His heart is champion, his mind is champion, his grind is champion. Exactly what he was raised to be- a champion. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to any member who has given my boy a compliment over the past four years, but an even bigger thanks to those who've overlooked him, doubted his ability and scoffed at his "meager" statistical portfolio. You helped fuel his grind & his drive to pursue his legacy with fire and I'm thankful for that.

This game was one for the ages. Boyle County, you have a special group of young men who will serve your community well in the years to come. Best of luck to all those Rebels, whether they head off to college or choose to stay at home and go to work. Raise your families in your hometown and be proud because you come from tradition rich, honorable, hard working set of people. You are Kentuckians and that makes you strong enough to accomplish anything this world throws at you. You are warriors, you are overcomers, you are exceptional.
So, farewell Bluegrass Rivals. It's been an awesome 4 years. Its on to baseball now for Mr. Preece. Go Eagles!!!

My apologies for misspelling Ryley's name consistently for four years. I had assumed that it was spelled correctly in the KHSAA's stats and rosters.

[Bull got out!]

This morning is the last morning that I will ever pull that Central Speedflex out of his bag to clean it, to carry his pads & cleats outside to spray and disinfect them and wash his #1 jersey. This time has gone so fast, much faster than I anticipated or ever wanted. I wish I could live these moments for eternity but that isn't God's plan, for us, or for our children. When he was born, he had a large hemangioma over his left eye, it was very noticeable and deforming. Dr's assured us it would go away and we trusted that it would. He still laughed, he still played and to us it became invisible because we only saw what he was-our little boy. Folks would stare from time to time and some well meaning folks would ask "what's wrong with him?" My wife would bristle and fire back, "There's nothing wrong with him!" I've carted him to many camps and combines where he consistently performed in the top 5 of every measurable metric for QBs, only to be shuffled off to the side because he wasn't 6'4" or because he came from a school that wasn't a "spread team." On the rides home he'd ask, "What's wrong with me? Why does no one see me?" I didn't have an answer. We bought in to Coach Matney's style of play, knowing up front that Ryley's role was to manage the game and run the offense rather than put up gaudy stats. We knew, Coach Matney knew, that at any other school Ryley would throw 30-40 times a game because he was capable of being that guy, even at 5'11". Rather we chose to remain faithful to the people and communtiy that pay our bills and put food on our table. We were all in, and Ryley would be an Eagle till he graduated. So here we are, 2 Middle school state championships, 2 high school state championships and 2 state runner ups, a record of 54-6 as the QB for Johnson Central, state tying record for INT return for TD of 104yds, several local and regional awards for individual performance but always not quite good enough for most prognosticators to mention him among the states elite. To date he is our all time most accomplished QB in the 50yr history of Johnson Central for passing, rushing and scoring. His heart is champion, his mind is champion, his grind is champion. Exactly what he was raised to be- a champion. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to any member who has given my boy a compliment over the past four years, but an even bigger thanks to those who've overlooked him, doubted his ability and scoffed at his "meager" statistical portfolio. You helped fuel his grind & his drive to pursue his legacy with fire and I'm thankful for that.

This game was one for the ages. Boyle County, you have a special group of young men who will serve your community well in the years to come. Best of luck to all those Rebels, whether they head off to college or choose to stay at home and go to work. Raise your families in your hometown and be proud because you come from tradition rich, honorable, hard working set of people. You are Kentuckians and that makes you strong enough to accomplish anything this world throws at you. You are warriors, you are overcomers, you are exceptional.
So, farewell Bluegrass Rivals. It's been an awesome 4 years. Its on to baseball now for Mr. Preece. Go Eagles!!!

Thanks for sharing. I could tell in your post after the Belfry game you was a class act. Congratulation to your son and his team. He looked awesome last night.

[Bob Seger]

The kicker kicked a 50 yarder in middle school didn’t he? Why didn’t he kick that?

I wondered the same thing about why JC didn't try to kick a field goal on 2 different occasions, that I "thought" (but what di I know) was well within Headly's range. No doubt Smith is a terrific kicker, but if you are going strictly by leg strength on kickoffs, it didn't appear that he has any greater distance packed in that leg, than that of Headly. Headly is very capable of kicking it into (and out of ) the endzone, because he has done both many times.. Not being negative about Smith by any means, just stating from what I saw in just this one game. I also realize that there is probably a different technique in kicking field goals and in kicking off, though.

[Jack Lambert]

One final post for the day then I’m heading to the lake to get some fishing in on this beautiful day, I read this morning that Boyle’s OC Chris Pardue is retiring and won’t be back next year.

[Bob Seger]

This morning is the last morning that I will ever pull that Central Speedflex out of his bag to clean it, to carry his pads & cleats outside to spray and disinfect them and wash his #1 jersey. This time has gone so fast, much faster than I anticipated or ever wanted. I wish I could live these moments for eternity but that isn't God's plan, for us, or for our children. When he was born, he had a large hemangioma over his left eye, it was very noticeable and deforming. Dr's assured us it would go away and we trusted that it would. He still laughed, he still played and to us it became invisible because we only saw what he was-our little boy. Folks would stare from time to time and some well meaning folks would ask "what's wrong with him?" My wife would bristle and fire back, "There's nothing wrong with him!" I've carted him to many camps and combines where he consistently performed in the top 5 of every measurable metric for QBs, only to be shuffled off to the side because he wasn't 6'4" or because he came from a school that wasn't a "spread team." On the rides home he'd ask, "What's wrong with me? Why does no one see me?" I didn't have an answer. We bought in to Coach Matney's style of play, knowing up front that Ryley's role was to manage the game and run the offense rather than put up gaudy stats. We knew, Coach Matney knew, that at any other school Ryley would throw 30-40 times a game because he was capable of being that guy, even at 5'11". Rather we chose to remain faithful to the people and communtiy that pay our bills and put food on our table. We were all in, and Ryley would be an Eagle till he graduated. So here we are, 2 Middle school state championships, 2 high school state championships and 2 state runner ups, a record of 54-6 as the QB for Johnson Central, state tying record for INT return for TD of 104yds, several local and regional awards for individual performance but always not quite good enough for most prognosticators to mention him among the states elite. To date he is our all time most accomplished QB in the 50yr history of Johnson Central for passing, rushing and scoring. His heart is champion, his mind is champion, his grind is champion. Exactly what he was raised to be- a champion. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to any member who has given my boy a compliment over the past four years, but an even bigger thanks to those who've overlooked him, doubted his ability and scoffed at his "meager" statistical portfolio. You helped fuel his grind & his drive to pursue his legacy with fire and I'm thankful for that.

This game was one for the ages. Boyle County, you have a special group of young men who will serve your community well in the years to come. Best of luck to all those Rebels, whether they head off to college or choose to stay at home and go to work. Raise your families in your hometown and be proud because you come from tradition rich, honorable, hard working set of people. You are Kentuckians and that makes you strong enough to accomplish anything this world throws at you. You are warriors, you are overcomers, you are exceptional.
So, farewell Bluegrass Rivals. It's been an awesome 4 years. Its on to baseball now for Mr. Preece. Go Eagles!!!

Because heart is never considered by these people. Went thru the same thing. A 5-9 right handed kid that throws 90MPH is never given the same consideration as a 6'4" right hander that throws the exact same speed. Then I watched him beat Kentucky's 6'6'' Mr. Baseball and first round draft pick in a head to head matchup. It defy's logic to me, but's that's the way it is.

All I can tell you is your son has been a complete joy to watch. I have stated many times that even when he was a freshman or a sophomore that he would end up being one of the best (if not THE best ) pure athletes to ever come out of Johnson Central. Couple that with him coming from one of the finest family's that I can think of, he is the complete package as far as I am concerned.

Good luck on the diamond this year.

[Playboy5]

19, 20, 21....Congrats JC. and very well deserved.

[Diogenes]

This morning is the last morning that I will ever pull that Central Speedflex out of his bag to clean it, to carry his pads & cleats outside to spray and disinfect them and wash his #1 jersey. This time has gone so fast, much faster than I anticipated or ever wanted. I wish I could live these moments for eternity but that isn't God's plan, for us, or for our children. When he was born, he had a large hemangioma over his left eye, it was very noticeable and deforming. Dr's assured us it would go away and we trusted that it would. He still laughed, he still played and to us it became invisible because we only saw what he was-our little boy. Folks would stare from time to time and some well meaning folks would ask "what's wrong with him?" My wife would bristle and fire back, "There's nothing wrong with him!" I've carted him to many camps and combines where he consistently performed in the top 5 of every measurable metric for QBs, only to be shuffled off to the side because he wasn't 6'4" or because he came from a school that wasn't a "spread team." On the rides home he'd ask, "What's wrong with me? Why does no one see me?" I didn't have an answer. We bought in to Coach Matney's style of play, knowing up front that Ryley's role was to manage the game and run the offense rather than put up gaudy stats. We knew, Coach Matney knew, that at any other school Ryley would throw 30-40 times a game because he was capable of being that guy, even at 5'11". Rather we chose to remain faithful to the people and communtiy that pay our bills and put food on our table. We were all in, and Ryley would be an Eagle till he graduated. So here we are, 2 Middle school state championships, 2 high school state championships and 2 state runner ups, a record of 54-6 as the QB for Johnson Central, state tying record for INT return for TD of 104yds, several local and regional awards for individual performance but always not quite good enough for most prognosticators to mention him among the states elite. To date he is our all time most accomplished QB in the 50yr history of Johnson Central for passing, rushing and scoring. His heart is champion, his mind is champion, his grind is champion. Exactly what he was raised to be- a champion. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to any member who has given my boy a compliment over the past four years, but an even bigger thanks to those who've overlooked him, doubted his ability and scoffed at his "meager" statistical portfolio. You helped fuel his grind & his drive to pursue his legacy with fire and I'm thankful for that.

This game was one for the ages. Boyle County, you have a special group of young men who will serve your community well in the years to come. Best of luck to all those Rebels, whether they head off to college or choose to stay at home and go to work. Raise your families in your hometown and be proud because you come from tradition rich, honorable, hard working set of people. You are Kentuckians and that makes you strong enough to accomplish anything this world throws at you. You are warriors, you are overcomers, you are exceptional.
So, farewell Bluegrass Rivals. It's been an awesome 4 years. Its on to baseball now for Mr. Preece. Go Eagles!!!

This was a fantastic tribute to a great kid and a great leader. Combines don’t measure heart, unfortunately, or D-1 would be chock full of Golden Eagles right now. Been a joy to follow him these few years. I have no doubt he will do well wherever he goes. Work ethic is top notch and heart is unquestionable. (And world, he may be a better baseball player than football player, so get ready to see his name in the papers again before long!) Thank you all, from all of us, for the great, great memories.

[Hatz]

Arrogance is ignoring objective measures, such as the CalPreps rankings and not only arguing that Boyle County was the best 4A team by a wide margin but insisting that they were the best team in any class. Confidence is believing that your team is well coached and that if the players execute the coaching staff's game plan to the best of their ability, then they are capable of beating any team in the state on a given night but recognizing that a win is not guaranteed in any case.

I thought Pikeville was overrated all season long but the fact that CalPreps placed them in the top ten told me to keep my opinion to myself. :biggrin:

My post was actually referring to the statement made about Chuck Smith and the Boyle Coaches executing their game plan. :Thumbs: