At 5-0, Great Crossing’s success could make for best ‘Battle of the Birds’ yet.
Here’s a look at some of the best high school football games of Week 7 beginning Sept. 30, according to high school sports writer Jared Peck. All rankings are according to the Herald-Leader’s Dave Cantrall Ratings.
Rivalries of the week
▪ No. 9 Great Crossing (5-0) at No. 20 Scott County (2-3), 7:30 p.m.: When a capacity crowd took in the first ever game played at Birds Nest Stadium in 2019, it took a bit of imagination to believe the fledgling Warhawks, losers that day by a score of 72-7, would soon be competitive against their sister school, mighty Scott County, in their annual contest dubbed “The Battle of the Birds.”
Great Crossing went winless in its first year and had just three wins against five losses last season, including another shellacking from the Cardinals, 49-18.
But Friday, Great Crossing not only comes in with a better record (5-0) than the two-time state champion Cardinals (2-3), they are also ranked higher in both the Associated Press media rankings and the KHSAA RPI for Class 5A. The AP has Great Crossing at No. 9 and the RPI standings have them at No. 7. Scott County fell out of the media poll this week after a loss to Frederick Douglass and it comes in at No. 20 in the RPI.
Great Crossing senior Kalib Perry, the school’s first Division I football commitment with a pledge to Tennessee, always had faith his team would build a winning program. He’s been a starter since the beginning.
“I’ve just seen how much everyone’s sacrificed these past three years and how everyone’s been working this offseason,” Perry said. “I have high expectations for our team. We always go out there to win and never give up.”
Neither coach puts much stock in rankings. And a look at this week’s Class 5A Cantrall computer ratings shows Great Crossing at No. 19, a far cry from their more established neighbor, No. 4 Scott County.
“The game’s not won on paper and in all the rankings and stuff,” Great Crossing Coach Ricky Bowling said. “It’s played on Friday, and that’s what we’re concerned about.”
With five wins and no losses, territory his players haven’t traveled before, Bowling said he and his staff are trying to help the team maintain perspective.
“We’ve got to look at it as if we’re 0-0. We have the 5-0 confidence, but we’re 0-0 and we’ve still got a lot to prove,” Bowling said.
If there were such a thing as the best 2-3 team in the state, Scott Count might be it. The Cardinals have rolled in their two wins by a combined score of 96-0. Each of their losses have come to ranked opponents. Montago Jones leads the attack with 344 rushing yards and four TDs.
“We think it will be a great game and should be great for our community. It should be a great crowd,” Scott County Coach Jim McKee said. “Hopefully the guy running the offense (that’s him) can find some plays and might be able to score some points.”
Great Crossing can put up some points, too, averaging 26.8 per game while allowing only 35 total. Quarterback Gabe Nichols has thrown for 602 yards and nine TDs and Perry features in multiple roles on offense in addition to his linebacking role on defense.
Even with the struggles Great Crossing had in its first two seasons, Perry has stood out and garnered recruiting interest. He had 13 Division I offers, including Kentucky.
“The team allowed me to be successful, and they’ve always pushed me and done everything they can for me to be at the best of my abilities,” Perry said. “I just want to keep making them proud and doing the best I can every game.”
Perry’s help on defense includes 6-foot-6 junior edge rusher Oryend Fisher, a three-star recruit also being recruited heavily and holding a UK offer. Fisher and teammate Will Frazier are among the state sack leaders with 8.5 and eight sacks, respectively. Great Crossing ranks second overall in rush defense, allowing only 32 yards per game, a stat that will be tested Friday.
“Obviously when you have guys that are D-I, it kind of lifts the motivation for everybody,” Bowling said. “They want to be the next guy, whether its D-I or D-II or whatever it is … and to understand what it takes to get to that level just automatically increases the practice level and desire to hit the weight room and those types of things.”
When Great Crossing was formed, McKee predicted that both schools would be competitive on the football field in the years to come because the county has had a rich tradition of high school athletics success.
“Georgetown still has a little small-town feel to it,” McKee said. “I know a lot of those kids, but, you know, obviously, we’re going to try to win.”
▪ No. 20 Bowling Green (3-3) at No. 5 South Warren (4-1), 7 p.m.: Having another top-ranked team in your same class and district means that the stakes are always high when these two teams meet.
This week, they’ll play with home-field advantage in the first two rounds of the playoffs on the line. If they meet again in the district finals, it will be win or go home.
“You could make a real strong argument it’s the best and most intense rivalry in the state,” South Warren Coach Brandon Smith said this preseason.
Bowling Green is the defending Class 5A champion and has seven state titles, but this season has seen a few setbacks including a 31-0 loss at Boyle County two weeks ago.
Two-time state champ South Warren has solid wins over Eastern and Central behind the quarterback play of Western Kentucky commit Caden Veltkamp (733 yards, nine TDs passing, 35 yards, five TDs rushing).
“The winner of the playoff game between us each season is a heavy favorite to win the state championship,” Bowling Green Coach Mark Spader said earlier in the year.
Games of the week
▪ No. 3 St. Xavier (4-1) at No. 10 Ryle (4-1), 7:30 p.m.: With the Trinity game behind them (and it was a win this year), the Tigers look to lock up at least a No. 2 RPI seed the rest of the way. Ryle has looked good lately after a season-opening loss to Lexington Catholic, but each of their wins have come against smaller-school opponents.
▪ No. 17 Pikeville (5-1) at Madison Central (4-1), 7:30 p.m.: The only team to solve the new-look Indians under Mike Holcomb has been Lexington Christian, the team that beat Pikeville last week. The Class A No. 1 Panthers are looking at a tough bounce-back game on the road.
▪ West Jessamine (3-2) at No. 23 Woodford County (5-0), 7:30 p.m.: The Yellow Jackets begin their district slate as the favorites this year after an impressive set of victories that have included three blowouts.
▪ Clay County (4-1) at Johnson Central (3-2), 7:30 p.m.: The Golden Eagles take the field against a mountain rival in the first game to be played since the death of their legendary coach, Jim Matney. On the same ground on Monday, Johnson Central will host his funeral services at 1 p.m.
Lexington games
▪ Henry Clay (0-5) at No. 14 Bryan Station (4-1), 6:30 p.m.: The Defenders have been playing as determined as the Mean Man on their helmets. Damin Green has been a threat as both a receiver and a runner the last few games.
▪ Lafayette (0-6) at George Rogers Clark (3-3), 7:30 p.m.: Clark County looks for its third straight win against a team that has been shut out four times this season.
▪ Sayre (5-0) at Williamsburg (3-1), 7:30 p.m. The Spartans rank ahead of Williamsburg in The Associated Press poll (by one spot, No. 4 to No. 5), but behind them in the Cantrall Ratings (No. 12 to No. 6). We’re about to find out which measure has it right.
▪ Bye week: Frederick Douglass, Lexington Catholic, Lexington Christian, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Tates Creek.
Should be a good one
▪ Mayfield (6-0) at Caldwell County (4-2), 7 p.m.
▪ Bethlehem (4-1) at Crittenden County (2-3), 7:30 p.m.
▪ No. 7 Beechwood (5-0) at No. 25 Dixie Heights (3-2), 7 p.m.
▪ Ashland Blazer (3-3) at Elizabethtown (3-3), 7:30 p.m.
This story was originally published September 30, 2021 at 8:19 AM.
