CORBIN —
By Chris Parsons / Staff Writer
Heading into the 2012 season, the South Laurel Cardinals were expected to be one of the more potent offenses in the area, as well as compete for a district title.
Larry Welch’s squad returned a quarterback who had tallied over 2,400 yards through the air in 2011, along with a receiving corps that had accounted for well over 1,000 of those yards.
South Laurel also returned its top threat out of the backfield in Devin Pennington, who had rushed for 626 yards and nine touchdowns the season before.
Coming into the season, Welch said he expected a mix of run and pass, while depending on several go-to guys when the big plays were needed as his team looked to make a postseason run.
“I really think we have a good mix of kids that can do several different things on the football field,” Welch said, before the season started. “We have some kids that we think can be playmakers and come out and lead this team all season.”
Well, the road to the football state championship officially gets underway this week and unfortunately, the Cardinals are not in the hunt.
After starting the season 1-1, the Cardinals dropped their next eight games to finish with a 1-9 mark, tied with Barren County for dead-last in 5A.
To say that Welch is disappointed would be an understatement.
“I really expected us to compete this season with the kids we had coming back, but it just didn't happen for us,” Welch said. “We had quite a bit of skill coming in to the season, but things just didn’t pan out for one reason or another.
“We started out with some experienced kids on the field and when you look at some of the injuries we suffered and some other things that happened, we end up playing with quite a few young guys on the field,” he added. “Any time you take inexperienced kids off the field and replace them with kids that are not familiar with situations, you’re going to struggle.”
After losing to Knox Central in the season opener, the Cardinals picked up a 54-6 win over Lynn Camp, flexing some of the offensive muscle they were expected to have before the season started.
After a 62-13 loss to Russell County on Aug. 31, the Cardinals never recovered. Welch and company did come close to pulling off an upset before falling to Southwestern, 42-41 in overtime, but lost by an average of 41 points from that point on to close out the season.
Welch said he felt like the lack of any type of consistency can also go back to the fact his team never seemed to be as healthy as it could have been.
“When you talk about those go-to guys, you really have a lot of the time this season where they were injured at some time or another,” he said. “That consistency that we talk about comes from the players becoming familiar with each other, so when you have kids that haven’t played together all that much, it affects your ability to gel as a team.
“I guess what it comes down to is the fact you have to be able to remain healthy if you’re going to compete,” he added. “It’s really tough to compete in our district as it is, so when you try to do that with a relatively inexperienced team due to as many injuries as we have had, it really makes things a whole lot tougher.”
Local Sports
Cards slowed by injuries in 2012
- Local Sports
-
-
Moving on
The Lynn Camp Wildcat basketball program is searching for a new coach after Clyde Dixon decided to retire after three years as head coach in his second stint coaching the Wildcats.
-
13th Region rumors may excite, but seldom turn out to be true
It seems like high school basketball season just ended, but actually it’s been two months since the round ball has been tossed up in the 13th Region.
-
Gotta Finish
The Williamsburg Yellow Jackets are a perfect example of the saying ‘It’s not how you start, but how you finish that matters.’
-
Williamsburg will graduate six seniors
The Williamsburg Lady Yellow Jackets' season came to an end following Monday's 10-0 loss to South Laurel in the 50th District Tournament, giving the team a 7-20 record on the year.
-
Twice as Nice
With a 6-3 win over the Clay County Tigers, the North Laurel Jaguars became back-to-back 49th District Champions on Monday night.
-
Moving On
Corbin’s Kevin Goins has come to be known as Mr. Reliable on the pitcher’s mound this season and Monday wasn’t any different for the junior hurler.
-
Eight is Enough
The North Laurel Lady Jaguars captured their eighth straight 49th District Championship on Monday night with an 8-1 win over the Clay County Lady Tigers.
-
Cardinals breeze by Williamsburg in 10-0 win
The South Laurel Cardinals came into Monday’s game with one goal in mind and head coach Wynn Harris wasn’t about to let his team forget about it.
-
Lady Hounds outlast Whitley
Sydney Reynolds went 2-for-2 at the plate with a home run and Hannah Hart tallied seven strikeouts to lead Corbin past Whitley County, 5-1.
-
Lady Cards cruise past Williamsburg
The South Laurel Lady Cardinals made quick work of the Williamsburg Lady Yellow Jackets Monday, using a 14-0 win to advance to the 50th District finals today.
- More Local Sports Headlines
-
Florida FBI Shooting Has Boston Bombing Links
Garcetti Elected Los Angeles Mayor Over Greuel
Raw: New Video of Deadly Oklahoma Tornado
IRS Official Pleads 5th Amendment
Lawyer: Feds Investigating Susan Powell Case
Former Rep. Weiner Running for New York Mayor
Jodi Arias: Death Penalty Would Cause More Pain
Police Ram House to End Hostage Standoff
Families Begin Returning to Their Homes in Moore
Raw: Aerial View of Moore Tornado Damage
Looking for Love? Take the Prague Metro
First Person: Baby Falcons on a New York Bridge
Crews Race to Find Survivors of Okla. Twister
Oklahoma: Images of Devastation, Reunion
Raw: Students Clash With Police in Chile
Protests Outside Cincinnati IRS Office
New Xbox One Entertainment Console Unveiled
