Tag: nfl

Was Terry Fish’s field goal in 1974 a state record?

Rick Sang and I took a deeper dive on the photograph of Terry Fish’s reported 47-yard field goal in 1974 for the Ashland Tomcats.

If you look at the photo, the 40-yard marker painted on the wall is clearly shown behind the Bryan Station bench. So, it was probably kicked from about the 44. Greg Estep’s hold looks to be on or about that spot. BUT the reported distance doesn’t account for the extra 10 yards from the goal line to the back of the end zone. That would make it a 54-yard field goal, which would have been a state record and still would rank sixth all-time in Kentucky high school football history.

A newspaper story about the game reveals the line of scrimmage was the 32 and then there was a 5-yard penalty on the Tomcats pushing it back to the 37. The standard from the snap to holder is seven yards, putting the hold on the 44, and the photograph shows that to be true.

My best guess is that the ball was on the 37 and they added 10 yards for the goal line-to-end zone distance to make it a 47-yard kick. But that’s now how it should have been scored. Ten yards is added from the point of the kick, not the line of scrimmage, making it a 54-yard kick.

The photo also shows the perfect technique on display. His kick made it 3-0 and Wendell Fugitt returned a fumble for a touchdown for a 9-0 lead. The extra point was blocked, which again shows you how much had to go right for Fish to boom a field goal of that distance. It took a perfect snap, perfect hold, perfect blocking and perfect kick.

And if he kicked it from the 44, which sure looks like happened, it was a 54-yard kick. He would have had the record until 2004 when Taylor Long kicked a 55-yard field goal for Christian County. That would mean Fish had the state record for 30 years before it would have been broken. But it was never recognized as such.

Schools must turn in a verified account of records for the KHSAA to consider them. Ashland apparently did not do that – or even think to do it – in 1974. I’m not even sure when the KHSAA began accepting records to be quite honest.

Tyler Pack of Johnson Central holds the state record of a 60-yard field goal. It was interesting because it came on a free kick in a game the Golden Eagles’ won easily. On a punt or kickoff, you can make a fair catch, and the coach can send out the kicker for a free kick from that spot. No rush from the opponents; just tee it up and kick. It usually happens with not much time remaining in a quarter, half or game. A missed kick can be returned, and the opponent takes possession if the kick is missed. (Note to coaches: It’s an interesting play to consider if you have a good kicker and if you have somebody who can fair catch a ball on the opponents’ side of the field).

Pack also had a 58-yard field goal and his 89-yard punt is also a state record. He had some kind of leg.

Aaron Pettrey of Raceland had field goals of 58 yards in 2003 and 52 in 2002. He went on to kick for Ohio State and had a cameo with the Cincinnati Bengals.

But Terry Fish’s long kick between the uprights on scoreboard side of the field in a 9-6 win over Bryan Station at Putnam Stadium remains the Tomcat record, but belongs in the state record book as well.

 I’m sure he would been proud to own the state record for so long.

Here is some Ashland Tomcat football history with some kick to it

There have been three sets of goalposts in the 89-year history of Putnam Stadium. The first ones were shaped like an H and that were the standard from 1937 to at least 1972 (still researching that one). There have been two sets of the t-shaped goalposts – the first coming in 1974 when the goalposts were moved from the goal line to the back of the end zone – and the second when the renovation took place following the 2013 season.

That set of goal posts are the same ones being used now and were donated by Rick and Jana Sang. They have one of the goal posts from 1974-2013 in pieces and would like to give it a good home somewhere. It needs some work done to put it back together again. Somewhere outside Putnam Stadium might be a good place for this great piece of history.

Some quick research revealed unusual statistics concerning field goals and the Putnam Stadium goalposts who, if they could talk, may remember the field goals missed more than the ones that were made. I may try and set up that interview later.

One of Ashland’s most famous field goals didn’t happen in a home game. That one belonged to John Paul Walters, AKA “The Toe,” who kicked a game-winning field goal against Ironton in a 3-0 victory at Beechwood Stadium in 1950. It was the only field goal of his career, but it was a big one. He did connect on a dozen extra points.

Walters’ game-winning kick from 15 yards out grazed the crossbar before tricking over. He used a square-toed shoe and he had to practically beg coach Charlie Eblen he could make it. The kick became so famous that it was rumored someone had offered him $500 for his cleats. Walters told me that was “misleading because they’d have sure got it.”

Paul Hill (kicker) and John Radjunas (holder) were part of the first field goal in Putnam Stadium history.

But the FIRST field goal made in Putnam Stadium didn’t come in the 1930s, 1940s or even the 1950s. It came during the state championship season of 1967 when Paul Hill connected on 24-yard field goal against Stonewall Jackson. It put the Tomcats ahead 3-0 in an eventual 13-3 loss. That was the only defeat in a 13-1 Class AA championship season.

Now, there were some extra point kicks in that 30-year span from 1937 to 1967 but that was the first field goal at Putnam Stadium. Hill was a straight-on kicker who tied the top of his cleat back to make a good kicking surface.

Here’s another inside story: The Tomcats didn’t have a kicker in coach Jake Hallum’s first season in 1966 when Hill and John Radjunas were juniors. They talked about it and decided they would sneak into Putnam Stadium and practice during the spring prior to the 1967 season. Whoever would make the first field goal would be the kicker and the other would be the holder.

But when they started to practice, Hill decided he would kick until he made one and settle the issue quicker. When he missed, he told Radjunas he was “bigger and meaner and he was going to get another turn.”

Radjunas was anything but stupid so he “allowed” Hill to have enough mulligans before he eventually made one.

That took hours and Speed Bailey, the Putnam Jr. High School janitor, spotted them on the field and chased them off. He lived in the white house that used to sit just outside the end zone. But the persistent duo kept trying to improve their skills (and increase their chances of having their name in the newspaper) so they kept sneaking into the stadium and Speed was there to shoo them off. He eventually went to Hallum and figured that would be the end of that stunt. But Hallum liked the idea and gave them keys to the stadium and a bag full of footballs.

They did a few more times but with the thrill of sneaking into the stadium gone, so was most of the fun.

Nearly 60 yards later, Hill still remembers making that 24-yard field goal against Stonewall Jackson. He had made his first one in the second game of the season against Boyd County, a 25-yard field goal in Cannonsburg.

It wasn’t the field goal that was most memorable about the Stonewall Jackson game to Hill though. It’s the nightmarish memory of Harry “Sugar Bear” Lyles, the dynamic Stonewall linebacker who was all over Putnam Stadium for 26 tackles.

“I’m an old man and I ain’t never forgot that man,” Hill said. “I’ve never seen anything like him.”

Hill didn’t have any professional kicking instruction except for a conversation with Bubby Payne, a former kicker for Ashland who played at UK years prior. Soccer-style had not arrived in America, so it was a straight-on approach. He ran a shoestring around the back of his shoe and then through his first single clean on the front of the shoe. He then pulled the string as tight as he could to force his ankle to be locked in a better kicking position. Hill did that regularly for kickoffs and many of them reached the goal line.

Hill remembers missing some field goals with line drive kicks that crashed into the crossbar and came right back at him. “I came up short,” he said. “Story of my life.”

Hill’s last field goal came against Covington Catholic the week after the Stonewall Jackson game and it was also at Putnam Stadium.

His most important kick though may have come in a 21-20 victory over McKell at Putnam Stadium. The extra point on the last touchdown provided the winning margin in one of Ashland’s toughest games of the season besides Stonewall Jackson.

Ashland was trailing 20-14 in the fourth quarter when Radjunas famously told Coach Hallum before the game-winning drive to save a timeout so Paul could have time to tie up his shoe. He did and then boomed it through the uprights for the narrow win in what Hill called “the best game we ever won.”

Don Gullett scored three touchdowns and ran for 88 yards in the game for McKell. Hill said his best play was chasing down Gullett and he told Don’s brother, Jack, about it later in life.

“Donnie’s pretty quick but I ran him down before he could score another touchdown that would have beaten us,” he told Jack.

“You couldn’t run him down!’ Jack shot back.

“I could if I had the angle and I did.”

Paul’s nephew, Clayton Hill, was a soccer star for the Tomcats and the kicker for the 1990 state champions. He didn’t have a field goal, but he did make 42 extra points. That Tomcat team went for it on most fourth downs.

The kicker with the most field goals, at least through the 2020 season, was Preston Freeman with nine over two years and seven in the 2006 season. He was another outstanding soccer player.

Jim Ward in 1965 used the dropkick to kick a dozen extra points but no field goals.

The first field goal in Ashland Tomcat history came in 1919 but I don’t have a name. The next came in 1923 by Wilfrey Wolfrey, who booted two including one that provided a 3-0 road victory over Millersburg Military Institute. He also made one at Armco Field in a 51-0 win over Paris.

Bert Johnson ranks among Tomcat football’s all-time greats

Any list of the greatest athletes in Ashland High School history must include Bert Edward Johnson. A standout for the Tomcats before continuing his career at the University of Kentucky and later in the NFL, Johnson left a lasting legacy at every level he played.

Johnson’s high school career unfolded during the Great Depression, before Putnam Stadium existed. From 1930 to 1932, he starred as a dynamic running back, scoring 247 points while earning All-State honors twice and All-South recognition as a senior. Ashland captured state titles in all three of those seasons and was even named the nation’s top team in 1931. The Tomcats went 10-0 in both 1930 and 1931 and 8-2 in 1932.

Despite the rarity of sophomores seeing playing time, Johnson not only played but started in the backfield alongside standout Eck Allen. Known for his explosive acceleration, he contributed as a running back, quarterback and punter.

David Patton, a 1950s star in baseball and basketball for the Tomcats and a former college basketball coach, was a nephew of Johnson’s. He provided the cartoon from The Cats Pause printed in 1977.

During Johnson’s three-year tenure, Ashland compiled a 28-2 record, claiming three mythical state championships and the 1931 national title. His 30-game totals are remarkable:

  • 2,700 rushing yards on 245 carries (11.0 yards per carry)
  • 46 rushing touchdowns
  • 56 completions on 87 attempts for 945 yards and 15 touchdowns
  • 5 receptions for 144 yards and one touchdown

Johnson often delivered his best performances against Louisville teams. In October 1930, Ashland traveled by train to face unbeaten Louisville Manual and returned with a stunning 91-0 victory. Back home, fans gathered on 17th Street outside The Daily Independent, cheering as scores were relayed via ticker-tape from a second-floor window.

The following year, Ashland again traveled to Louisville and defeated Male, a top contender, 31-6. Johnson rushed for 194 yards, while teammate Glenn Overley added 170 in a dominant showing. Later that season, the Tomcats crushed Decatur, Georgia, 85-6 in the Southern Bowl, with Johnson setting career highs of 213 rushing yards and 37 points. National polls later crowned Ashland the best team in the country.

In 1932, Johnson quarterbacked one of the most dramatic games in program history. Ashland’s 66-game unbeaten streak (62-0-4) ended in a heartbreaking 19-13 loss to Erie East, Pennsylvania. After tying the game late and setting up for a final drive, a pass by Johnson was intercepted and returned for a touchdown as time expired. It was Ashland’s first loss since 1925, leaving players and fans stunned.

The Tomcats’ only other defeat that season was a 7-6 loss to Huntington High, but they remained unbeaten against Kentucky opponents and still claimed the state title.

Johnson’s high school success drew national attention, but he chose to stay close to home and attend the University of Kentucky. There, he lettered in football from 1934 to 1936 and briefly played basketball, scoring two points in a single appearance during the 1934-35 season.

Nicknamed “Man o’ War” for his burst off the line, Johnson’s standout college performance came in 1934 against Alabama, when he scored both of Kentucky’s touchdowns in a 34-14 loss. That Alabama team would go on to an undefeated season capped by a Rose Bowl victory. Johnson became Kentucky’s second All-Southeastern Conference selection, earning the honor as a sophomore.

He went on to play six seasons in the NFL, suiting up for Brooklyn, the Chicago Bears under legendary coach George Halas, the Chicago Cardinals and the Philadelphia Eagles. Among his highlights were a pair of 50-yard runs—one with the Bears and another in an exhibition game for Brooklyn in Louisville.

Athletic success ran in the family. His son, Phil Johnson, later played basketball for Kentucky from 1956 to 1959, appearing in 64 games.

Bert Johnson passed away in 1993 at the age of 81. He was the third inductee into the Ashland Sports Hall of Fame, selected by the late John McGill. His legacy remains firmly cemented among the greatest in Tomcat football history.

Remembering Don McReynolds: A coach, fan and faithful friend of the Ashland Tomcats

Don McReynolds—a former Ashland Tomcats assistant coach, dedicated fan, and longtime sideline photographer—passed away Friday. He spent a decade coaching Tomcat football and more than 30 years afterward capturing the action through a camera lens, becoming a familiar presence at games long after his coaching days ended.

McReynolds also coached girls track and field at Ashland and was known as a well-liked, effective high school history and science teacher. Though his role as a coach placed him in the press box as an offensive coordinator, his later role behind the camera made him just as recognizable to generations of players and fans. He first served as offensive coordinator for his longtime friend and classmate Mike Manley, and later for Vic Marsh.

Though he became synonymous with Ashland athletics, McReynolds wasn’t an Ashland native. He grew up in Mt. Sterling and played receiver on the 1967 state runner-up team that shocked McKell and star athlete Don Gullett, 21-13, in the semifinals before falling to Bardstown in the Class A championship. That title game was played just before Ashland claimed its own Class AA championship with a win over Elizabethtown.

Don McReynolds loved the hobby of photography after his coaching days ended.

That Mt. Sterling team also featured a future Tomcat connection: Manley, who would later coach Ashland for the 1980 season, was the quarterback. His punt return for a touchdown sealed the semifinal win over McKell, and years later he would help bring McReynolds to Ashland.

Thirteen years after their high school run, Manley was hired to revive an Ashland program coming off three straight losing seasons following Herb Conley’s successful 1971–76 run. After one season, Manley left to become offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Morehead State—just 29 years old at the time.

McReynolds had been coaching at Fleming County before Manley persuaded him to join the Tomcat staff in 1980. Marsh, then the defensive coordinator and the only holdover from Mike Holtzapfel’s staff, would eventually take over as head coach after Manley departed.

Manley and McReynolds shared more than a backfield history—they even shared a birthday. Their close friendship played a major role in McReynolds’s move to Ashland. He recalled the phone call in December 1979 when Manley invited him to the Ashland Invitational Tournament to watch the Tomcats face Phelps and high-scoring Ervin Stepp.

Don McReynolds

“I told him, ‘We won’t be able to get tickets,’ and he said, ‘Don’t worry about that,’’’ McReynolds once said. “So I told him I’d go with him. He also told me Ashland had a head coaching opening and he might apply for it. I said, ‘They’ll never hire you.’”

Manley slipped away during the first quarter of the opening AIT game for a meeting and didn’t return until the fourth quarter. “He told me he was going to apply and he was going to get the job,” McReynolds said. “He asked me if he did, would I come with him. That’s what brought me to Ashland.”

He may not have known it then, but that trip set the course for the rest of his life.

In 1980, McReynolds worked from the press box as offensive coordinator, though Manley—an offensive mind himself—was eager to call plays. It took some adjusting.

“I remember the first game against Scott County,” McReynolds said of the 35–0 win. “I was upstairs and didn’t get to call one play. He was calling everything. I came down after the game madder than a hornet. I told him if he was going to call all the plays, what am I supposed to be doing? … We came to an understanding. It got better as the season went along.”

Their offensive spark helped the Tomcats finish 9–4, led by junior quarterback Scott Crank (1,127 passing yards; 516 rushing), halfback Dave Hall (1,353 yards, 11 TDs), receiver and future MLB pitcher Drew Hall, lineman Tony Consiglio, future Tomcat quarterback Greg Conley, and hard-running Paul McPeek (563 yards, 8 TDs). The season ended in the quarterfinals with a 21–6 loss to Henry Clay.

After Manley left, Marsh took over and eventually became Ashland’s all-time wins leader, taking the Tomcats to a state championship in 1990. Ashland wouldn’t win another state title until 2020. Though McReynolds left coaching after the 1989 season, he had coached many of the players who would hoist the trophy the following year.

I got to know Don best through his photography. For two decades or more, he shot assignments for the newspaper, and we knew we could rely on “Donnie Mac” for quality work. He also photographed Kentucky football games for us. His talent behind the camera was matched by his easy humor—something our staff appreciated every bit as much.

He even once helped prevent what could have become a family feud. My daughter and her boyfriend had been using our UK football tickets all season, but when LSU came to town ranked No. 1, my son decided he wanted to go. My daughter was not pleased. Then Don called on Friday afternoon and offered me two extra tickets. I took them, crisis averted—and Kentucky went on to stun No. 1 LSU that night. I thanked Don more than once for keeping the peace in my household.

McReynolds and former Tomcat assistant Mark Renfroe remained close friends for years, bonding over football and traveling together on their own SEC stadium tour. Those who coached with Don could talk football with him for hours.

Students, coaches, players and fellow teachers admired him. He was respected, warm-hearted and deeply appreciated by those who knew him.

Former Tomcat quarterback Greg Conley, a player from that first 1980 team, remembered him fondly:

“He was a great person, coach, and had a creative offensive mind. He loved his players and coached with passion. He brought energy to every practice and game. Everyone loved being around coach. Lifting his family up in prayer. Another Tomcat who will be greatly missed.”

Amen to that.