Boyle County Football and the Hurdles of 5 Consecutive State Championships

written by Barry Bruington

As Boyle County is in the midst of the pursuit of their historic 5th consecutive state championship, let’s look back at the odd game that almost ended that run nearly a year ago.  On November 17, 2023 the Rebels faced the Corbin Redhounds in a quarterfinal playoff game that most Central Kentucky football fans felt was going to ultimately determine the state champion.

  The game was a hard fought battle between the two powerhouses.  Corbin seemed to be beginning to gain the momentum when something happened that I’ve never seen in my nearly 50 years of playing, coaching and broadcasting high school football. Corbin was called not once, not twice but three times for a rare hurdling penalty. A ball carrier can legally hurdle a defender in professional football and wind up on Sportscenter but in high school it is a penalty. I had never seen it called once in a game and now it happened three times. Boyle County would go on to win 21-14.

  I’m not saying that it was an incorrect call but it was about as rare as seeing lightning strike three times in the same place. I’m a transplanted Boyle County fan and they have won a championship every year I have lived here and I love attending the games with my grandson. 90 percent of the games the last several seasons have been blowouts of epic proportions and I marvel at the fantastic program that I feel fortunate to support.

  If this season ends as many predict with Boyle County winning a historic fifth consecutive title, I’ll remember the very few games where they have been challenged, including that strange triple hurdling game. Go Rebels!