Class 5A football state championship preview: Cooper vs. Bowling Green
It’s championship weekend for the 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals. Here’s a look at Saturday’s Class 5A state title game at Kroger Field.
Bowling Green (11-3) vs. Cooper (12-2)
Kickoff: 8 p.m. Saturday.
RPI Ratings: No. 4 Bowling Green (.62076); No. 9 Cooper (.59263).
Cantrall Ratings: No. 1 Bowling Green (89.1); No. 2 Cooper (87).
Championship game history: Bowling Green — Seven state titles (the last in 2020) in 12 finals appearances (last year’s runner-up); Cooper — one finals appearance (2012).
Quick hits
Class 5A offense ranks: No. 1 Bowling Green (44.8 ppg); No. 8 Cooper (36.3 ppg).
Class 5A defense ranks: No. 4 Cooper (14.9 ppg); No. 5 Bowling Green (16.6 ppg).
▪ When Cooper made the 2012 Class 5A finals, it lost 34-20 to Bowling Green. Cooper has also made one Boys Sweet 16 championship game in its history. Its opponent? Bowling Green, who won 67-56.
▪ Cooper junior linebacker/tight end Austin Alexander rates as a four-star recruit and Kentucky’s No. 1 college prospect for the class of 2025. He has offers from at least 21 colleges, including Kentucky, Louisville, Notre Dame and Tennessee. His 18 sacks this season are tops in the class and rank second in the state overall. His 1,045 yards and 18 TDs receiving also put him among the top receivers in the state.
▪ Bowling Green quarterback Deuce Bailey and Cooper quarterback Cam O’Hara are two of the state’s most prolific passers, each averaging more than 220 passing yards per game. O’Hara has 45 passing TDs to Bailey’s 40.
▪ Cooper was founded in 2008 as the fourth Boone County public high school, and Randy Borchers has been their only football coach. He got his 100th career victory in the Jags’ first-round win over Collins on Nov. 3.
▪ In the years after Cooper’s run to the 2012 state finals, Cooper struggled through four straight losing seasons before beginning to turn things around in 2021. Borchers credited “a very supportive administration” for sticking with him during the lean years.
▪ Borchers and Covington Catholic head coach Eddie Eviston were high school teammates at Newport Central Catholic.
▪ This is the third finals appearance in three years and second in a row for coach Mark Spader’s Bowling Green Purples. They returned 12 starters from last year’s runners-up, eight on offense, including Bailey at quarterback.
▪ Bailey is also one of Bowling Green’s top basketball players. He averaged 10.8 points per game last season.
▪ Cooper’s O’Hara and 1,000-yard rusher Keagan Maher are both sophomores. The Jags’ two 1,000-yard receivers Isaiah Johnson and Alexander are both juniors. Bowling Green’s top skill-position players are also underclassmen — Bailey (junior), wideout Trevy Barber (junior) and running backs Jaxen Smith and Montravion Graham (sophomores).
Standing out
Cooper: Cam O’Hara, So. QB (3,141 yards, 45 TDs passing; 97 yards, 1 TD rushing); Keagan Maher, So. RB (1,181 yards, 18 TDs rushing; 307 yards, 4 TDs receiving); Isaiah Johnson, Jr. WR (1,304 yards, 20 TDs receiving); Austin Alexander, Jr. TE/LB (1,045 yards, 18 TDs receiving; 75 tackles, 18 sacks) Jack Lonaker, Sr. LB (156 tackles, 4 sacks, 1 interception, 2 fumbles forced and 2 recovered).
Bowling Green: Deuce Bailey, Jr. QB (3,316 yards, 40 TDs passing; 134 yards, 8 TDs rushing); Trevy Barber Jr. WR (1,075 yards, 15 TDs receiving); Jaxen Smith, So. RB (451 yards, 9 TDs rushing; 244 yards, 5 TDs receiving); Montravion Graham, So. RB (371 yards, 9 TDs rushing; 220 yards, 3 TDs receiving); Jayden Axson, Jr. LB (91 tackles, 3 sacks).
@HLpreps pick
Cooper 35, Bowling Green 24.
State championships
At Kroger Field in Lexington
Tickets: Available by advance sale digitally at KHSAAtickets.org. No walk-up paper tickets sold.
Streaming broadcasts: Subscription required for live video stream at KHSAA.tv. Pay-per-view live video at Go.PrepSpin.com. Free audio stream at KHSAA.net.
FRIDAY’S GAMES
Class A: Raceland (11-3) vs. Pikeville (11-2), Noon
Class 2A: Owensboro Catholic (14-0) vs. Mayfield (12-1), 4 p.m.
Class 4A: Covington Catholic (14-0) vs. Boyle County (14-0), 8 p.m.
SATURDAY’S GAMES
Class 3A: Christian Academy-Louisville (13-1) vs. Bell County (13-1), Noon
Class 6A: Bryan Station (11-3) vs. Trinity (11-3), 4 p.m.
Class 5A: Cooper (12-2) vs. Bowling Green (11-3), 8 p.m.
Do Kroger Field’s narrow goalposts change game at Kentucky’s football state championships?
Class A football state championship preview: Pikeville vs. Raceland
Class 2A football state championship preview: Owensboro Catholic vs. Mayfield
Class 3A football state championship preview: Bell County vs. Christian Academy-Louisville
Class 4A football state championship preview: Boyle County vs. Covington Catholic
Class 6A football state championship preview: Bryan Station vs. Trinity
