Kroger's Kentucky High School Football Rundown - Playoffs Round 2

Round two action of the 2023 Kentucky high school football playoffs is officially in the books. Half the field was eliminated from state title contention on Friday night, including four of KSR’s Top 25 teams. Next up: the quarterfinals. Only three more wins separate six schools from being crowned champions at Kroger Field.

There were plenty of high-profile round-two matchups across the state throughout Friday. A handful of Top 25 showdowns stole headlines, but KSR traveled out to Hart County in order to watch the No. 22-ranked Raiders take down Glasgow with a 28-21 win in the Kroger KSR Game of the Week.

KSR was also in Georgetown to witness Cooper upset No. 18 Scott County by a shocking score of 49-21. You can check out everything that happened in that one below, along with a full scoreboard rundown of all the games from Friday night.

We are proud to support local schools through Kroger Community Rewards. This includes up to 3.5 million in quarterly gifts to the non-profit of your choice. Sign up using your Kroger loyalty card at Kroger.com/communityrewards.

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Cooper Rolls No. 18 Scott County in Eye-Opening 2nd Round Victory

BY: Daniel Hager

The Cooper Jaguars are headed to the state quarterfinals of the Class 5A KHSAA Football Playoffs for the first time since 2015 following their 49-21 victory over No. 18 Scott County Friday night.

The Jaguars led from start to finish. They took a 7-0 lead just a minute in following a Scott County fumble on the first play from scrimmage and never looked back.

The Cooper Jaguars are heading to the Class 5A Quarterfinals.

Scott County, who many tabbed as favorites to win the 5A State Title, are headed home in the second round.

#18 Scott Co. 21 | Cooper 49 | FINAL pic.twitter.com/x7nIBqLKFg

— Daniel Hager (@DanielHagerKSR) November 11, 2023

In the opening round of last season’s Class 5A KHSAA Football Playoffs, Scott County steamrolled Cooper 56-20. That led to a little extra motivation for the Jaguars over the past week. Cooper sophomore QB Cam O’ Hara, who threw for 211 yards and three touchdowns, spoke on that following their victory. O’Hara currently holds offers from Kentucky, Miami (OH), Western Kentucky, and Austin Peay.

“It’s been an amazing week,” the young star said. “Last year, we got beat by them in the first round. It feels good to get revenge. We put in the work and the effort and this is what we deserve.”

All three of O’Hara’s touchdown passes were to junior TE/LB Austin Alexander. The six-foot-three, 240-pound nephew of Shaun Alexander finished with five receptions for 148 yards and three scores. Alexander, rated a four-star prospect by On3, currently holds offers from Power Five programs such as Kentucky, Tennessee, Notre Dame, Cincinnati, Wisconsin, and Louisville. Alexander spoke with KSR following Cooper’s big victory.

“It feels really good,” Alexander responded when asked about the win. “We knew we had a lot of players returning this year. We always take things one game at a time but inevitably we knew we’d come back to the Birds Nest and pick off Scott County. We’ve been working hard all year. We’ve had some highs and some lows but props to the boys for getting better and better each week.”

On the first play of the second half, @CameronOHara15 connects with @AAlexander2025 for a 70-YARD SCORE. The Jaguars are ROLLING in Georgetown.

#18 Scott Co. 7 | Cooper 28 | 11:40 3rd pic.twitter.com/BbjqJ9ME7W

— Daniel Hager (@DanielHagerKSR) November 11, 2023

Along with O’Hara and Alexander, sophomore RB Keagan Maher was a nightmare for the Scott County defense. Maher finished with 27 carries for 156 yards and three touchdowns. The Cardinals entered Friday night’s matchup allowing just 130 rushing yards per game to opponents.

With the 49-21 victory, Cooper head coach Randy Borchers notched his 13th playoff victory in his 15th year as head coach. Borchers has coached at Randall K. Cooper High since the school was established in 2008. He was on Cloud Nine following his team’s big victory in the Birds Nest.

“We played a complete game,” Borchers said. “I’m so proud of our guys. Earlier in the year we gave up 500 yards to a Highlands team and since that point, our kids have bought into what we want to do. We’ve been able to make some changes and that was a really good football team we played. We did a good job shutting them down and maintaining the running game. They hit some runs on us but our defense played a fantastic game tonight.”

Scott County touted the best-rushing offense in the state of Kentucky this season, averaging 301 rushing yards per game. Borchers’ defense held the Cardinals to just 164 rushing yards Friday night.

Cooper’s @KeaganMaher finds paydirt for the THIRD time today. This one from 15 yards out. 🗡️

#18 Scott Co. 21 | Cooper 49 | 5:55 4th pic.twitter.com/HasJreDxXz

— Daniel Hager (@DanielHagerKSR) November 11, 2023

To be frank, Friday night was a disaster for Jim McKee’s Cardinals. Touted by many as 5A State Championship favorites, Scott County melted down when it mattered most. After falling behind 49-21 with 5:55 remaining in the fourth quarter, multiple Scott County defensive players were ejected prior to Cooper’s extra-point attempt for jawing with referees. This led to a nearly eight-minute pause in action, where parents and coaches were asked to leave the premises as well.

This all culminated in an ugly brawl in the handshake line. It was a terrible, no good, very bad night for the Cardinals but a great night for the Cooper Jaguars, who are now lined up for a matchup with Southwestern next Friday night with a shot at the semifinals up for grabs.

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Kroger’s Scores From Around The State

Kroger is a staple in your hometown community just like high school football. There’s nothing quite like Friday nights in the Bluegrass. We are honored to share this journey with Kroger and you for the fourth consecutive season. Check out all of the scores from throughout the weekend below.

Friday, Nov. 10

Campbellsville	49	vs. Holy Cross (Louisville)	20	Class 1A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Kentucky Country Day	42	vs. Bethlehem	20	Class 1A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Ludlow	28	vs. Newport	6	Class 1A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Middlesboro	40	vs. Paintsville	14	Class 1A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Newport Central Catholic	43	vs. Dayton (at Dixie Heights)	19	Class 1A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 25 Pikeville	42	vs. Williamsburg	0	Class 1A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 24 Raceland	61	vs. Frankfort	19	Class 1A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Sayre	38	vs. Paris	12	Class 1A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 14 Beechwood	42	vs. Breathitt County	12	Class 2A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Green County	36	vs. Metcalfe County	28	Class 2A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 6 Lexington Christian	57	vs. Monroe County	14	Class 2A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Martin County	35	vs. Betsy Layne	6	Class 2A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 19 Mayfield	42	vs. Murray	20	Class 2A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 11 Owensboro Catholic	49	vs. Crittenden County (at Steele Stadium, KWC)	7	Class 2A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Shelby Valley	51	vs. Floyd Central	6	Class 2A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Somerset	57	vs. Leslie County	0	Class 2A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Bell County	24	at Belfry	22	Class 3A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Central	37	at Mercer County	0	Class 3A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 7 Christian Academy-Louisville	50	vs. Elizabethtown	8	Class 3A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
East Carter	20	vs. Lloyd Memorial	7	Class 3A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 22 Hart County	28	vs. Glasgow	21	Class 3A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 17 Lexington Catholic	48	vs. Russell	0	Class 3A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Rockcastle County	31	vs. Lawrence County	28	Class 3A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Union County	23	vs. Franklin-Simpson	22	Class 3A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Bardstown	51	vs. Logan County	48	Class 4A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 1 Boyle County	49	vs. Perry County Central	0	Class 4A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 2 Corbin	49	vs. Taylor County	14	Class 4A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 4 Covington Catholic	35	vs. No. 23 Ashland Blazer	28	Class 4A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 13 Franklin County	58	vs. North Oldham	0	Class 4A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Johnson Central	28	vs. Boyd County	14	Class 4A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 15 Paducah Tilghman	56	vs. Warren East	7	Class 4A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Spencer County	42	at DeSales	37	Class 4A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Atherton	21	vs. Butler	0	Class 5A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 20 Bowling Green	51	vs. Graves County	3	Class 5A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Cooper	49	at No. 18 Scott County	21	Class 5A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Fairdale	41	at Grayson County	22	Class 5A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 12 Highlands	40	vs. Dixie Heights	7	Class 5A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
North Laurel	42	at Madison Southern	6	Class 5A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Owensboro	53	vs. No. 21 South Warren	22	Class 5A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Southwestern	41	vs. Pulaski County	13	Class 5A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Ballard	48	at No. 9 DuPont Manual	42	Class 6A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals (double overtime)
No. 16 Bryan Station	43	vs. Tates Creek (at Lafayette)	10	Class 6A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Central Hardin	36	vs. Daviess County	6	Class 6A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 8 Frederick Douglass	50	vs. Madison Central	7	Class 6A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 3 Male	34	vs. Fern Creek	14	Class 6A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
McCracken County	38	at Henderson County	23	Class 6A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
Ryle	43	vs. Bullitt East	20	Class 6A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals
No. 5 Trinity (Louisville)	38	vs. No. 10 St. Xavier	14	Class 6A 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals