[EKUAlum05]

Also, I am wondering, is Harlan overrated or is Belfry underrated because I know that the Pirates are a fairly young team and Harlan was touted as one of the top 5A teams in the state.

Belfry is underrated. HCHS is for real...Belfry entered the game as being "for real with an asterisk". The knock on Belfry is youth and inexperience... tons of talent.. loaded at skill position...veteran QB who is smooth...everyone knows Belfry will be a beast at the end of the season.

The other thing was the misconception of the Somerset game. Everyone saw it and thought Somerset played them close..but in actuality Belfry dominated a good BriarJumper team. They gained over 400 yards on a veteran defense.. and aside from one big play and one drive Somerset's offense did absolutely nothing on them.

The one side of Belfry that is looking like a major improvement over last year is special teams. Wellman, the SOPH punter, is having an All-State season so far with 5 punts inside the 20 in two games and 3 Punts inside the 5. The Freshman PK Woolum has yet to miss an XP after a missed PAT cost Belfry the title last year.

Bottom line is it simply appears Belfry may be ahead of schedule becoming the team everyone expect them to be by about Week 7 or Week 8. No shame for HCHS.. Belfry has been playing at an elite level for the past couple years and the better part of a decade. As I said in the update thread "This ain't Bell County".. Belfry has been the class of EKY the past two seasons along with Johnson Central and it appears that may be the case again.

Harlan County needed this game. Belfry is a very complete team who plays with a Champion's swagger. You always know they will be fundamentally sound and will exploit your weaknesses. The Bears have work to do on Defense and their Offensive Line play needs to play up to their size. They are still my pick to reach Bowling Green and beat Bell County by 3-4 TD's. The HC/JC game will be a classic.