Ashland’s football family lost one of its all-time receivers with the recent death of David Gifford, who fought his illness with the same ferocity he had on the field.

Gifford played three years for the Tomcats from 1983-85 with his last two years earning him All-State honorable mention honors. Few, if any, tight ends in Ashland history had the seasons he had his junior and senior seasons. He hauled in 36 passes for 541 yards and five touchdowns as a junior and topped that with 33 catches for 626 yards and six touchdowns as a senior.

He accomplished those numbers with two different quarterbacks – Chuck Broughton as a junior and Wes Morrison as a senior – and in a run-oriented offense of coach Vic Marsh.

Gifford had some huge individual games in both seasons, including seven catches for 122 yards and a pair of touchdowns in a 27-6 win over Clark County his senior season. He had three other games with four catches, including four for 90 yards and a TD in a 35-6 playoff loss to Boone County that ended his fabulous high school career.

As a junior, he had a seven-reception game for 120 yards in a heartbreaking 29-22 loss to Ironton and was strong in the playoffs that season, too, catching four passes for 46 yards in a 10-9 loss to Dixie Heights.

Gifford’s receiving numbers of 69 catches for 1,167 yards stood for years. What made it more astonishing was that it happened in the run-first offense. The Tomcats found ways to get the ball to Gifford, who could break tackles after making catches and had the speed to take them a long way. As good as he was on offense, Gifford was equally valuable as a defensive end and certainly would be in consideration asone of the Tomcats best all-around players.

Ashland was 7-5 in 1984 and 8-4 in 1985.

His playing career was far from over after high school. Gifford earned a scholarship to Morehead State University where Gifford played defensive end where he contributed immediately on special teams and alternated at defensive end. David Gifford was one fine football player along with being one fine man.

Last weekend while visiting in Ashland, I walked over to Putnam Stadium to peek inside to check on progress and saw David’s father, John, and his wife Mary who were driving around. He stopped and we talked, sharing some good memories of his son who was so highly thought of in the community. David’s death was not only a loss for the Ashland football community but for the entire area. John, who was an incredible youth league baseball and football coach in Ashland, said more than 500 paid their respects to his son at the visitation and funeral services.

Death of ‘Nuns’ tough loss for East Carter football family

Longtime loyal Raider Michael “Nuns” Nunley also passed away recently. He enjoyed life and especially East Carter football, said Garry McPeek, who coached the Raiders from 1989-1994. That’s where Garry came to know and love Nunley, who overcame a lot in his life.

“If you ever feel sorry for yourself, stop and take a look at how ‘Nuns’ lived. He was dealt a big bag of sour lemon and he just kept making lemonade! He loved everyone he came in contact with except (West Carter) Comets … and he really liked them, he just wouldn’t admit it,” McPeek said.

Tim Champlin, the head coach at East Carter, had glowing remarks about Nunley, too.

“To know him was a blessing. Nunley taught us all hard work, dedication and loyalty. He didn’t ever want a hand out, he wanted to earn everything he had, no matter what it meant he had to do. He was dedicated to whatever he was involved with and would defend you to anyone. Mike was as loyal a person as I’ve ever met.”

Champlin called having Nunley on the sidelines “a joy and a comfort. I like to say he was East Carter’s luck charm.”

East Carter’s head coach said he met Nunley at Fairview and when he came to East, it worked out that Nunley was able to join the team on the sidelines.

Nunley had a passion for area sports, McPeek said, and loved it when the ADI’s football preview came out every August. He had an ongoing ranking of the worst team photo in the preview, including last year, and share the choices with McPeek.

Even after McPeek’s stint at East Carter ended, Nunley made the rest of McPeek’s coaching stops Hazard, Greenup County, Lawrence County, Boyd County and Fairview and “lived with me most of the time,” McPeek said.

McPeek called him his “Radio” from 1989 to 2014, a reference to James Kennedy, who was knwn for his association with the T.L. Hanna High School football team in Anderson, S.C., and became famous for the movie by the same name. He gained that nickname because of always having a small radio with him.

Speaking of East Carter Raiders…

Congratulations to East Carter for winning the 16^th Region baseball championship for the first time since 2009 and only the third time ever. One of those three came in 1984 when East Carter won the state championship on Kevin Bair’s walk-off homer against Harrison County. It has been 40 years since that feat that will be remembered in Grayson forever.

Bair’s shot heard ‘round Kentucky is one of the biggest home runs in state tournament history. East Carter is one of three 16^th Region teams with state titles – Ashland won three (1966-68) and Boyd County one (2001) under coach Jody Hamilton.

Speaking of Jody Hamilton …

Hamilton is still coaching and achieved the 1,000 victory mark this season along with winning the State All “A” Classic title for Owensboro Catholic. The Aces are also Third Region champions after defeating Muhlenberg County 3-2 on Wednesday.

Hamilton will be shooting for his third state championship. He also won a title at West Jessamine.

Owensboro Catholic, a 28-game winner, plays Thursday in the Clark’s Pump-N-Shop State Baseball Tournament at Legends Field in Lexington.

It is only three months until the last CP-1 Ashland Baseball Hall of Fame class will be inducted. The ceremony is Aug. 24, 1 p.m., in front of the big diamond in Central Park.

The 10 inducted will bring the total to 100 and conclude a project that was started in 2015 by the late David Carter, Gary Wright and Mark Maynard. Wright’s generous donation to renovate the Central Park (CP-1) field in 2008 triggered a movement of memories from the thousands who have put their cleats on that field. It resulted in several CP-1 reunions and a film by Carter that debuted at the Paramount Arts Center and continue to play on KET before the CP-1 Hall of Fame became a reality. It has taken place every August, except in 2020 when the pandemic kept it from happening.

Former players, coaches and umpires have been enshrined in what has become an emotional ceremony for most. Be sure to make plans to be at the last CP-1 Hall of Fame ceremony.

The committee (Mark Maynard, Bill Lynch and Bob Lynch) is asking that any former CP-1 Hall of Fame member come to the ceremony for a photo at the big diamond after the inductions are finished.

Here are the 2024 inductees:

Curt Clevenger: A switch-hitting shortstop who belted home runs from both sides of the plate multiple times while starring for the Tomcats and Post 76. He was a strong defensive player and an outstanding pitcher. An all-around player who later played in college.

Keith Downs: A slugger who hit some tape-measure home runs at CP-1 while playing for Fairview and Post 76 in the mid-1980s. Everything he connected with was hit hard and he found himself in the No. 4 slot in most lineups.

Greg Gibson: While his time was limited at CP-1 diamond, he called some high school and Legion games before moving up the ranks and to the Major Leagues. He enjoyed 24 seasons at the highest level and was behind the plate for Randy Johnson’s perfect game in 2004 and on the crew for the 2011 World Series.

Tim Holbrook: An athletic infielder for Fairview and Post 76 in the late 1970s and later with Stan Musial, he brought a winning attitude every time in stepped on the field. Holbrook was an outstanding fielder and excellent hitter with good speed.

Don Moore: He played outfield for Ashland (1975-77) and Senior Babe Ruth for three years. He was a solid hitter and good fielder. But Moore also was a strong contributor to CP-1 through his skills in communications. Moore was part of cable television broadcasts from the park.

Donnie Payne: A complete player for the Tomcats and Post 76 in the early 1990s who could do it all. Payne was the ace of the staff and an outfielder and shortstop who carried a big bat. He pitched three seasons at Illinois.

Chris Queen: An outstanding athlete, he played for Fairview High School and Post 76 in the 1970s, getting plenty of games at CP-1. A crafty lefthanded pitcher and sweet-swinging first baseman went on to play at Marshall University, where he became the team’s closer.

Steve Smith: An outstanding catcher for the Tomcats and Post 76 in the 1980s who went on to play four years at Eastern Kentucky University. Smith once called four consecutive games in the same day for Post 76. Durable catcher with a big bat who never wanted a day off.

Jeff Stanley: A speedy outfielder whose batting stroke was tough on opponents when he played for Ashland and Post 76. He was an MVP of the Fourth of July Tournament in the mid-1980s while patrolling centerfield and went on to play at West Virginia University.

Bob Trimble: He started his baseball career on Ashland’s Little League fields, playing for the back-to-back Ashland National Little League state champions in 1976-77. His time on CP-1 was when he joined Ashland’s Stan Musial teams where he was a devastating hitter and speedy outfielder. He went on to Morehead State where he set several batting records and was All-OVC.

RICHMOND, Ky. – A week after notching his 1,000 Kentucky high school baseball coaching victory, Jody Hamilton has added another championship to his ledger.

Owensboro Catholic defeated Lyon County 7-3 Sunday to capture the All “A” Classic state tournament at Eastern Kentucky University. The Aces (19-5) defeated Pikeville 3-1 in the semifinals earlier Sunday morning.

Owensboro Catholic’s toughest game may have been the first one when it bested Walton Verona 3-2 in 9 innings.

Hamilton is the only coach with two state baseball championships, winning it with Boyd County in 2001 and West Jessamine in 2015. This is his first All “A” Classic title and it followed a typical format with Hamilton’s teams – good pitching and good defense. Owensboro Catholic gave up only seven runs in three games.

Hamilton is No. 5 on the all-time win list in Kentucky and the fifth coach to achieve 1,000 victories, which he accomplished on April 20. Adding the All “A” Classic title to his coaching resume puts him on even more rare ground in Kentucky high school baseball circles.

He is in his 39^th season of coaching with stops at Raceland, Boyd County, West Jessamine and Owensboro Catholic. His son, Casey, who was part of the 2001 state championship team at Boyd County, is on his current coaching staff.

Hamilton played from 1976-80 at Morehead State where he was a Triple Crown winner and the school’s all-time home run leader with 49 until it was eclipsed this season. He played two years of professional baseball in the New York Yankees organization, debuting in the same game as Mets star Darryl Strawberry.

He is in the Morehead State Athletic Hall of Fame, an inaugural member of the Ashland Baseball CP-1 Hall of Fame and the Kentucky Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Jody and wife, Denise, live and own a farm in Owensboro.

OWENSBORO, Ky.  – So how did coach Jody Hamilton celebrate winning the 1,000^th game of his illustrious Kentucky high school baseball coaching career on Saturday?

“We went home and went to bed,” he said.

Hamilton, the head coach at Owensboro Catholic, became only the fifth coach in Kentucky high school baseball history to reach the plateau with a 12-2, five-inning victory over Union County. He has been coaching for 39 years and is the only coach in state history to guide two different teams to state championships – Boyd County in 2001 and West Jessamine in 2015.

Owensboro Catholic is his fourth coaching stop in a career that has seen him win 72 percent of his games and be named National Coach of the Year in 2016.

The team had a small celebration for Hamilton and his family after winning 1,000 while Union County and Adair County were warming up to play. After that game the Aces were back at it, smashing Adair County 13-3 for Hamilton’s1,001^st victory.

“I didn’t want anybody to know about,” Hamilton said of the milestone. “We were really playing well, and I didn’t want to mess up anything. I told Denise (his wife) I didn’t want anybody to know.”

But he didn’t tell his daughter, Neena Gaynor, who wrote to the Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer about the special moment, nor his son, Casey Hamilton, who was in on letting others know, too, Jody said. “I think Denise was in on it, too,” he said of his wife.

The Owensboro newspaper wrote a nice story in advance of the milestone victory so everybody in the community knew what was about to happen.

Hamilton said he was the product of great parents growing up and great in-laws after he was married. “I grew up a lot after getting married. They taught me just as much about people.”

It all translated well for Hamilton, who said he’s taking his career “year to year” but enjoys coaching as much now as he ever did. He said he was blessed to have outstanding players, assistant coaches and parents who helped him succeed. And a supportive wife, he added.

“She said it’s a thousand wins for me and 7,000 wins for her, kind of like dog years,” the coach said. “She doesn’t hold back. We were eating breakfast before the championship game (in 2001) and she said, ‘We’ve been in the finals twice. Are we ever going to win this thing?’ I said it’s going to happen today.”

Hamilton began his coaching career in 1983 at Raceland High School in northeastern Kentucky after playing two years of professional baseball in the New York Yankees organization. He had a Hall of Fame playing career at Morehead State University from 1977-1980. His career home run record of 49 lasted 44 years before being eclipsed this spring.

Hamilton has endured only one losing season in his 39 years, a 15-17 mark in 1986 during his last season at Raceland.

Boyd County and West Jessamine each have one state title, both coming with Hamilton at the helm. His son, Casey, was a star on the 2001 state championship team at Boyd County that defeated Ballard 3-0. Casey, who signed with Mississippi State out of high school, is coaching with his father at Owensboro Catholic.

The top four coaches on the Kentucky win list accomplished their 1,000-plus victories while coaching at the same school. Two of them – Mac Whitaker of Harrison County and Bill Krumplebeck of Covington Catholic – are still coaching. “I’ve been a gypsy,” said Hamilton, one of the few coaches who has taken three teams to the state tournament.

Whitaker came into this spring with 1,221 victories and is No. 1 on the list. Krumplebeck is No. 3 at 1,097. The late Bill Miller of Pleasure Ridge Park had 1,144 victories for No. 2 and Larry Gumm of Green County recorded 1,006 victories for No. 4. Hamilton needs only six wins to take over the fourth spot.

Hamilton was at Boyd County and West Jessamine for 16 years apiece and at Raceland for four years. This is his third season at Owensboro Catholic, which he guided to the state tournament in 2022.

West Jessamine’s state tournament produced the most runs ever scored since the event went to a Sweet Sixteen format. The Colts scored 48 runs, managing to reach double figures in all four victories, including 10-3 over Fort Thomas Highlands.

But the secret sauce for Hamilton’s teams have been pitching and defense. All but “one or maybe two “of his starting catchers throughout his nearly 40 seasons have gone on to play college baseball. Two of his pitchers at Boyd County, Jason Keyser and Casey Davis, were drafted in the eighth and ninth rounds. He has helped more than 125 players find a place to play in college.

Hamilton operated a baseball school while coaching at Boyd County and one of the pupils was Brandon Webb, a future Cy Young Award winner for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Webb was 10 when his father, Phil, took him to Hamilton. He worked with him for five years before telling him he had to stop because Webb would soon be pitching for Ashland, Boyd County’s biggest rival.

“I said, ‘Brandon, here’s what’s going to happen. I have to stop giving you lessons because, if I keep giving you lessons, you’re going to beat me. People aren’t going to like that. If I don’t keep giving you lessons, I’m going to recruit you, and then I’m going to get fired.’”

In an unusual twist, Webb never did face Boyd County as a Tomcat. Coaches held their top pitchers during the regular season for a potential district matchup. Ashland and Boyd County never drew in the first round through his junior year. Webb’s senior season was cut short by an injury.

“How many coaches can say they gave lessons to a Cy Young winner?” Hamilton asked.