Cinderella arrives at the Ball, Fort Campbell upends Madisonville-North Hopkins

Falcons pull off incredible and improbably upset

JaCaryous (JP) Perryman had an incredible night and his team and he pulled off an incredible upset over a team which came into the game more than 50-point favorites to beat them. Madisonville-North Hopkins was a ranked 5A team and included among the Commonwealth’s top 25 teams by everyone. Fort Campbell had come off back to back Friday night losses to Hopkins County Central and Trigg County, the former a 59-6 loser to North Hopkins on September 6, 2024. We can’t put into the words the gargantuan nature of this win by the Falcons.

HB Lyon, Scouting Director, KPGFootball

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Famous Tampa Bay (and University of Southern California) former coach, John McKay, once said after his team suffered yet another loss, “We didn’t tackle well today; but, we made up for it by not blocking.” We don’t know, but imagine, North Hopkins head ball coach, Chris Price, might say something similar to us this morning were we to ask.

We started off this article with this because it is funny; but, it also explains how when two teams enter the field of battle, either of them could emerge the winner. This is an important lesson for high school players who seem, all too often, to surrender before the opening kick-off.

There have been lots of examples of this very phenomenon.

Y.E. Yang bested the game’s most dominant player, Tiger Woods, at the PGA Championship, in 2009.

Our U.S. Olympic hockey team vanquished the Soviet Union in the Winter Olympics, 1980 in spite of no one in the know giving them any chance to succeed.

Appalachian State went into “The Big House” and beat Michigan in 2007 in a football game still being referenced in college football circles.

Little Centre College and its “Praying Colonels” beat a Harvard team which was both top-ranked and undefeated over a three year period in front of 41,000 fans at the Polo Grounds in New York City, 6-0, in 1922. That score, 6-0, is still written in chalk on the side of the Centre College post office across the street from the Phi Delta Theta house and has been for the last 102-years.

All of these are fine examples of the principle you have to be ready to play every time out; but, none of them are any finer of an example than Fort Campbell beating Madisonville-North Hopkins on Friday night. Allow us to set the scene.

Fort Campbell was winless entering the night. They had dropped consecutive games to Northwest High (Clarksville, TN), Hopkins County Central, and Trigg County.

Madisonville-North Hopkins was undefeated. They had boat raced a highly regarded 3A power (Union County, 34-6), Caldwell County in Princeton, KY (52-14), and Hopkins County Central (59-6).

North Hopkins was ranked among Kentucky’s top-10, 5A teams and listed among Kentucky’s top 25 programs, Commonwealth-wide, regardless of classification. The chances Fort Campbell beats the Maroons, entering the night? Slim to none, and Slim had hopped a train headed to parts unknown.

We discussed this on the show, “Friday night, Kentucky.” There is a link up above for your convenience. Feel free to listen.

Scott Fitzgerald and I discussed the concept of Cinderella, the fictional character who comes to the Ball, uninvited, and walks off with the Prince, the trappings of royalty, and happiness forevermore.

As discussed, not all Cinderellas end up with the Prince. Most Cinderellas get to the ball and end up going home with the busboy from the catering company. Still, a pretty good time; but, not the trappings of royalty and the happiness forevermore scenario.

Christian County went on the road to South Gibson (Medina, TN) and played a Hornets squad as good as any team which had drubbed the Colonels in its previous two games. The Colonels took a lead into the 4th-Quarter.

While the Colonels fell short by not quite jumping over its hurdle; they were led to the hurdle with a chance for glory. Perhaps the Colonels will cross the threshold the next time it finds itself in that position.

Fort Campbell found pay-dirt. Perryman dashed to the end zone, on the only leg we are told he had left, for the game-winning two-pointer with 43-seconds left on the clock. In so doing, this Cinderella found its Prince of a victory.

Fort Campbell gave all of those KHSAA teams out there, with tall orders remaining on its remaining schedules, something none of them had before this last Friday night. Hope!

This is Friday Night Fletch, reporting for KPGFootball, reminding you to PLAY THROUGH THE WHISTLE!

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