PRE-GAME HUDDLE

All four local high schools along with the University of the Cumberlands will be in action this weekend.

The Corbin Redhounds and Williamsburg Yellow Jackets will be at home while Lynn Camp and Whitley County return to the road. The Wildcats will play at Harlan with the Colonels making the long trip to Pike County to play the Belfry Pirates.

•Corbin will host the South Laurel Cardinals as the teams meet for the 15^th time. The Redhounds lead the series 9-5, but Corbin has claimed the last three games. With a win the Redhounds can match South Laurel’s streak of four-in-a-row that they won from 2003 to 2006.

The Cardinals have started the season 0-4 with losses to Letcher Central (32-21), Knox Central (27-7), North Laurel (20-17) and Clay County (62-40).

“I am extremely impressed with their offense and how well it’s coming along,” said Corbin Coach Steve Jewell. “They are constantly changing what they are trying to do. They are trying to find what they do best and I think they are zeroing in on it.”

The Cardinals may have found a permanent quarterback in junior Joe Boggs, who threw for 328 yards against the Clay County Tigers last week. Boggs hit on 23-of-39 passes and four touchdowns.

“They can definitely put some points on the scoreboard,” said Jewell. “They have me definitely worried.”

“I’ve been impressed with their quarterback,” said Jewell. “He is throwing some good screen packages. He is doing good with the short passes and letting their speed on the corners run for them.”

Boggs main target against Clay County was Josh Brown. Brown had nine catches for 166 yards and two touchdowns. Also on the receiving end will be David Byrd, Jeremy Prichard, Cody Coffey and Chase McWhorter.

Tyler Vaughn, who may also be behind the center, ran for 65 yards on 11 carries against Clay County.

“They mix the Vaughn kid in very well,” said Jewell. “They are letting a variety of kids do things now.”

•Hazard will be in Williamsburg to take on the Yellow Jackets for the 10^th time. The Jackets hold a 5-4 edge over the Bulldogs through the years. The teams have only played twice since 2004 when Williamsburg routed Hazard in the playoffs, 60-22.

It was pay back last year when the Dawgs rolled to a 63-18 win over Williamsburg in the Dog Pound at Hazard.

Hazard went all the way to the state semifinals last season before losing to eventual state champion Lexington Christian, 35-28. Coach Mark Dixon’s team is off to a 3-0 start with wins over Leslie County (51-7), Letcher Central (48-34) and Paris (54-13). Those teams have a combined record of 2-9.

“Hazard has a big strong team,” said Williamsburg Coach Jerry Herron. “They are well-coached and fundamentally sound.”

“They will make you miss tackles,” added Herron referring to the talented backfield.

Sophomore wide receiver Austin Johnson and senior quarterback Jon Combs lead the Bulldogs. Combs hit on five passes in the 54-13 win over Paris last week.

Other players to watch are Nathan Higgins, a sophomore wide receiver and Corey Slone, a senior fullback.

•Lynn Camp will travel to Harlan where they will try to pick up their first win of the 2010 season. Clinton Jackson has taken the Wildcats on his back and has been the team leader the last several weeks.

Jackson is a sophomore running back who had 134 yards and a touchdown in last week’s loss to Pineville.

Lynn Camp Coach David Mitchell said his team has to overcome mistakes to beat a team like Harlan. The teams have a long series with the Wildcats winning 19-of-34 during Mitchell’s tenure. Lynn Camp has won six of the last 10 games played.

•Whitley County has the longest drive of the season Friday night when they head to South Williamson on the Kentucky-West Virginia line to take on the Belfry Pirates of coach Phillip Haywood.

Belfry has won all four games in the all-time series dating back to 1992. The Pirates won last year’s meeting at Whitley County, 53-23.

The Pirates are 2-2 after their first four games. Belfry beat Covington Holy Cross, 20-14 in the Pike County Bowl and rolled to a 42-20 victory over Letcher Central last week. Letcher Central is a future district opponent of the Colonels.

Belfry has sustained losses to Prestonsburg (21-6) and Ashland Blazer (36-22).

A variety of running backs have shared the load this year, which includes junior Tyler Williams, junior Gary Runyon, senior Jeffre Pruitt, junior Trey Willis and senior Josh Robinson. Williams is the Pirates quarterback.

A traditional mountain football team, the Pirates will run the ball more than throw it. The Pirates are ranked anywhere from third in Class 3A to eighth.