Quick-strike Owensboro overwhelms Pulaski County in Class 5A championship
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Owensboro ended a 39-year title drought with a 35-7 win over Pulaski County.
- Evan Hampton rushed for three touchdowns to earn title game MVP honors.
- Coach Ganaway credited program depth and vowed to sustain success beyond 2025.
Owensboro waited 39 years between Kentucky high school football state championships.
But it took less than a minute for the Red Devils to execute two touchdown plays that virtually assured its 35-7 win over Pulaski County Saturday in the Class 5A UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals at Kroger Field.
With a 14-7 lead and the clock running out in the second quarter, senior running back Evan Hampton hurriedly took back-to-back direct snaps — first from 3 yards out and then scoring from 2 yards out .
Hampton took the second snap with five seconds on the clock, swept right and fought through the grasp of a Maroons defender in the backfield before diving forward onto a pile of players with the ball outstretched to break the plane of the goal line.
“In my mind, there was no way they were going to stop me,” said Hampton, a Vanderbilt signee who topped 2,000 yards rushing for the season in the championship game and was named the game’s MVP to go with his Kentucky Gatorade Player of the Year honor from the day before. “To be honest with you, I thought about (Notre Dame’s) Jeremiyah Love and the one run that he had at the goal against Penn State (in last season’s Orange Bowl). I thought I needed to do something like that.”
At the outset of the third quarter, Hampton’s 20-yard run on the second play from scrimmage set up DaMarcus Ganaway Jr.’s 41-yard touchdown pass to Chadyn Morris that helped give Owensboro a 28-7 lead just 41 seconds into the second half.
“Getting into the end zone, we knew was going to be crucial heading into halftime,” first-year Owensboro head coach DaMarcus Ganaway Sr. said. “And then getting the ball back (to start the second half). It was basically a 14-point swing. And we got it done.”
Red Devils defense took early losses to heart
Owensboro (13-2) began the season with blowout losses to Class 3A champion Christian Academy-Louisville and Class 6A powerhouse St. Xavier before leaving its Class 5A division in its wake.
“We started 0-2 and our defense said, ‘You know what? We’re going to have an identity. We’re going to beat you at the line of scrimmage. We’re going to be faster in the backfield.’” said Elijah Hampton, Owensboro linebacker/offensive lineman and twin brother of Evan. “And that’s what it was today.”
Pulaski County’s only score came with the help of a muffed Owensboro punt return that the Maroons recovered on the Red Devils’ 22-yard line in the first quarter. Kasen Brock capped a five-play drive with a 3-yard TD run to tie the game at 7-7 with 1:06 left in the period.
Owensboro turned Pulaski County over on downs three times and got interceptions deep in their own end by Tee Green and Amare Roney to help even the turnover battle at three apiece.
State record punt return TD showed Owensboro’s speed
Though a special teams miscue helped let the Maroons get on the scoreboard, it also gave the Red Devils a 7-0 lead before its offense had stepped on the field.
Kalil “Tre” Shemwell set a state championship game record with an 84-yard punt return TD barely four minutes into the game.
Combined with the touchdowns on each side of halftime, Owensboro tallied 21 points in less than five plays. Coach Ganaway said his team’s quick-strike ability is part of its mindset.
“It’s just about starting fast by whatever we can do — special teams, defensively, offensively,” Ganaway said. “We’ve got guys that can make plays with the ball, and (Shemwell) did exactly what his potential allows him to do.”
Software glitch makes Hampton’s totals unofficial
Due to errors caused by a glitchy new statistical software used by the Kentucky High School Athletic Association this weekend, Evan Hampton’s rushing total won’t be official until bugs are worked out of the system sometime next week.
The Herald-Leader had Hampton with 108 yards on 11 carries with three touchdowns, including a 43-yard score on his third touch of the game that gave the Red Devils a 14-7 lead.
Those numbers give Hampton 2,035 yards and 31 TDs rushing and 288 yards and three 3 TDs receiving for his senior year. His unofficial career total of 5,289 rushing yards would put him among the top 50 high school rushers in KHSAA history.
Hampton is a lock to be among the finalists named for the Kentucky Football Coaches Association’s Mr. Football award when they are announced next week. And they should go a long way toward Hampton earning that honor for the state’s most outstanding senior player.
Coaches pay tribute to players and programs
Under second-year coach Travis Burns, Pulaski County (12-3) made its first run to the state finals since 2016 and did it without senior quarterback Zak Anderson, who was lost for the season due to injury after one of his best passing performances of the season against North Laurel on Oct. 17. The Maroons had to change how they played offense and still won six straight to get to Kroger Field.
“Hats off to Owensboro. They were the better team tonight,” Burns said. “I’m just proud of my guys. When I took over two years ago, we were 4-8 and now, we’re state runner-up. I know our guys aren’t going to be satisfied, but they can hold their heads high.”
Coach Ganaway, who previously had head coaching stints at Ohio County and a school in Indiana, paid tribute to the Owensboro coaches who came before and the support system his the program has today. Owensboro earned its third state title in its eighth finals appearance.
“From top to bottom, this program is tailor-made for success. It’s an expectation,” Ganaway said. “So to be here today is a combination of all the work that everybody’s put together. … That continues to set you up when you know you’ve got the foundation, and we’re proud to stand upon it and be here today. … We want to continue this. We don’t want it to be another 39 years before we get back here.”
This story was originally published December 7, 2025 at 10:09 AM.
