By Tim Branstetter / Staff Writer
The Whitley County Colonels might not have stormed out to a great record this season, but they managed to storm through district play.
The Colonels’ slow start gave them a 1-3 record with losses to quality teams. They came up short 43-33 to Lexington Catholic, then defeated Lynn Camp 55-13, before dropping two straight to Bell County and Belfry.
“The first reason for the slow start was just facing tough opponents,” Whitley County coach Jim Black said. “Second reason was just our focus. We weren’t mentally focused and didn’t do a good job of getting prepared.”
The Colonels made up for their 1-3 start by winning six of their next eight games.
“After starting out 1-3 and ending up 7-5, that shows a lot of character by our kids. They got focused and never gave up.”
The Colonels hosted Harlan County in search of a much-needed win to start district play, and they found it with a 36-8 victory that turned the season around.
“The game against Harlan was huge,” Black said. “That win really turned the season around and started our run.”
Whitley County decided to approach the district schedule as a new season and it paid off. They followed the Harlan win with a 30-26 victory at Clay County.
Although they suffered a 34-27 setback to Letcher County Central, they put together four straight wins starting with a 40-14 win over North Laurel who despite missing the playoffs, finished 5-5.
The Colonels continued to play well as they picked up a 63-18 road win over Perry County Central.
Rockcastle County proved to be the next road victim as they defeated the Rockets 42-6 to close out the regular season.
A rough 54-14 home win over South Laurel in the first round of the playoffs and the Colonels were on their way to Pulaski County.
The Colonels fought back to tie the game late in the fourth quarter against the Maroons, but a late interception gave Pulaski County just enough time to score for a 40-34 win.
“We didn’t do anything to help ourselves against Pulaski County,” Black said. “Three turnovers killed us. Poor execution on defense really hurt us.”
The Colonels used a running back by committee to rack up several yards as they became one of the best rushing teams in the state.
“We have to give credit to a great offensive line,” Black said. “That’s why all of our backs were successful running the ball, we had a very seasoned offensive line to lead the way.”
Nathaniel Davis, Dan Burnett, Kyle Moses, Derek Scott and D.J. Centers led the Colonels to become one of the top ranked rushing teams in the state.
Black knows it will be hard to replace the group of seniors he lost this season.
“They will be very difficult to replace,” he said. “The younger kids have some huge shoes to fill.”
Although the season didn’t end the way the Colonels would have liked, Black knows his team has something to be proud of.
“They have no reason to hang their heads,” he said. “They were able to turn the season around and have a winning record. I am so proud of these kids. They really showed a lot of character. They are a bunch of great kids. They had to win three straight games to claim second place in the district and they were able to do that.”
