ASHLAND — At least Boyd County’s showing some passion, huh?

In his return, the Quarterback is going to ruffle some feathers isn’t he?

Look, I’m not condoning violence here. There’s a line that shouldn’t be crossed, and it was certainly crossed by both Shelby Valley and Boyd County in Friday night’s season opener.

In the third quarter, some pushing and shoving quickly escalated into an full-on brawl as coaches and officials were forced to intervene to make peace.

Five players were tossed, including three for the Lions.

Plus, it set off a flag-throwing frenzy that resulted in a ridiculous 15-penalty period.

The worst part of the whole scene was that youngsters in the crowd were watching, and throwing punches isn’t exactly the best way to set good examples on the field.

The second-worst part? Those three Lions must sit out Friday’s game against Morgan County.

But there’s always a lesson to be learned, and one can extract some positives out of this.

As losing has become common place in Cannonsburg, any past sign of fighting was typically a product of frustration.

On Friday, the Lions were heated, but not because they were trailing on the scoreboard. In fact, they were up 14-0.

Perhaps they were fighting for something more.

Maybe they were fighting for their coaches, community and even themselves because they know how important Friday nights are to those people.

However, it’s best to keep the aggression between the whistles.



Got any since?

‰Greenup County’s 27 points were the most scored by the Musketeers since ... Week 11, 2010. The Musketeers’ highest point total amid last year’s winless season was 18.

‰Fairview hasn’t lost its opening game since ... 2005. Paintsville got the best of the Eagles seven seasons back, but since then they’re a combined 7-0 in season openers (coming against Paintsville, Lewis County and West Carter).

‰Boyd County hasn’t opened a season 2-0 since ... 2005. The Lions have a chance to end that seven-year drought this week against Morgan County at home. The Cougars shocked the Lions last season with a lopsided 32-0 result.



Helmet Stickers

This sticker thing is carrying over into my personal life.

My wife and I are currently potty-training our 2-year-old daughter, and like all kids going through the process she’s had her good days and bad days. Yours truly decided just the other day — I was apparently already getting into QB mode — that he would employ a sticker system. Every time she potties with no accidents, a sticker is earned and she gets to place it anywhere she wants to on her little toilet.

Wow, I tend to get off track don’t I?

OK, flushing that down the drain, let’s see who the QB chooses as Week 1 recipients and who gets a head start on becoming the next sticker king. At the end of the season, someone will join the exclusive club along with Shane Pack (Lawrence County), Corey Lyle (Greenup County) and Sam Hunter (Ashland).

‰Four stickers: Cade O’Bryan (Ashland), Jeffery Williams (Greenup County), Adam Elkins (Raceland).

O’Bryan tallied two fumble recoveries for touchdowns in a single quarter. How often do you see that?

Williams racked up 230 yards and four touchdowns on the ground against Pike County Central, showing he may just be completely healed after a leg injury sidelined him for the bulk of last season.

Elkins looked on point as the junior completed 11 passes for 223 yards to go with 13 carries for 80 yards.

‰Three: Dylan Harris (Boyd County), Quinton Baker (Ashland), Daylin Beach (Raceland), Ashland’s offensive line.

‰Two: Chris Brewer (Fairview), Jason Smith (Boyd County), Shannon Justice (Ashland), Rodney Vance (Raceland), Devon Turner (Fairview).

‰One: Connor Messer (Raceland), Levi Clark (Lewis County), Cade Stidham (East Carter), Skyler Williams (Greenup County), Collin Smith (Boyd County).

Snyder’s Super Seven

As I’ve stated several times before, football is the toughest sport in which to rank area teams, a group that consists of every Kentucky team included in our annual preview issue. It’s difficult for two reasons: a) our area teams range from Class A to Class 4A; and b) not everyone plays one another.

With that in mind, here we go:

1. Ashland (1-0)

2. Johnson Central (1-0)

3. Fairview (1-0)

4. Russell (0-0)

5. Raceland (1-0)

6. Boyd County (1-0)

7. Rowan County (0-1)

QB’s quiz

If you saw Thursday’s edition, you know what this is. Here are the details:

Every Monday, the Quarterback will ask you a high school football trivia question. This column is posted online at 6 a.m. every Monday, and for quite a few subscription-holders, it’s delivered before that — those people have an advantage.

It doesn’t matter when you respond, but the earliest bird gets the worm.

The first person to correctly answer the question either by phone, email, Twitter or Facebook (post answer on The Independent page wall starting with “QB answer”), will be selected as the “Lucky Fan of the Week” and will participate in the weekly pick ’em with the staff and a member of radio row.

NOTE: The question will NOT be posted on Twitter or Facebook, unless this column is linked or shared on either one. You will have to either get a copy of the paper or read it on our website (www.dailyindependent.com) to see the question.

When answering, please identify yourself and leave contact information!

Winners cannot be selected more than once throughout the season.

Good luck!

Here’s question 1: 

‰Besides Ashland, which has had 22 head coaches since 1918, what area school has had the most head football coaches?

Tweet the QB

Follow the Quarterback on Twitter, @DindependentQB, for scores and news throughout the week.

Wide right

Did you miss it?

Here are local scores from this weekend: Ashland 51, Lawrence County 20; Boyd County 22, Shelby Valley 0; Raceland 38, East Carter 6; Fairview 42, West Carter 0; Pike County Central 35, Greenup County 27; Johnson Central 39, Hayesville (NC) 7; Nicholas County 32, Lewis County 16; and Montgomery County 25, Rowan County 16.

Noteworthy

Greenup County rushed for 376 total yards against Pike Central on Friday, and the Musketeers missed an extra point that would’ve tied the game at 28 apiece with five minutes left. While they eventually lost, 35-27, there’s a glimmer of hope for the young men in green and gold.

Despite having one of the top college prospects in the state in Clark Kissick, Bath County fell to Fleming County, 33-6, on Friday.

Note from the PG

The Point Guard is still awaiting official word from the school, but sources tell him that Fleming County basketball coach Brian Kelly has resigned. With big-time talent returning, the Panthers figure to be one of the favorites in the 16th Region heading into the 2012-13 season.

AARON SNYDER can be reached at asnyder@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2664.