OHS football awarded state championship rings

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As the sun was setting Tuesday there were plenty of Owensboro High School football players, their families, friends and their fans still taking pictures in groups around the field at Rash Stadium.

The players had been awarded their rings for the 2025 Class 5A football state championship won in December, and on a mid-May evening with graduation later this week, they were all enjoying the individual awards they’d earned.

The first thing that stood out about the rings were that they were gigantic and impressive. And it seemed like every OHS football player who was wearing one also had a huge smile on his faces.

“I’m thankful it was this last week of school, we could all get together, the seniors get to graduate on Friday so we’re going to wear them walking across that stage,” said Evan Hampton, Owensboro’s star running back who won Mr. Football last season after rushing for more than 2,000 yards.

“There’s a lot of details in it, that are important to us as a program, look at the inside, you see the message from Jack Wells. Pride, 1800, tradition, excellence. That’s just a representation of our program.”

Evan Hampton enrolled early at Vanderbilt and participated in spring drills with the Commodore football program.

A grant from the Jack T. Wells Charitable Trust for $25,000 was provided to pay for 100 rings to go to players and others with the OHS football program. Wells was a well-known and successful leader in the Owensboro business community who passed away in August of 2020. Wells was an alumni of OHS.

Kingston Dillard, Owensboro’s leading returning receiver, was asked what he would think about that ring 10 years from now.

“I’m going to still be wearing it,” Dillard said, laughing.

OHS football coach DaMarcus Ganaway Sr., wanted to players to thank their fans and families.

“This moment here, the combination of everybody coming together the way we envisioned. The players I want them to stand up and clap it up for these fans that joined you all season and gave you everything they could to help us on this journey,” Ganaway said from the podium on the Rash Stadium turf. “Then I want the parents to stand up and join us as well, clap it up and all join us together. This was a great journey, we did it together, it took every last one of us.”

The coach had a special message for the team, coaches and administration.

“I know they’re going to remember this for the rest of their lives. That’s something I take pride in for these seniors,” Ganaway said. “I’m glad we were able to put this in front of you, you could ride off into the sunset with this. For you juniors, sophomores and freshmen behind them, you know what it takes, we want to make sure we’re back next year celebrating that 1800.

“I haven’t said to anybody yet, but we’ve got to go back to back, that’s the mindset moving forward.”

Dan Bartlett, the emcee for the OHS ring ceremony and the radio voice for OHS football last season, reminded fans that it had been 157 days since OHS beat Pulaski County 35-7 on Dec. 6 at Kroger Field.

That capped a 13-2 season which earned OHS its first state football championship since 1986.

The OHS ring ceremony was a final chance for the players to celebrate together as the 2025-26 school year will be closing soon.

“I know they had been wanting to see them (the rings), it had been a long journey to get here,” Ganaway said. “But to see the excitement on their faces, all the smiles, the awe they had, what is what we do it for.”

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