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Tuesday, July 28, 2026
Wednesday, April 15, 2026
Trip back to Class A appears likely for Rockets
The changes are driven by fluctuating enrollment numbers and the introduction of a 1.35 multiplier for private schools, a move designed to address competitive balance. Under the new system, private school enrollment figures are multiplied by 1.35 when determining classification, potentially pushing some programs into higher classes.
The KHSAA will use a two-year alignment cycle, replacing the previous four-year format, allowing officials to more quickly adjust classifications based on enrollment trends and competitive outcomes.
Enrollment figures for the upcoming alignment are based on the average number of boys enrolled during the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years, as reported through the Kentucky Department of Education’s second-month growth factor reports.
The multiplier’s impact is already evident. For example, a private school with 522 boys enrolled would be adjusted to 704 under the formula, enough to shift classification upward in many cases.
Class structure has also been adjusted. The top 32 enrollments will make up Class 6A, while Class A will expand slightly from 34 to 36 schools in an effort to reduce postseason forfeits. Classes 2A and 3A will include 38 schools each, while Classes 4A and 5A will have 39. Each class will continue to send 32 teams to the playoffs.
For Crittenden County, currently competing in Class 2A, the changes could be substantial. With enrollment numbers trending downward and the multiplier pushing some private schools up a class, the Rockets are positioned to return to Class A, a classification where the program has historically found success, including a state championship in 1985. The Rockets have been competing in Class 2A since 2023 and will be there again this fall.
Under the proposed draft alignment for 2027, Crittenden County will compete in a Class A First District with Ballard Memorial, Fulton County and Russellville, with additional regional opponents including Campbellsville, Caverna, Fort Knox and Louisville Holy Cross in the Second District.
See full alignment plan here: https://khsaa.org/football/realignment/2027-2028/2027%20and%202028%20Initial%20Draft%20Alignment.pdf
The proposal remains in draft form and will be finalized at the KHSAA Board of Control meeting scheduled for May 5-6. Schools have until May 4 to withdraw from district participation or submit comments, though those that opt out will be ineligible for postseason play until 2029.
KHSAA officials have emphasized that the multiplier and new alignment cycle are part of a broader, ongoing evaluation process, with additional adjustments, including potential success-based classification factors, still under consideration.
Wednesday, December 10, 2025
Crittenden County's All WKC Selections
Crittenden County placed 10 players on the All West Kentucky Conference Football Team, highlighting one of the Rockets’ strongest seasons in recent years.
This year’s honorees are Caden Howard, Quinn Summers, Keegan Pierson, Gary Hall, Brayden Poindexter, Braydin Brandsasse, Trae Taylor, Dokota Sosh, Joel Bumpus and Eli Lovell.
The Rockets finished the season 8-4, marking their most wins since moving to Class 2A, and advanced to the regional semifinals before losing to state runnerup Owensboro Catholic.
Friday, November 14, 2025
Rocket season ends again at O'Cath
OWENSBORO, Ky. – Very subtly, this fall’s Rocket football team crept onto the sports pages with little fanfare, then out-punched the expectations of even the bluest of Crittenden County faithful. It was a unit that rewrote history on multiple pages, gathering momentum as Friday nights cooled and winning six straight down the stretch until they met their demise at a place where hopes have gone to die multiple times before.
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| Coach Courtney addresses the senior players during the postgame speech |
Despite a lopsided 50-14 loss to the No. 1 Class 2A Owensboro Catholic Aces on Friday at Steele Stadium, these Rockets won the hearts of their followers for their tenacity and an indelible will that surfaced when odds were against them. The odds couldn’t have been stacked any higher as they faced a giant of a team once again in the postseason at a place where the Rockets have seen the season end six times over the past 13 years, this time in the second round of the playoffs.
The Aces carving up the Rocket defense wasn’t status quo. Going into the regional semifinal, CCHS had proven its stiffness, allowing the fewest points per game since rejoining Class 2A in 2023. The Rockets’ eight wins are the most during seasons in that classification. Their comebacks rocked the stadium seats and rewrote program standards. No Crittenden County team in history had rallied back like this one — and the record book revisions stand as testimony to its fearless faith and unwillingness to throw in the towel.
Individually, the stealthy, stunning display of athleticism and record-breaking career of senior receiver Caden Howard was just as subtle as the victories he helped stack. In the end, he was rewarded with the 2026 Class 2A First District Player of the Year honor. The offensive triggerman, senior quarterback Quinn Summers, rose through the statistical ranks and settled among the five best ever in numbers — and among the top two in efficiency. Defensively, senior linebacker Brayden Poindexter rounded out a trio of history-makers. His tackle totals put him among the very best Crittenden County has ever produced, ranking in the top 10 in virtually every defensive category.
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| Senior QB Quinn Summers is consoled by a teammate after the game. |
The list of superlatives among this 12th-grade class could go to describe the versatility of running back Trae Taylor, the reliability of receiver Dokota Sosh and the brute toughness of trenchman Braydin Brandsasse, one of the finest linemen in school history. It could speak to the personal comeback of Gary Hall and the steady presence of Jay Stevenson, Keegan Pierson and Michael Counts.
But this story doesn’t stop there. Behind those seniors stood a chorus of underclassmen, a patient, pulsing rhythm section that kept the season in tune and now stands ready to score the next movement in 2026. Yet just as early skeptics turned a nose at this year’s record-setting Rockets, the coming class will likely need to overcome the same.
So as coach Gaige Courtney’s fifth season comes to a close, the critics will swallow a tablespoon of their pride as this year’s squad demands a status commensurate with its on-the-field success and will go down in the annals of Rocket football as one its best.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Crittenden County 0 7 0 7
Owensboro Cath 22 21 7 0
SCORING PLAYS
OC-Hudson Ebelhar 50 pass from Dremail Carothers (Andrew Garvin kick) 11:08, 1st
OC-Safety
OC-Jude Evans 14 run (kick good)
OC-Xavier Maddox 14 pass from Carothers (kick failed) 7:29, 1st
OC-Nick Sims 1 run (kick good) 11:20, 2ndd
OC-Luke Thomas 11 pass from Carothers (kick good) 10:17, 2nd
OC-Cam Woodward 5 pass from Carothers (kick good) 3:44, 2nd
CC-Caden Howard 3 pass from Quinn Summers (Mitchell Brown kick) 0:00, 2nd
OC-Thomas 21 pass from Carothers (kick good) 1:19, 3rd
CC-Howard 15 pass from Summers (Brown kick) 6;55, 4th
TEAM TOTALS
First Downs: CCHS 8, OCHS 11
Penalties: CCHS 7-58, OCHS 7-70
Rushing: CCHS 6-28, OCHS 20-135
Passing: CCHS 12-31-2, 168; OCHS 19-27-0, 252
Total Yards: CCHS 196, OCHS 387
Fumbles/Lost: CCHS 0-0, OCHS 1-1
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
CCHS: Summers 4-22, Trae Taylor 2-6. OCHS: Carter James 1-21, Shaiden Mitchell 4-15, Miles Edge 6-87, Evans 1-14, Cam Woodward 1-5, Peyton Morris 3-(-26), Carothers 4-19.
Passing
CCHS: Summers12-29-1, 168; Howard 0-1-0; Eli Lovell 0-1-1. OCHS: Carothers 18-26-0, 242; Morris 1-1-0, 10.
Receiving
CCHS: Howard 6-78, Taylor 3-20, Brayden Poindexter 1-5, Davis Perryman 2-65. OCHS: Thomas 5-94, Maddox 4-37, Ebelhar 2-68, Edge 2-8, Woodward 4-35, Josh James 1-10.
Defense
Brandsasse solo; M.Counts solo, assist, TFL; Hall 2 solos, 2 assists; Howard 4 solos, assist; Pierson solo, fumble recovery; B.Poindexter 5 solos, 2 assists, sack; D.Sosh 4 solos, assist; Summers solo, sack, caused fumble; Taylor 7 solos, TFL; Byford solo; Musser 2 solos, assist, 2 sacks; Perryman assist; Brown assist; Lovell assist; Bumpus 3 solos, assist.
Players of the Game: Offense Caden Howard, Special Teams Eli Lovell, Defense Trae Taylor, Lineman Aiden Musser.
Records: CCHS 8-4, OCHS 11-1
Wednesday, November 12, 2025
THE SHOW | 2025 | PLAYOFFS at O'Catch
Rocket Football Coach’s Show is brought to you by local partners and The Crittenden Press. Join Coach Gaige Courtney, Offensive Coordinator Austin Berry and host Chris Evans as they discuss the upcoming game and provide insights into the football program. For more, including stats, photos, articles, history and team records see RocketsFootball.com.
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Frazer Law, Bart Frazer, Cobie Evans
Howard chosen district player of the year
Crittenden County senior receiver Caden Howard has been named the 2025 Class 2A District 1 Player of the Year by the Kentucky Football Coaches Association, becoming the ninth Rocket to earn a district player of the year award. However, he is the first from Crittenden County to win the honor since the team moved from Class A to Class 2A.
Howard follows a list of notable past Rocket recipients that includes two who later earned honorable mention all-state honors from the Louisville Courier-Journal – Nathan Heady in 2001 and T.K. Guess in 2005. Quarterback Hunter Boone remains the only Crittenden County player to win the district award twice.
Howard’s award comes in a season where he climbed to the top of nearly every receiving category in program history. He finished the regular season ranked first statewide in Class 2A in receiving yards per game and second in touchdown receptions, while also ranking third in both receptions and total receiving yards.
He currently has 987 receiving yards, the second-highest single-season total in school history behind Ethan Dossett’s 1,273 yards in 2017. Howard now owns three of the top five receiving seasons ever recorded at Crittenden County.
In career production, Howard stands as the school’s all-time leader in receiving yards (2,817), receptions (202) and touchdown catches (43). His marks place him on several KHSAA career lists, including No. 11 all-time in touchdown receptions and tied for No. 12 in receptions, though those statewide records have not been updated since 2021.
Howard’s 43 career touchdown catches are 18 more than the previous school record, and his 202 career receptions make him the only Rocket to surpass 200.
FORMER PLAYER OF THE YEAR ROCKETS
Class A, District 2 - 2001 – Nathan Heady, DL
Class A, District 2 - 2005 – T.K. Guess, WR/DB
Class A, District 1 - 2008 – J.D. Gray, QB/S
Class A, District 1 - 2016 – Devon Nesbitt, RB/DB
Class A, District 1 - 2017 – Hunter Boone, QB
Class A, District 1 - 2018 – Hunter Boone, QB
Class A, District 1 - 2020 – Caden McCalister, LB/RB
Class A, District 1 - 2022 – Micah Newcom, QB
AT A GLANCE: Owensboro Catholic Aces
2025 Owensboro Catholic Record (10-1, 3-0)
- Week 1 – Bowling Green (5A, 5-6) – WIN – 23-17
- Week 2 – Daviess County (6A, 5-6)– WIN – 34-2
- Week 3 – Apollo (5A, 6-5) – WIN – 28-21
- Week 4 – Owensboro (5A, 9-2) – LOSS – 34-21
- Week 5 – Bardstown (3A, 7-4) – WIN – 56-30
- Week 6 – Meade County (6A, 2-9) – WIN – 61-7
- Week 7 – Hancock County (2A, 8-3) – WIN – 41-14
- Week 8 – Fort Knox (2A, 3-7) – WIN – 48-0
- Week 9 – McLean County (2A, 5-6) – WIN 47-6
- Week 10 – Elizabethtown (4A, 8-3) – WIN – 56-6
- Round 1 – Fort Campbell (2A, 4-7) – WIN – 61-7
- District Opponents are Hancock, Fort Knox, and McLean Couty.
- Opponent Fort Knox did not compete in the playoffs even though they were the 4-seed in their district.
- OC has
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