Jim Mashek

RUSSELLVILLE’s MIKIE BENTON LOOKS FOR BOUNCE-BACK OPPORTUNITY NEXT WEEK AGAINST ROCKCASTLE COUNTY

RUSSELLVILLE — Russellville High School’s football team has no shortage of ambition, and for the first half of the Lewisburg Bank Classic on Friday evening, it looked like the Panthers could hang with the largest school’s squad from the Greater Owensboro area, the Panthers of Daviess County High School.

It was a difficult matchup, for Russellville, as veteran coach Mikie Benton’s squad competes in the KHSAA’s Class 1A, 1st District, and they were facing first-year coach Quadarius Wallace and Daviess County, a Class 6A school that is looking to bounce back from a 1-10 season.

Daviess County was held to single-digit scoring in six of its 11 games last year under former coach Anthony Payton, and DCHS needed a 1-yard touchdown run from Lincoln Hoffman midway through the second quarter to extend its lead to 15-0.

Benton’s Panthers returned from the locker room for the third quarter intent on trimming the Daviess County lead, but Jace Hunt had other ideas.

Hunt took a handoff from DCHS quarterback Garrison Barker on the first play from scrimmage in the second half before quickly bouncing the play outside. Russellville was out of position near the sideline, however, and Hunt broke away for a 44-yard touchdown run.

Daviess County added a two-point conversion, the first of three successful such plays in the second half, and Daviess County pulled away for a 45-6 victory over Russellville on a pleasant mid-August evening at Logan County High School.

The Cougars defeated Hart County, 19-15, in the nightcap of the Lewisburg Bank Classic doubleheader, in a hard-fought game that ended shortly before the midnight hour.

Benton made no attempt to sugar-coat his team’s performance in a text message on Saturday evening.

“The first half, we played decent, but we left a lot of points out on the field,” Benton said. “We knew playing against a 6A team would be tough, but we left that being upset at ourselves, because we know we’re capable of playing better. A lot better.

“Kudos to Daviess County for coming away with the win, but we definitely laid an egg in the second half.”

It was a typical Opening Night in high school football, with no shortage of cramps and other injuries, along with a rash of penalties on both teams as Daviess County took control in the second half.

“It feels amazing when all the work you put in comes to fruition,” Wallace told the Owensboro Times web site. “I’m super proud and pumped for our guys.”

It was a tough night for Benton and Russellville, which finished 6-6 overall last season. The Panthers will face seven non-district opponents from the KHSAA’s Class 3A or higher this season, along with their district games against Ballard Memorial, Caverna and Fulton County. Scheduling non-district games always has been tough for Benton and his squad, particularly after their KHSAA Class 1A runner-up finish in 2021.

“We had some cramping set in, and fatigue as well,” Benton said. “That led to a lot of mental mistakes for us.”

Daviess County’s Ridge Roberts rushed for 175 yards and two touchdowns, leading his squad to the lopsided victory.

Russellville quarterback Jarius Coleman was a tough customer in the pocket for his squad, but the 6-foot-2 senior found himself in a lot of obvious passing situations in the second half. Junior running back Jamarion Gardner accounted for all of Russellville’s points, taking a direct snap from center and beating the Daviess County pursuit to the left corner of the end zone with 1:21 left in the first half.

Both squads are still fine tuning their kicking game, but Daviess County was considerably bigger up front, which tilted the game in its direction.

“Loved the composure from our quarterback, Jarius,” Benton said. “He showed plenty of resilience, and delivered some very catchable balls all night. Our receivers have to do a better job of bringing those passes in, and our offensive line has to do a better job protecting him.”

Coleman found Russellville teammate JaCoveon Temple-Dickerson for a 41-yard completion in the second quarter, putting the Panthers on Daviess County’s side of the field, but RHS coach Mikie Benton’s squad couldn’t capitalize on that opportunity.

Daviess County quarterback Garrison Barker scored on a 35-yard run with 9:11 left in the third quarter, and DCHS again used a trick-play formation, with linemen flanked on both sides of the center, before Hudson Foreman scored on the two-point conversion to make it 31-6.

Daviess’ Jace Hunt scored on a 70-yard punt return with 3:37 left in the first half, and DCHS teammate Ridge Roberts scored his squad’s final touchdown on a 10-yard run with 4:15 left in the game. That score prompted a KHSAA-mandated running clock for the final minutes of the contest, and Daviess County got contributions from several players to finish the task at hand.

Hunt was named the game’s Most Valuable Player. Former Russellville lineman Miller Bloodworth kicked a 25-yard field goal — with room to spare — at halftime of the game, winning a cash prize from the Lewisburg Bank. Madden Bloodworth, his younger sister, is a senior place-kicker for the Panthers.

Benton said Russellville likely will be paired against Hart County — the Raiders finished 12-1 last season — in next year’s opening game of the Lewisburg Bank Classic.

The Panthers are on the road next week against Rockcastle County, in the Praxel Lines Services Bowl at North Laurel High School. They’ll square off with crosstown rival Logan County on September 5 at Russellville’s historic Rhea Stadium. The stadium opened in 1939 after a Works Progress Project during the Great Depression.

“We have to be more consistent in making plays,” Benton said.

In the nightcap, a defensive struggle, Logan County quarterback Luke Rogers completed 14 of 22 passes for 118 yards and a touchdown. Teammate Christian Helle carried the ball 19 times for 142 yards and two touchdowns.