If you’re reading this, you probably didn’t see a good football game this week

Who could’ve guessed that the University of Kentucky men’s basketball game against East Tennessee State would be tighter than most of the high school football games played on Friday night?

The region finals round in the Russell Athletic/KHSAA Commonwealth Gridiron Bowl tends to produce exciting games because, at that point, most of the teams remaining won or finished as runners-up in their district, and often the teams that meet have met once before in the regular season.

That did not hold true this year. Of the 24 games played, five finished with single-digit outcomes: Harlan County over Southwestern (23-18); Pikeville over Hazard (14-9); Collins over Mercer County (34-28); Central Hardin over Daviess County (27-0); and South Warren over Bowling Green (28-21).

The rest of the 19 games? Those were decided by an average of 31.6 points, and all but two of those were decided by 21 or more points. Franklin-Simpson got by Hopkinsville, 35-20, and Raceland defeated Paintsville, 31-14, to finish with margins in the teens.

Best blowouts

Two results stood out among a sea of routs: Central’s 60-21 rout of Belfry and Madison Southern’s 61-20 smashing of Montgomery County.

In part, Belfry’s loss could be attributed to the absence of Derek Wellman, who sat out with an ankle injury. His potential as a Mr. Football threat may have heightened after how the Pirates performed without him. Belfry saw a 40-game win streak against Kentucky competition come to an end while Central won its eighth in a row, scoring 50-plus points for the fourth time in the last six games.

Meanwhile in Berea, Madison Southern earned its first regional title while running away from an opponent it beat by only six points in the regular season. The game was tied, 14-14, with 4:09 left in the second quarter but the Eagles managed to score three times in the final 2:25 of the first half to take a 35-14 lead into the locker room. They never looked back.

Upset specials

Six of Friday night’s outcomes were considered upsets, per the Cantrall Ratings.

Southwestern, ranked fifth in Class 5A, lost at home to a Harlan County team that was tied for seventh with Montgomery County and rated 17 points lower than it. The Black Bears’ seniors might have looked to their most recent game against the Warriors — a 57-0 defeat when they were sophomores — as motivation.

South Warren was ranked fourth in Class 5A while Bowling Green was ranked second, but they were separated in the ratings by just 2.9 points. The Spartans were barely in a 43-7 loss at Bowling Green earlier this season but kept their season alive for at least one more week; undefeated Covington Catholic, behind only Trinity in the statewide rankings, comes to Bowling Green next week.

Raceland stopped a five-game losing streak against rival Paintsville, who was rated about nine points better, on the road. Central was rated about four points worse than Belfry, but the ratings can’t really account for the missing contributions of a player like Wellman.

Christian Academy of Louisville avenged a regular-season loss to DeSales with a 24-3 decision in Class 2A. The Colts, considered the second-best team in the class behind Mayfield, had allowed just nine points in their previous seven games coming into the contest.

The final “upset” was Campbellsville’s 44-8 win over Crittenden County. The Eagles (7-6) were ranked a hair lower than the Rockets in Class A and will enter their state semifinals matchup with Beechwood as the overall lowest-ranked team remaining in the postseason.

Lexington finished

At least one Lexington team has played for a state title each of the last two seasons. Those hoping Kroger Field would welcome a hometown finalist the first weekend of December were left distraught after Friday night.

Scott County crushed Frederick Douglass, 43-13, in Georgetown while both football-playing private schools saw their seasons end in Danville. Lexington Catholic suffered a 57-15 defeat at Boyle County while Lexington Christian’s prolific offense was grounded in a 49-7 loss to Danville.

This story was originally published November 18, 2017 at 2:10 AM with the headline "If you’re reading this, you probably didn’t see a good football game this week."