Best Bets: N. Kentucky – Week 11

It’s hard to find competitive games in the first round of the playoffs in Kentucky because of the four- and five-team district system, which lets teams with one or even zero wins qualify for the postseason.

But there should still be some games of interest in the Bluegrass State, and many more should follow in subsequent weeks as almost every team in the state kicks off its playoff season on Friday.

Here are the Best Bets for Northern Kentucky in Week 11:

Raceland (6-4) vs. Brossart (9-1) at Campbell County Middle School, 7:30 p.m. – This has been the most successful season in Brossart’s short history, now the Mustangs are looking for their first-ever playoff win. Brossart has had excellent balance, led by Frank Cetrulo’s team-best 846 rushing yards, 1,402 passing yards by QB Craig Pfefferman and four receivers over 200 yards. The Mustangs have allowed just 69.3 yards per game against the pass, although they haven’t faced many strong passing teams. Raceland does throw the ball some, as quarterback Nathaniel Davidson has passed for 1,012 yards, but the Rams run the ball a lot. Kane Snyder is the team’s main threat out of the backfield, as he is just 34 yards shy of 1,000. Advantage Brossart.

Kentucky Country Day (5-5) at Ludlow (6-4), 7:30 p.m. – Ludlow’s next win would give the team its highest victory total since 2004. QB Justin Blackburn leads the team in rushing with 1,138 yards and 13 touchdowns. His completion percentage isn’t great but he has 1,202 passing yards, and Kalib Mitchell leads the team with 474 receiving yards on just 18 catches. Kentucky Country Day gave Frankfort all it could handle two weeks ago in a nine-point loss. The Bearcats have four rushers between 300 and 500 yards on the ground, so they like to use several different ball carriers. The Panthers need to watch for Mitchell Collins, KCD’s receiving leader, who has just 25 catches but six have gone for TDs and he has 524 yards overall. This should be a good one between the second and third seeds in Class A.

Rowan County (5-5) at Scott (8-2), 7:30 p.m. – Scott somehow managed to finish the regular season 8-2 against a tougher schedule despite throwing for fewer than 70 yards per game. Roberto London has rushed for exactly 1,000 yards, and Deondre Pleasant has added 539 and averages over 10 yards a carry. The Eagles have been tough to run on, giving up only 107.5 ground yards per game. Rowan County throws the ball even less, so expect a quick game with lots of rushing. Blake Carver, Devin Helvey and Jeffrey Masters have all gained at least 500 rushing yards. This record-setting Scott team should live to play at least another week.

Covington Catholic (3-7) vs. Anderson County (5-5) at Dixie Heights, 7:30 p.m. – After years of hosting the only KHSAA game on Saturday because of its lack of lights, CovCath is playing on a neutral field on Friday this season in its opening-round game. The Colonels ended their regular season on a sour note, losing 56-35 to Scott County to equal their worst regular season since 2003. The good news for CovCath is QB A.J. Mayer – just a sophomore – has thrown for 420 yards and eight TDs the past two weeks. After a 3-0 start, Anderson County dropped five of its final seven. The Bearcats throw about 20 times a game and do not have a single rushing or receiving threat. CovCath should continue its streak of advancing to the second round of the playoffs.

Highlands quarterback Austin Hergott (Cathy Lachmann/TSF).

Woodford County (3-7) at Highlands (5-5), 7:30 p.m. – How many times in recent history has a Highlands first-round playoff game not been a sure thing? It wasn’t the toughest stretch of games, but the Bluebirds did win their final four games to get to .500. Austin Hergott has gotten better as the season has progressed, as he has now completed 54.6 percent of his passes and has thrown for 1,191 yards. Woodford County has trended the opposite direction, losing five straight after a 3-2 start. The Yellowjackets have a good balance offensively but are allowing 334 yards per game, including 193 on the ground. It should be a high-scoring game and Highlands should prevail.

Campbell County (1-9) at Conner (7-3), 7:30 p.m. – Conner will be the clear favorite, but at least this is a game between two local schools. The Cougars won, 36-14 when these teams met on Oct. 8, and the Camels had no answer for the passing game of Kyler Padgett, who threw for 266 yards and five TDs in that game. On the season, Padgett has 21 touchdown passes vs. just three picks, and he has thrown for 1,508 yards, with Isaiah Ebard hauling in 37 passes for 620 yards and eight scores. This has been the worst regular season for Campbell County since 2002, as the Camels are allowing 37.6 points per game. Campbell County’s run game has been almost non-existent, as the team is averaging fewer than 100 ground yards, with QB Carson Plessinger accounting for over 60 percent of that total. Conner advances, but the Camels keep this one closer than the records would indicate.

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