When the Russellville Panthers entertain Trigg County at newly and lavishly renovated Rhea Stadium Friday, a trio of coaching legends will be honored along with homage being paid to the longevity of the program.
Those coaches are Ken Barrett, Buddy Linton and Howard Wren. Players who helped the Panthers to some highly significant wins will be on hand. And it will be noted that the final game of last season was the 1000th in Panther football history.
This will be the ninth annual Linton-Wren Kickoff Classic. The name was chosen to honor the late Howard Wren and Buddy Linton, who were Panther football stars,high-ranking administrators in the school system, and assistants whom Coach Barrett relied on during his teams’ remarkable run in the eighties and nineties.
This will be a special night for all Panthers as they pay tribute to Coach Ken Barrett, who passed away last month at the age of 93. He was the RHS head coach for 22 seasons and led the Panthers to State Championships in 1980, ‘83 and ‘90. He was the Kentucky State Coach of the Year in 1984 and continued to support his Panthers long after he retired after the 1997 season. The football field on which the game will be played is named for him.
Coach Barrett was head coach of over 25 percent of those games and is, of course, the winningest coach in Panther football history. See a list of all Russellville head football coaches and their won-lost records at the end of this article.
The tribute to Coach Barrett will take place before the game. The 1000th game will be observed at halftime.
Playing Trigg County in this game is fitting. Not only are the Wildcats one of the Panthers’ oldest rivals, but Ken Barrett was the Trigg County coach before accepting the RHS job. Also, Rex Booth—who was the RHS principal when that millennial game was played last November—is now the Trigg County superintendent.
Greg Owens is the historian of Russellville football, having done countless hours of research. The following information is a result of that work done by a dedicated alumnus:
RHS Football History
“We are very proud of our Panthers and grateful to all those that have supported them,’ says Owens, who organizes most athletic alumni recognitions for his alma mater. “Please join us this Friday night as we recognize many of our former Panther players, teams, coaches, cheerleaders and supporters.”
In 1935 when the Russellville Board of Education approved varsity football for RHS, there were only 38 boys in grades 9-12. Thirty three signed up to play, beginning one of the greatest high school programs in Kentucky.
On Nov. 3, 2023, the Panthers played their 1,000th football game. Through that period the Panthers have won 550, lost 431 and tied 19, playing mostly against schools with much larger enrollments.
RHS football has named15 head coaches, many using Russellville as a springboard to go on to many special opportunities and holding a special place in their hearts for their time here and some that just retired here.
To date, the Panthers have captured 23 District Championships, 14 Regional Championships, 8 SKY Conference Championships, 7 Western Kentucky Conference Championships, 4 Class A State runners-up and 3 Class A State Championships.
Russellville produced the state’s longest winning streak at the time of 24 games during the 1983 and 84 seasons. The 1950 team finished the season undefeated and was ranked #2 in the entire state overall (there was no classification system then). The 1954 Panthers finished in the top 12. This was before the playoff system started in 1959. RHS football has finished the regular season undefeated three times in 1950,1966 and 1984,
Five different Head Coaches, Waymond Morris, "Stumpy" Baker, John Myers and Mikie Benton named State Coach of the Year in their class with Ken Barrett being named Kentucky State Coach of the Year overall in 1984.
In its long history of a winning tradition, Russellville has produced many outstanding players. A total of 149 Panthers have been named honorable mention All State, some multiple times. Being a Class A school to have 13 players named third team All State, 8 players named second team All State and 13 named first team All State overall is a tremendous accomplishment. In addition many Panthers earned All SKY and All WKC during their time as Panthers. Other publications like the Associated Press and United Press International among others have honored many of our Panthers as well.
Coaches’ Records
RHS football coaches’ records and win milestones
1935-36, Coach Lucien Squier, 6-12-1, 19 games
1937-43, Coach Elvis Donaldson, 27-32-7, 66 games
1944-45, Coach Ben Parker, 6-13, 19 games
1945-47 and 1952-58, Coach Harold Hunter, 54-38-6, 98 games
1948-50, Coach Jimmy Haynes, 25-6, 31 games
1951, Coach Joe Russell, 2-8, 10 games
1959, Coach Joe Jake, 1-9, 10 games
1960-64, Coach Waymond Morris, 33-22-3, 58 games
1965-69, Coach Stumpy Baker, 32-19-2, 53 games
1970-71, Coach Jim Gladden, 14-8, 22 games
1972-75, Coach Wayne Shewmaker, 17-24, 41 games
1976-97, Coach Ken Barrett, 162-103, 265 games
1998-2003, Coach Bob Nelson, 24-40, 24 games
2004-17, Coach John Myers, 118-57, 175 games
2018-2023, Coach Mikie Benton, 29-40, 69 games
Total through 2023: 550 wins, 431 losses, 19 ties, 1000 games
Century Games
#100, 1945, defeated Franklin 32-0
#200, 1955, defeated Glasgow 27-0
#300, 1964, defeated Warren County 45-0
#400, 1973, defeated Crittenden County 32-6
#500, 1982, lost to Allen County-Scottville 7-12
#600, 1990, defeated Todd Central 28-12
#700, 1998, defeated McLean County 28-21
#800, 2007, defeated Hart County 34-14
#900, 2015, lost to Franklin-Simpson 12-34
$1000, 2023, lost to Louisville Holy Cross 12-49
“We are very proud of our Panthers and grateful to all those that have supported them,’ says Greg Owens, who organizes most athletic alumni recognitions for his alma mater. “Please join us this Friday night as we recognize many of our former Panther players, teams, coaches, cheerleaders and supporters.”
The artwork depicting Coach Barrett looking over the familiar rock walls of Rhea Stadium and what’s going on below on the Ken Barrett Field turf. It was created by local artist Sonny Green, who was an all-state kicker faor Barrett during a state championship season and the 24-game win streak.
Green says, “This is a print that I did of Coach Barrett back in 1996. Coach Barrett also signed these prints in the lower left portion of the print. I have a few of these prints still available. The prints measure 16 X 20 and the price is $20. All the money will go to The R Club in honor of Coach Barrett. If interested in a print just message me.”
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