Who wins the Raceland-Paintsville rematch? Predictions for every Class A district title.
It’s district championship week in the UK Orthopaedics/KHSAA Commonwealth Gridiron Bowl featuring some Kroger Field-worthy games in just the second round of the playoffs.
They start handing out trophies this week and each week until the biggest trophy gets awarded in December.
Class A has one of those premier matchups as Raceland heads to Paintsville on Friday.
Adding to the drama: Each of this week’s Class A games is a rematch from the regular season, meaning some teams might have held something back and some teams will be looking for payback at the season’s most critical juncture.
Here’s an expanded look at the 6th District championship, plus a quick summary of the rest of Friday’s Class A slate with predictions. All rankings are according to the final week KHSAA RPI which will be used to seed the next round.
Featured matchup
6th District: No. 9 Raceland (7-4) at No. 4 Paintsville (8-3)
Last time: Host Paintsville won 19-15 on Oct. 25.
Why Raceland will win: Payback. The Rams got behind 19-3 in the first half against the Tigers the first time around and had a fourth-down play from the 21 to win it with 11 seconds left that was broken up in the end zone. Quarterback Jacob Heighton threw three interceptions and was sacked three times in that game, yet Raceland stayed in it till the end. He threw only two other interceptions all year and leads a balanced offense that has gotten 1,531 yards out of a backfield by committee and 727 yards receiving and 12 touchdowns from Lewis Gunnur.
Why Paintsville will win: Resolve. The Tigers have stood toe-to-toe with some of the best teams in the state thanks to a consistent offense and an opportunistic defense. Paintsville has picked off its opponents 16 times and recovered eight fumbles. Jake Hyden has 1,492 yards passing with 15 TDs and another 397 yards on the ground with six scores and John Walker Phelps has 706 rushing yards, 212 receiving yards and 12 TDs combined. Poe Karsten provides another aerial threat in a balanced offense with 619 yards receiving and nine TDs.
@HLpreps pick: Paintsville.
The rest of the field
1st District: No. 23 Russellville (4-7) at No. 10 Crittenden County (9-2).
Last time: Host Crittenden won 21-14 on Oct. 25.
@HLpreps pick: Crittenden County.
2nd District: No. 8 Bethlehem (8-2) at No. 3 Holy Cross (Lou.) (9-2).
Last time: Host Bethlehem won 31-28 on Oct. 11.
@HLpreps pick: Holy Cross.
3rd District: No. 7 Eminence (9-2) at No. 1 Kentucky Country Day (11-0).
Last time: Host KCD won 62-13 on Oct. 25.
@HLpreps pick: KCD.
4th District: No. 14 Ludlow (8-3) at No. 6 Newport Central Catholic (9-2).
Last time: Host NCC won 49-10.
@HLpreps pick: NCC.
5th District: No. 20 Bishop Brossart (7-4) at No. 16 Nicholas County (8-3).
Last time: Host Nicholas County won 28-6.
@HLpreps pick: Nicholas County.
7th District: No. 11 Hazard (7-4) at No. 2 Pikeville (11-0).
Last time: Visiting Pikeville won 42-0 on Oct. 18.
@HLpreps pick: Pikeville.
8th District: No. 18 Lynn Camp (5-5) at No. 5 Williamsburg (9-2).
Last time: Host Williamsburg won 43-22 on Oct. 25.
@HLpreps pick: Williamsburg.
This story was originally published November 13, 2019 at 11:25 AM.
