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2022 with Daniel Barker: Head Coach West Carter High School (Ky)

Tagged under: Beyond The Keystone, News

| April 21, 2022


Coach Barker has always treated me very well. I hope you all enjoy this interview.

West Carter has put together back-to-back very good seasons. What must you guys improve on to make this the best season ever?

I think as a program we need to continue the progress we’ve made over the past four seasons in terms of what separates the great programs from the good ones. As a staff, we work all offseason to address holes we have as a program or in scheme. Our players know what the teams before them have done and want to build on it. We’re not where we ultimately want to be as a program because we haven’t won a championship yet, but we do like the growth our program has shown. One thing we really stress in our program is “success takes what it takes”. Our kids know what it takes to play at the level we want to be at, and I feel like this spring our kids have had a great attitude and energy. At the end of the day, we want to be the best version of ourselves by the time the playoffs start.

 

  How important is the grid game that you guys play in and how nice is it to have at Kentucky Christian University?

Very excited about our grid opponent, Lawrence County. Very well-coached, physical ball team that will show us some areas we will need to improve in before week 1. We didn’t get to play either of our two scheduled scrimmages last year and it really put us behind the eight ball the first few weeks of the season. So we’re looking forward to good work against a really good opponent. KCU as a host is great. They have always been great to our program as far as facility use, player recruitment, and help.

 I have been to several of the bowl games around the state as a fan and a member of the media I love them, especially the ones that have doubleheaders on bach to back nights. As a coach how do you feel about playing in them and will we see you guys hosting a bowl game in the future?

We loved going to the Bowl at Mercer County a few years ago. It was a great experience for our kids to see a really good team that we hadn’t played before. We would definitely be interested in hosting bowl games in the future.

 What are your thoughts on playing out-of-state opponents? Any chance we will see you guys playing any in the near future?

Until the RPI is fixed, I’m not sure we would play an out-of-state opponent. I do think it would be a lot of fun to play an Ohio or West Virginia opponent.

 As a coach can you tell our readers some of what you do to help your players get recruited?

We keep a file on our players that we share with every college recruiting coordinator in the state. We also do our best to get players information about camps at colleges they’re interested in. I also think that direct communication with colleges about specific players has helped players communicate with various staffs.

 During your career what has been the toughest defeat to take? Why?

Beechwood, 2020. State Semi-Finals. Lost by a late fourth quarter 2 point conversion after rallying back from down 20-0. Still so proud of those guys, but that one hurt. Not for me as much as for our kids. Everything they accomplished that year and the heart they showed that night against one of the best programs in the state, it really hurt to see us lose a close one. No regrets about that game, but I’ll always wonder if there was something more we could have done to come up with 1 more point or one more stop. That core group of seniors and juniors bought in from day 1 and probably accomplished more than they had ever dreamed about. They did such a great job dealing with Covid (even the home workouts during the shutdown), and to see it pay off with such a great game in the state semis was definitely rewarding.

 Staying in the same line as the previous question which of the many wins have you cherished the most? Why?

I think the sweetest win was our district championship in 2019. We had won the district once before, but to win it in the playoffs, and make the 3rd round for the first time in school history, it was just a really special night. To me, that was the game that changed things to where we expect to win playoff games and make a run in the postseason. Obviously, our win over Russell, especially the way it played out and how we won, was equally sweet. Russell has always been “THE PROGRAM” for West Carter football, and to finally win for the first time, and do it on a last-second Hail Mary on their field, wow. It was a moment I’ll never forget.

 Is there that one coach you love to go up against? If so, Who and why?

I’ve got a lot of respect for Coach Maynard at Russell. Our last three games (especially 2019 and 2020) were physical wars. Just old school, physical, ball games. I think they always do a great job of making in-game adjustments, so it’s definitely always a game where we have to really be on the ball coaching. Really enjoyed coaching against Coach Rash at Beechwood too. They are so well-coached it’s just really impressive to scout and try to game plan for. He’s a classy guy and definitely one of the coaches I look up to in this state. Also, enjoy coaching against Coach Spencer at Fleming County. He’s a West Carter grad, so I feel like our programs have a real respectful rivalry and the games have been really good the past 8 years or so.

 Of the many football movies which one do you like the most?

Varsity Blues or Remember the Titans. Feel like RTT is the better movie, but Varsity Blues is hard to top for entertainment value.

 Staying with the lighter type questions how much attention do you and your team pay attention to pregame music?

The one song I think that should play at every high school football stadium on Friday Nights is Football Friday Night (Joe Zelek). Is there that one song you feel the same way about? We play music in the weight room, on the practice field, and pretty much everywhere so we’re a big music program. I’m all about listening to whatever the kids like (as long as it’s clean). Our intro is a version of “Blind” by Korn so if I ever hear it I always think about football.

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