SOUTH WARREN PUTS 4-1 RECORD ON THE LINE AGAINST BOWLING GREEN
Veteran South Warren High School football coach Brandon Smith pondered the question for two or three seconds. Maybe.
Is the Spartans’ infrared rivalry with crosstown Bowling Green High School, Smith was asked, the hottest thing going in the Commonwealth this side of Trinity-St. Xavier?
Not even.
“I think it’s the best rivalry in the state,” Smith said.
That’s the backdrop for tonight’s Clash Of The Titans at South Warren, when the state’s No. 2-ranked Class 5A team, Smith’s Spartans, play host to defending KHSAA Class 5A champion Bowling Green High School. The Purples are 3-3 overall, but fourth-year BGHS head coach Mark Spader always plays a challenging non-district schedule.
Smith’s squad is 4-1 heading into its district opener, and South Warren has won its last three games, all by double-digit margins, since dropping a 27-20 decision to Hendersonville (Tennessee) on August 27.
“This game means nothing, but it means everything,” Spader said. “It gives us a chance to host a possible second-round playoff game in November. It’s always a hard-fought, hard-hitting, even vicious game.
“We know who’s waiting for us. Our kids know what’s at stake.”
“I expect our kids to bring it, in this game. We’ll count on our seniors to set the tone, going in. We’ve got a great opportunity in front of us.”
South Warren won KHSAA Class 5A state championships in 2015 and 2018, and the Spartans were the runner-up in 2017, too. Bowling Green won the seventh state championship in school history last December, dismantling Owensboro High School 17-7 with a splendid defensive performance at the University of Kentucky’s Kroger Field in Lexington.
Along the way, Bowling Green avenged a regular-season loss to South Warren, a 10-7 defeat on its home turf, by dismantling the Spartans 41-24 in the aforementioned second round of the KHSAA Class 5A playoffs.
The coaches understand what’s at stake. The players understand what’s at stake. The city understands what’s at stake, too.
A leg up on the crosstown rival heading into a likely rematch in November. Not to mention the critical home-field advantage.
“Everybody here is really excited about this game,” South Warren offensive lineman Zack Goodwin said. “A lot of us seniors are taking this game personally.”
BGHS defensive tackle Jeremiah Lightfoot, who has committed to play his college football at Eastern Kentucky University, said the Purples don’t lack for confidence.
“I think it’s been a good week of practice. There really isn’t any outside pressure,” Lightfoot said. “We’re gonna be ready to go.”
That’s generally how Brandon Smith and Mark Spader are looking at things, but Spader is a little more cautious after back-to-back thrashings from Boyle County, which drubbed the Purples 31-0 on September 17, followed by a 38-14 defeat at the hands of Father Ryan, a private school in Nashville.
Plus, the Purples have been breaking in freshman quarterback Deuce Bailey, while Smith can count on the leadership and experience of Caden Veltkamp, a 6-foot-5 verbal commit to Western Kentucky University.
“I’m a little worried about our confidence,” Spader said. “We’ve taken our lumps the last two weeks. Nobody’s really happy in our house right now. We’ve been pretty grumpy around here.
Brandon Smith said it’s been business as usual on the South Warren campus, but no one has to remind the Spartans what happened the last time the teams squared off 13 months ago.
“The week’s gone as we expected,” Smith said. “The motivation is there. It’s just about focus, and making sure we are focused on us.”
No problem, according to South Warren defensive tackle Jake Jackson, an exceptional run defender. Senior running back Travis Moore, a converted linebacker, leads the Purples with 339 yards rushing with two touchdowns.
“I mean, it’s Bowling Green,” Jackson said. “If you lose to them, they’ll let you know about it. I really think our practices tell us a lot about how we’ll play in the game.
“I think it’s about maintaining focus, the entire game. Keeping up the intensity. Minimizing the mistakes.”
BGHS defensive end Davis Moran, a 6-foot-1, 215-pound senior, said some of his younger teammates will have an indoctrination by fire in the early going against South Warren. How they react, Moran believes, could have a lot to do with the outcome.
“A lot of our guys here haven’t experienced a game like this,” Moran said. “Or they’ve just been on the sideline. We’ve just got to minimize the distractions and be ready to play.”
Veltkamp has passed sparingly at times, but he’s completed 55 of 81 passes for 733 yards and nine touchdowns. He’s been intercepted four times while rushing for five TDs. Bailey, meanwhile, has completed 34 of 72 passes for 330 yards and three touchdowns since taking over for senior BGHS quarterback Spencer Newman. Bailey has been intercepted three times while rushing for 116 yards and one score.
“You’ve got to bring something physical in a game like this,” Spader said. “There’s nothing soft about this game.”
