[RunItUpTheGut]

I will start out with a WAY EARLY mountain top 10 without much knowledge.
This is just a guesss as to what i seen last year and what we can expect this year.
Keep in mind, this is way early, and other people will know more about a lot of the teams than i do, so ill start out a top 10 and maybe we can all use our knowledge to try and garner up a top 10 preseason ranking.

1. Bell County (I know, Belfry was one point a way from a state championship over a team that shut Bell out. BUT, Belfry should look at this as a challenge to keep winning and wait until Bell falls, which is possible thiss year. Strictly going by mountain football, Bell hass only lost to 4 mountain teams since the 2000 season. Prestonsburg once, Corbin once, Whitley County once, and Rockcastle County a few times. Im surprised to see how Wayne Mills keeps that program running now that Bell is left with a few question marks. Davenport is gone, yet Polley returns as one of the most underrated players in the mountains. I dont think Bell will dominate mountain teams like they have in the past in 2012, but i fully expect them to be in the mix come next Novemeber.)

2. Belfry (A 1B. team if you will, Belfry was about 2 or 3 minutes away from capturing another title under one of the best high school football coaches this state has ever seen.There are a lot of Belfry posters on this site that can provide a lot more in depth detail of that team than i can ever do, but from what ive read and seen, this team returns a good group of players that may send them back to Bowing Green next December. Can we get lucky enough to settle this Bell/Belfry 1/2 debate next December? One can only hope!)

3. Harlan County (We all know what coach Larkey is capable of making something out of nothing. But dont think Harlan County is starting from scratch this year. This team brings back loads of talent and while players like Mcmillan and Brewer are extremely hard to replace, there are some big time players that could step up and finish what they started last year. In order to make it out of this eastern side of 5A and to stand any chance of competing with the likes of western schools like John Hardin and Bowling Green, there definitely going to have to find ssome kind of balanced offense that can keep defenses guesssing as to what there going to do. I expect nothing less from a Larkey coached team and with the excitement of actually having there own stadium to play in this year, great things could come out of Harlan County)

4. Breathitt County (With a team that played Belfry with everything they had, Breathitt County ended the season with 1 loss this year and with a boatload of players returning, one thing remains at Breathitt County and that is some good talent. With only around 10 seniors gone, Breathitt returns about 17 or 18 seniors to step up and fill the void that this years graduating class left, especially on offense. I fully expect it to be another Belfry/Breathitt showdown come November to decide whos going to Bowling Green. Can they take down mighty Belfry? I leave that one to be determined.)

5. Whitley County (As most of you know, i know more about Whitley than anyone else. This past year i knew we'd struggle. A team filled with freshmen and sophomores, with a schedule that includes Bell, Boyle, Somerset, and Harlan County, things looked bleak heading into the 2011 campaign. But some bright spots occured that i wasnt expecting. A surprise win over Somerset, a 1 point loss to a very good Perry Central team and a hard fought game against Bell, made me a believer coming into this year. With a young team also comes dissapointment like blow out losses to Boyle and Harlan County and awful games against SW and Letcher makes me hope weve learned our lesson. With every skill player returning the key to this team will be A. Can we find 5 guys to go up front who can handle the void left by 4 senior offensive lineman lost to graduation, including a tigh end? and B. Are we ready for the level of play that this schedule brings? Whitley returns a sophomore QB who came out of nowhere to start last year and seemed like his was finally coming into his own at seasons end, and a senior fullback in Bryant who gained multitudes of respect for his determination for going the extra mile just to get another yard or two.)

6. Hazard (The little engine that could and DID. You cant say enough about this years 1A state champions. I dont think Mayfield or anybody for that matter knew Hazard would be holding there first state championship trophy at seasons end last year. Hazard lost some great players due to graduation such as Blanton and Combs who really made Hazard stand out. Things will be harder this year for the Dawgs as teams like Pikeville and Wburg will be there trying to do the same things again that they couldnt accomplish last year. And as the saying goes, to be the best you have to beat the best and as of right now, Hazard was this years 1A state champions.)

7. Prestonsburg (To be honest, i think this team was setting back waiting for this year. They took some bumps and bruises this year but return boatloads of talent to retake that 2A mountain title. With all the players Leslie County lose I dont think many teams are going to step up and challenge Pburg. Someret seems like a healthy foe for Pburg, but time will only tell with that one)

8. Somerset (Some of you can help me out with the Pburg-Somerset dilemma. I went with Pburg simply because of everything they return although i could be dead wrong. Somerset seems to be a team that can really play some ball every year on a consistent basis. Being able to watch them first hand this year made me realize just how good a 2A team can be. Maybe they should be ranked ahead of Pburg, so ill leave that one up to you all.)

9. Williamsburg (This team is LOADED down with talent that could dethrown Hazard in there first year as defending state champs. With a sophomore QB who last year led 1A in yards, along with the fact they only lost 3 players to graduation makes me have high expectations for Wburg not only this year but in 2013 as well. This team improved each week threw the entire year and will be ready to make some noise. Coach Herron is another very underrated coach who fields a good 1A football team every year and this year things may finally fall in place to get Wburg to Bowling Green. I thought Wburg could compete last year and they did, but they were just overmatched against Hazard. This year, things will be even tougher as a trip to Hazard will most likely be in store come late November, but dont be surprised to see Wburg only lose 1 or 2 games this year.)

10. Pulaski County (If theres one team that seems to bounce back and be a thorn in everyones side in 5A's region four every other year, its Pulaski County. This team was beaten this year by teams that i fully believe Pulaski County can come back and beat. With all they have returning, the two 5A districts in the mountains could honestly come down to a surpising team coming out of nowhere to take the crown.

Other teams barely off my list....

Johnson Central (With the loss of Jude, does this team completely dimantle this year, or do they still have the tools to keep that winning tradtion alive. I know one thing, id feel good knowing Matney is leading the way.

Pikeville (You gotta love Pikeville football. Time and time again there overlooked by big brother Belfry while holding there own each and every year and always being in the hunt for a region title)

Perry Central (This team didnt lose as much as you think. While Robinson and Huff are gone, there still and Robinson left who could be one of the top players in the mountains as well a great recieving core to go with it. Can they find someone to get the ball to that recieving core?)

Southwestern (One game away from a state championship appearance, SW fought through a rough in-team struggle as well as switching coaches mid way threw the season only to see there season ended by a good Anderson County team one week before the state championship)

Rockcastle County (Man, i was high on this years Rock team. A play here and there and a injury or two IMO kept Rock from competing when it came to playing the top notch 4A teams that that district has to fool with in the playoffs.

Knox Central (this team lost a lot. Its that simple. A down year is likely, but i wouldnt be surprised to see them make an upset or two happen.)