ATLCat

I can fill you in on Corbin, KY a little better The Redhounds are coming off back to back Semi-Finals appearances, they are a Class 3A team. Both times they lost to eventual State Champ Belfry (who KnoxCath has played the past two years) This year, IMHO, Corbin was clearly the 2nd best team in KY Class 3A. They actually led Belfry late in the 2nd Half at home and had executed a beautiful gameplan, but then Belfry made some adjustments and the wheels came off en route to a 42-17 Final Score. Belfry exploded for 28 points in like a 6:00 window capitalizing on turnovers and big plays. Corbin's program is ascending right now. They have a very talented young Head Coach in Justin Haddix and Corbin used to be a powerhouse program. He has reignited the fire down there and their feeder system is producing great talent. They will be a Pre-Season Top 3 team in Kentucky 3A, and might even be Pre-Season #1 with Belfry losing so much talent to graduation. Corbin returns a three year starter at QB and he is very good. He is a Tim Tebow-esque player, bruising runner and accurate passer. They do a lot of RPO with him and they like ball control on Offense. They have some nice talent back at Receiver and good pieces on the line, but will need a secondary running option as their two best backs graduated. They also lost a hybrid TE that was their best possession receiver. Defensively, they have a solid core returning. Their Defense isn't anything physically imposing.. just very well coached and "good but not great" size across the board. Belfry has killed them the past two years with speed on the edge though and I anticipate Alcoa to bust some big plays as well. For an easy comparison for Alcoa... I would say this Corbin team will be better than CAK across the board, but not at the level of a KnoxCath. If you think back to when they played Bell County some years back, just think of it this way. Corbin has replaced Bell County as the premier program in that area. Scheme wise they are different, but from an overall team talent standpoint I would compare them favorably. Maybe a slight edge to the 2017 Corbin team over that specific Bell squad that wasn't one of their best. I would say Alcoa will enter as a 3-4 TD favorite. They will get a great challenge, but not sure Corbin can hang with them athlete for athlete that early in the Season.

^^^^ There are thousands of people in red who are surprised as well HAHA Part of it was something was going on with the QB/C exchange that had timing off. Preece the Cebter was a game time decision. Not sure if his injur was causing some short snaps or if Corbett was pulling away too fast. Haven't seen those two have that problem since early last year The other part was Just mental errors. Can't explain it. Maybe nerves, maybe the running equivalent to alligator arms. The last part.. and most important part., was Catholic just made plays. They brought the hit stick and did a great job stripping as Belfry went for extra yards. That was by far the biggest key

Hats off to a great Catholic team! Irish just had too much. Wish Belfry would have held up their end of putting in a great show but when you put it on the ground nine times and lose six you can't expect to beat a team that stout. No excuses though. Of those six lost fumbles most were the product of either great hits or great plays in the ball. I also don't think we even saw Catholics "A-Gane" or even close to it. Lots of penalties. Catholic took care of business and Belfry couldn't move Cunningham. Rodgers is simply special and someone needs to take a chance on Cunningham because his arm is special. When Belfry wasn't fumbling or getting penalties to keep them behind the sticks they really shows how tough they were on Offense but at the end of the day it was clear KnoxCath was the superior team on this night Was pleasantly surprised with how Knox Cath hit on D.

If Catholic doesn't renew the contract a Belfry vs. Alcoa 2-year series would be lots of fun. Belfry will be vulnerable next year with all these Seniors gone but should still be pretty good...and in two years should be pretty solid as well. I know Belfry has some open holes on their schedule to fill

Best of luck tonight Catholic, hoping for an injury free game that lives up to the hype!

This is pretty awesome A former Belfry family member who is great friends with Coach Haywood is an influential person at Bristol Motor Speedway.

https://scoreboard.12dt.com/scoreboard/khsaa/kyfb09/30154 You must have another team in mind, they didn't play Belfry. The last time Bell and Belfry played was 1998. Belfry won 14-13 in the playoffs.. Bell was in 4A at the time in 2009, Belfry was in 3A. FWIW, had they played Bell would have absolutely killed Belfry though that season. 2009 is the only year since 2003 that Belfry failed to even reach the Semi-Finals. That Belfry team went 8-4 and was the worst team Belfry has had since before 2000. Bell dropped to 3A in 2012 but has never been able to hold up their end of the bargain to advancing to play Belfry. Since Bell has joined 3A they have never advanced out of their Region whereas Belfry has went on to 3 Titles and a Runner-Up in that time. They are in the same Semi-State now but the Bell program has hit rock bottom unfortunately. I hate seeing it. Bell has always been an excellent program, but they are extremely low right now. Talent pool is way down and they had all sorts of coaching drama where they ended up firing their Head Coach and when noone would take the job they even tried offering it back to the guy they had just fired. He essentially laughed in their face and went to Corbin (a team in their District) as an Assistant Coach.

For the record that Bell team was solid, but not great They lost in the State Semi's that year and had to replace something like 5 or 6 starters each way from their 2008 team. They were a team full of good players but not exactly littered with talent or explosive. Belfry is returning 9 starters each way and is both talented and explosive. You are also missing one other matchup against the Defending State Champs. Three years ago Belfry went to CAK and beat CAK 27-21 despite the Pirates entering missing 5 starters each way due to injury. CAK was the defending State Champions. Most of these Belfry Seniors were Freshman on that team with Horton, Bentley, Catron, and Woolum all starting Don't see Belfry running away with it like last year, but also don't see Catholic continuing their video game scores.

Not a fluke whatsoever and wouldn't be surprised if Cunningham goes for 300+ again. As I said, KnoxCath will get theirs and may rack up yardage, but the way this game plays out will be different from any other game Catholic has played. Belfry will chew up more clock than most of these teams and I expect Belfry's Offensive efficiency and this clock grinding to reduce the number of possessions that Catholic gets. I think Catholic hits some big plays and maintains success moving the ball, but I think Belfry has the defensive playmakers and the Dline to do some things that other teams have not been able to and as a result create some big plays or get a key stop or two. Watching those highlight videos the one thing that stuck out as well is Belfry is a much more fundamentally sound team when it comes to tackling, especially in the open field and on the edges as opposed to the teams Catholic has seen. Fulton was downright attrocious at tackling in the secondary. It wouldn't surprise me in the least to not only see KnoxCath outgain Belfry, but to also be the most yards Belfry allows all season by a good margin. That's how talented Catholic is.

This year's team seems to be a little ahead of last year's team at this point in time. With that said, they aren't quite to the dominating level last year's team was in November when they steamrolled to a Title. Still making some fumble issues and dumb penalties, and Belfry has been slowed a bit by a bunch of minor nagging injuries that have cost key starters valuable minutes either early in the Season or during Summer. With that said, this team has the POTENTIAL to be not only the best Belfry team in their storied history, but possibly the best team to ever come out of EKY. As for prediction I think we are going to see a high level football game Friday. I think KnoxCath get's theirs on offense and hits some big plays and gains a lot of yards. With that said, I am a firm believer that at the High School level the team that wins the line of scrimmage wins the game.I also think Belfry has enough play makers on D that they get a handful of big/key plays. I will take Belfry 34-26 in a hard fought, close game that leaves both sides respecting one another for their effort and talents.

For the curious KnoxCath fans, some of Belfry's key players to watch OL/DL Cole Bentley http://www.hudl.com/video/3/3068066/57d428b3842eb3532c44942f Kid is a brute. He is an absolute mauler and plays with max effort every snap. Committed to Louisville. Four year starter and he is playing better as a Senior than he ever has and that is scary. OL Austin Dotson http://www.hudl.com/video/3/4256028/5721de089a90ec5540a7b9c7 You can judge for yourself, but IMHO he is one of the biggest sleeper prospects in the Country. Committed to Kentucky. This kid is a special football player. 6'6 300+ and runs like a TE. Has a nasty side. A little back story on him, he is one of the most modest kids you will ever see. Doesn't do social media, doesn't do interviews really, and above all didn't do the whole recruiting process. Last year at the State Finals college coaches in attendance were literally looking for his parents. Dotson didn't even have a highlight video and had never set foot on a college visit. Belfry's coaches put his highlights up for him and soon UK came calling and offered him basically on the spot. Dotson and his family are diehard UK fans and he committed right then. From what I have heard from good sources, Alabama called and pleaded for him not to commit before visiting them for their Spring Game. Saban even sent a hand written letter. Dotson though politely said "Thanks but no thanks". Just watch him and how he moves Friday. If he learns to pass block in college, LOOK OUT P.S. if nothing else watch the play at 1:05 DT RayQuan Horton http://www.hudl.com/video/3/3068042/5721db5b19a53e2a187e1524 Just watch the video and smile. Horton will go down in Belfry lure once his career is over.He has been a standout since his Freshman year and has just made game changing play after game changing play. He has several offers but the Power 5 offer hasn't came yet despite dominating at The Opening in Columbus. Tremendous football IQ.. the knock is his height and wingspan but the kid is simply a winner. OL Jordan Scott http://www.hudl.com/video/3/2775597/5721de0dbd746d007c806ac9 Scott has been the victim of being surrounded by great players, to the point he is probably the most under appreciated Pirate. Big kid and a prototype guard. Has an offer from Tennessee Tech. 3 Year Starter and just fulfills his assignment every play. HB/S/KR Cameron Catron http://www.hudl.com/video/3/3068211/57cad8d70aff7a64c4ca1b5c He's that kid we have all enjoyed watching for other schools. Undersized but the heart and work ethic of a Lion and a natural leader. Is a violent and aggressive Safety, a dangerous kick returner, and a lightning quick HB who runs like he is shot out of a canon. Belfry's vocal leader. He has small college offers and has a couple FCS school very interested in him as a slot guy. QB Noah Corbett http://www.hudl.com/video/3/4303776/5721d33819a53e2a1874f0b4 Corbett is the perfect fit for this Belfry Offense. Great athleticism, great ball handling skills, and when asked a big time arm. Has some small college offers. FB/LB Derek Wellman (Jr.) http://www.hudl.com/video/3/4435562/572bad32c6de8045d8f31885 Probably my favorite Pirate to watch alongside Catron. Kid is just a football player. Very smart and fundamentally sound LB'er with excellent athleticism and plays angry. Belfry limits his reps at FB to keep him fresh but when he is in there he is a game changer. Averages over 8 yards per carry for his career. Getting looks from FCS schools, I expect him to open eyes this summer as he hasn't did the recruitment game yet. CB Devin Varney (Jr) http://www.hudl.com/athlete/4762944/highlights Was an All-State 2nd Team Selection as a Sophomore. Has potential to be the best CB to ever play for Belfry. He has dominated KY competition and I would be lying if I didn't say I am eager to see what happens with him Friday when he steps up to play D-1 talent. He plays with supreme confidence so I can see Friday going either way.

Good ole Williamson Daily News.... HAHA Sigh... Pulitzer Prize winners they are not... but they do at least try to give lots of coverage to area athletics despite their limited resources.

I would if I were there! You all should say hi to bucslover68... really great guy. He would especially be interested if there is any tailgating involved and tasty home cooked food HAHA

Not looking like I will be able to. Have to travel a lot in the next two months and would have to take a full day off to get there.

The economy in Eastern Kentucky is painful right now. Belfry and many other schools are being hit heavy due to the collapse of the coal industry.

Not sure if it just smaller schools or just fewer schools. Kentucky only has 221 schools with football teams. I think Tennessee is in the 300's. I honestly am not a fan of six classes in Kentucky... until 2007 it was a 4 class system and most wish we could go back to that. As I said previously, that is where Tennessee and KY football differs the most. The quality of play and quality of teams are very much similar, it is just Tennessee has more of everything because they have more population and more schools. Louisville= Nashville Lexington= Knoxville Northern Kentucky (around Cincy)= Chattanooga Bowling Green= Murfreesboro Memphis is the outlier that makes a difference as well as some of these other small cities in Tennessee like the Tri-Cities area, Clarksville, etc

You can petition to play up but not down Fort Thomas Highlands played up for a long time...now that their legendary coach is retired and their talent pool is down they are feeling a little blue though. Cooper in NKY is playing up in 6A citing geography and natural rivalries. Most thought they were doing it to escape having Highlands/Covington Catholic in their playoff path. Well wouldn't you know Cooper has been up and those two down. Had Cooper stayed in 5A they probably would have went to the State Finals last year and possibly this year.

6 Classes Goes by Male Enrollment 9-12 over 4 year average 1A= 191 or Less 2A= 191- 315 3A= 315-420 4A= 420-529 5A= 529-699 6A= 699- Up Belfry has a 380.8 average over 4 years if you were curious

On the whole I think Kentucky and Tennessee compare very favorably going one for one. If you take a strong KY team and move them to Tennessee I think they remain the same strong team. A great KY team is a great TN team. A good KY team is a good TN team. A bad is a bad,,, an awful is an awful. The difference is there are just more of each in TN. You take Mayfield in 2A, and Milan fans will attest, they would also dominate 2A in TN most years. You take Pikeville and they would be a very good 1A TN team.. but the difference is there may be 3 or 4 teams like Pikeville in KY but TN may have 5 or 6. Newport Central Catholic would be a very strong 2A team in TN, once again there may be 7-8 small schools comparable to NewCath in KY but there may be 10-12 in TN. If you are talking about truly elite programs that can compete Nationally Kentucky only has maybe 4-5... whereas Tennessee may have 7-8 Going by classes though I would compare all of these teams toward their equivalent in Tenn: 1A: Beechwood (elite histroically), Pikeville 2A: Mayfield, Danville (historically), DeSales, NewCath 3A: Belfry, Louisville Central, Lexington Catholic, Boyle County (historically) 4A: South Warren (new program), Johnson Central (over the past 10 years) 5A: Bowling Green, Ft. Thomas Highlands (historically an elite program), Pulaski County (recent), Covington Catholic 6A: Male, Trinity, X (Historically), Scott County, Simon Kenton (recently)

Belfry will play anyone that wants to play them. They have played CAK twice and KnoxCath once over the past three years and went 3-0. They have to travel long distances to find teams not afraid of taking L's. To avoid a 9 game schedule they had to pay a team to come down from Cleveland Ohio this year. Last year alone Belfry played the TN 4A State Champs, KY 4A Runner-Up, KY 2A Runer-Up, and 1A State Champs.They also played the then #1 overall team in WV (a school with over 2000 students). If any other TN school is feeling froggy after KnoxCath they can give Belfry a call and get on their next schedule. Rhea County was on the hook and decided to back out at the last minute.

Belfry has about a 70 man roster Bentley plays both ways . He is the only Pirates that will stay on the field the whole game. Belfry rotates about three different split ends. Woolum is the starter though and plays the most reps, he will play full time at CB. Belfry rotates about 4 different HB's... Catron plays full time at S and will play a good number of reps at HB. Varney plays full time at CB and will play some at HB. Belfry rotates two fullbacks. Fletcher does not play Defense. Wellman is a stud at LB. So one guy goes both ways full time, three start both ways but get subbed, and one starts only one way but will see key reps. Bentley is the only Belfry linemen that plays both ways a lot. Belfry will go "Super Jumbo" with Horton where they will bring him in to spell as the second Tight End for a different look. Typically Belfry will use Miller as the #2 TE in double tights, Horton is just a wrinkle, a big, strong, dominating wrinkle.

If you are browsing this thread right now click real quick on www.ekbtv.com and they are right now re-airing last nights game live.

What this week comes down to is this: - How does Belfry adjust to the step up in competition? Belfry has obliterated their first 4 opponents with a First Half running clock in three of them. They have played the 2A Runner-Up and 1A State Champs as well as a 5A School and a 6A School.. but KnoxCath is a different monster. Newport Catholic two weeks ago (the 2A Runner-Up) has been the only team to really even make Belfry break a sweat and as a result Belfry made some penalty and fumble errors before eventually imposing their will. - How does KnoxCath handle Belfry's physicality and depth? Being frank KnoxCath just doesn't see teams as physical as Belfry. CAK learned about this and KnoxCath found out last year. Playing a team that runs 95% of the time under center and brings a ton of power at the LOS is just something you dont see much anymore, especially at a high level of execution. In last year's game you could tell KnoxCath was not ready for Belfry's OLine and Dline and by the time they started to settle in Belfry already had them a bit winded. - The big play will reign supreme. KnoxCath has playmakers galore and give a lot of different looks to get it in their hands. Belfry is predictable, but they set you up so that if you do not play flawless assignment football you are watching a back go 70 yards because you missed one tackle or went to the wrong hole. Defensively the big play will be huge as well. Can KnoxCath turn Belfry over? Can Belfry get a big TFL or make a key QB hurry on 3rd down to get Catholic off the field?

Sorry in advance for the long post, but when you get to share your favorite team with those that don't know about them it is easy to be long winded. It is first necessary to understand where Belfry is. This is a small county school, enrollment 700, in very rural Kentucky in the heart of coal mining country. Belfry sits nestled up along the WV border and for decades now Belfry football has been the biggest draw in the area and is a legitimate Friday Night Lights kind of vibe. Phillip Haywood is the head coach and he is a living legend. He is Kentucky's all-time wins leader and Top 10 nationally among active coaches. He is "old school cool" and is one of the most respected HC's in KY as a man for how he teaches his kids much more than football. His hallmark is his rushing offenses and his fundamentally sound Defenses. For years Belfry was a wishbone team who lined up exclusively in a 5-2. Belfry has arguably the top feeder program in the State of Kentucky and has won 4 consecutive Middle School State Titles beginning with this current Senior Class. As the feeder system has produced more talent and depth he has evolved his Offense into a hybrid of the Wing T and Flex Bone. Lots of triple option, misdirection, and a mix of straight ahead power. The Defense has also evolved into more of a 3-4.. I will get into this team's Defense more in a minute. To assume this is a team that simply wants to beat you with three yards and a cloud of dust is a fatal error, one that KnoxCath learned last year when Belfry ran for over 400 yards and essentially dominated from beginning to end. Belfry has a freakishly large OLine anchored by three players with D-1 Offers, they average around 6'2 300 across the line. The two studs are UK Commit Austin Dotson (6'6 300) and Louisville Commit Cole Bentley (6'4 305). Dotson plays tackle and he is a special player. As big as he is he moves like a TE and has a nasty side. Bentley lines up at TE where he is basically a third Tackle. He is a mauler. Behind this massive Oline Belfry uses a stable of backs with varying skills. They have big play ability at the wingbacks and two very good Fullbacks who can power in the middle once you are spread out. The QB is a great athlete and so far this year is a combined 5/7 passing with 4 of those goings for TD's (the other was down at the 1), he is averaging around 40 yards per completion. Defensively is where KnoxCath is about to see a challenge like they haven't seen all season. Belfry is big, fast, and very experienced with numerous 3 and 4 year starters. It starts up front where Bentley joins RayQuan Horton on the D-Line. Horton is a special HS player and arguably the most dominant Defensive Player in Kentucky. Last year KnoxCath tried to block him one on one and he absolutely ate the Irish alive. At this point he only sees double teams and most teams just try to avoid even challenging him. Last night a specific play stood out where Pikeville committed a double team and the blitzing Belfry LB'er literally didnt even get looked at as he came through for the sack. Bentley is a space eater at Nose. Behind this line is Junior LB Derek Wellman. Wellman I predict will be playing at the FCS level before it is over..he is a very good LB. The matchup that intrigues me will be Belfry's secondary vs. those unbelievable Knox Cath WR's. In terms of the HS level Belfry has three very good DB's between their two CB's and the FS Catron. Junior CB Devin Varney #3 is an excellent High School player and a lockdown corner against Prep competition... with that said, he hasn't seen anything like Amari Rodgers. Varney is 6'2 and can move and plays with a swagger, but Rodgers is just simply a special talent that is on another level compared to what he is used to. Special Teams for Belfry is a huge mystery on multiple levels. They simply have not been asked to punt this year, but they lost an excellent punter who graduated. Kicking I am not sure what is happening. Belfry has an All-State kicker who KnoxCath fans will remember from last year in Austin Woolum. Big time leg. With that said, Woolum suffered a soft tissue leg injury prior to the season. Woolum is a very good CB and also the starting SE, and for whatever reason has not handled any of the kicking duties this year since the opening kickoff. Belfry has used a Freshman Kicker who has done adequate, but he isn't anywhere near the weapon Woolum is. I am not sure if they are just not wanting to risk re-injury, if they are just saving him when they know they will be tested, or if they just decided to develop the Freshman this year knowing Woolum is graduating. Return wise Belfry is alright..they have returned a kickoff for a TD and returned a punt for one as well, they have also muffed a punt and fumbled a kickoff though. Coverage wise the punt coverage is TBD, kickoff coverage has been "meh"

Belfry just polished off Pikeville 55-13. This game should be a dandy. Two unstoppable forces diverging.