Top-flight matchups are on tap for the start of high school football

The high school football season kicks off Friday and there are some blockbuster matchups slated for Week 1 in Lexington.

Class A No. 4 Sayre, the defending small-school state champions, welcomes a former longtime rival, No. 3 Kentucky Country Day out of Louisville, in what could be an annual kickoff series for the small, private schools. The game will be streamed by Glicod.com.

Sayre coach Chad Pennington became friends with KCD coach Matthew Jones back when the Spartans were just starting out several years ago. Jones’ Bearcats have been top contenders in Class A for a number of years, and Pennington leaned on Jones for advice.

“The best piece of advice they gave me was, build your program around the lives of your kids. And ever since, in mind, I’ve had a great relationship and communicate quite frequently,” Pennington said. “We finally got it to where we could play and maybe make it the first week of the season.”

The two football teams apparently played each year before Sayre shuttered its program in the late 1970s. The renewal could be a prelude to a week of Sayre-KCD fall sports games if the schools can hammer things out, Pennington said.

Lexington Christian’s eCampus.com Bowl doubleheader will be televised by WDKY-TV Fox 56 in Lexington and streamed by Prepspin.com.

It features an early top-ranked Class 6A clash between No. 10 Bryan Station and No. 7 South Warren. The Spartans out of Bowling Green moved up to the big-school division this year.

The Defenders have been regulars in LCA’s bowl in recent years. A gritty 38-35 win over then-Class 5A No. 1 Bowling Green at LCA in 2023 signaled Bryan Station was for real. Bowling Green later won the 5A state championship. Bryan Station made it all the way to the 6A finals.

“When we do the scheduling, we’ve always known that we want to prepare for the playoff run,” Bryan Station coach J.T. Haskins said. “Any given Friday night, with our schedule, anyone’s capable of being beat. It’s our job to go out and perfect our craft.”

The host, Class 2A No. 3 LCA, will play North Hardin in the nightcap. The Class 6A Trojans feature three-star wideout Ronald Lunz, who has Kentucky among his college offers.

Out of town, Class 6A No. 5 Frederick Douglass heads north to take on Class 4A No. 5 Highlands in Fort Thomas and Class 3A No. 4 Lexington Catholic travels to Class 6A No. 8 Ballard in a pair of early season gut checks.

On Saturday, Tates Creek travels to Mercer County and Paul Laurence Dunbar will face Wayne County in Somerset.

This week’s games featuring Lexington teams

Friday’s games

5:30 p.m.: Bryan Station vs. South Warren (at Lexington Christian)

6 p.m.: Collins at Lafayette

7 p.m.: Highlands, vs. Frederick Douglass

7:30 p.m.: Kentucky Country Day at Sayre

7:30 p.m.: Lexington Catholic at Ballard

8:30 p.m.: North Hardin at Lexington Christian

9 p.m.: Henry Clay vs. North Oldham (at Lafayette)

Saturday’s games

5:30 p.m.: Paul Laurence Dunbar vs. Wayne County (at Somerset)

8 p.m.: Tates Creek at Mercer County

Other notable games around the state

Times local to host site.

Friday’s games

7 p.m.: Ryle at Covington Catholic

7:30 p.m.: Bardstown at Elizabethtown

7:30 p.m.: Bell County at Campbellsville

7:30 p.m.: Conner at Madison Central

7:30 p.m.: Franklin County at Great Crossing

7:30 p.m.: George Rogers Clark at Scott County

7:30 p.m.: Paris at Frankfort

7:30 p.m.: Pikeville at Christian Academy-Louisville

7:30 p.m.: Raceland at Ashland Blazer

8:45 p.m.: West Jessamine at Bourbon County

Saturday’s games

4 p.m.: Bullitt East vs. Boyle County (at Bowling Green)

5 p.m.: Woodford County vs. Fairdale (at Mercer County)

Jared Peck

Lexington Herald-Leader

859-488-2883

Jared Peck, the Herald-Leader’s Digital Sports Writer, covers high school athletics and has been with the company as a writer and editor for more than 20 years. Support my work with a digital subscription