The 1989 state runner-up football team will be inducted into the Trigg County Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday, September 27.
The team will be recognized at halftime of Trigg County’s Friday game with Crittenden County at Perdue Field.
The doors to the high school will open on Saturday at 1:00 pm, with light refreshments. The Hall of Fame program will begin at 2:00 in the Little Theater.
Here is some information about the Class 1A state runner-ups and past Trigg County Athletic Hall of Fame classes.
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There was quiet optimism for the 1989 Trigg County football team after a 5-6 season the year before, in which all six losses were by a touchdown or less.
The Wildcats were returning 11 seniors and seven starters on each side of the football for Coach Dixie Jones, who just months before had led the school to another powerlifting state championship, consisting of much of the 39-player football roster.
Jones’ coaching staff consisted of Rick Larson, Neal Cummins, Gary Siegmund, Jackie Clark, and Tom McKinney.
Five of the returning starters on defense were All-Western Kentucky Conference selections the previous season, and the offense featured a 1,000-yard rusher in Greg Bridges. The speedy back not only gained strength, but also speed, clocking a 4.35 in the 40-yard dash on grass at a summer camp.
Bridges, Jamus Redd, and Robert Stinson were elected captains for the team who kicked off the season on a hot and humid August night against Murray at Perdue Field.
Despite the returning firepower returning for the Wildcats on offense, it was a lineman who scored the season’s first touchdown when Mike Thomas pounced on a fumble in the end zone.
Bridges rushed for 132 yards and countered the run attack of Murray’s Brian Sowerby, who ran for 115 yards on 13 carries. Sowerby now serves as a Trigg County assistant coach.
Edgar McGee added 53 yards rushing and returned a blocked punt for a touchdown. Brian Futrell and Vic Haines had interceptions with takeaways a theme for the ’89 defense.
In week two, the Wildcats beat Heath 22-0 behind a strong defensive performance, which limited the Pirates from West Paducah to 113 yards.
Trigg County unleashed its new weapon on special teams – Jason Wilson, who would kick off deep and usually be the first player down the field to make the tackle.
Bridges ran for 188 yards, and quarterback David Sholar ran for two scores.
The win was the 200th in program history.
The next two weeks would prove to be two of Trigg’s toughest games of the regular season as the Wildcats beat Fort Campbell 13-7.
Jimmie Duffie recovered two fumbles, both setting up Trigg County touchdowns.
The Wildcats were limited to 113 yards, but their defense held strong as the Falcons ran 33 plays in the second half to 13 for Trigg. The Wildcat defense got a big fourth-down stop with 1:15 to seal the win.
Trigg County and Caldwell County have played over 70 times in their border rivalry, but the 1989 game may be one of the most remembered. The Wildcats entered the game as the top-ranked team in Class 1A, while Caldwell County was ranked No. 5 in Class 2A.
On a rain-soaked field in Princeton, the teams traded drives but didn’t reach the end zone for the first 48 minutes. Coach Jones said after the game, the coaches chose to pick three or four basic plays on offense and rely on their offensive line.
That meant a school-record 42 carries for Bridges, who ran for 176 yards on a sprained ankle.
Bridges scored in the first overtime, but the PAT was missed. Caldwell’s Waynee McGowan caught a touchdown pass to tie the game, but their game-winning PAT also sailed wide.
In the second overtime, Caldwell got the ball first and scored on a McGowan run. Sholar broke up the Tigers’ two-point conversion pass that kept the score 12-6.
Bridges scored on a two-yard run and then kicked the PAT for the 13-12 Trigg County win.
Maybe it was a hangover from the Caldwell win, but the following week at Lone Oak was a bizarre contest full of penalties that saw Coach Jones pull his starters in the second half with a 30-6 lead because of the consistent laundry on the field.
Trigg County rushed for 350 yards, but Lone Oak got to within nine points, which saw the Wildcat starters return.
After the game, Lone Oak refused to shake hands with the Wildcats, who improved to 10-0 all-time against the Purple Flash.
The following week, football manager Heather Stroud was named the homecoming queen, and the Wildcats sent the home folk home happy with a 29-3 win over Webster County on another rainy evening.
Jason Wilson had 135 yards rushing and receiving, and Allen Nicholson’s second-half interception return to the 3-yard line kick-started a Wildcat offense that led 9-3 at halftime.
Week seven saw Bridges rush for 217 yards and four touchdowns in a 49-6 win at Greenville. He also kicked a 43-yard field goal, which was the longest in school history at the time and still ranks as the third-best.
Greg Oliver provided a fumble recovery for a score on defense, as well as a broken collarbone for a Blackhawk player on a tackle.
Trigg County opened district play in the land of concrete wigwams at Caverna, which meant an early dismissal from school to make the long trip to play the Purple Colonels.
Trigg County scored three touchdowns on its first 12 plays and rolled up 407 yards of offense in the easy 41-8 win.
The Wildcats wrapped up their first playoff berth in 17 years the next week in a 34-14 win over Todd County Central.
Trigg had 515 yards as Bridges rushed for 233 yards and Sholar threw for 142 yards. Oliver caught four passes for 109 yards.
With a couple of scouts from Pikeville in the stands to observe the following week, Trigg County faced a strong Russellville defense that limited the Wildcats to just 97 rushing yards. It was the only game of the season where the Wildcats had more passing yards than rushing yards as Oliver had two catches for 72 yards and a pair of scores, and Futrell hauled in a 58-yard pass that set up a third touchdown.
Russellville’s defense was a precursor of things to come as Ken Barrett’s Panthers followed with a Class 1A championship in 1990.
Trigg County closed out the 1989 regular season with a chance to beat Mayfield for the first time in 15 career meetings. The game at War Memorial Stadium was a tight one through three quarters as the Cardinals held a 14-12 advantage. However, the battle of top-ranked teams in the state (Trigg in 1A, Mayfield in 2A) went to the Cardinals, who scored the final 21 points in a 35-12 win.
Trigg County opened the playoffs against the same Murray team they beat in the season-opener by 20 points.
This time, Murray was up to the challenge as they scored early in the fourth quarter to grab a 7-6 lead.
Trigg answered with a scoring drive of its own and delivered the winning score with 6:18 left for the 12-7 win and Trigg’s first playoff victory in 17 years.
Another repeat opponent awaited the Wildcats in the next round as Heath reappeared after a thumping of Todd County Central, who had upset Russellville in district play and bounced the Panthers from a postseason berth.
Bridges rushed for 177 yards in the frigid weather and had the game’s only touchdown.
Heath appeared driving for the tying score late in the first half, but Futrell knocked the football loose on a Heath run, and the Pirates had to settle for a field goal.
The defenses stood tall in the second half, and the Wildcats escaped West Paducah with the 6-3 win, which still stands as the fewest points in a Trigg County win.
Thomas sealed the win with a pair of second-half interceptions.
In the state semifinals at Perdue Field, the Wildcats welcomed in a Paris squad that had knocked off a pair of undefeated teams on their way to Cadiz.
There would be no third upset as the Trigg County defense produced seven sacks and forced five turnovers in a 20-0 win, limiting the visitors to 85 yards.
Trigg County headed to Louisville to play in the school’s first state championship since 1972 against Pikeville – the same school they shut out to win the 1972 title.
The coach of that Pikeville team was Hillard Howard, who pulled a John Wooden and announced in the week leading up to the game that the 1989 state championship contest would be his last. The Panthers were looking to become the first Kentucky school to win three straight state championships.
Playing on its first-ever game on artificial turf at Old Cardinal Stadium, the Wildcats fell behind when Pikeville scored on a 99-yard drive.
Trigg answered when Duffie took a blocked punt and returned it to the 1-yard line, and Bridges poked it in for the score.
The game wasn’t without controversy as the Panthers threw a backwards pass toward the end of the half. Pikeville running back Steve Bailey was hit as he attempted the catch, and Kenny Wirts scooped up the loose football and rambled into the end zone with the potential go-ahead score. However, it was ruled an incomplete pass, and the score was taken away.
The death knell for the Wildcats came with 7:00 left when Trigg couldn’t get into the end zone on three chances at the Pikeville 1-yard line.
Pikeville went on to the 20-7 win and their third straight state title. It turns out, Howard didn’t retire after all and coached seven more seasons at Letcher County Central and later returned to Pikeville before actually retiring for good.
It was still a 13-2 season that culminated in Trigg County’s last trip past the regional championship round of the playoffs. Three years later, the KHSAA would expand the postseason to include the top four teams from each district.
Jones was voted the Associated Press Coach of the Year, while Stinson was voted First-Team All-State on defense. Redd and Bridges received All-State Honorable Mention nods.
The state’s coaches did a little better job in their voting, with Stinson named First Team All-State on the offensive line.
Bridges, whose 2,058 rushing yards and 29 touchdowns were second in a season only to Selby Grubbs, was voted Louisville Courier-Journal Second Team All-State at running back.
Redd (offensive line) and Wilson (defensive end) received honorable mention nods.
Bridges was also named the Evansville Courier Western Kentucky Player of the Year.
Trigg County players named to the All-Western Kentucky Conference Team were Greg Bridges (RB), Mike Thomas (OG), Robert Stinson (OT), David Sholar (QB), Greg Oliver (WR), Jason Wilson (DE), Jamus Redd (DT), Brian Futrell (DB), Kenny Wirts (NG), and Jimmie Duffie (LB).
The 13 wins equal the school record set by the state championship teams of 1971 and 1972.
Several defensive records still stand, including the team’s +17 turnover ratio.
Mike Thomas recorded a record 254 tackles, or an average of 17 a game.
Greg Bridges and Jason Wilson each blocked three punts, and the team’s 22 fumble recoveries stood as a record until 2000.
The Wildcat defense gave up just 9.9 points per game – the eighth fewest in school history.
Assistant coach Gary Siegmund was inducted into the Trigg County Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012. Coach Dixie Jones followed in 2016.
Robert Stinson was part of the 2015 Trigg County HOF class, and Greg Bridges was inducted in 2017.
Trigg County High School Athletic Hall of Fame Classes
2011
Al Baker (football, track)
Joe Graham (football, basketball)
Millard Griffin (contributor)
Karen Johnson (basketball)
Paul Perdue (coach)
Eddie Radford (basketball, football)
George Radford (coach)
David Sadler (football)
Jim Wallace (coach)
Willie Wilson (contributor)
2012
Chappel Allen (contributor)
Duke Burnett (boys basketball coach)
David Butts (baseball)
Selby Grubbs (football)
Joe Jaggers (football coach)
Sam Love (track, cross country)
David Radford (football, basketball)
Gary Siegmund (coach, trainer)
Buddy Sivills (basketball)
Ginger Wallace (basketball, cross country)
2013
Allen “Buddy” Perry (coach, athletic director)
LaDonna Diggs (track)
1962-63 Trigg County Wildcat basketball team
2014
1971 Trigg County Wildcat football team
1972 Trigg County Wildcat football team
2015
Charles Alexander (track and field, football)
Stephanie Humphries (basketball)
Robert Stinson (football, baseball)
1969-70 Trigg County Wildcat basketball team
2016
Eric Ezell (cross country and track)
Jerry Faris (super fan and contributor)
Tony Holland (football)
Marty Jaggers (football)
Dixie Jones (football coach)
1972 and 1974 Girls State Champions Track and Field Teams
2017
Greg Bridges (Football and Track)
Brianna Heffington (Soccer)
James Hobson (Basketball and Cross Country)
Ralph Stevens (Wrestling)
Jaime Towler (Golf)
1978 Boys’ State Champion Track and Field Team
2018
Harrell Guier (Football, Contributor)
Clayton and Roger “Spud” Ladd (Football, Contributor)
Scott Sivills (Basketball)
Pauline White (track and field, basketball)
Frank Freeman (football)
1981 Boys’ State Champion Track and Field Team
1982 Boys’ State Champion Track and Field Team
2019
Tommy Johnson – Track and Field
James Guess – Contributor
Danny Jones – Track and Field
Ted Sills – Basketball and Football
1982 Girls’ State Champion Cross Country Team
2020
No HOF Class Due to COVID-19
2021
1983 Girls’ Track and Field State Championship Team
1983 Boys’ Track and Field State Championship Team
Scott Brown – Contributor
Lauren Frazier – Girls’ Soccer
Mike Wright – Boys’/Girls’ Basketball Coach and Cross Country Coach
2022
John Ladd – Football/Basketball
Jackie Sholar – Baseball/Coach
Margaret Hendrix – Track/Cross Country
Blaine Alexander – Soccer
Jimmy Mathis – Football
1986 State Champion boys’ Cross Country team
2023
Todd Butts – Football/Baseball
Larry Palmer – Football
Tina Davis, Sam Cofield, Lynn Cofield, Grady Cofield, and Graham Cofield – Archery/Contributors
1991 Girls’ State Champion Cross Country Team
2024
Benji Glunt – Football
Ray Torian – Baseball/Basketball
Tom Patterson – Archery
1999 Girls’ Region Champion Golf Team
