Hounds, Jackets gearing up for round 2 playoff action Fri.

With round one playoff wins over Hazard and Wayne County, respectively, the Williamsburg Yellow Jackets and the Corbin Redhounds are still in the hunt for state football championship titles in 2023.

The Corbin Redhounds shutout the visiting Wayne County Cardinals in round one of the Class 4A playoffs last week, 63-0. Above, quarterback Kade Elam hands the ball off to Guy Bailey. Bailey finished the night with four rushing TDs.

The Jackets defeated the visiting Hazard Bulldogs last Friday night, 60-12, improving their overall season record to 6-4.

The Williamsburg offense did all of its scoring on the ground against Hazard, with quarterback Nate Goodin rushing for over 220 yards and four scores. Teammates Hunter Thomas and Peyton Tye also ended the night with one rushing TD apiece.

Jamon O’Donnell put six points on the board for the Jackets with a kickoff return, and Zyler Housekeeper added six with an interception that was returned for a score.

Matthew Davis added on four points for Williamsburg on the night courtesy a pair of successful two-point conversion attempts. Goodin also successfully converted a two-point attempt in the game, and Thomas did so on three separate occasions.

Things will get much tougher for the Yellow Jackets this Friday when they go on the road to face the defending state champion Pikeville Panthers (8-2).

The Panthers dominated visiting Harlan in round one action last week, winning 49-6 to advance to the next round of the 2023 Class A playoffs.

Isaac Duty has had a great season so far for Pikeville, throwing for just under 1,000 yards and 11 touchdowns. Catching most of those passes has been receiver Jeb Wilkerson, while Brendan Anthony has led the way in the ground game with over 550 rushing yards and nine TDs.

The Panther defense has limited opposing offenses to a combined total of just 35 points in their last four outings.

Kickoff for Williamsburg versus Pikeville is set for this Friday, Nov. 10, at 7:30 p.m. The winner will advance to the regional championship round next week.

Hounds hoping to stay undefeated

While the Yellow Jackets are battling it out on the road Friday, the Corbin Redhounds will be back at home on Campbell Field when they welcome in the Taylor County Cardinals (9-2).

The Hounds hosted Wayne County last week in round one, winning 63-0 to improve to a perfect 11-0 on the year. Quarterback Kade Elam threw for nearly 200 yards and one touchdown to receiver Cam Estep in the victory.

Estep also found pay dirt on the ground against Wayne County, as did Redhounds Clay Akins (two scores) and Colton Creekmore (one score).

Running back Guy Bailey led the way for Corbin, however, rushing for over 100 yards and four touchdowns.

Noah Cima sent nine balls through the uprights for the Redhounds, making him perfect on the night with extra point attempts.

Taylor County should present Corbin with their toughest test since Johnson Central came to town on September 29. The Cardinals have won six straight coming into this round two matchup, defeating Letcher County Central last week, 50-13, to advance in this year’s Class 4A playoffs.

Taylor County’s Rex Parkey has put up impressive numbers through the air this season, throwing for 900 yards so far. The Redhound defense will have to stop running back Peyton Smith in order to advance, however, as he has been the key to the Cards’ offensive success, rushing for nearly 1,500 yards and 20 scores.

Kickoff for Corbin versus Taylor County will be 7:30 p.m. at Campbell Field.