Papa John's Cardinal Stadium
Louisville, Kentucky
December 5 & 6, 2003
©2003 by Ron Harrison
Class A Championship
Beechwood (13-1) vs. Danville (13-1) December 5, 2003
Beechwood has won eight football championships and coach Mike Yeagle has been at the helm for seven of those championships since 1989. Beechwood's only loss of the season came at the hands of Newport Central Catholic 33-29 in October, but Beechwood avenged their loss with a 33-22 playoff victory. Beechwood has averaged 43.2 ppg this season and the defense has allowed 11.2 ppg.
The Beechwood rushing attack has been led by 5-8 180 pound Sr. Adam Peach who carried the ball 129 times for 1462 yards and 17 touchdowns. 5-10 180 pound Jr. Dustin Menetrey added 946 yards and 11 TDs on 100 rushing attempts. 6-4 215 pound Sr. QB Jeff Wera completed 111 of 193 passes for 2070 yards and 24 touchdown passes. Wera was intercepted 8 times this season. 6-1 200 pound Sr. TE Andrew Daniels led the receivers with 37 receptions for 727 yards and 10 scoring receptionss.
The Danville Admirals have nine titles overall and Coach Sam Harp has captured six of the titles (four 2A and two A) since 1989. Danville's one loss of the year came at the hands of cross-town rival Boyle County by a score of 45-26 on September 5th. The Admirals had a close call against Louisville Holy Cross in the third round of the playoffs but pulled out a 27-22 victory.
Danville's offense has rolled up 4450 yards on the ground this season and 1177 yards through the air. The ground game has been led by 5-10 190 pound Jr. Kelvin Turner with 1941 yards and 23 touchdowns on 171 carries. 5-11 215 pound Sr. Charles Penix added 1308 yards and 18 touchdowns on 161 rushing attempts. 5-11 160 pound Jr. QB Ronnie Hawkins completed 51 of 105 passes for 1177 yards and 22 touchdowns with only five interceptions. 5-7 176 pound Sr. LB Dexter Grey led the Danville defense with 28 solo and 85 assisted tackles.
Danville rolled up 500 yards of total offense (all with their devastating ground game) and held Beechwood to 211 yards on their way to a 42-7 victory. Many experts felt this game would be decided late but Danville dominated the contest on both sides of the ball today. The Admiral defense held Beechwood to 22 yards on the ground.
Danville's Charles Penix ran for 268 yards and scored twice on runs of 38 and 11 yards on 27 carries. His backfield mate Kelvin Turner also carried the ball 27 times and gained 186 yards, scoring on TD runs of 6, 6, 10, and 3 yards. Beechwood QB Jeff Wera completed 14 of 39 passes for 189 yards and threw a 10 yard TD pass to Andrew Daniels late in the game to avoid a shutout.
Scoring Summary
| Danville | 42 | Beechwood | 7 |
| School | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final |
| Beechwood | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Danville | 0 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 42 |
| D | - Kelvin Turner 6 yard run (Zack Hampton kick) |
| D | - Turner 6 yard run (Hampton kick) |
| D | - Charlex Penix 38 yard run (Hampton kick) |
| D | - Turner 10 yard run (Hampton kick) |
| D | - Penix 11 yard run (Hampton kick) |
| D | - Turner 3 yard run (Hampton kick) |
| B | - Andrew Daniels 10 yard pass from Jeff Wera (David Keam kick) |
Selected Statistics
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| Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long | Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long | |
| Adam Peach | 5 | 20 | 4.0 | 8 | Charles Penix | 27 | 274 | 9.9 | 73 | |
| Dustin Menetrey | 2 | 7 | 3.5 | 4 | Kelvin Turner | 27 | 193 | 6.9 | 34 | |
| Eric Sawyer | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 4 | Dexter Grey | 6 | 31 | 5.0 | 15 | |
| Jeff Wera | 3 | -1 | -0.3 | 7 | Ronnie Hawkins | 3 | 11 | 3.7 | 8 | |
| Alex Johnson | 1 | -8 | -8.0 | 0 | Mario Berry | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 5 | |
| Phillip Dunn | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | ||||||
| Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long | Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long | |
| Jeff Wera | 39-14-1 | 189 | 1 | 26 | Ronnie Hawkins | 2-0-1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long | Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long | |
| Eric Sawyer | 5 | 67 | 0 | 17 | ||||||
| Adam Peach | 3 | 28 | 0 | 15 | ||||||
| Andrew Daniels | 2 | 36 | 1 | 26 | ||||||
| Griffin Howard | 2 | 33 | 0 | 21 | ||||||
| Dustin Menetrey | 1 | 14 | 0 | 14 | ||||||
| Jack Potter | 1 | 11 | 0 | 11 | ||||||
Class 2A Championship
Elizabethtown (12-2) vs. Belfry (12-2) December 5, 2003
Coach Brett Burnett's Elizabethtown Panthers have rolled up 4297 yards through the air this year. 6-3 190 pound Jr. QB Chris Todd completed 282 of 438 passes for 4283 yards and 48 touchdowns while only being intercepted nine times. 5-11 170 pound Sr. WR Jerry Turner caught 71 passes for 1536 yards and 16 touchdowns while 5-10 200 pound Jr. WR A. J. French caught 57 passes for 946 yards with 13 TDs. 6-4 235 pound Jr. TE Zipp Duncan had 60 receptions for 736 yards and reached the end zone 11 times. 5-5 165 pound Jr. Jonathan Rusher led the ground attack with 1154 yards and 16 touchdowns on 177 carries. 5-6 177 pound Sr. LB Taylor Rigney recorded 42 solo and 87 assisted tackles while 5-11 195 pound So. DL Cory Spiers recorded 51 solo and 75 assisted tackles.
Coach Philip Haywood's Belfry Pirates utilized an option attack that rolled up 3534 yards on the ground this season. 5-9 214 pound Jr. Doug Howard gained 1472 yards and 22 touchdowns on 175 rushing attempts. His backfield mate 5-10 172 pound Jr. David Jones added 1320 yards and 20 touchdowns on 151 rushing attempts. 5-9 161 pound Sr. QB Paul Howard completed 43 of 79 passes for 849 yards and 10 touchdowns with only one interception. Michael Hackney and Tyler Bostic led the defense with 76 and 70 tackles respectively.
David Jones scored on a fourth-and-goal play from the one yard line to give Belfry a 33-27 victory in overtime. Elizabethtown held a 27-20 lead in the fourth quarter but Belfry recovered a fumble and capitalized to tie the score and force overtime. Elizabethtown got the ball first in overtime but Belfry's Paul Howard intercepted a pass in the end zone to set the stage for Jones's TD. Both teams stayed with their trademark offense with Belfry gaining over 300 yards on the ground while Elizabethtown passed for 300 yards. Belfry fumbled eight times today and lost four of them but the Pirates stayed with their ground attack and it paid off with a title.
David Jones led the Pirate offense today with 202 yards and four touchdowns on 29 carries. Doug Howard added 67 yards including a 21 yard touchdown run on 16 carries. Chris Todd completed 21 of 37 passes for 300 yards and two touchdowns to lead Elizabethtown. A. J. French caught nine passes for 158 yards and a 40 yard TDs Jerry Turner added seven receptions for 124 yards which included a 56 yard touchdown.
Scoring Summary
| Belfry | 33 | Elizabethtown | 27 | (OT) |
| School | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | OT | Final |
| Elizabethtown | 7 | 0 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 27 |
| Belfry | 0 | 12 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 33 |
| E | - Johnathan Rusher 1 yard run (Robbie Witt kick) |
| B | - Doug Howard 21 yard run (kick fails) |
| B | - David Jones 8 yard run (rush fails) |
| E | - DeAndre Percell 27 yard run (Witt kick) |
| B | - Jones 5 yard run (Jones run) |
| E | - Jerry Turner 56 yard pass from Chris Todd (Witt kick) |
| E | - A. J. French 40 yard pass from Todd (kick fails) |
| B | - Jones 9 yard run (Ronnie Edwards kick) |
| B | - Jones 1 yard run |
Selected Statistics
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| Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long | Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long | |
| Johnathan Rusher | 11 | 41 | 3.7 | 6 | David Jones | 29 | 202 | 7.0 | 33 | |
| DeAndre Percell | 3 | 40 | 13.3 | 27 | Doug Howard | 16 | 67 | 4.2 | 21 | |
| A. J. French | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | Tyler Bostic | 9 | 31 | 3.4 | 9 | |
| Chris Todd | 2 | -10 | -5.0 | 6 | Gary Childers | 4 | 16 | 4.0 | 6 | |
| Jerry Turner | 1 | -10 | -10.0 | 0 | Paul Howard | 6 | 3 | 0.5 | 12 | |
| Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long | Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long | |
| Chris Todd | 37-21-2 | 300 | 2 | 56 | Paul Howard | 3-1-1 | 5 | 0 | 5 | |
| Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long | Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long | |
| A. J. French | 9 | 158 | 1 | 45 | Doug Howard | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 | |
| Jerry Turner | 7 | 124 | 1 | 56 | ||||||
| Johnathan Rusher | 2 | 14 | 0 | 9 | ||||||
| DeAndre Percell | 1 | 6 | 0 | 6 | ||||||
| Robert Broughton | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | ||||||
| Zipp Duncan | 1 | -5 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
Class 3A Championship
Boyle County (14-0) vs. Highlands (12-2) December 6, 2003
Coach Chuck Smith's Boyle County Rebels are attempting to capture a Kentucky high school football record fifth title in a row. The Rebels have won 24 consecutive playoff games Boyle County captured a 22-21 victory over Highlands earlier this year in a regular season matchup. The Rebels have averaged 45.1 ppg this season while limiting their opponents to 9.9 ppg. 6-1 181 pound Jr. QB Brandon Smith (the coach's son) has completed 170 of 293 passes for 2767 yards and 39 touchdowns with nine interceptions. Smith has also rushed for 800 yards and 15 touchdowns on 150 carries. 5-8 160 pound Jr. RB Quinn Givhan has rushed for 854 yards and 18 touchdowns on 166 carries. 6-1 186 pound Sr. WR/LB Brad Cloud caught 40 passes for 673 yards and eight touchdowns and also recorded 66 solo and 35 assisted tackles. 6-3 222 pound Sr. LB Ian Young also recorded 74 solo and 38 assisted tackles.
Highlands has captured a state record 15 football championships and current coach Dale Mueller won four of those titles in his tenure as a coach. Highlands has excellent balance on offense with 2462 yards rushing and 2166 passing yards.
Boyle County led 14-10 at halftime but dominated the second half 30-0 to earn a 44-10 victory and their fifth consecutive championship. Highlands returned the second half kickoff to the Boyle County 15 yard line and appeared to be in great shape. The tide turned abruptly as Boyle County recovered a fumble on their five yard line and mounted a 95 yard TD drive. Brandon Smith scored on a 4 yard TD run giving Boyle County a 21-10 lead. Boyle County made the big plays the rest of the game to claim another title.
QB Brandon Smith had quite a game for Boyle County as he completed 15 of 23 passes for 201 yards and a touchdown pass. Smith also ran for 141 yards and four touchdowns on 18 carries. The versatile Brad Cloud had another big day, catching six passes for 71 yards and a touchdown. Cloud also led the Rebel defense with six solo and one assisted tackle. Boyle County held a 450-250 yard edge in total offense. 6-1 192 pound Jr. LB Isaac Scherrer led the Highlands defense with 11 solo tackles including three stops for negative yardage.
Scoring Summary
| Boyle County | 44 | Highlands | 10 |
| School | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final |
| Boyle County | 0 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 44 |
| Highlands | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| H | - Adam Rosenhagen 20 yard field goal |
| BC | - Brandon Smith 76 yard run (Adam Dickinson kick) |
| H | - Jordan Nevels 1 yard run (Rosenhagen kick) |
| BC | - Smith 1 yard run (Dickinson kick) |
| BC | - Smith 4 yard run (Dickinson kick) |
| BC | - Quinn Givhan 6 yard run (Dickinson kick) |
| BC | - Team safety |
| BC | - Brad Cloud 11 yard pass from Smith (Dickinson kick) |
| BC | - Smith 2 yard run (Dickinson kick) |
Selected Statistics
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| Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long | Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long | |
| Brandon Smith | 18 | 141 | 7.8 | 76 | James Hubbard | 6 | 53 | 8.8 | 47 | |
| Quinn Givhan | 15 | 70 | 4.7 | 15 | Cecil Chase | 10 | 46 | 4.6 | 20 | |
| Brad Cloud | 2 | 24 | 12.0 | 12 | Robbie Peterman | 3 | 30 | 10.0 | 27 | |
| D. Commarford | 2 | 8 | 4.0 | 4 | T. J. Kramer | 4 | 23 | 5.8 | 25 | |
| Greg Peck | 1 | 6 | 6.0 | 6 | Jordan Nevels | 7 | 15 | 2.1 | 8 | |
| Brad Bardo | 2 | 5 | 2.5 | 6 | ||||||
| Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long | Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long | |
| Brandon Smith | 23-15-1 | 201 | 1 | 41 | Brad Bardo | 14-6-2 | 38 | 0 | 12 | |
| Cecil Chase | 4-2-1 | 42 | 0 | 24 | ||||||
| Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long | Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long | |
| Brad Cloud | 6 | 71 | 1 | 24 | Mitch. Bonomini | 4 | 22 | 0 | 9 | |
| Seth Tamme | 4 | 45 | 0 | 23 | Chris Owens | 2 | 22 | 0 | 18 | |
| Tyler Morris | 3 | 51 | 0 | 41 | Mitch McMahon | 1 | 24 | 0 | 24 | |
| Greg Peck | 1 | 31 | 0 | 31 | Robbie Peterman | 1 | 12 | 0 | 12 | |
| Evan Teague | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | ||||||
Class 4A Championship
St. Xavier (12-2) vs. Louisville Trinity (10-4) December 6, 2003
St. Xavier has captured 10 state championships in their football history and their coach for the last 22 years, Mike Glaser, has five of those titles. 5-11 210 pound Sr. RB K. J. Austin-Bruce rushed for 1805 yards and 25 touchdowns on 263 carries this season. 6-1 181 pound Sr. QB Brian Bishop ran for 802 yards and eight touchdowns on 142 carries and also passed for 870 yards. 6-1 203 pound Sr. LB Dan Bick led the Tiger defense with 127 tackles this season.
Trinity, another one of the state's legendary football programs, has captured a total of 14 football championships. Coach Bob Beatty has won two consecutive championships with the Shamrocks and is shooting for number three in a row after starting this season with a 0-4 record. Trinity defeated St. Xavier 17-6 in a regular season game earlier this year. Trinity has been led by 6-4 205 pound Sr. QB Brian Brohm who completed 276 of 432 passes for 3554 yards and 32 touchdowns while throwing eight interceptions. 6-1 180 pound Jr. WR Billy Murray caught 81 passes for 1158 yards and seven touchdowns. 6-0 193 pound Sr. TE/WR Stuart Diersen had 71 receptions for 845 yards and eight scoring receptions. 5-10 175 pound Jr. RB Chris Lawson carried the ball 128 times for 677 yards and 13 touchdowns. 5-8 175 pound So. RB Donald Barnett added 550 yards and 13 touchdowns on 84 rushing attempts. The Shamrocks defense limited opponents to 2.7 yards per carry on the ground.
Trinity's defense made the key defensive plays in the second half and Vince Heller kicked a 37 yard field goal in the third quarter to provide the victory margin in their 17-14 victory over St. Xavier. St. Xavier led 14-7 in the first half until Brian Brohm hit Steve Orndorff with a two yard TD pass and the score was deadlocked 14-14 at halftime. Brian Brohm led Trinity today with 22 of 31 passes for 161 yards and a TD. K. J. Austin-Bruce led St. Xavier with 75 yards and a 15 yard TD run on 21 rushing attempts. Brian Bishop carried the ball 11 times for 72 yards and completed seven of 13 passes for 52 yards.
Scoring Summary
| Trinity | 14 | St. Xavier | 17 |
| School | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final |
| St. Xavier | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Trinity | 7 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 17 |
| T | - Donald Barnett 19 yard run (Vince Heller kick) |
| SX | - Dan Bick 2 yard run (Leo Fante kick) |
| SX | - K. J. Austin-Bruce 15 yard run (Fante kick) |
| T | - Steve Orndorff 2 yard pass from Brian Brohm (Heller kick) |
| T | - Heller 37 yard field goal |
Selected Statistics
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| Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long | Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long | |
| K. J. Austin-Bruce | 21 | 75 | 3.6 | 15 | Donald Barnett | 14 | 62 | 4.4 | 19 | |
| Brian Bishop | 11 | 72 | 6.5 | 28 | Brian Brohm | 10 | 35 | 3.5 | 9 | |
| Dan Bick | 5 | 18 | 3.6 | 7 | Stuart Diersen | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | |
| Justin Brown | 4 | 5 | 1.2 | 5 | ||||||
| Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long | Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long | |
| Brian Bishop | 13-7-1 | 52 | 0 | 11 | Brian Brohm | 31-22-0 | 166 | 1 | 22 | |
| Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long | Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long | |
| Derek Beck | 2 | 20 | 0 | 11 | Billy Murray | 7 | 70 | 0 | 22 | |
| Colt Totten | 1 | 10 | 0 | 10 | Stuart Diersen | 5 | 44 | 0 | 15 | |
| Andrew Fust | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 | Donald Barnett | 5 | 25 | 0 | 12 | |
| K. J. Austin-Bruce | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 | Blain Donnell | 2 | 25 | 0 | 15 | |
| Justin Brown | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 | Steve Orndorff | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | |
| Justin Deeley | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | Andrew Agee | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Acknowledgements
A special thanks to the KHSAA for providing the rosters, records, statistics, etc. both pre-game and post-game on their very comprehensive website.
