REPEAT?

 Whitley County Football Coach Jim Black said when his team goes to Pulaski Southwestern Friday night, he is looking at a “new season”.  The Colonels will take on the Warriors in the first-round of the KHSAA playoffs. “It’s a whole new season. You can put everything behind you.”

That includes last year’s upset of the Warriors in round one. “This is a completely different team,” Black said. “They are very good. They play hard and I have a lot of respect for them.”

“They have an outstanding running back (Dustin Powell) and some other very good offensive players,” added Black. “They are a very athletic team and they are on a roll.”

The Warriors (8-2) pulled a big upset Saturday when they knocked off previously unbeaten Christian County, 26-13. It was the sixth win in a row for the Warriors. They are just nine points from having a perfect season. The Warriors lost to Rowan County in a 59-51 shootout and 47-46 to the Danville Admirals.

“They have an excellent offense,” Black said. “We have to play better defense. They can score from anywhere on the field.”

The Warriors are averaging 38 points per game while giving up 23.5 per contest. Powell ranks at the top of Class 5A in rushing with over 1,900 yards and 26 touchdowns. He is second in scoring with 184 points this season.

“You certainly have to keep an eye on him at all times,” Black said. “He can score from anywhere on the field.”

Southwestern’s Alan Williams is a threat to catch the football. He is among the top 10 with 33 receptions on the season.

The Warriors are the fifth best rushing team in 5A, averaging 282 yards per game yet they find themselves among the top 15 passing teams with an average of 133 yards per game. Defensively, the Warriors have allowed just 92 yards a week on the ground.

The Colonels have developed several offensive weapons themselves beginning with Boston Bryant, who is among the top ten rushers. He is sixth, averaging over 140 yards per game.

Last week the Colonels ran into a tough bunch of Boyle County Rebels. Whitley County (3-7) held its own in the first half despite giving up two touchdowns before senior Seth McCoy connected on a 34-yard field goal to get the Colonels on the scoreboard.

A late touchdown late in the second quarter allowed the Rebels to go to the dressing room with a 21-3 score at the half.

Turnovers proved to be disastrous for the Colonels in the third quarter as the Rebels scored 28 points during a five-minute span. Quarterback Casey Whittle hooked up with Lloyd Hall on the second play of the third quarter for a 59-yard TD pass. Then Devon Cox struck with a 58-yard run and a 10-yard run off a fumbled ball.

By the time Jarrod Harrington scored on a double reverse from 14-yards out, the Rebels had extended the lead to 49-3.

The only bright spot from that point on was Bryant’s 22-yard TD run with 5:55 left in the game. It was his longest run of the second half.  He rushed the ball 20 times for 102 yards.

Boyle Co. 49, Whitley Co. 10

Whitley Co.            0     3     0   7- 10

Boyle Co.            7   14   28   0- 49

BC- Burke 2 run (Will Harris kick)

BC- Mattingly 18 pass from Whittle (Harris kick)

WC- Seth McCoy 34 FG

BC- Hall 37 pass from Whittle (Harris kick)

BC- Hall 59 pass from Whittle (Harris kick

BC- Devon Cox 10 run (Harris kick)

BC- Harrington 14 run (Harris kick)

BC- Cox 58 run (Harris kick)

WC- Boston Bryant 22 run (McCoy kick)