The Mayfield Graves Guardian from Mayfield, Kentucky • 14

14 WEST KY NEWSV Thursday, April 7, 2022 By KEITH TAYLOR, Kentucky Today LEXINGTON, Ky. (KT) Ken- tucky basketball coach Kyra Elzy was rewarded after leading the Wildcats to their first Southeastern Conference Tourna- ment title in 40 years on Monday. Elzy received signed a contract extension that will run through the 2027 season. The former Ken- tucky Miss Basketball and Uni- versity of Tennessee standout has led Kentucky to back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Tour- nament and led the Wildcats to a 64-62 win over eventual NCAA national champion South Caroli- na in the SEC Tournament finale. excited to extend Kyra and continue our investment in basketball and in her as a coach and positive role model in our Kentucky athlet- ics director Mitch Barnhart said.

the adversity the team faced throughout the season, the turn- around at the end of the year was impressive defeating the eventu- al national champion and winning our first SEC Tournament cham- pionship in 40 years, a strong step in building the championship vi- sion we all have for this Under guidance, the Wild- cats won 10 of their last 11 games to end the season. Kentucky finished at 19-12. In her two seasons as coach, Elzy has compiled a 37-21 record. seasons come and go, our focus and commitment and waver from the expectations set for this she said. have a core group of talented and driven players returning along with an exciting group of signees that cannot wait to wear those eight let- ters across the front of their jersey.

model the core values our program will continue to be built on: Accountability, Hard Work, Disci- pline, Servant Leadership and FAM- ILY. We are counting down the days until we can all be together again inside Memorial Coliseum. Until then, we will continue to work to bring home more Keith Taylor is the sports editor for Kentucky Today. Reach him at Keith.taylor@kentucky- todaycom and via Twitter at keithtaylor21. Elzy receives contract extension through 2027 photo UK Athletics By MSU Athletics MURRAY, Ky.

Four new opponents, a pair of familiar foes and five OVC games highlight Murray State foot- 2022 schedule, released Tues- day. The 2022 season will be the 98th for the Racers as a varsity program, their 50th in historic Roy Stewart Stadium and their 75th, and final, in the Ohio Valley Conference. Murray State opens its 2022 cam- paign in Big XII country with a trip to Lubbock for its first-ever meet- ing with Texas Tech on Sept. 3. The following week, the Racers return home to kick off their 50th season at The Track with former conference rival Jacksonville State Sept.

10. On Sept. 17, the Racers trav- el to Muncie, Indiana to face their second new opponent of the season when they take Ball State. On Sept. 24, Murray State opens its 75th and final season in the OVC at home with East- ern Illinois for Family Weekend.

The Racers will begin Octo- ber in the land of the bayou when they travel to Hammond to take on Southeastern Louisiana on Oct. 1, before returning home Oct. 8 to host UT Martin. Following the an- nual tussle with the Skyhawks, the Racers will hit the road for two straight games taking on arch-rival and former OVC member Austin Peay Oct. 15 in Clarksville and new OVC member and third new opponent of the season Lindenwood Oct.

22 in St. Charles, Missouri. Homecoming 2022 will take place Oct. 29 against Tennessee State, leading into the annual bye week. After the bye, MSU returns home for the final time in 2022 to host new opponent number four, Robert Morris, in a non-conference affair Nov.

12, followed by the season fi- nale at Southeast Missouri Nov. 19. Season ticket information will be sent out April 8 for both season ticket renewals and new purchas- es, with single game tickets be- ing made available at a later date. Racer Football set to join Missouri Valley Conference in 2023 By MSU Athletics MURRAY, Ky. The Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) Presidents Council voted to extend an offer of member- ship to Murray State University Friday, establishing the Rac- ers Football program as the 12th member of the preemi- nent FCS conference.

Murray State Ath- letics will host MVFC Commissioner Patty Viverito at a public announcement and media opportuni- ty on Friday, April 8 at 3:00 p.m. in the Hall of Benefactors, within Heritage Hall. Murray State becoming the 12th Mis- souri Valley Football Conference member, we have stabilized and strengthened FCS foot- ball in the Midwest and cemented the position as the pre- mier FCS football con- ference in the said Viverito. course of action makes good sense for our con- ference, our member institutions, our fans and most importantly our student-athletes. With this move, we will turn long-standing tra- ditional games with neighboring schools into conference rival- ries and open the way for equally satisfying new rivalries through- out the goal of the Mis- souri Valley Football Conference has been to position our mem- bership profile as the best in the stat- ed Indiana State Pres- ident Deborah J.

Cur- tis, chair of the MVFC Presidents Council. are thrilled to have Murray State University joining our great historic confer- ence. Murray mission and goals fit very much in line with what we are all aiming to we enter a new era of Racer Athletics and begin play in the Missouri Valley Con- ference, I am extreme- ly proud that we will be playing football in the Missouri Valley Football said Murray State University President Bob Jackson. is the best FCS Con- ference in the country and it will benefit our student-athletes, our program and the uni- versity as a whole as we move forward. I want to thank Com- missioner Patty Vi- verito and the MVFC Presidents Council for this invitation and vote of are appre- ciative, grateful and blessed to align our football program with- in the best competitive environment in the country, the Missouri Valley Football Con- said Direc- tor of Athletics Kevin Saal.

journey ahead will consti- tute great challenge, however, through the commitment and sup- port of Murray State University, President Jackson and the Board of Regents, our athlet- ics department, coach- es, student-athletes, community, donors, and season-ticket hold- ers, we will meet these challenges with great energy and enthusi- asm. Thank you to the MVFC Presidents Council for this honor and opportunity. Pro- spective student-ath- letes who desire to align themselves with a football program committed to growth within the best compet- itive environment in the country need look no further than Mur- ray State behalf of our a coaches and staff, we wish to express sin- cere appreciation and thanks to the Missouri Valley Football Con- ference and Murray State University, for this tremendous op- said Head Football Coach Dean Hood. said from the outset, we are committed to building a firm foundation on which our football pro- gram and the young men who develop with- in it can grow. With great respect, humble hearts and an unwav- ering sense of urgen- cy, we look forward to the journey The pinnacle of FCS excellence for nearly 40 years, the league be- gan in 1985 as the Gate- way Football Confer- ence, before becoming the Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2008.

With the addi- tions of North Dakota State and South Dakota State in 2008, South Da- kota in 2012 and most recently, North Dako- ta in 2020, the MVFC has cemented itself as the strongest and most successful FCS league in the country. The Missouri Val- ley Football Confer- ence is the benchmark for FCS football, pro- ducing 11 national champions and five ad- ditional national run- ners-up in the history. Most recent- ly, MVFC teams have produced nine of the last 11 national cham- pions and have placed at least one team in the championship game in an FCS-record 11-straight seasons (every year since 2011). The MVFC has averaged 4.6 tourna- ment bids per season since 2014, including a league-record six bids (AQ and five at-large bids) this past season. The 29 at-large bids during that span represent 27.8 percent of all available at-large bids during that time.

Not only do MVFC teams qualify for the FCS playoffs, they also win, amassing a 78-35 record in the playoffs since 2011, yielding a winning percentage of 69.0. Since 2011, MVFC teams have won 78 tournament games and own nine nation- al titles. The next-best league is the CAA with 45 total wins in that span. Since 2011, the only other leagues to earn a national title are the CAA and South- land, with one apiece. Murray State foot- ball will play its 98th season in the fall of 2022 and its 50th in historic Roy Stewart Stadium.

The Racers own an all-time record of 498- 454-36 for a winning percentage of 52.2 and are 166-98-2 all-time at Stewart Stadium. In addition, the Racers have won eight Ohio Valley Conference championships and have made six trips to the FCS playoffs. Indi- vidually, Murray State has produced 14 OVC Players of the Year, 45 All-Americans and 20 NFL Draft picks. Murray State will play its first season in the Missouri Valley Football Conference in the fall of 2023. The Racers will play the 2022 season in the Ohio Valley Conference, their 75th and final season in the league.

Racers announce 2022 Football Schedule Mayfield Cardinal Football Coach Joe Morris will be inducted to the High School Coaches Hall of Fame at a ceremony June 21 in Des Moines IA (photo facebook) On June 21 Mayfield High School football coach Joe Morris will be inducted into the National High School Athletic Coaches Hall of Fame. Morris has been the head coach at Mayfield since 1999 and has a record of 271 54. He has twice had teams complete un- defeated seasons and has nev- er suffered a losing season as a head coach in his 23 year tenure. The Cardinals have won six state Championships with Morris at the helm including five class 1 A titles (2002, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014 and the class 2A Championship in 2015. In a 2016 KHSAA interview with Mike Fields Morris stated been at every level possible here, from wa- ter boy to ball boy to player to assis- tant coach to head coach.

done it all. always been part of my father Jack was the head Coach at Mayfield from 1969-1992. Morris to be Inducted to Coaches Hall of Fame.