A New Dynasty

When the subject is Kentucky high school state championship football, Jefferson County is always well represented: Trinity, St. Xavier and Male are regular participants. This year, Trinity's squad made its annual trek to the championship game, with St. X and Male bowing out in the semifinals. Central earned their second consecutive spot in the finals and Bullitt East made it to the final game for the first time since 1994. Class 3A-Central 40 - Breathitt County 19 No matter the class designation, Louisville Central High School, competing in class 3A, must be considered a powerhouse program after their 40-19 victory over Breathitt County in the championship game. "We want to be mentioned when you mention St. X, when you mention Trinity," says Central coach Ty Scroggins who has coached his team to two state titles in his two years as coach. The Yellowjackets lost their last two regular season games at St. Xavier and Highlands (the 5A state champion). "When we lost those two in a row at the end of the season, that's when we took it upon ourselves to refocus and get ready for the playoffs," says senior defensive tackle/center and team leader Mister Cobble. Central's junior LB/RB Tim Patterson, who scored a touchdown in the championship game just before the half, talked about winning back-to-back titles: "It just goes to show you if you work hard and believe in what you're doing and believe in each other, that anything can happen." Class 4A-Bullitt East 13 - Bell County 15 The Bullitt East Chargers made a mad dash to the state championship game and came up just shy against Bell County in their attempt to win their first state title. The Chargers went 5-5 during the regular season. But one key move during the middle of the season spurred the Chargers' title run. First-year head coach Doug Preston changed the offense to the wishbone and rode that the whole way to the title game. This game had everything: goal line stands, big turnovers, huge hits and a thriller of an ending. The Chargers made a furious comeback, down 15-7 with just 1:33 left on the clock. A 23-yard catch by Nathan Brooks was followed by another for 17 yards to put the Chargers at the Bell County 33. After three incomplete passes, the Chargers faced 4th and 10 with 57 seconds left. QB Matthew Bowles lofted a Hail Mary pass down the left sideline to Ricky Gray--standing just at the goal line--who deftly tapped the ball backwards to teammate Zach McCarthy. McCarthy gathered the ball and was stopped at the one. After three plays netted zero yards, the Chargers called McCarthy's number on 4th down and he scored easily. "Zach has been doing that all season for us," says Preston. "That's why we had to get him the ball." McCarthy's score set the stage for a two point conversion to tie the game and send it to overtime. But the two-point play was well-defended by Bell County and the pass from Bowles to McCarthy fell incomplete, ending the Chargers' hopes for a state championship. "It's a tribute to the kind of kids we have (at Bullitt East)," said Preston after the 15-13 championship game loss to Bell County. "Our kids fought for 48 minutes and we're extremely proud of them. They gave everything they could, but we just came up short." Class 6A-Trinity 48 - Simon Kenton 0 Trinity dominated from start to finish in their 6A championship game to earn their 19th championship, their seventh in eight years and fourth in a row. The Shamrocks faced an overmatched Simon Kenton team and finished the season with a 48-0 rout over the Pioneers. No one gave a better performance than QB Cameron Smyth. Smyth was 12-12 passing for 232 yards and 3 touchdowns. "It wasn't just me," Smyth says. "I give a lot of credit to the line and the receivers. This was a total team effort, not just me." The Shamrocks were impenetrable on defense and stuffed everything that Simon Kenton tried on offense. Senior linebacker Jordan Whiting led the defensive charge with his stellar play. "It was awesome to go out with a shutout," says Whiting. "A perfect way to end our season." And now we move on to next year to see if Central can three-peat, Trinity can five-peat and maybe there will be another chance for Bullitt East.