Gut check time

A reprint of my Oct. 23 SlapShots column published in the Woodford Sun

Now it’s gut-check time.

Woodford County High School football players thought they were traveling deep into Eastern Kentucky on Oct. 16 to play an important district football game. Turns out they’d been invited to Paintsville to participate in a good old fashioned butt-whuppin’.

Johnson Central not only won the game, they beat the Yellow Jackets like the proverbial unwanted stepchild. It wasn’t just that the Golden Eagles out-executed Woodford. It wasn’t just that the Jackets caught some bad breaks or made a few mistakes. No, it was much worse than that. Johnson Central flat out imposed its will on Woodford County, out-physicaling, out-muscling and out-willing the Jackets.

It was ugly, like a bully roughing up the little kid in the school hallway. The Golden Eagles ran for over 600 yards. They ran around the Woodford D. They ran through the Woodford D. And they ran right over the Woodford D – just because they could.

When the final horn mercifully sounded, the scoreboard testified to the carnage – 64-14 Golden Eagles.

Every time Johnson Central scored, a loud foghorn blasted through the PA system. We heard that sound a lot. It was on my nerves before the end of the first quarter. It was an audible reminder to Woodford players and fans. Listen – we’re dominating you. Listen – we’re pushing you around. Listen – you lose.

Woodford players need to remember that sound and all it represents.

Because good news remains hidden in the aftermath of that Johnson Central game. The season didn’t end. The Jackets weren’t sent home to sit out the remainder of the football season in their living rooms. Woodford lives to fight another day.

That “another day” is Saturday, Oct. 24, when Ashland Blazer comes to town, and the Yellow Jackets would do well to remember one thing when they take the field. They were beaten in Paintsville, but they have within their power the choice to refuse defeat.

Notice the key word – choice.

The Yellow Jackets could just lie down. They could quit. They could let the Johnson Central game become the defining moment of the 2009 season – complete with blaring foghorn. Or they could look at themselves in the mirror and say, “No! We refuse to allow what happened in that one game brand this team. We are going to go out and play against Ashland in such a way that nobody remembers that Johnson Central game.”

Most football fans will remember that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won the Super Bowl in 2003. They beat the Oakland Raiders 48-21 in San Diego. But only the most die-hard pewter and red fan will remember that the Pittsburgh Steelers embarrassed the Bucs on their home field in week 16. To add insult to injury, it was in front of a national TV audience on Monday Night Football. The score was 17-7, but it wasn’t as close as that. Pittsburgh manhandled Tampa Bay after Steelers’ defensive back Lee Flowers called the Bucs, “paper champions.”

That was the last game the Bucs would lose that season. The Pittsburgh game was a turning point for the Bucs. They took the lessons learned in defeat and vowed that they WOULD NOT experience that embarrassment again. It was a matter of will, and their collective will prevailed.

Woodford has the opportunity to do the same. I believe the Jackets are a much better team than the team I saw run over by Johnson Central. I believe that they can put that game behind them and make a statement against Ashland, turning a potentially ugly defining moment into an afterthought. I believe that Woodford County can come out with grit, fire and determination on Saturday and redeem themselves.

One question remains – do they believe?

Quick Shots

Teams are rarely as good or as bad as fans may think based on a given game. Early in the season, I wrote that Kentucky wasn’t as good as some fans thought after the Wildcats beat Miami of Ohio and Louisville. But I also didn’t think they were as bad as some seemed to believe after three straight losses to top-ranked SEC opponents, with some fans calling for the head of Rich Brooks on a platter. The Cats proved me correct with a gutsy come from behind win over Auburn on the road. Brooks looks like a genius this week.

Big Blue Madness officially kicked off the Calipari era on Friday, Oct. 16. Expectations for this Wildcat crew blew right out past the highest rafters of Rupp Arena. I actually heard one Cat fan say that if UK doesn’t make the Final Four, Calipari should be looking for a new job. Once again, teams are rarely as good or bad as fans seem to think at a given moment. Kentucky certainly has great potential. But fans need to remember potential mean nothing unless realized. UK also has a great deal of youth and inexperience learning a brand new system under a new skipper. It wouldn’t surprise me if the Wildcats made a late season tournament run. But it also won’t surprise me if Kentucky struggles early in the season and drops at least one clunker.

I think I got a little carried away devoting column space to the Cincinnati Bengals. The stripes seemed to fall off the Tiger as Cincy lost to the Houston Texans 28-17 at home.

And in NASCAR news, just insert all of the glowing things I said last week about Jimmy Johnson and his late season prowess here. The number 48 won – again. He ran away from the field in the final laps of the NASCAR Banking 500 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte and extended his points lead over Mark Martin to 90.

Quote of the week

“I watch the other conferences all the time and I think, Boy, I’d like to play them.”
-Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt talking about the dominance of SEC football.

Puck to the head

This week’s puck flies at the head of Johnson Central coach Jim Matney for keeping virtually all of his starters in the game against Woodford County with a 50 point lead. The Yellow Jackets were substituting in JV players, but Matney stuck with his starters until the bitter end. If a team puts in its backups and continues to score points, I have no problem with that. It’s the job of the opponent to stop them. But to keep starters in with a 50-point lead takes a step beyond classless – especially at the high school level. Matney would do well to remember what goes around comes around.

A character moment

A reprint of my Sept. 17 column published in the Woodford Sun.

You probably missed it unless you were paying close attention.

On any given day, sports fans will find stories on ESPN, or in their local newspaper, chronicling athletes in trouble. Drunks. Wife beaters. Boorish behavior.

I never lack for subject matter when it comes time to award my weekly puck to the head.

Actions displaying class, sportsmanship and grace tend to get lost in the media noise.

But sometimes, within the swirl of negativity, something happens that restores my faith in humanity – something to remind me that behind every negative headline, hundreds of positive stories go unnoticed.

I experienced one of those moments at the Woodford County – North Bullitt football game Saturday night.

Had I not been paying attention, I probably would have missed it.

During Woodford’s first offensive series, starting Jacket quarterback Ryan Garrahan overthrew his receiver. The result – an Eagle interception.

During Woodford’s second offensive series, Garrahan stood on the sidelines, holding the proverbial clipboard, watching as sophomore Matt Couch took the reigns of the Yellow Jacket offense – his offense.

Garrahan knew it was coming. Coach Chris Tracy told him earlier in the week that Couch would get a shot with the offense in the third or fourth series.

But not now. Not like this.

If you weren’t playing attention, you probably missed the next part.

In that moment, standing on the sideline, Garrahan won a victory far bigger than the one the Jackets would win on the field that night. He won a victory over his own human nature. His own selfishness. His own desire to shine.

Ryan Garrahan made a choice. He chose not to pout. He chose not to hang his head. He chose to put his team ahead of himself.

“I understand him giving Matt that shot because I made that mistake,” Garrahan said. “The win is the most important thing.”

Garrahan spent the entire game engaged. He was calling plays on the sideline, and he was the first player to run up and hug Couch after the sophomore threw his first touchdown pass.

He wasn’t crying, he was encouraging. He wasn’t whining, he was cheering. He wasn’t sullen, he was exuberant.

I talked to Ryan on the Monday after the game. He wasn’t happy about being yanked. I could see it in his eyes. And I wouldn’t respect him if he accepted the situation without some anger. But throughout the course of our conversation, he constantly reminded me that team comes first.

Ryan wants to be a good quarterback. But more than that, he wants to be a good teammate.

That fact wasn’t lost on his coach.

“I give a lot of credit to Ryan. Ryan was on the sidelines calling plays. He was Matt Couch’s biggest supporter,” Tracy said.

After the game, Garrahan stepped up and led his team in prayer, just as he always does.

“Having that opportunity to share that with my teammates is important. It’s a priority to me.”

Perhaps that faith explains how the youngster stays so grounded.

Yes, the Jackets remain his team. He may not spend the rest of the season calling plays from behind center, but that doesn’t diminish his role. This is his team. He’s its leader.

Tracy said that Ryan will have other opportunities on the field as the season progresses.

“He’s important to us.”

But I think he’s already made his biggest contribution to Woodford football. He made it standing on the sideline demonstrating true manhood.

And to think, I would have missed it if I hadn’t been paying attention.

Quick Shots

On Sept. 10, the Woodford County High School volleyball team took the floor to face district opponent Western Hills. For the first time in my tenure as sports editor of The Sun, I walked into the Hive expecting the Jackets to win. This team has experienced quite a turnaround in one season. They play with confidence, they are competitive and they’re a lot of fun to watch. And along with the improvements on the court, they are raising expectations.

The University of Kentucky football team survived the bye-week and remains undefeated. I would expect the win streak to continue against the University of Louisville this week. After that, it’s gonna get ugly, Cat fans. My Gators are coming to town.

Did anyone else find it extremely bizarre to watch Brett Favre in a Vikings jersey? The old guy looked pretty good. But number four in a purple was still a trip into bizzaro world.

Speaking of old, Mark Martin continues to carry the banner for – let’s just say the more seasoned athletes everywhere. The 50-year-old NASCAR driver enters the chase for the Sprint Cup championship as the top-seed.

Quote of the week

“If I could, I would take this (expletive) ball and shove it down your (expletive) throat.”
-Serena Williams during a tirade directed at a judge after he called her for a foot fault in the U.S. Open.

Puck to the head

This week’s puck flies at the head of Serena Williams for the above-mentioned quote of the week.