5A Football-Whitley County

The race is on! Before the football season started I thought Letcher County Central would be the team to beat in Class 5Am District 8. However, coach Hillard Howard’s team was defeated by Perry Central 33-32 in the Cougars first district battle. That really left the door open for Clay County, North Laurel, Perry Central and of course, Whitley County.

We all know about Clay County and Zach Lewis, the quarterback shooting for some of Tim Couch’s records. But, I was surprised by Perry Central knocking off the Cougars. It was in Perry Central and anything can happen in Hazard. As of this writing, Clay County and Perry Central are 1-0, Letcher Central and North Laurel are 0-1. Whitley County has yet to play a district game but, they do go to North Laurel and play in the Jungle Friday night. A win over North Laurel would vault the Colonels a long way up the ladder.

Will the home field be a key? The first two games saw the home teams win. If that’s the case then would everyone end up 2-2. Boy, wouldn’t that be a mess. I believe road wins in this district will be the deciding factor. Whitley County and Clay County gets the test this week. Whitley County at North Laurel and Clay County at Letcher Central.

If Whitley County wants to capture the title the Colonels will have to get another big game from seniors Jason Powers and Cody Jones. But, with North Laurel bragging about their run defense, it might be a good night for junior quarterback Jamie Lebanion and wide receiver Anthony Rider to show off their skills. A big win at North Laurel and the Colonels could be in the driver’s seat.