Clinging to a 6-0 lead late in the first half of their home opener Friday against Eminence, the Harlan County Black Bears had watched two trips deep into their opponents’ territory end with turnovers and a second straight win to begin the 2025 campaign seemed very much in question. The Harlan County defense, however, answered the call until the Bears’ offense finally found its rhythm.
Harlan County added a late score in the first half then blew the game open in the second on the way to a 35-0 win that pushed the Bears’ record to 2-0.
“I was extremely disappointed in our first half play. I told the guys all week they would come in here and give us all we want. They have the athletes to do it,” Harlan County coach Jacob Saylor said. “I felt we could wear them down, and that happened the second half. I was just disappointed in the first half. We talked about it for two weeks. They are starting to learn to win. We are trying to get them to learn how to put teams away. We’re not there yet, but we’re starting to learn. You can see it in their eyes they are starting to expect to win.”
Harlan County allowed only 82 yards rushing on 33 carries after a strong performance a week earlier in a 21-0 win over Clay County. Senior linebacker Hunter Napier led the unit once again with a momentum-turning interception late in the first half.
“I’ve had two coaches call me over the week and tell me how impressed they were with how physical we’ve been playing on defense and getting to the football. They are taking pride in getting to the football,” Saylor said. “They have some good athletes, and we talked all week about not letting them get started.
Sophomore quarterback Brayden Morris continued his strong start with a 154-yard rushing night that including three touchdowns on the ground and one through the air. Junior tailback Jonah Sharp added 74 yards rushing.
The Harlan County offense started strong with a 50-yard drive in seven plays after a 25-yard kickoff return by Colby Shepherd to midfield. Sharp picked up two first downs and Morris added one before Morris rolled to his right and found an open lane into the end zone from the 13. Austin Tye missed the extra point to the left, but the Bears led 6-0 four minutes into the game.
Harlan County limited the Warriors to one first down in the first quarter and three in the second but struggled to reach the end zone before finally converting after a Napier interception was returned to the Eminence 29. The Bears looked as though they may come up empty again with a third-and-14 from the 33 before Morris went eight yards and then found Kayden Adams in the end zone for a 25-yard TD pass with 55.8 seconds left in the half. Sharp took a pitch from Morris as they rolled right and was able to dive into the end zone for the two-point conversion and a 14-0 lead.
The HCHS defense set up a quick score in the second half as senior linebacker Brody Hensley made a stop on the Warriors’ second offensive play before junior end Bo Eldridge recovered a fumble on third down. The Bears scored seven plays later when Napier carried defenders into the end zone on a 5-yard touchdown run with 7:14 to play in the third quarter. Tye hit the first of three straight extra points for a 21-0 lead,.
A short punt put the Harlan County offense in business again late in the third quarter. Morris had a 52-yard run on the first of a four-play drive, then pitched to Sharp for an 11-yard gain. Jayce Brown went 1 yard before Morris ran the final 3 with 3:05 left in the third quarter. Tye’s extra point pushed the lead to 28-0.
Another four-play drive capped the scoring on the final play of the third quarter as Morris showed off his athleticism, going right and then reversing course for an 8-yard TD run. Tye hit the extra point to close the scoring.
Freshman defensive back Hunter Fuson preserved the shutout as he picked off an Everett Starks pass with just over a minute left.
Harlan County return to action Friday at home against East Ridge. Eminence makes another eastern Kentucky trip next Friday to Paintsville.