Boyle County Outlasts Corbin in a Classic for Third Straight 4A Title
If you wanted high-level football, you got it Friday night.
The 12-2 Boyle County Rebels and undefeated 14-0 Corbin Redhounds went to war against each other for 48 wet, grueling minutes Friday night to cap the day’s slate of games. The Rebels got the best of the Redhounds once again. A rushing touchdown from Kentucky Football commit Tommy Ziesmer with nine minutes remaining broke a 26-26 tie and propelled the Rebels to their third consecutive Class 4A State Championship title.
Corbin and Boyle County are both top teams in the state and deserved to win a state title; however, only one can win. Boyle head coach Justin Haddix wins his third state title in his third season at Boyle County and has established a dynasty in his short time in Title Town.
Pre-Game Hype
To say there was a lot of hype for this game would be an understatement. It was all anyone could talk about all day Friday. Fans of high school football around the state gathered at Kroger Field and around their television sets to witness this one.
This game featured maybe the most intriguing storyline of the entire weekend. Boyle County coach Justin Haddix served as the head coach at Corbin from 2014-2019 before accepting the Boyle job prior to the 2020 season. Tom Greer, Haddix’s DC from 2014-2018, was hired as Corbin’s new head coach after his departure. These two men still remain very close to each other.
After the game Friday night, Coach Greer said, “[Haddix] and I coached together for six years. We talked out there in the tunnel and I said ‘Justin, I love ya.’ He said, ‘I love you too coach.” That’s what it’s about.”
Obviously, a lot of mutual respect between these two men.
Both Teams Come out Swinging
Boyle received to start the game and decided they were going to dictate the pace of play.
The Rebels’ first drive lasted nearly seven and a half minutes and ended with a Sage Dawson touchdown pass to offensive tackle Cooper Brummett. This was Brummett’s first reception of the season. On Corbin’s first possession of the night, a 24-yard rush from Corbin senior Cameron Combs put the Redhounds in the Redzone. Sophomore quarterback Kade Elam threw a bullet pass to freshman receiver Eli Pietrowski from four yards out for the duo’s third touchdown connection of the season.
Two possessions, two scores.
After a quick Boyle County three and out, Kade Elam found receivers Carter Stewart and Hunter Newberry for 30-yard gains to set the Redhounds up in a great scoring position.
Elam snuck into the endzone for his 13th rushing touchdown of the season, giving Corbin a 13-7 lead with 8:37 remaining in the second quarter.
Once Corbin went up 13-7, Boyle County scored touchdowns on their next four possessions.
Welcome to the Avery Bodner Show
It took just one minute for the Rebels to answer Elam’s rushing touchdown.
The Rebels’ leading rusher Avery Bodner took the direct snap and found their leading passer Sage Dawson across the middle for a 24-yard touchdown.
After forcing a Corbin punt, the Rebels controlled the rest of the quarter.
They drained the remaining four minutes and scored on an Avery Bodner seven-yard rushing touchdown with 12 seconds remaining, giving themselves a 20-13 lead heading into the break. As Bodner slid across Kentucky’s checkerboard endzone, the clouds opened up and the rain began to pour even more.
Back and Forth Second Half
The Redhounds received to start the second half. Corbin converted two fourth-down conversions to get into scoring position. Elam snuck across the goal line once again for his second rushing touchdown of the game, knotting this one back up at 20.
Following Elam’s game-tying touchdown, Coach Greer decided to try and catch the Rebel Special Teams Unit off guard. Corbin kicker Jacob Baker tried an onside kick that was ultimately recovered by Boyle County after a dog pile from both teams.
This proved to be costly for the Redhounds, as Kentucky Football target Montavin Quisenberry made the Corbin defense look silly on a 21-yard rushing touchdown to put Boyle County back in front. Quisenberry showed Friday night why he is one of the most electrifying, promising young players in the entire state of Kentucky.
This run fired up the Boyle County faithful, but they were quickly silenced.
In what was a total breakdown by the Rebel defense, Corbin’s Brody Wells found himself wide open down the sideline. Elam hit the senior receiver in stride for a 56-yard touchdown to knot this one back up. The PAT was blocked by Ziesmer.
Tommy Ziesmer Owns the Fourth Quarter
Boyle County senior Tommy Ziesmer has enjoyed a prolific high school football career.
In Ziesmer’s four seasons in Danville, he totaled 231 tackles, 54 TFL, 30 sacks, and 11 forced fumbles. The Kentucky Football commit wasn’t going out quietly Friday night.
After a grueling, ground-and-pound drive by the Rebel offense, Coach Haddix threw Ziesmer in the backfield and let him dominate. The three-star defensive end shed four tackles en route to his first-ever rushing touchdown. What a time for #1.
“I felt like a man, like a big dog,” Ziesmer said of his touchdown run after the game. “It was just crazy. I ran hard and got into the endzone.”
After putting his Rebels ahead 32-26 with nine minutes remaining, Ziesmer immediately contributed on the other side of the ball. No. 56 blew by a Corbin offensive lineman and dropped Elam for a 10-yard loss, notching Boyle County’s first sack of the game.
Following a Corbin turnover on downs with 1:43 remaining, Avery Bodner converted a 4th & 1 for the Rebels to put this game on ice. Two kneel downs sealed Corbin’s fate, as Haddix and the other Boyle coaches jumped with joy on the visitor’s sideline.
“Nobody picked us to win, not even KSR!”
Coach Haddix was very ecstatic following his third consecutive state title championship victory. He gave praise to the leadership of players such as Ziesmer, Bodner, Dawson, and Quisenberry.
“Very, very proud of these kids. What a ballgame! Everybody got their money’s worth tonight.”
While the Boyle presser was full of energy, the Corbin presser was the exact opposite.
Coach Tom Greer was flanked by senior leaders Brody Wells and Jacob Baker. These three men were very emotional about the loss. You can see how much this sport means to those guys and that community.
“We’re disappointed but I can tell you I’ve got 80 football players that are champions,” Coach Greer said after the loss. “These two guys are great leaders who left everything on the field tonight. We’ve got 16 seniors that are great leaders. We come in 14-0 after playing a great schedule and you hate to see it end for our seniors.”
Boyle County wins their third consecutive state championship game and 11th in school history. The Rebels overcame a fourth-quarter collapse against Lexington Catholic and a blowout loss to Frederick Douglass to win their final five games when they mattered most. The Rebels will return three of their top four players next season in Bodner, Dawson, and Quisenberry.
Corbin falls just short of their first state championship in 40 years, but they have a great future as well. Sophomore Kade Elam is one of the best young players in the state and will be one of the best quarterbacks in all of Kentucky next season.
The future is very bright for both of these teams. What a day of football. We get to do it all again on Saturday.
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