{"id":22630,"date":"2026-11-07T15:54:13","date_gmt":"2026-11-07T15:54:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/?p=22630"},"modified":"2026-11-08T04:45:04","modified_gmt":"2026-11-08T04:45:04","slug":"nick-at-nite-bowling-greens-nick-graham-zyrek-burton-power-purples-past-apollo-63-38","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/?p=22630","title":{"rendered":"NICK AT NITE\/Bowling Green’s Nick Graham, Zyrek Burton power Purples past Apollo, 63-38"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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BOWLING GREEN’s NICK GRAHAM FOLLOWS
TEAMMATES BROOKS NUCKOLS (No. 58)
AND MASON DEW (No. 52) INTO THE HOLE.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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BGHS WILL PLAY HOST TO MADISONVILLE-NORTH HOPKINS<\/strong> NEXT WEEK IN KHSAA CLASS 5A PLAYOFFS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Nothing came easily for Nick Graham and the Bowling Green High School football team on Friday night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Purples, sporting a four-game winning streak, played host to Owensboro’s Apollo High School in first-round play of the KHSAA Class 5A playoffs, and there were plenty of anxious moments for the home team on a chilly November night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bowling Green navigated each and every one of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Graham rushed for two touchdowns, one a dazzling 72-yard scoring run through the teeth of the Apollo defense, in the first half alone and the Purples pulled away in the second half to eliminate the Eagles, 63-38, at the BGHS Stadium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bowling Green improved to 7-4 overall, and the Purples will play host to Madisonville-North Hopkins (9-2) in second-round play next Friday. Senior quarterback Max Johnson, who turned in a splendid effort, and the Eagles finished their season at 5-6 overall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The BGHS defense made a couple critical stops in the third quarter, and freshman placekicker Kip Walden delivered two successful onside kicks, as the Purples took care of business on their way to the second round of the postseason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“In no way are we pleased with our game, overall, we’re moving on,” BGHS coach Mark Spader said. “We have another week to live …”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Green carried the ball 20 times for 250 yards and three touchdowns, while BGHS quarterback Anthony Davis passed for 191 yards and three scores himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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BGHS LINEBACKER WILSON MORAN (No. 28)
AND THE PURPLES WON THEIR FIFTH STRAIGHT.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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BGHS RECEIVER ISAAC WILSON HAD
TWO TOUCHDOWN RECEPTIONS.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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BOWLING GREEN COACH MARK SPADER
ADDRESSES HIS TEAM AFTER THE GAME.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Davis hit some deep balls against the Apollo secondary, as Johnson did for the Eagles. Davis found BGHS tight end Nick Gaithright for two touchdowns, and the slender left-hander found Izaak Wilson for a 30-yard TD pass in the final minute of the third quarter, extending the Purples’ lead to 49-32.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The BGHS defense struggled to generate a pass rush against Johnson in the first half, but the Purples changed that narrative in the game’s final 24 minutes. Johnson completed 25 of 42 passes for 428 yards and five touchdowns, while also adding 46 yards on the ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I think our kids adjusted their minds, defensively, and we got some stops,” Spader said. “Max Johnson is a really good quarterback. He was everything I expected, and more.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bowling Green’s Kip Walden, a freshman wideout\/placekicker, delivered the two critical onside kicks and connected on all nine of his extra-point attempts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the second half, Spader used BGHS senior running backs Nick Graham and Zyrek Burton as a tandem, which allowed the Purples to work on the clock while keeping Johnson on the Apollo sideline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We’re proud of all our running backs, but Nick just seems to be our bellcow,” Spader said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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BOWLING GREEN SENIOR RUNNING BACKS
NICK GRAHAM (LEFT) AND ZYREK BURTON.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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APOLLO’s JOHN MILBURN (No. 24)
HAD TWO TOUCHDOWN RECEPTIONS.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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THERE WERE SOME ANXIOUS MOMENTS
FOR BGHS COACH MARK SPADER
IN THE FIRST HALF FRIDAY NIGHT.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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BOWLING GREEN’s NICK GRAHAM
GETS A DRINK OF WATER AFTER
A DAZZLING 72-YARD TD DASH.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Graham and Burton said the BGHS seniors talked amongst themselves, at halftime, about the task in front of them, and the Purples responded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We came together, as a group,” Graham said. “The defense got it together, after the break, and I kind of just let the game come to me …”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Burton agreed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We knew we had to turn things around,” he said. “We knew we just had to lock in … We knew our season was on the line.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apollo’s John Milburn opened the scoring with a 5-yard touchdown run, with 8:07 left in the first quarter, but Graham broke off a 50-yard run on the Purples’ first play from scrimmage. Bowling Green converted a fourth-and-3 situation on Graham’s 10-yard run, before finding the end zone from 9 yards out. Apollo’s Ty Lillpop broke away for a 59-yard touchdown pass, putting the Eagles in front 14-7, but the Purples again responded, with Anthony Davis hitting senior tight end Nick Gaithright for a 12-yard TD pass with two minutes left in the first quarter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Graham’s sensational 72-yard touchdown run put the Purples in front, 21-14, but Johnson took the Eagles downfield before his swing pass to Apollo teammate Gabriel Jones resulted in a 2-yard touchdown catch. On the PAT try, however, Bowling Green’s Ayden Wickware broke through the protection to block the kick. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bowling Green’s Jett Reynolds extended the Purples’ lead to 28-20, on a 4-yard touchdown run in the final minute of the first half, but Apollo’s Max Johnson had excellent protection in getting his team in the end zone. Johnson got the ball to Apollo teammate Eli Williams in the back of the end zone for a 6-yard scoring pass, on the final play of the half.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But BGHS safety Embree Dotson came up with an interception at the goal line on the two-point conversion try, and the Purples took a 28-26 lead into the locker room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bowling Green’s Isaac Wilson had a 23-yard touchdown reception to open the second half, putting the Purples two scores in front, before BGHS senior Bode Knee recovered Kip Walden’s onside kick. Bowling Green couldn’t convert the special-teams breakthrough into points, however, and Apollo’s John Milburn scored on his second TD reception of the night to trim the Purples’ lead to three points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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BGHS SAFETY EMBREE DOTSON (No. 10)
AND THE PURPLES HAD THEIR HANDS FULL.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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BOWLING GREEN’s NICK GAITHRIGHT
SCORES ON A 12-YARD TD RECEPTION.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Again, the Eagles went for the two-point conversion, and BGHS defensive back Ayden Wickware broke up a pass at the goal line. Anthony Davis found BGHS tight end Nick Gaithright on a fourth-down pass, for a 10-yard TD reception, and the Purples defense kicked it into another gear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apollo coach John Edge had praise for both teams when it was over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I was proud of our team’s performance,” Edge told the Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer. “They had two huge onside kicks against us, and we didn’t get the stops after that. I’m proud of our seniors, and the season they had … A lot of exciting games, and overall, enjoyable kids to coach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Bowling Green is a great program. They will be a tough ‘out’ in (KHSAA Class) 5A.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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APOLLO QB MAX JOHNSON THREW
FIVE TD PASSES IN THE DEFEAT.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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NICK GAITHRIGHT AND
THE PURPLES IMPROVED
TO 7-4 ON THE SEASON.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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BOWLING GREEN WILL PLAY HOST
TO MADISONVILLE-NORTH HOPKINS
IN SECOND-ROUND PLAY ON FRIDAY.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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BGHS WILL PLAY HOST TO MADISONVILLE-NORTH HOPKINS NEXT WEEK IN KHSAA CLASS 5A PLAYOFFS Nothing came easily for Nick Graham […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":22646,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22630","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hsfootball","category-potpourri"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22630","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=22630"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22630\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22664,"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22630\/revisions\/22664"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/22646"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=22630"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=22630"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jimmashek.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=22630"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}