‘We’re checking off boxes.’ Sayre shuts down Paris for history-making playoff win.

On paper, Friday night’s second-round showdown between Paris and Sayre appeared to be one of the finest in the Kentucky high school football playoffs.

On the field, Sayre demonstrated why the fledgling program is now a force with which to be reckoned in the fall. The Spartans rolled to a 38-12 victory at home in Class A. They’ll host Raceland, a 61-19 winner over Frankfort on Friday, with a region championship on the line next week.

“We’re checking off boxes,” said junior Charlie Slabaugh.

How it happened

Sayre last week made history with its first playoff win — a 48-8 drubbing of Fairview — but the competition level elevated drastically in its inaugural second-week appearance. Paris (10-2) at the end of the regular season was ranked fourth in the KHSAA’s RPI, right ahead of the Spartans, and had fared great against a schedule that featured several traditional Class A stalwarts as well as Rockcastle County, which will host a Class 3A region championship next week. The Greyhounds’ only loss coming in was to Raceland, a 43-13 defeat that was closer than the final score suggested. Of the five common opponents between Paris and Sayre, the former fared better in the scoring column.

But not in this one. After a touchdown catch by Brock Coffman capped a methodical drive to open the game, Sayre (12-0) recovered a fumble and extended the lead to 14-0 on a catch-and-run by Slabaugh with 4:26 to play in the period. Interceptions by Coffman on consecutive Paris drives set up a successful 24-yard field goal by Carson Graves and then a fourth-and-1 play on which Coffman freed himself for a wide-open touchdown, pushing the Spartans’ advantage to 24-0 with 3:46 to play.

“We were fortunate to get some big plays,” Sayre coach Chad Pennington said. “We were able to ‘big play’ them with some of our skill guys, so that kind of broke it open and gave us some breathing room and put them behind the 8-ball. They couldn’t really use their run game like they probably wanted to.”

Paris got on the board with an elusive, juke-filled run by Elijah Webb, to pull within 24-6 at the break. Momentum carried over for the Greyhounds. Jayden Holman delivered a second TD less than three minutes into the second half, cutting the Sayre lead in half (a Paris two-point pass was deflected). Coffman returned the ensuing kickoff about 80 yards for a touchdown that was waved off, but then on the first play from scrimmage managed to get wide open once more for a 51-yard TD catch.

Coffman added a third interception on Paris’ next offensive drive; it gave way to the final touchdown after Luke Pennington tracked down an errant snap and delivered his fifth touchdown pass to Grant Barnsten with time waning in the third quarter.

In addition to Coffman’s three interceptions, Slabaugh caused two fumbles (recovering one; Caden Jones snagged the other). The Spartans were error-free in that regard.

“We had to win the turnover battle, because we saw (on film) that every single game they won, they went up big because of turnovers,” Coffman said. “So we had to outdo them right there. And our fundamentals were very important, because with speed like they have, we gotta do and execute right.”

Coffman missed last year’s game against Paris — a come-from-behind, 15-12 decision in Sayre’s favor. The junior, who’s reported scholarship offers from Maryland and Coastal Carolina, is up to 22 touchdowns and eight interceptions on the season. He had an even 100 yards on just four receptions Friday night.

“It’s a different game without Brock,” said Jack Bernard, a senior lineman.

Looking ahead

Sayre, a tiny private school that plays its home games at an athletic complex located 10 miles from its campus in downtown Lexington, started its varsity football program with a two-game season in 2018 and played its first full schedule in 2020 amid the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic. That team was the school’s first to finish unbeaten in the regular season (8-0) but fell to Class A powerhouse Pikeville in the first round of the playoffs. The Spartans were one-and-done each of the last two seasons; the tight win over Paris in 2022 was their last in a 1-4 stretch to close out that campaign.

The tide has turned significantly. Chad Pennington, who’s coached the program since its inception, attributes that to the buy-in of his players.

“They’re special kids,” the former NFL quarterback said. “They believe in us as coaches, we believe in them as players, and they believe in what our program’s about. They’re the reason why we are where we are.”

Luke, his son, boasts what might be the best touchdown-to-interception ratio in KHSAA history: 47 TD passes to zero — yes, zero — picks. The Spartans have a diverse complement of weapons surrounding the junior QB, and a defense that has allowed a third as many points as it did a year ago.

By virtue of RPI, Sayre will get to host a team in Raceland (9-3) that most outside observers will pick to win on the road. The Rams, who are undefeated this year against Class A competition and who reached the title game last season, have earned such esteem.

Underestimating the Spartans at this juncture, though, could prove foolish.

“We know what we’re up against,” Chad Pennington said. “Our guys know. But at the same time, we enjoy playing football, too, so we’re gonna put our nose to the grindstone and try to figure this thing out and see if we can come away again.”

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