Almost everyone connected with the Russellville football program knows the bloodline of senior Barrett Croslin, a three-year starter at quarterback for the Panthers.
In addition to being a key member of the Logan County Little League All-Stars who reached the Little League World Series five summers ago and being a starter for the Panthers in baseball since the eighth grade and in basketball most of his high school career, Croslin is the grandson of Ken Barrett, who coached the Panthers to three state football championship from 1980-90. He is the son of Ronnie “Pee Wee” Croslin, a standout athlete for the Panthers in the 1970s. Two of his uncles, Mike and Mark Wilson, were rugged athletes for RHS, and another, Keb Barrett, quarterbacked RHS to its first state football championship in 1980. Barrett Croslin has done about half of his quarterbacking on Ken Barrett Field.
What is not widely known is that the quarterback for the Mayfield Cardinals—the team the Panthers face Friday night for the regional Class 1-A championship—also has a Russellville heritage. Jake Guhy, who is 39-3 the last three years as Cardinals’ signal caller, is the grandson of RHS graduate Lana Poindexter Buchanan. Her daughter, Mitzi Guhy, is not only Jake’s mom, but also the mother of Jake’s older brother Luke, who was the Mayfield quarterback the previous three seasons. Luke had a 28-2 record in his final two seasons. His junior year the Cardinals went 13-2, finishing as state runner-up. In his last game at the MHS helm, he quarterbacked Mayfield to a 47-6 win over Hazard in the state finals to finish 15-0.
So in the last five seasons, Lana Poindexter’s grandsons have quarterbacked the Cardinals to a combined record of 67-5 with two state championships and two runner-up slots.
The connection continues. Russellville head coach John Myers was an assistant coach at Mayfield early in his career. His wife Jennifer, who now teaches at Stevenson Elementary, taught Luke Guhy in the second grade at Mayfield.
Will Jake add a fifth state finals to the Guhy legend and legacy? The Russellville Panthers will have a lot to say about that. RHS (10-2) is ranked second in the state. Number one? Mayfield, of course.
Russellville showed a large crowd at Mayfield four weeks ago that it could play on even terms with the Cardinals. The Panthers jumped out to a 14-0 lead early and were marching toward a third score when Croslin’s pass into the end zone was intercepted and returned to midfield. That was the first of five turnovers for the Panthers, and Coach Joe Morris’ Cardinals turned them into 35 points in a 42-21 win. That victory not only sealed the district championship for Mayfield but also secured home field advantage in this regional championship game.
“We know that we have to take care of the football if we are going to win,” says Myers. “Of course, they made three turnovers in that game, and I know they’re preaching ball control, too.”
Myers said the Panthers have added some new wrinkles on defense that he believes can slow the Cardinals down. Veteran coach Gwynne Gaddie is the RHS defensive coordinator, just as he was when Keb Barrett led the 1980 Panthers to the state championship.
In two playoff games, Russellville has outscored Kentucky Country Day and Bardstown Bethlehem 105-20 while Mayfield has crushed Caverna and Louisville Holy Cross 92-14. The Panthers have outscored their 12 opponents by 356 points this season, (42.8-13.2 per game), which is the largest margin in Class A. Mayfield has scored 324 points more than its opponents. Three other teams have better than a 300-point differential, including Bethlehem, the team Russellville beat 50-14 last week.
Points may be a little more difficult for Russellville to come by this week, and not just because Mayfield is the opponent. Star running back Demarcus Hampton, who has rushed for some 1,200 yards and 15 touchdowns this season, may not be able to play Friday. He injured his foot in the first half last week, and hasn’t been able to practice since.
“He couldn’t go Wednesday. His foot just wasn’t ready,” Myers says. “We’ll have to see what it feels like Friday.”
The good news is that junior Coco Darden, who hasn’t played much offense for three weeks after reinjuring a knee, is improved and could play on both sides of the ball against Mayfield. He’s made up for not being a ball carrier the past couple of weeks by taking blocked punts back for touchdowns in both games.
Game time is 7 p.m. John Brett Reynolds and Alex Watkins are expected to call the game on 610 WRUS with Countdown to Kickoff beginning at 6:30. Halftime commentary will come from Kige Ramsey.