Super six for mr. football
At last count, I've had 17 coaches tell me they have a legitimate Mr. Football candidate (or two) this season. I'd guess that 117 other coaches think they've got a senior player deserving of consideration, too.
I've never seen any clear-cut criteria for Mr. Football, but in my mind it's an honor based on career achievement. It also helps to be part of a winning program, especially a state title contender. Being a big-time Division I prospect isn't a requirement. After all, this is an award for high school performance.
With seven weeks of football still ahead, there's plenty of time for players to step up or fall back. But right now these six players would top my list of Mr. Football nominees (in alphabetical order):
ANTONIO ANDREWS. He's got a 22-0 record as Fort Campbell's starting quarterback. Andrews was phenomenal in last year's Class 2A title game, and he's led the Falcons to an 8-0 record this season. In two years he's rushed for 2,559 yards and 43 touchdowns, and passed for 2,431 yards and 34 TDs.
AUSTIN COLLINSWORTH. As a sophomore he started at cornerback on Highlands' 5A title team. As a junior he started at receiver and strong safety on the Bluebirds' 5A title team. This year he's at running back and safety, and he's a big reason Highlands is undefeated and rated No. 9 in the nation by USA Today. It doesn't hurt Austin's candidacy that he's the son of former NFL star Cris Collinsworth and grandson of former UK basketball player Abraham Lincoln Collinsworth.
DOMONIQUE HAYDEN. LCA's little big man (5-foot-9, 225 pounds) has set a state record for career TDs (117), and is on pace to break two more records — career points (722) and career rushing TDs (110). He's totaled almost 7,800 yards rushing and receiving in four years as a starter for the Class A contenders.
REES MACSHARA. Boyle County's fleet running back has helped the Rebels win 21 of 22 games over the past two years by rushing for 3,162 yards and 49 TDs. Boyle County's only loss last season was in the semifinals to 4A champ Bell County. The Rebels are No. 1 in 4A this year.
JACOB RUSSELL. Anderson County's QB has his team pointing toward its second undefeated regular season in three years. In his career, Russell has thrown for 6,270 yards and 61 TDs, and run for 907 yards and 34 TDs.
MILES SIMPSON. He burst onto the scene last year by rushing for 2,309 yards and scoring 41 TDs to lead Simon Kenton to the 6A finals. The 6-2, 210-pound running back is following that up with a big senior season. He's rushed for 1,392 yards and has 29 TDs for the Pioneers, who've got a shot to get back to the 6A title game.
■ Harrison County sophomore Joe Korona's first field-goal attempt of his career was a memorable one. He booted a 24-yarder with 1.9 seconds left to give the Thorobreds a 24-21 win over Bourbon County. Malcolm Thomas' 55-yard punt return with less than a minute to play set up the winning field goal. Harrison County rallied from a 21-0 deficit for the biggest comeback in school history.
■ Senior QB T.J. Green rallied Harlan County from a 14-0 deficit in the final minutes to beat district rival Perry Central 15-14. Green's 5-yard TD run made it 14-7 with 2:30 left. On Perry Central's next play, Green recovered a fumble at midfield. He then triggered a Harlan County drive, capping it with a 3-yard TD and two-point conversion to give the Black Bears the victory.
■ Henderson County intercepted six passes in its win over Marshall County last week, giving the Colonels 20 picks this season. That's three shy of the school record set in 1994.
■ Shawn Berner, who has led Fort Campbell to back-to-back Class 2A football titles and has his team undefeated this season, is the Falcons' new boys' basketball coach. Berner replaces Matt Wallace, who had a 5-19 record last season.
■ Alcoa, Tenn., the only team to beat 4A champ Bell County over the past two years, is 8-0 and rated No. 1 in Class 3A in Tennessee.
■ Johnson Central piled up more than 600 yards, including more than 200 rushing by J.J. Jude, in a 64-14 win over Woodford County.
■ Bryan Station beat Lafayette 14-7 last Friday, but neither team played well, and for good reason. After pre-game warm-ups, the teams had to sit through a two-hour delay because no officials had been assigned to the game at Tates Creek. There was an apparent mix-up between the host school (Lafayette) and the assigning secretary. It goes to show how players can be thrown off their games when they're thrown off their schedules. An officiating crew was cobbled together and the game finally kicked off at 9:35 p.m.
■ The Danville Advocate-Messenger reported that Boyle County's Lamar Dawson has been offered a scholarship by UK. He's a 6-2, 230-pound junior linebacker/tight end.
■ Taylor County's Cody Newton carried 37 times for 232 yards in a win over Garrard County. He came into the game having rushed 32 times for 164 yards.
■ Ryle's Travis Elliott carried 34 times for 246 yards and three TDs as the Raiders beat Conner 31-22. Cougars QB Nick West passed for 342 yards and two TDs, and ran for another.
■ More than 5,000 players on more than 150 high school football teams in Kentucky are showing their support in the battle against breast cancer by wearing pink ribbon decals on their helmets. It all started after Denise Rains, wife of Lexington Christian Coach Paul Rains, was diagnosed with breast cancer last month. McCreary Central Coach Clinton Gay came up with the idea of putting pink ribbons on helmets. "The outpouring of support is amazing," Rains said. "Unfortunately, breast cancer touches just about everybody's family in some way." Rains said Central Baptist Hospital wants to help sponsor the ribbons-on-helmets project, which he plans to make a yearly project, including fund-raising for cancer research. "One of the neatest things is that we've got teenaged boys who understand the relevancy of breast cancer," Rains said. Check out www.lcasports.org/pink/ for photos and info on the movement.
■ To correct an item in last week's notebook: In a father vs. son football matchup in 1992, Maurice Dixon's Knott Central team beat his dad Bill's M.C. Napier team.
■ Basketball practice officially tipped off last week. Defending boys' state champion Holmes figures to be pre-season No. 1. The Bulldogs return Sweet Sixteen MVP Ricardo Johnson, his brother Jeremiah Johnson, Elijah Pittman and Kevon Rice. The Bulldogs picked up Demetrius Avery, a transfer from Conner. Holmes Coach David Henley said the Dogs will have a difficult time replacing three players who graduated — Jamel Riley, a terrific shooter; Brandon Housley, a good offensive rebounder, and Domonique Johnson, an emotional leader. Henley said he and his staff will "push the players a little harder in practice to try to avoid complacency." Holmes opens Dec. 5 in the Marshall County Hoopfest against Bowman Academy in Gary, Ind.
■ Franklin County basketball coach Scott Chalk said Louisville is showing interest in 6-4 senior point guard Vance Hall, who had a strong summer. EKU and Wright State are also interested in Hall.
■ North Hardin senior guard Jennifer Smiley, committed to play basketball at EKU, and teammate Destiny Bramblett, a senior forward, committed to Tennessee-Chattanooga.
■ Rose Hill girls' basketball coach Mark Watkins, will also coach the Royals boys' team this season. He replaces John Bush, who resigned.
■ LCA senior Lucas Witt has signed to play baseball at UK. A first-team All-City center fielder the past two years, Witt hit .378 with 22 runs as a sophomore and .377 with 31 runs and 20 RBI as a junior. Witt is in his fourth year starting at quarterback for LCA's football team. He's thrown for 8,025 yards and 96 TDs, and has run for 1,850 yards and 28 TDs.
■ For the 20th year a row, participation in high school sports in the United States increased for the 2008-09 school year. More than 4.4 million boys and 3.1 million girls took part in athletics, representing 55 percent of all students. Eleven-man football had the most participants (1.1 million) among boys. Outdoor track and field was the most popular sport among girls (457,000).
■ Justin Thomas of St. Xavier and Lindsay Gahm of Sacred Heart, who won state golf titles last week, have been named Kentucky's Mr. and Ms. Golf for 2009. The awards are based on a season-long points system.
