By Coach Stoney

25- Combination

Timmy Quisenberry and Ryan Hulett made a great 1-2 punch on our defensive line. Both had good quickness and lower body strength. Combined, they made blocking assignments difficult for our opponents.

24- 2003/2004 Banquets

They were about like the grammy awards as they probably lasted a combined 6 hours. But, great efforts and good accomplishments are worth fun celebrations.

23-Ryan Hulett’s Impressions

If you ever wanted a good laugh Ryan could provide it. His impressions were endless and usually dead on…

22- Biscuits and Gravy

Any time with Mike Carter was a good time.

21- “Talk to me Goose”

My opening line speaking into the headphones every game where I had long-time, loyal assistant Darren Summers in the box…I did grow up in the 80’s you know

20- Lock it up!!!

We drove up to Lloyd Memorial during our off week in 2001 to scout the Juggernauts. It is no lie that we almost wrecked 3 times for the entire round trip. The closest came on Nicholasville Road where we literally came less than a foot from someone’s bumper in front of us.

19- Office Nicknames

Cheese, Sloopy, Great Day to be an Eagle, Patriot, Chump, Gut, Mexican, Tug Boat….…..they were endless

18- Chris Ruth’s near miss

The closest that I have come to having one of my players very seriously injured came in our 2001 game vs. Owen County. In overtime, Senior DT Chris Ruth took a shot to the head and immediately fell face first to the ground. Before the whistle was blown to end the play I was out on the field over top of him as he could not move initially. Trainer Crystal Tudor and Team Doctor James Werkmeister were on the scene to help out as Chris eventually was able to roll over and be helped off the field. The entire way back home Crystal and I sat with Chris to make sure he did not fall asleep in fear of a concussion. I remember being thankful the whole way home that everything turned out the way it did…………..

17- Throwback—2^nd time was a charm

Bryan Station played a very fast flow defense. In 2003, I installed a play during the week of that game were Spencer would fake a zone stretch to the left to Bruce Williams then boot right. Bruce would continue his path and then flare out as we ran our split end on a post to take the man coverage corner into the middle of the field away from Bruce. When Spencer threw the ball it was a little behind Bruce, who tipped it, and ended up catching it falling down for no gain. We happened to be filming this game from behind the end zone and on the film Bruce is literally the only player you can see on the screen in this view of the film as he is juggling the ball!!!! Still to this day they don’t live that down as whenever I show that play to my teams I talk about how great it was designed as Bruce is the only player in the shot and if he catches it he scores…. I do add that we ran the exact same play against Bryan Station the next year……and, Bruce scored that time………

16-Human Hurdle

In our game against Henry County in 2001, Montice Quisenberry kept the ball around right end on inside veer and literally hurdled a defensive back on the way to a 35 yard TD run!! No joke!! And, I don’t mean the DB was diving at Montice. He was still on two feet after Montice had landed on the ground to sprint into the end zone.

15-Two for Sivis

As we are getting ready to attempt a FG at West Jessamine in 2002, I called for the FG unit to take the field. They were all there except kicker, Matt Craddock. After turning around to find him we saw him with Kickers Coach Justin Sivis having a kicking clinic right next to the practice net with no regard for the game situations. At the time, I was anything but happy. Later, we got a lot of mileage out of the scenario.

14-Spencer’s Stiff arm

I have never had a player who used a stiff arm as well as Spencer. Many would be tacklers would agree that it was lethal.

13-Always there

Kim Hulett, Rhonda Crutchfield, and Candy Gibson. There was never a time where I had to worry that certain things wouldn’t get done. They were always great.

12-Won’t happen Again

After a dismal performance in my 2^nd game at GC against West Jessamine LB Seth Riley was in tears. I pulled him aside at the 20 yard line and he said that he wanted his Senior year to be different and he didn’t want to go through any more losing. I promised him that I would do everything in my power to make sure it never happened again and told him something to the effect that he had to be my henchman to make sure all attitudes were straight in the locker room. After that game we won 5 straight and never played that poorly the rest of the year. Seth was an example of what one determined leader can help accomplish. It was a conversation I won’t fully share but will never forget.

11-Comeback win vs. Casey County in 2005

We were down 20 points entering the fourth quarter after Jonathan McCullough hauled in a 50 yard TD pass from Stephen Debord at the end of the 3^rd. Jared Prewitt made a leaping catch on a 4^th down and 20 at the start of the 4^th quarter to keep the momentum going. We only surrendered one first down, blocked a punt, and scored 3 TD’s to pull out a tremendous come from behind district win in what would unfortunately be Jonny Mac’s last game.

10- 1^st round playoff Win vs. Wayne County in 2007

After losing a heartbreaker to Wayne in the playoffs we made the trip to Monticello in the first round. Despite being out several starters due to suspensions and allowing Wayne to run back the opening kickoff we played our best game of the year. The defense did a great job holding down star QB Jordan Steele who had beaten us the two previous games. Offensively, we ran the ball very effectively behind solid line play and even had a 99 yard drive that ended in a TD in the 2^nd quarter. A feel good 21-14 win under the circumstances. I was extremely happy for my Seniors and all the players who had been through so much.

9- All Heart!!

Four plays that well showed the heart of our Senior class in 2003 came in our game vs. Russell County. We had lost Spencer Crutchfield for the year and sophomore Bruce Williams was in at QB. WR Chris Clark had a great run evading defenders after catching a slip screen to set up a FG. Brandon Sebastian broke 2 tackles for a big gainer to set up our first TD. Offensive Guard Ryan Hullett chased down a Russell County defender who had just intercepted a pass to save a TD. Then with less than three minutes left Jake Cool caught the ball on rocket screen and literally broke through 5 defenders to get a first down and set us up inside the 10 for a Timmy Quisenberry go ahead TD to get the win.

8- Montice on first plays

Against Grant County in 2001 I installed a QB trap to take advantage of their boxed ends. We ran it first play of the game and Montice scored. At halftime of our 2001 game vs. Carroll County I schemed an outside veer adjustment out of unbalanced. We ran it first play of the half and Montice scored. We installed Belly for our 2001 playoff game vs. Mason County. The first time we ran it Montice scored. We installed an adjustment on bubble screen at halftime of our 2002 game vs. Marion County. The first time we ran it Montice scored. Do you see a pattern here…..I could go on…….

7- Win vs. Mercer in 2004

We went up early 14-0 due to runs from Zach Doan and Mackie Brock. Dan Leavell and Kevin Preston caught TD passes. We held current WKU tailback Andrew McCloud on a 2 point conversion attempt and then ran out the clock to win 35-34 for back to back wins against Mercer. Defensive Coordinator Chris Cooper showed a nice vertical jump on the sideline.

6- Win vs. Bryan Station in 2003

When my 2003 schedule came out a lot of head scratching took place. The Defenders were a traditional power who came to little Garrard County for a ball game. DB Jake Cool did a great job throwing the blanket on all-state receiver Jamuan Andrews. Tim Quisenberry, Ryan Hulett, Shelby Goldey, and Brandon Sebastian were in the BSHS backfield all night. Chris Clark had the night of his life with over 100 total yards rushing, receiving, and even passing. Clark also had 2 key interceptions. Spencer Crutchfield did a great job managing the game and converting a naked boot for the final nail in the coffin to a 22-15 upset win. This was the first night that it all really came together in 2003.

5- Win vs. Mercer in 2003

The first GC win vs. Mercer since 1986. And, it was in dominating fashion. Brandon Sebastian caught a 17 yard TD pass on 4^th down during our first drive and the rout was on. Spencer Crutchfield, Timmy Quisenberry, and Jake Cool were unstoppable and our defense held current WKU tailback Andrew McCloud to less than 100 yards rushing. This was a win that our kids greatly wanted and one that felt oh so good.

4-“Here we go one-five”

No community member has done more for the football program since I have been here than Chris Crutchfield. Whether it be mowing the field, fund-raisers, hanging or taking down signs, working on the youth board, building the youth field, building press boxes, etc., etc., etc. Chris has always been doing something to help the kids and has always been some of the best support you could ever have. Also, he has always taken care of the footballs on game nights for me. Whenever we have a run that ends near the sticks I always glance down at Chris. He’ll either say, “you got it” or he’ll tuck the balls under his arms and spread his hands to give me exact distance that we’re short. In 7 years he’s never been wrong…..

3- 1^st round playoff win vs. Western in 2004

Three future division 1 players were a part of Western’s 2004 playoff team that came here to Dyehouse Stadium. They had speed everywhere and future UK player Corey Goodson at tailback. We were down 2 TD’s at halftime and still down 2 TD’s going into the 4^th quarter. With under 3 minutes to go we took the ball down 4 points. I called timeout on a 4^th and 6 and added a cross to Dan Leavell off of our Whip combination out of bunch. It worked for the first down and on the next play I put Bruce Williams at split end to rub the outside LB and run up the seam to try to get Zach Doan open running a wheel route from the backfield. However, the corner came off of man coverage to cover Zach and and the OLB did as well. The FS worked over top of our bunch set on the opposite side and Bruce ran up the seam free. Spencer got the ball off just before taking a hit and Bruce caught it and scored with exactly 1:00 showing on the clock. We held Western on 4 downs to win 27-24 in thrilling fashion.

2- 1^st round playoff win vs. DeSales in 2003

Timmy Quisenberry played a tremendous game on both sides of the ball. We had led the game the entire way until late. DeSales scored to take a 15-12 lead with under a minute to go. We had 2 timeouts and 52 seconds to score. Behind great blocking by Hulett, Goldey, Mark Major, and Timmy Quisenberry we were able to take advantage of the holes in the DeSales zone. Bruce Williams connected with Jake Cool 5 times on the final drive. Ryan Hulett did a great job baiting a DeSales player into a 15 yard unsportsmanlike penalty. Following our last time out Williams connected with cool against single coverage in the end zone for the game winning TD with 19 seconds left. Cool was beaten out for the DeSales go ahead TD by the same player that he beat in coverage for the game winner. A fabulous win for a great group of Seniors. I was just as proud of Jake Cool for the way he handled himself after the game in interviews as I was for his leadership and play. Due to the fact that we had a professional filmer documenting the game we have a great visual of this performance to go along with the great memory.

1- Bible study at the end of 2005 season

Following the death of Jonathan McCullough our Bible Study sessions took on a whole new meaning. Football was put in perspective and our attention turned to more important things. Two days after Jonny’s passing we had an FCA Bible Study session that hit home more than ever before. The entire team was present and many accepted Christ on that day. We even had one assistant coach that would cone to accept Christ. I am sure for those players and coaches who had Christ in their lives before this tragedy it solidified their faith. I know it did for me. Losing Jonny was, by far, the worst thing that has ever happened to me as a coach. The good that came in the days following the tragedy can be considered the best.

By Coach Stoney

GET OUT OF HERE!!!!!!!!!

In the 2001 pre-season there was a day in which I kicked the entire team off of the practice field for lack of effort. As they walked off the field they got together talked and came back and set up to practice again. That was the beginning of a good turnaround for that team.

1^st Drive vs. Dunbar

A textbook drive ended with a little trickeration as Spencer pump faked our rocket screen to Jake Cool and hit a wide open Chris Clark on the wheel for a TD and a 6-0 lead over the biggest public school in KY in the 03 Bob Allen Pigskin Classic. We would take PLD to 4^th quarter only down 7 before losing 20-6. I remember as we were driving the ball on a subsequent drive I glanced over and saw Larry Vaught with a stunned expression on his face. He looked like the promoter who matched up Rocky and Apollo Creed in the original movie. I still say that if we didn’t turn it over 3 times we would have ‘gone the distance.’

The Leavell Leap

Dan Leavell caught a pass on a flag route at Mercer in 04 and took it 70 yards for a TD. However, he laid out and dove into the end zone and received an unsportsmanlike penalty. Luckily, Cory Horn made the long extra point because that one point would be the difference in the game. To say I was upset would have been an understatement. I went as far as cutting the dive out of our highlight film. But, now I do acknowledge that Dan was just having a little fun…..

Slone’s drives

I will never forget seeing Daniel Slone turn bigger, stronger lineman into human sleds!!

Greenwood Brawl

Our on field skirmish with Wayne County in 2007 was blown way out of proportion. Now, if you want to talk about a brawl you should have seen our 2001 scrimmage vs. Greenwood. It lasted for a good full minute. Lamont Hocker was definitely the coaching MVP of the fight break-up staff. You should ask some of those kids how much they ran after that scrimmage was over………..But, as a coach you always want your kids to want to fight someone else and not each other….

Stat Man

My statistician, Daniel Meyer, is a huge UofL fan and booster. It was hilarious to watch the dismay of our UK supporting coaches as he would smack talk week after week. Of course, not much of that went on this year.

Wu Tang Clan

I swear the guy taking our orders used to be in the Wu Tang Clan. Kevin Preston, Bruce Williams, and Robert Record know what I’m talking about.

Applebee’s jokes and DVR jokes

One-Five and Patriot know what I’m talking about.

2004 turning point

After our 2004 home loss to Harrison County I made my point. And, then Spencer Crutchfield made his point in the locker room. Everybody got it as that is the way it works with good leadership….

Down goes Marsee

A not so great moment in Advocate history came at our 2002 game vs. Henry Co. Montice Quisenberry took a toss around right end and was knocked out of bounds…and right into Mike Marsee who ended up on his back, like so many would-be-tacklers as Montice ran by…….

Who’s got the Blues

It has to be either Coop or Broggie…….ha

Stoney Point Road

That is probably enough right there……

Daniel Barker’s 2-hand spike

After running back a school record 84-yard Interception return for a TD, Daniel Barker spiked the ball……with two hands!! Still to the day it is the only two-hand spike I have seen at any level of football and one that I did get a kick out of on the sideline.

2003 1 on 1’s

I loved our 1 on 1 periods in 2003. It was so competitive with Chris Clark, Brandon Sebastian, Sean Paul Leavell, Dan Leavell, Jake Cool, Chris Penix, Daniel Barker, Bruce Williams, Tim Quisenberry, and even Spencer Crutchfield wanted to take time away from QB to try to beat some of his teammates. There was good trash talk, good moves, and it was always a fun session. Every now and then when I got called out (usually by Chris Clark) the outcome let me know that my best days were way behind me. I smile every time I think about it and the competition in practice has never been the same since.

‘88 for Life’

For all the times we had to hear about Coach Cooper’s Senior season at Lincoln when they played in the state semifinals. And, for all the times we had to sit through the game films.

“It’s not a sprint, It’s a marathon”
Coach Brian Hodge’s signature line

Jared vs. GRC in 06

Coming back from injury, Jared Prewitt had a fantastic performance against Clark by catching 11 balls and scoring 3 times.

2007 Taylor County win

Key performances everywhere (Stephen Debord, Fred Hayes, Tyler Ray, Jansen Penman, Parker Anderson, Daniel Slone, Josh Gibson) in a down to the wire 35-34 road district win.

I’m Scared

At the 2003 pre-season Senior cookout, Jake Cool let us know who he was scared to see when walks out on the field…. I can’t write it here…………I did provide a good laugh and you had to be there.

OT win at Owen County in 2001

After seeing Owen County convert 5 or 6 trick plays to go up by 7 points with under 2:00 left. We came down and scored on a Dontae Logan run with less than a minute left with the Craddock PAT sending us to OT. Montice Quisenberry scored on a 3^rd down run and then batted away Owen’s final throw into the end zone to secure the win.

Jerry Compton

Loved talking to and listening to the man behind the wheel.

“Two More Minutes”

At least, once every two weeks as I blow the whistle for team period and hear these words coming from our lineman group. Coach Brogli always needed more time…

Bruce in ‘A’ gap

Bruce Williams had a natural knack for stunting and adjusting on the fly to make many plays behind the LOS. He’s, by far, the best stunting LB I have ever had.

2002 Cincinnati Clinic

So, Coach Summers and I are coming back to the room after spending time in 3 different clinic session and where do I find half of my staff. In front of the TV watching UK basketball!! In my mind it would have been better if they were watching Oprah…….anything, but UK basketball……

That Cabin came out of nowhere!!

At our 2002 pre-season camp in Wayne County we came back from our final practice only to see that our golf cart had been hijacked by some players from another team. Coach Brogli and I jumped into the Suburban to go look for it and as we made our way up a hill I asked Coach Brogli if I had enough room on his side (near the cabin) to get in between the cabin and a tree on the driver’s side. He said I did so I drove on and heard the awfulest sound that I have ever heard. I asked Coach Brogli to get out and asses the damage to the passenger side and without even making eye contact he got back in and said three words, “It’s pretty bad.” That turned out to be a huge understatement, but has always been a good laugh.

By Coach Stoney

Shania Twain

To relive his glory years Coach Kevin Crutchfield brought us a highlight tape of his and Coach Brian Hodge’s 1999 season to view after a practice.  Then the song “Man, I feel like a woman” began playing as the highlights were rolling.  Yes, the song was actually put on the highlight film.  Man, it felt out of place and provided a great laugh……

Mackie Brock

One of the hardest working players I have had at GC.  His final year playing was in 2004 as a RB and DE.  However, that was his junior year in school.  He did come back to finish out his work and graduate.

Never Again

Before our 2001 district championship game with Lloyd Memorial rain had been in the forecast all week.  I called Centre College and they allowed us to use their tarps to put on our field Thursday afternoon.  Chris Crutchfield and I had to burrow like moles underneath tarp to get the wrinkles out to spread it on the field.  I will never do that again!!!

WWF

Me wrestling in the weight room with Daniel Barker.  I knew I was getting old and our weight program was working…..

Ring Bearer

Former WR/DB Dan Leavell always liked to crack on Coach Crutchfield because he is short.  He got him good at our 2004 pre-season Senior cookout at my house when we were talking about my upcoming wedding.  Dan asked me if Coach Crutchfield was going to “carry the rings” for me.  It was a good laugh….

Knock his hat off

In our 2004 game at Wayne, OT Kendall Young pulled and led up through the seam on our QB counter play.  When he got to the 2^nd level and hit the OLB it knocked his helmet straight up into the air.  Good shot, K.Y.!

Whale of a run

In our 2006 game with Grant Co. Jared Prewitt took off around left end and was corralled by 4 defenders.  However, he kept his feet alive breaking through all of them and took it up the sideline for a 70 yd. TD.

Playing Scout team QB

The scout team WR’s did nothing to help my QB rating for the most part.  But, I still had the duty of playing scout team QB, just like when I was a sophomore in high school.  Maybe, I really haven’t come far at all.

Hackney’s Ray Lewis Dance

Josh Hackney was one of our captains in 2001.  He was also a very energetic personality.  To say he loved attention would be an understatement.  Against Newport in 2001 he made a tackle near our sideline on kickoff coverage and got up and did the Ray Lewis Dance.  Yes, ‘that’ Ray Lewis dance.  Unbeleiveable…..

Cool Hand Jake

In our 2003 game vs. Bryan Station WR/DB Jake Cool injured his hand late.  He had his middle hand knuckle smashed against a helmet and blood was everywhere.  It ballooned to the size of a tennis ball, but in typical Jake Cool fashion he did not complain, went to the trainer, got a tape job, and came to me wanting to go back in.  Just to make a point to the rest of the team about how to handle an injury I put him back in for 4 or 5 plays in the 4^th quarter.  He played great, as always, the next week.

2004 Spring Game

2004 was the only year where we had enough players in the spring to have a game.  It was a fun change of pace for the spring.

‘Timmy!!’

Timmy Quisenberry had a great nose for the end zone.  When we were in goal line situations I would give Timmy the ball knowing that we would score. 

Crystal’s imaginary practice schedules

Apparently, our trainer, Crystal Tudor, had made out some practice schedules for us in 2006.  Of course, none of us found this out until later…….

Tice vs. Mason in 2001 playoffs

The muddiest game I have ever coached in was our 2001 playoff game vs. Mason.  It greatly hampered our top threat Montice Quisenberry who was a ‘make you miss’ type of runner.  I moved Montice trom QB to his preferred RB spot for the game and he reeled of a nice straight-ahead 65 yard TD run on a belly play.  He also ran back an INT in a solid individual effort.

Penix in 2004

Despite having many family issues in 2004 Chris Penix continued to play and provide a great effort as a Senior. 

Rocket Screen in 2003

Without a doubt our best play in 03 was the rocket screen with quick OL such as Mark Major, Ryan Hulett, Brad Young, and Shelby Goldey.  We averaged nearly 15 yards per play on rocket screen that season.

Zach’s maturity

Zach Doan came back to play his Senior year with us as a RB/LB.  He greatly matured throughout the season and that could be seen in our district game with Casey in 04.  Zach took an option pitch and ran through defenders for a 40 yard gain and then ran out of bounds and got drilled by a defender.  He simply jumped up and ran back to the huddle.  We took the extra 15 yards and scored again right before halftime. 

Craddock’s kick

My first kicker here, Matt Craddock was able to capitalize on an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty by an opponent after one of our TD’s and kick the ball into the opposing end zone for the only time in his career.  Matt was about 6’1 and 230 pounds, but when that ball hit in the end zone he magically had a 30 inch vertical leap…..

Sean Paul’s Finish

Going into the 2003 playoffs I was worried about first year Senior Sean Paul Leavell who was a two-way starter  Sean Paul was also a basketball player and I feared that he may not give a great effort if things got tough in a game as he would just be ready for basketball season.  He proved me wrong with a great effort in our loss to E’town as he caught 3 passes and made 8 tackles.

Crutchfield-isms

All are timeless and I will always be sure never to hook you up with a para-legal. 

Rumble in Newport

After our 2002 game at Newport we heard about how some of our fans nearly got into fisticuffs with some of the Newport supporters.  Evidently, it got pretty rowdy in the stands, but nobody stepped up to “get them some.”  Which leads me to my next one…..

Fight Coach

To add a little humor to my 2003 pre-season staff meeting I had a little fun with the responsibilities that I listed for my assistants.  The one that got the most laughs was one that I gave to Justin Sivis—‘Fight Coach.’  His duty—just to have my back……..

Freshmen of 2006

Experience came quickly for this bunch.  But, the improvement has, also.  It will end up paying off.

Double Flares

Ever since 2002 Coach Brogli thought our best play would be to run backs on double flares.  Of course, he didn’t talk about what anyone else should do.  It didn’t matter because the play worked so well for him…………on play-station….

Corey Horn’s fake punt

In our 2004 game vs. Madison Southern our P/K Corey Horn completed the only pass of his career on a fake punt to Spencer Crutchfield.  It went for a first down and a 100% career completion percentage…….

By Coach Stoney

*Probably, the best thing about coaching is the people that you meet and the memories that you share. I have written down 100 that I will share on this site. I will not put any in order except for the top 25. Some will have a better explanation than others. For some, you just had to be there. I will share 25 per entry beginning with this one:

3^rd and Forever

At Newport in 2002 we faced a 3^rd and 15 situation. I called for Jake Cool to run a flag route against single coverage on the weak side and we scored. But, a ‘late’ flag for holding brought it back for a 3^rd and 25 situation. I called the same route out of a different formation the next play and we got the first down. But, another ‘late’ flag for holding brought it back. After the head coach also received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty we were in that infamous 3^rd down and 50 situation. I called a double screen out of the I formation and Montice Quisenberry took it to the house and scored from about 80 yards out!! There were no penalties this time. TRUE STORY!!

Yer Out!

I will never forget watching my assistant coaches try to umpire youth baseball when we would have our tourney fund-raisers. Like fishes out of water….And, we will never forget the Gut!!

Touching the Lions

The new tradition we started in 2002 of touching our walking lions as we head out to the field for home games is pretty cool. It gives you that Clemson feel..

Fight Song

An older tradition that we still use of singing the school fight song after every victory. I like it…..

Crazy Fros

From Dan Leavell to Kevin Preston we were always stylin’.

Shelby’s Work Ethic

I will never forget how hard Shelby worked in the off-season both during high school and while playing at the U. of Cumberlands.

Golden Rams and Golden Eagles

Ryan Lemond referred me as the head coach of the Garrard County Golden Rams in 2002 and Gary Ball changed it to the Golden Eagles in 2004.

Post-Game Tardies

Whether I was talking to my wife, another coach, my players, or whomever I was often late for my post-game radio spot with Mike Carter. He finally got sick of me and quit doing it in 2004. HA

Broggie eating Lay’s

At halftime of one of our 2004 games we came to the locker room with a huge lead. My halftimes can sometimes be pretty intense with adjustments, etc. This was no exception as the staff was set on finishing out the game well. Just when I turned to ask for Coach Brogli’s opinion on something, with a mouth-full of Lay’s potato chips he just said, “these guys _______!” This is one where you had to be there…

2007 Seniors

I will never forget how they stuck it out through some tough times and were able to get an upset win in the playoffs. These guys played when so many of their classmates couldn’t make the same sacrifice.

Robert Record vs. Brandon Deadrick

Probably Robert’s shining moment. He did a great job moving from guard to tackle when E’town DE Brandon Deadrick gave us all kinds of early pressure in our 2004 playoff game. After Robert moved to tackle, Deadrick never got another sack.

Chili Suppers

A tradition we had of having a Tuesday night Chili Supper the week of the Senior Night game. Chili, pimento cheese, peanut butter, and highlight films…..

Heavy Iron Lion Lifting

Another tradition is at the end of the spring we hold our annual Iron Lion Club competition. Timmy Quisenberry squatting and Kendall Young and Josh Gibson on the bench press are unforgettable.

Welcome to the Gun Show

Our 2001 game at Carroll Co. was moved to Saturday at 12:30 due to the 9/11 tragedy. One of our bus drivers hijacked our staff suburban before we could get all of our gear out. SO, assistant Coach Lamont Hocker signaled in my offensive sets in a sweater vest. And that was it. He did have pants and shoes. But, no undershirt. His guns were blazin’.

Too High Class

At our annual trip to the Cinicnnati Glazier Clinic in 2005 a hotel rep. informed me that there was a great steakhouse a couple of blocks down. We knew we were out of place when the pianist began playing and our waiter busted out in song. We were way out of place!!

Best Seat

For the 2002 4A state final between Trinity and Male that has been called the best game in state history my staff had the best seats in Old Cardinal Stadium. On a cold afternoon we were in the press box behind home plate….

Let Bobby Do It

Our bi-weekly study table were never a hit. But, the Study Table MVP was definitely OL and 2005 Salutatorian Bobby Cassady. When it came to assisting players who needed math help he was the most qualified.

‘Ben Affleck’ and my long lost ‘friend’

More staff memories from the Cincinnati Clinic….you had to be there.

Zach Doan in the 2004 Playoffs

Senior Zach Doan played two of his best games and showed his versatility against Western and E’town in the 04 playoffs.

“Coach, I think he’s okay”

The standard line from our all-world trainer Crystal Tudor

Sea Bass vs. Southern in 2003

Brandon Sebastian had a great individual performance in our 2003 win vs. Madison Southern by catching two TD passes and making the game saving play.

Chris Clark’s Double Moves

Clark was the best WR I ever had at making double moves to get open. He made the technique an art form and was fun to watch.

Seth Riley’s Improvement at LB

When I took over in 2001 I watched some 2000 film and thought that Seth Riley was such a poor LB that we opted to start him out at NG when practice began. Since we didn’t really have any good LB prospects we tried him out their after about a week and he improved to the point that he was a fantastic defensive playmaker.

“That’s Pitiful”

Two words that often came from a squeaky voice on our sideline the past three years.

Man of Few Words

Ryan Hulett’s speech at the Bob Allen Pigskin Classic banquet in 2003 will never be confused with a JFK speech. But, it did bring a smile to your face.

By Coach Stoney

Some of these were tough to put into words, but I will share some of the toughest things I have dealt with in my 7 years as GCHS head coach. These are in no particular order on exception of the last one, which was, by far, the toughest. I will get this out of the way as there have been many more good times than bad. Over the course of the next few days I will count down 100 great memories of the seven years in which I have been at GCHS. I am one who knows that you have to take the good with the bad, so I will share both here.

Stephen Debord’s 2006 Injury

As a junior and 2^nd year starter, Stephen shattered his ankle against Frankfort in our 6^th game of the year. It took away our experienced QB with the ability to make adjustments on the fly during games. It greatly hurt our team in district play.

Being put in a district with Casey County

I hated seeing the Rebels placed in our district before the 2003 season. I greatly enjoyed my two years at Casey and with my former defensive coordinator, Andy Stephens, as head coach of Casey I did not want to have to compete against them. My first year as a head coach at Casey the only assistant that I had was Andy. I never liked having to play them and wanted to be able to pull for Andy and the Rebs to win every game. The brotherly competitiveness got the best of us in the first game in 2003, but we learned to deal with it better after that. But, that doesn’t mean we have enjoyed it.

Player Recruitment

*No, not illegal recruitment. Just recruiting in the hallways. We have had a lot of success getting new kids to come out and begin practice with us. We just haven’t been able to get them to stay. We have been able to keep most of the key players that have grown up in our youth and middle school system. We have had a very tough time getting kids who have not previously played football to stick it out through practices. Due to this we have kind of changed our focus in the last couple of years to working more with younger kids to try to get them started in football early. We now have more kids playing in the middle school than ever before.

2005 loss to Wayne County

*Senior WR/DB Jonathan McCullough passed away on Tuesday of the week of our district game with Wayne County in 2005. The game also marked our Senior Night for 05.Our kids played their hearts out and made a tremendous comeback to take a one-point lead on Wayne after converting a two-point attempt after a TD. Unfortunately, we couldn’t hold on and lost the game. I will never forget the effort our kids played with that night and will always wish we could have pulled that one out.

Jerry Compton’s death

*Jerry was a former assistant coach to Jerry Perry and was the bus driver for the Junior/Senior bus that I rode on to and from games. Jerry had the uncanny ability to make a coach feel better after a loss when all he could think about was what went wrong and he kept kicking himself. Jerry greatly enjoyed watching our kids play and was someone who always wanted to see them succeed. Because of his passion and commitment we now have an award in his honor called the Jerry Compton Spirit Award. Those bus rides haven’t been the same since the middle of the 2004 season.

Player suspensions in 2007

*Due to some off-the field incidents we had to suspend and/or dismiss some players from the team just before the playoffs. It was tough on the coaching staff because of the stock that we had put in these kids. We did have kids to refocus and with determination and solid play were able to pull out a victory in the first round of the playoffs without a few starters. But, as a coach, those things are never enjoyable to deal with.

In 2002, we were in the tough circumstance of having to start 3 first-year starters on the OL who weighed less that 185 lbs. We were not getting much out of ouroption running attack or play-action passing game. Since it was very unlikely that we would make the playoffs; much less win a playoff game, I had to make the very difficult decision to change offenses and try to implement something that may better fit our personnel (which turned out to be a spread offense) even though we may have some on-field growing pains. The Seniors who were starting remained in those positions and it fit many of them even better. I wished I would have been smart enough to make this change in the pre-season for those 7 Seniors, but it did pay off for the many young guys we had as we went 9-3 the next year and broke many school records.

2004 loss to E’town in 2^nd round of playoffs

*A tough end to a great run with a talented group of Seniors. We can always say that it took a team with 3 SEC players to knock us out of the playoffs. But, it was difficult for a group that gave me their heart and soul. The night was made worse by the fact that I was ejected from the game in the 2^nd quarter (although, I was immediately reinstated because my argument was the correct one—I will leave it at that). I just wanted those guys to be the first GCHS team to win a region title (after we couldn’t do it in 03) that this one has always been sour.

2003 Loss to E’town in 2^nd round of playoffs

*Do you sense a pattern here? This was our breakthrough year, but it was the same for E’town. The Panthers ended up going to state this season and we struggled to play with them in the 2^nd round. A great season for 9 fabulous Seniors who bought into everything that I sold them ended with tears. E’town posed many matchup problems for us and we were never really in the game following an early 2^nd quarter turnover. As a coach, you just hate to lose those special groups of kids that you enjoy being around so much.

Spencer Crutchfield’s hip injury in 2003

*With about 5:00 to go in our 2003 game with Casey, Spencer was hurt on a play when we had a 3 TD lead. It turned out to be a season ending hip injury that greatly hampered our chances to win a region title. Spencer accounted for about 80% of our offense and without him we weren’t the same offensively. What made it worse is the fact that we had already begun to get our JV together to go into the game after we got the ball off a turnover. I will always regret not calling a timeout and getting them in. That was a tough lesson for me to learn.

2004 Loss to Corbin in district championship

*This home season finale was to be for the district championship and home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Not only that, but since there had been an upset in our sister district the 2^nd best team over there (Lou. Western) would actually be the 3 seed and the loser of this game would have a very tough playoff opener. The winner would not only get a good first round matchup, but a very favorable 2^nd round matchup. There was a lot at stake and home field advantage would go a long way to giving one of us a shot to upset E’town on our home field in the region final. Despite almost 600 yards of total offense and a fabulous defensive effort from the 2^nd quarter on we lost 21-14 after falling into a 21-0 hole. We turned the ball over 7 times with 3 coming inside the 5 yard line!! With the win, Corbin earned home field advantage and did knock off E’town in the region final. Still to this day I feel that our game plan for this game was our best ever.

Decision to start Freshmen in 2006 season

*Early in the 2006 season we had some veteran guys not playing as well as I thought they could and were facing a gauntlet of a schedule. We only had 5 juniors and 5 sophomores on the roster with some promising Freshmen. As a coach, it is never the first option to play Freshmen in varsity games. However, with our schedule and where we were at I knew that it would be tough for us to win so I decided to try to get a few Freshmen ready and give them the opportunity to play. There were many growing pains for the Freshmen who were playing and there were many who did not like my decision. However, the experienced they gained helped them to understand varsity play much quicker and play a bigger role as sophomores this past season when we only had 10 upperclassmen. More wins came this year and more should come next season as this group continues to grow.

Negativity affecting players

*As a coach you are always going to have to deal with some negativity and that is expected. It becomes difficult when it gets to the kids and it starts to affect `them. We went through a time where we saw this and we had to work hard to refocus our team on what they should be focused on. Honestly, this wasn’t as difficult as many would think, but as a coach you just hate to see some of those outside influences affect your players. I am just glad that I had a group of players that could come back and work to make themselves better and see some better fruits of their labor.

Removal of players from the team in 2005 pre-season

*Just two weeks before our first game of the 2005 season I had to remove 4 players from out team for an off-the field incident. Included, were the two best athletes that we had in the junior class and on the team in general. This was something that had to be done, but obviously affected our team. I am very proud of one, however, who remained in high school and graduated even though he had to attend a 2^nd semester. I just have always wondered what could have been had these guys been able to be with us in 2005 and 2006. I know these things are going to happen sometimes with kids, but it gives you a lot of sleepless nights as a coach when you think you have turned the corner in helping a kid and something like this happens.

Death of Jonathan McCullough

Without a doubt this is the toughest situation I have ever dealt with as a head coach. When Jonny passed, due to a car wreck in 2005 it left us all with a void. He was a great kid to be around and I loved watching him play. He was also a great teammate. It was difficult to get through the rest of that season as football seemed to be a whole lot less important as things were really put into perspective. The football part of things may have meant less, but the Bible Studies and time together with the team meant a whole lot more after this tragedy.

By Coach Steve Stonebreaker

We held our banquet for the 2007 season this past weekend.  As a send off to my five Seniors I would like to write a little about each one here:

#21 Parker Anderson

Parker was a first year player who turned out to be one of our better playmakers.  I have had some good 1^st year Senior players in my time at Garrard County (Sean Paul Leavell, JT Prewitt, Justin Christian), but Parker is up there at the top of the list.  The thing that I will always remember about Parker is that he greatly improved his attitude over the course of the 8 months he was with us.  When we got into the regular season he was so much more of a team oriented player then he was in the spring or during 7 on 7 drills in June. 

He was able to make many plays for us, including his full body layout catch in our regular season game against Somerset that was Channel 36’s play of the week.  Parker led us in interceptions and drew the tough assignment of covering Vanderbilt signee John Cole in our district championship game.  Parker got beat by Cole a couple times early, but he didn’t lay down.  In the 2^nd quarter he made a textbook break right off Cole’s hip on a post route to get what would be his last interception. 

Parker  was always someone who stayed positive and tried to pump his teammates up and say encouraging things to them even in times of struggle.  For this, Parker was given our Jerry Compton Spirit Award. 

# 2 Jordan Phillips

Jordan was probably our most improved player from last season as we went through 7 on 7 drills in June.  Unfortunately, he suffered an off the field injury to his wrist and missed our first two games of the season.  In the first play of our 3^rd game Jordan caught a pass between the safeties in a 2 deep coverage and took it to the house for a touchdown on his first touch of his Senior season.  Jordan became our big-play receiver and led us in receptions, receiving yards, and TD receptions. 

Jordan played two seasons for us after transferring and got better each month he was with us.  If not for his injury I know his production this season would have been much better than what it was.  As a coach, I couldn’t let him acknowledge that while he was playing, but I will admit to it now.   Even with that, Jordan’s play was good enough to earn him a spot on the Advocate’s All-Area team.

Because of Jordan’s desire to come back earlier than what some of his doctors would have liked, and, because of his superior play, he was given our 2007 Heart of the Lion Award. 

# 54 Daniel Slone

Daniel is someone who does not look like a lineman.  He is about 6’0 and 210 pounds.  However, Daniel got more out of his ability than any lineman that I have probably coached.  He became a starter as a junior, but became a terror this year.  He was probably the funnest player to watch on the film of our games.  He was in the mold of a some of my past linemen Kendall Young, Ryan Hulett, John Carrier, and Mark Major; who, while undersized could outplay bigger opponents through superior technique (especially his hands!!!) and quickness.

Daniel led our team in knockdown blocks this season as well as blocking grade.  There were many instances where he would drive a down lineman 10 or more yards downfield.  There was one goal line situation where he drove a down lineman out the back of the end zone this year.  I will never forget that play.  Take a moment to think about the effort it takes to do that…. 

Daniel is an example of a player who turned on as a Senior.  He is even a better person than he is a football player.  He has a weighted GPA above 4.0 and ranks 4^th in this year’s GCHS graduating class.  He will be successful no matter what he chooses to do.

#12 Stephen Debord

Stephen was one of our co-captains and a 3-year starter at quarterback.  Stephen earned the starting QB position three games into his sophomore season by beating out a Senior who had 6 games of varsity starting experience.  He leaves us while placing second in most every GCHS career passing category to his predecessor, Spencer Crutchfield. 

Stephen greatly improved the mental aspect of his QB play between his junior and senior seasons.  He was really hitting stride midway through his junior year with fabulous games against Mercer, Clark, and Frankfort.  Unfortunately, in the 2^nd quarter of that game against Frankfort, Stephen suffered a season ending ankle injury that would hamper his mobility even into his Senior season.  He was not the same type of QB this season that he was in the middle of his Junior year.

Stephen was a fun kid to work with who always had a positive attitude.  He worked very hard in the summer to improve his throwing technique.  If he had not been injured his footwork would have been much better and that would have increased his production.  Stephen did have some very good individual performances and left behind some good memories.  Due to his perseverance, work ethic, and attitude Stephen was given our Norman Davis Memorial Award for 2007.

#66 Josh Gibson

Josh is someone who looks like a lineman.  He is 6’3 and 320 pounds.  Josh is also the strongest player that I have ever coached.  He benched 350 pounds in the 2007 Iron Lion Competition and was our two-time Super Heavyweight Champion. 

Josh was a three year starter who greatly improved his aggressiveness and use of hands in between his junior and senior seasons.  Another key improvement for Josh was the development of his feet in the off-season.  He was a much more consistent blocker as a Senior and the left side of our offensive line was solid with Josh at Guard and Slone at tackle.

Josh was a co-captain this year and was 2^nd on the team in blocking grade and knockdown blocks.  Josh is another high character kid who is an excellent student.  Josh has a 4.0 GPA and ranks 9^th in this year GCHS graduating class.  Josh plans to go to EKU and walk-on while studying criminal justice.  I have no doubts that he will be successful.  Because of his character, work ethic, and ability Josh was given the Coy Dyehouse Memorial Award this season.

About these kids

Sometimes, coaches have to give lip service to certain things, but I can honestly tell you that I greatly enjoyed coaching these 5 young men.  They did a terrific job through some difficult circumstances.  Slone, Debord, and Gibson were all 4 year players who stuck it out through some tough times in their sophomore and junior seasons.  I have a great amount of respect for these guys and they truly are ‘warriors.’  I will never forget the good times that they provided to me and the staff.  After starting 7 Freshmen in a 2-9 season in 2006; we rebounded to get 5 wins with a sophomore dominated team in 2007.  That included an upset playoff win against a Wayne County team who had won 7 games.    I was so excited for these 5 guys that they were able to get a playoff win in their senior year.  With a more experienced team coming back next year the winning will continue.  I think that these Seniors will be remembered as the group that helped to re-establish the upward movement of the program.  This is obviously a group that I am proud of and that I think will have a lot to add to society.  Thanks for the memories….

By Coach Stoney

Now that the season has come and gone it is time to recap the top 10 story lines of 2007 for KY high school football

(10) Highlands Domination: The Bluebirds outdid their opponents by an average score of 40-10 on their way to the state’s only undefeated season with a schedule that included 3A champ Central and 4A champ LexCath.

(9) Anderson County finishes regular season 10-0: The Bearcats and coach Mark Peach were the feel-good story of the year while finishing the regular season unbeaten for the first time since the 1980’s.

( Surprise Regional Finalists and Beyond: The new 6-class system brought new schools deeper into the playoffs in a trend that will only continue into the future as the sport strengthens.

• 1A-Campbellsville made it back to the regional finals after a great run in the 90’s and LCA made their 1^st finals appearance
• 2A-Fort Campbell won state for the first time since the 70’s
• 3A-Central won their 1^st ever state title. Russellville was back in the regional finals for the first time since 1993 while Henry County was a newcomer to the 3^rd round.
• 4A-Warren East and Lone Oak were in region finals for the 1^st time. The Purple Flash, of course, finished as state runners-up. Greenup County was also a surprise regional finalist while Harrison Co. made the state-semis for the 1^st time.
• 5A-Letcher County Central made the region finals for the 1^st time in their brief history.
• 6A-no real surprises

(7) Bowling Green loses 3^rd state championship game in a row: The Purples became the first team since Paducah Tilghman in the late 80’s to lose 3 title games in a row with their loss to Highlands in the 5A final.

(6) Glasier denied first unbeaten season: Coach Mike Glasier has been at St. Xavier for nearly a quarter of a century. In that time he has won 6 state titles, but never finished unbeaten. The Tigers went into the 6A final against rival Trinity with a 14-0 record only to lose an overtime thriller to the Shamrocks, denying Glasier his first perfect mark.

(5) Fort Campbell’s run to the 2A state title: After having much Division 1 talent and coming up short in recent years many thought that Fort Campbell would not contend for the 2A title. However, the Falcons provided another feel good story by giving some troops stationed overseas something to cheer about by winning their first state title since that late 70’s.

(4) 300 Game Winners: Bell County coach Dudley Hilton and Belfry coach Phillip Heywood both surpassed 300 career wins this season. Ironically, both coaches won their 300^th game on back-to-back weeks against the same opponent, Sheldon Clark.

(3) Record Breakers: The title of Mr. Football is up for grabs. Record-breaking Shelby County QB Alex Mathews did himself well by making a strong run in the playoffs. However, he was outdone by Lone Oak QB Corey Robinson, who broke national records for TD passes. And, then there is Somerset WR John Cole, who has his name all over the KHSAA record books for receptions, receiving yards, and receiving TD’s.

(2) Louisville Central is state 3A Champs: Central High School became the first Jefferson County public school, other than Male, to win a state title since 1979. The Jackets endured a tough regular season schedule that included St. Xavier, Male, Manual, and Highlands to prepare for the playoffs. It paid off in the school’s first ever state title making head coach Ty Scroggins the first African-American head coach to ever win a state championship.

(1) KY’s move to 6 classes in football: All season long, the biggest point of conversation was KY’s move from 4 to 6 classes. This is a debate that will probably continue to rage on for some time. However, I can tell you that each year this topic will move further and further down this particular list.

By Coach Stoney

Bowl season is here again. Here are my picks to win the 32 bowl games with my confidence ratings from 1 to 32 (32 being highest). My confidence levels are listed in parenthesis.

Rose Bowl presented by Citi
Illinois vs. USC
Winner: Illinois (1)

FedEx Orange
Virginia Tech vs. Kansas
Winner: Kansas (2)

Outback
Wisconsin vs. Tennessee
Winner: Tennessee (3)

Champs Sports
Boston College vs. Michigan State
Winner: Michigan State (4)

Pacific Life Holiday
Arizona State vs. Texas
WInner: Texas (5)

Valero Alamo
Penn State vs. Texas A&M
Winner: Penn St. (6)

PetroSun Independence
Alabama vs. Colorado
Winner: Colorado (7)

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces
California vs. Air Force
Winner: Cal (

Insight
Indiana vs. Oklahoma State
WInner: Indiana (9)

Roady’s Humanitarian
Georgia Tech vs. Fresno State
Winner: Fresno St. (10)

San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia
Utah vs. Navy
Winner: Navy (11)

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
Memphis vs. Florida Atlantic
Winner: FAU (12)

Texas
TCU vs. Houston
Winner: TCU (13)

AT&T Cotton
Missouri vs. Arkansas
Winner: Missouri (14)

Papajohns.com Bowl
Southern Miss vs. Cincinnati
Winner: Cincinnati (15)

Meineke Car Care
UConn vs. Wake Forest
Winner: Wake (16)

Pioneer Las Vegas
UCLA vs. BYU Winner: UCLA (17)

Motor City
Purdue vs. Central Michigan
WInner: Purdue (1

Emerald
Maryland vs. Oregon State
Winner: Maryland (19)

Chick-fil-A
Clemson vs. Auburn
Winner: Auburn (20)

AutoZone Liberty
UCF vs. Mississippi State
Winner: Mississippi St. (21)

Capital One
Michigan vs. Florida
Winner: Florida (22)

Gaylord Hotels Music City
Kentucky vs. Florida State
Winner: Kentucky (23)

Allstate Sugar
Hawaii vs. Georgia
Winner: Georgia (24)

GMAC
Bowling Green vs. Tulsa
Winner: Tulsa (25)

Brut Sun
South Florida vs. Oregon
Winner: South Florida (26)

Sheraton Hawaii
Boise State vs. East Carolina
Winner: Boise St. (27)

Konica Minolta Gator
Texas Tech vs. Virginia
Winner: Texas Tech (2

New Mexico
Nevada vs. New Mexico
Winner: Nevada (29)

Allstate BCS Championship Game
LSU vs. Ohio State
Winner: LSU(30)

International
Rutgers vs. Ball State
Winner: Rutgers (31)

Tostitos Fiesta
Oklahoma vs. West Virginia
Winner: Oklahoma (32)

By Steve Stonebreaker
GCHS Head Coach

You will see it more and more - the college coach who moves from job to job to job and doesn’t necessarily leave the way that many would think is appropriate.

Many have said this about Bobby Petrino when he left the Atlanta Falcons Tuesday just 13 games into the job to become the new head man at Arkansas. Petrino had a 3-10 record and dealt with a fiasco of a situation in Atlanta, beginning with the Michael Vick dog-fighting saga. However, Petrino did have the support of Falcons owner Arthur Blank, who was happy with the job his coach had done and was quoted as saying such before the Falcons’ Monday night loss to New Orleans. The next day, Petrino jumped ship to go to Arkansas.

I must say something here. I feel that Petrino is a terrific offensive coach. When the Michigan job came open I actually hoped that the powers-that-be in Ann Arbor would pursue Petrino. I wished he would come back to college football and he now has done that by making the move to Arkansas. I must also say that, in my mind, I always figured he would stay the entire season with Atlanta before coming back to college ball. If that had happened the uproar that has come from many columnists and talking heads would not have quite the same fervor.

While looking at the way Petrino departed Atlanta I am reminded of something that I heard Bob Costas say in describing Pete Rose’s gambling situation when it was first reported. Costas said we all would like to think that our sports heroes can be ‘good at life’ as well as good at their craft. The reality, however, is that this is not a fair expectation because they are real people and we all have flaws. But, that doesn’t mean the criticism Petrino has received for the way he left Atlanta isn’t fair because it certainly is.

I feel in the analysis of the big picture here there is something important to keep in mind: This is likely to happen more and more. Why? Because, Petrino is a product of the system that we now have in big-time college sports. Some of the pieces in that system are as follows:

• Unrealistic fan and booster expectations to win, win right away, win big, and keep on winning
• Coaches who make ridiculous amounts of money
• The ridiculous firings of coaches, making it difficult for coaches to establish themselves in a program (stemming from the above-mentioned fan and booster mentality)

Have big-time college coaching salaries gotten out of hand? My opinion is that they have. This is the first year that the average major college head coach’s salary is over 1 million dollars. This is something that absolutely cannot continue. If it does, then there will come a time when the bowl subdivision will only have about 30 schools left. Many will choose to stop playing the game of ‘raise the stakes’ to keep coaches.

Some coaches keep moving around for a bigger payday. Hey, if it is offered and you want it then why not take it? How many of you would leave your current job for a huge pay raise somewhere else? Maybe not all would but it is safe to say that many would. Now, Petrino will not be making more money at Arkansas than he would have been with the Falcons. So why do I even mention this here? It is because as long as coaching salaries continue to go through the roof then you will see more and more coaches break contract and move in sneaky ways to get that next big check.

While at UofL, Petrino secretly met with Auburn officials who wanted to replace Tommy Tuberville (this after his 1^st year at UofL and Petrino had worked for Tuberville previously). After, signing a huge contract extension at UofL, Petrino flirted with LSU before they hired Les Miles. Is Petrino the only coach ever to try to go behind his employers’ back and try to get another job? No. Does that make it right? No. Can you totally fault him? Ahh, well, that all depends on perspective.

You could take the moral approach and say that you could. But as food for thought think of this: Administrators and boosters at Southern Mississippi recently forced coach Jeff Bower to resign following 17 seasons at the school. Bower had a career record of 119-82-1 with the Eagles and only had two losing seasons (1991 and 1993). Bower was also a quarterback at Southern Miss during his playing days and was very loyal to the school. Bower will still coach the Eagles in their sixth straight bowl game this year. There was never a hint of wrongdoing under Bower’s leadership. He won big games (defeated Alabama, LSU, Auburn, Georgia, and Oklahoma State), led his teams to bowls, and was the longest-tenured coach at a school with average football tradition and history. Bower never seriously considered pursuing other jobs in his time at Southern Miss (which was the longest current tenure of any coach in the FBS besides Bobby Bowden, Joe Paterno, and Frank Beamer). And, Bower’s reward for all of this was not to be welcomed back for an 18^th season.

Now, you can tell me which end of the stick the morals are on in Bower’s scenario. Nevertheless, this scenario is why many college coaches look to move around like they do. They can work at an average program, run it cleanly, do the right things, win games and still end up like Bower. The ridiculous firings of coaches is another factor that will lead to more FBS coaches acting like snakes in the grass to land a better payday and get as much as they can while the getting is good - while maneuvering their necks around their booster’s axe.

Some of you will say the out-of-whack expectations of boosters and fans are fine because these coaches are making so much money. Not many people will feel sorry for million dollar coaches losing their jobs even if one and only one team can win the national championship each year. There is, however, fan outrage that coaches are too concerned with money and not building a program and trying to stay in one place like coaches of the past may have done with a little more regularity. Well, frankly, if the axe is going to fall senselessly on some coaches then why would many have that mentality. Look at how much Phillip Fulmer has won at Tennessee and then at the nonsense he endured this past season. This is not something that is lost on coaches. More and more you will see coaches pulling a ‘Petrino.’ It is a sad by-product of the culture that has been created in big-time college sports. And, without a doubt, money is the root of this particular evil. This is all more the reason to spend a Saturday afternoon at a small college football game where some sensibility still rules the day.

By Coach Stoney

The University of the Cumberlands, located in Williamsburg, KY is in the NAIA playoffs for the first time since 1988.  The Patriots (8-2) are the #14 seed and will play at #3 Ohio Dominican (11-0) this Saturday at 12:30 EST.  The Patriots lost their annual Mid-South Conference Eastern Division game with Georgetown on October 27^th by the score of 27-10.  However, Georgetown lost to Union College on the last week of the regular season 28-21, gi