2026 Football Frenzy Preview: Russellville Panthers
RUSSELLVILLE, Ky. – Next up in our Football Frenzy preview series, presented by Bowling Green Fireplace & Grill, is a look at the Russellville Panthers.
The team has seen some change in a year’s time, but wants to use positive momentum from the back half of 2025 to power a full body of work in 2026.
“ Going into this new season, I feel like if we have the same mentality as those last five games, we can make some people proud,” senior offensive lineman Will Holloway said.
After starting the schedule with five losses, the Panthers fired off five wins in a row, going into the postseason with a head full of steam.
Now, the team heads into 2026 with a new head coach in Franklin-native William Griffin.
“He’s very disciplined, that’s what I like a lot about him,” senior quarterback JaCoveon Temple-Dickerson said. “(He’s a) very loud coach, but there’s nothing wrong with that. He just gets into people’s heads, trying to make us better, and that’s all it’s about.”
“I love how much discipline he gives the team. He may be hard on you, but he still loves you at the end of the day. He shows how much he cares about football and how much he loves the game,” Holloway said.
Griffin’s love for the game is setting the tone as he steps into his first head coaching role.
Playing and coaching football for a large majority of his life has taught him many lessons, which he’s hoping to pass down to the Panther players.
“I’m just one of those people that’s a passionate guy about anything that I do, but especially about football. Football saved my life,” Griffin said.
“If I hadn’t played the game of football, I wouldn’t be the man I am today, but I’m also passionate about kids. I wanna see kids be successful. To me, this job was bigger than being a football coach. I wanna instill some confidence in these young men and help them be positive, productive members of society.”
Russellville’s been training by the motto, “Trust the process,” spending many hours on the practice field and many more in the weight room, and by that process, the team will aim to put on a show each and every Friday night.
“We just want to be playing our best football come October and come playoff time. You know, be 1% better today than we were yesterday, and that’s what we preach to our kids,” Griffin said.
“We hear the laughs, we hear the smirks, we hear all the things that’s going on, and I want people to know, we know, but we’re gonna sit back in silence and just work.”
Russellville is scheduled to start the season on August 21 in the Lewisburg Bank Bowl, hosted by Logan County, against the Hart County Raiders.
