The Woodford County High School football team closed out the regular season with a 45-0 shutout victory over the Ballard Bruins on Friday, Oct. 30, at Community Stadium.
For the Yellow Jackets, the win was another strong performance by a defense that has been among the best in the state all season. Woodford has allowed just eight points over its last two games, building momentum heading into the playoffs, which begin Friday night at home against Scott High School.
Woodford held Ballard to just 31 yards of total offense and two first downs. The Bruins finished with minus-4 rushing yards and had 13 rushing plays that resulted in negative yardage.
Woodford coach Dennis Johnson said his team took pride in keeping the Bruins off the scoreboard, particularly with younger players getting opportunities late in the game.
“That’s a big deal,” Johnson said. “They don’t like giving up points. We put some of the young guys in there, and they came in and did a good job. We wanted to keep that shutout because Ballard has put up some points against other teams. It was good for us.”
The game got off to a slow start, with both teams trading punts before Woodford’s offense began to find its rhythm late in the first quarter.
Johnson credited Ballard’s defense for making things difficult early.
“Look, I respect their defense,” Johnson said. “I watched them against some really good teams, and those teams would get some chunk plays, but they couldn’t consistently drive the ball against them. We finally picked things up and started doing what we needed to do. We just started a little slow.”
JT Jackson broke free for a 20-yard gain to move the ball near midfield. A pass interference penalty against Ballard moved the Yellow Jackets closer to the red zone before quarterback Foxx Coons connected with Greyson Hodge for a first down as the opening quarter came to a close.
Aidyn Powell capped the drive with a touchdown run up the middle, breaking multiple tackles on his way to the end zone. Cash Wolfe added the extra-point to give Woodford a 7-0 lead.
Woodford’s defense took control on Ballard’s next possession. Jordan Holman brought down the Bruins’ quarterback for a sack and a loss of approximately eight yards. On the following play, Darrian Tomlin stuffed a quarterback sneak at the line of scrimmage, forcing another Ballard punt.
The Yellow Jackets took over near midfield and went to the air. Coons connected with Hodge for another first down before Ryan Brown powered through a hole in the offensive line and carried the ball inside the Ballard 5-yard line.
Coons found Omari Jointer for a 5-yard touchdown pass, extending Woodford’s lead to 14-0.
The Yellow Jackets’ defense struck again on Ballard’s next possession. Tomlin recovered a fumble on a backward pass and returned it for a touchdown, pushing the lead to 21-0.
Tomlin said the shutout carried additional significance because it marked the final regular-season game for Woodford’s seniors.
“We knew we had to make a statement in this game,” Tomlin said. “The younger guys knew they owed it to us because they would want people to do the same for them.”
After the Bruins turned the ball over on downs near midfield, Woodford wasted little time adding to its advantage. Coons found David Jones Jr. in stride for a 37-yard touchdown pass, sending the Yellow Jackets into halftime with a 28-0 lead.
Woodford forced another Ballard punt to open the second half. Coons completed passes to Jointer, Jones and Hodge on the ensuing possession, but the drive stalled on a turnover on downs.
The Yellow Jackets’ defense quickly forced another punt, and Jace Carroll entered the game at quarterback. Carroll completed passes to Kael Rihtar and Jones before a big run by Jackson helped set up a Wolfe field goal, extending Woodford’s lead to 31-0.
Wyatt Peters intercepted a Ballard pass on the Bruins’ next possession, recording his seventh interception of the season. The total tied Peters for the state lead among defensive backs.
Coons returned at quarterback and connected with Jointer for a first down at the Ballard 25-yard line. Brown then carried the ball to the 1-yard line before finishing the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run, giving Woodford a 38-0 advantage.
Brown said the regular-season finale was an opportunity for the Yellow Jackets to demonstrate what they are capable of heading into the postseason.
“Man, we just really had to show everybody what we’re capable of and what we can do moving forward,” Brown said.
Carroll returned to lead the offense and connected with Zach Fugate for a touchdown pass to account for Woodford’s final points of the night.
Coons credited the defense for its performance while acknowledging the offense still has areas to improve.
“The defense played amazing,” Coons said. “The offense has a couple of things we could have worked on, but a shout-out to the defense for putting up the shutout today.”
With the regular season complete, Woodford now turns its attention to the postseason and a home match-up with Scott High School.
Johnson said the Yellow Jackets understand the importance of maintaining their focus, regardless of the opponent.
“They know the ultimate goal, right? You can’t take a week off because you think the opponent is going to be weak,” Johnson said. “You’ve got to prepare the right way and get ready to go.”
Johnson also emphasized the importance of keeping his team healthy as the playoffs begin.
“Injuries are always a concern, so we’re trying to protect some of our guys and get them healthy because, hopefully, after round one, we’ve got to go play,” Johnson said. “We’re really focused on the job at hand, and we always talk about the details.”
Tomlin echoed his coach’s message about maintaining the same preparation that carried the Yellow Jackets through the regular season.
“I think we’ve got to go in and prepare the same way we’ve prepared the whole season,” Tomlin said. “These last few games, they really meant something to us, and we were able to ball out.”
For Coons, the postseason represents an opportunity for the Yellow Jackets to finish what they started a year ago.
“We wanted to finish on a good note,” Coons said. “Now we’ve got this next stretch of games, and we need to go finish what we didn’t finish last year.”
Woodford hosts Scott High School Nov. 6 with a 7:01 p.m. kickoff scheduled at Community Stadium.