Class 5A football finals preview: Owensboro vs. Bowling Green
It’s championship weekend for the 2020 UK Orthopaedics/KHSAA Commonwealth Gridiron Bowl. Here’s a look at Saturday’s Class 5A state title game at Kroger Field.
Owensboro (12-0) vs. Bowling Green (9-2)
Kickoff: 3 p.m. Saturday
RPI ratings: No. 1 Owensboro (.66010); No. 5 Bowling Green (.62004)
Cantrall ratings: Owensboro (81.6); Bowling Green (90.3)
Championship history: Owensboro (2-4) — Won 2A in 1974 and 3A in 1986, last appeared in 2014; Bowling Green (6-4) — Won most recent title in 2016, its last appearance.
How they got here: Owensboro defeated No. 9 Frederick Douglass 28-27 in the state semis and topped No. 10 Graves County 28-21 for its district title; Bowling Green bested No. 3 Covington Catholic 20-0 in the state semis and No. 7 South Warren for its district championship.
Quick hits:
▪ Owensboro quarterback Gavin Wimsatt is considered one of the best junior dual-threat signal callers in the nation. The four-star prospect has 18 Division I offers including Kentucky and the likes of Notre Dame and Michigan.
▪ Bowling Green features Kentucky commit Jordan Dingle, a 6-4 tight end who picked the Cats over offers from 20 other schools.
▪ Both Owensboro and Bowling Green have ball-hawking secondaries with the Purples leading the state with 21 interceptions and the Red Devils not far behind with 16. The Purples picked off Covington Catholic’s dual-threat QB five times last week with three of them grabbed by senior safety Dylan Echols. Owensboro’s Wimsatt got picked off twice last week by Frederick Douglass, but his defense had two picks of its own.
▪ Bowling Green’s defense has given up the seventh-fewest points of any team in the state (9.8 per game), but will be tested by Owensboro’s third-ranked scoring offense, which averages 47.4 points per game.
Owensboro standouts: Gavin Wimsatt, Jr. QB (2,070 yards/26 TDs passing, 408 yards/six TDs rushing); Ethan Avery, Sr. RB (630 yards/nine TDs rushing, 238 yards/three TDs receiving); Treyvon Tinsley, Sr. WR (602 yards/10 TDs receiving); Austin Gough, Sr. LB (112 tackles); Maurice Moorman, Jr. DB (five interceptions).
Bowling Green standouts: Conner Cooper, Sr. QB (1,686 yards/13 TDs passing, 428 yards/six TDs rushing); Javeius Bunton, Sr. RB (964 yards/19 TDs rushing); Jordan Dingle, Sr. TE (473 yards/two TDs receiving); Eli Burwash, Sr. WR/DB (354 yards/four TDs receiving, three interceptions; Rece Jones, Sr. LB (119 tackles/three sacks, one interception).
@HLpreps pick: Bowling Green 20, Owensboro 10.
This weekend’s championships
Where: Kroger Field
Tickets: Available by advance sale at KHSAA.org. No walk-up sales.
Online: Subscription required for live video stream at KHSAA.tv. Free audio stream at KHSAA.net
FRIDAY’S GAMES
Class A: Kentucky Country Day vs. Paintsville, 11 a.m.
Class 2A: Lexington Christian vs. Beechwood, 3 p.m.
Class 4A: Boyle County vs. Franklin County, 7 p.m.
SATURDAY’S GAMES
Class 3A: Elizabethtown vs. Ashland Blazer, 11 a.m.
Class 5A: Owensboro vs. Bowling Green, 3 p.m.
Class 6A: Trinity (Louisville) vs. Male, 7 p.m.
