THE HOOSIER GRIDIRON CRITIC

UNCLE JUDD’S WEEK 3 PROGRAM BREAKDOWN

BLOOMINGTON SOUTH: HAVE THE PANTHERS OUTGROWN THEIR COMPETITION?

A storied past. A dominant present. And in 2027, the Hoosier Hills Conference is next.

By Uncle Judd | The Hoosier Gridiron Critic

At some point, Uncle Judd has to stop asking whether Bloomington South is a good football team.

They are.

Three weeks into the 2026 season, the Panthers are 3–0. They have beaten Bloomington North 44–6, Martinsville 48–14, and Terre Haute North

77–0.

That is 169 points scored and only 20 allowed.

An average score of roughly 56–7 every Friday night.

So the question has changed.

JUST HOW GOOD IS BLOOMINGTON SOUTH?

And maybe more importantly:

ARE THE PANTHERS STARTING TO OUTGROW SOME OF THE COMPETITION AROUND THEM?

Because when you put what South is doing right now alongside the history of this program, its recent postseason success and what is coming in 2027, there is a much bigger story here than a 77–0 football game.

THIS ISN’T SOME NEW FOOTBALL PROGRAM

One thing needs to be clear before we talk about 2026.

Bloomington South has been tough for a long time.

There is real football tradition attached to that purple uniform.

There are generations of players who came through Bloomington South knowing that winning football wasn’t supposed to be some

once-in-a-generation occurrence.

It was the expectation.

And if you want one name that tells you something about the kind of football history South has?

REX GROSSMAN.

Before Florida.

Before becoming a Heisman Trophy finalist.

Before becoming a first-round NFL Draft pick.

Before starting in a Super Bowl for the Chicago Bears.

Rex Grossman was a Bloomington South Panther.

Grossman threw for 7,518 yards and 97 touchdowns during his three seasons as South’s quarterback. As a senior in 1998, he threw for 3,080 yards and 44 touchdowns and led Bloomington South to the Class 5A state championship, defeating Homestead 35–14.

That matters.

Not because Rex Grossman is somehow responsible for what happens in Bloomington today.

But because it demonstrates the level of football tradition that exists inside this program.

Bloomington South has known what high-level football looks like.

THIS PROGRAM HAS A STANDARD.

AND THE CURRENT PANTHERS AREN’T LIVING OFF HISTORY

South doesn’t need to bring up something that happened in 1998 to prove it can still play football.

Look at last season.

Bloomington South reached the 2025 Class 5A Semi-State Championship and finished 11–2 before losing 42–0 to a New Palestine team that went on to beat Merrillville for the state championship.

That is important context for everything we are seeing now.

This isn’t a team that went 5–5 last year and suddenly jumped out to a hot start.

South was already playing deep into November.

They were already one of the better Class 5A teams in Indiana.

So entering 2026, Gabe Johnson wasn’t trying to convince anybody that Bloomington South could compete.

The challenge was different.

CAN SOUTH TAKE THE NEXT STEP?

And through three weeks, they haven’t exactly eased into answering that question.

They have kicked the door down.

44–6.

Bloomington North is your city rival.

South beat them by 38 points.

48–14.

Martinsville was next.

South won by 34.

Then came Week 3.

77–0.

Terre Haute North never scored.

South scored eleven touchdowns.

That’s not winning a football game.

THAT’S COMPLETE CONTROL OF ONE.

Offense.

Defense.

Depth.

Execution.

Physicality.

Preparation.

Whatever category you want to examine, South owned Week 3.

And when you combine that performance with the first two weeks, you get a Panthers team that has outscored its opponents 169–20.

GABE JOHNSON HAS A DIFFERENT KIND OF PROBLEM

I’ve spent a lot of time with these Program Breakdowns talking about struggling programs.

Programs that need direction.

Programs that need structure.

Programs where the coach is trying to change an entire culture.

That is not what Gabe Johnson inherited at Bloomington South.

His challenge is maintaining something that already has expectations attached to it and then figuring out how to push it higher.

And right now, the varsity side of this program looks extremely healthy.

There is a clear expectation to win.

There is a history behind the program.

There is recent postseason success.

And there is a 2026 football team that has absolutely handled everything standing in front of it.

That doesn’t mean Johnson and his staff are finished.

Far from it.

In fact, I think South has played well enough that it deserves to be judged by a harder standard.

Uncle Judd isn’t asking:

Can South have a winning season?

I’m asking:

CAN SOUTH PLAY FOR A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP?

That’s where this program should be aiming.

THE PROBLEM: THE BOTTOM OF THE PIPELINE DOESN’T MATCH THE TOP

Now we get to the part of this breakdown that isn’t nearly as flattering.

Because when Uncle Judd evaluates a program, I don’t stop at varsity.

A real football program should have development underneath it.

Youth football → Middle school → High school.

And while Bloomington South’s varsity program gets extremely high marks from me, I cannot say the same thing about the current youth football structure serving the Bloomington area.

UNCLE JUDD’S YOUTH FEEDER GRADE: D-

And that isn’t because the Bloomington area lacks kids.

It isn’t because South lacks tradition.

And it certainly isn’t because Bloomington doesn’t have enough football knowledge available in the community.

The issue is organization and development.

The current youth setup, from what I’ve seen and learned, operates far more like its own separate entity than a true feeder system for Bloomington North and Bloomington South.

The teams imitate NFL identities rather than the high schools they are supposedly feeding.

In the upper division, there are currently just four teams with low numbers — two made up primarily of kids from the South district and two from the North district.

But they aren’t operating as Bloomington South Panthers and Bloomington North Cougars.

There is no strong identity connecting those kids with where they are going next.

And that makes absolutely no sense to me.

WHY AREN’T SOUTH KIDS LEARNING TO BE PANTHERS?

Think about the opportunity Bloomington has sitting right in front of it.

Two high schools.

Two distinct football identities.

Two established programs.

Why wouldn’t a kid growing up in the South district already be learning what it means to become a Panther?

Why wouldn’t a kid from the North district be growing up dreaming about becoming a Cougar?

Why aren’t the youth programs working with the high schools to establish common terminology, fundamentals and developmental expectations?

And before somebody misunderstands what Uncle Judd is saying:

I am not saying an eight-year-old should be running Gabe Johnson’s entire varsity playbook.

That would be ridiculous.

What I’m talking about is alignment.

How do we teach stance?

How do we teach blocking?

How do we teach tackling?

How do we teach pursuit?

Ball security?

Footwork?

Discipline?

Football intelligence?

Toughness?

Teamwork?

Those things should build from one level to the next.

Instead, Bloomington currently has a youth setup that appears disconnected from what the high schools are doing.

AND COACHING MATTERS

This is another concern I have.

Youth football should be where kids are taught the game.

Not just placed into a formation and told where to stand.

Not just handed a football because they happen to be faster than everybody else at age ten.

Not just managed in a way designed to keep every parent from complaining.

Kids should leave youth football better football players than when they entered.

From conversations and observations around the Bloomington youth setup, I have concerns about coaching quality and about what the organization prioritizes.

I’ve also heard concerns about knowledgeable coaches who actually emphasize football fundamentals, discipline and tradition not always being retained.

Those are concerns and evaluations — not some official finding from a governing body — and I want to make that distinction clear.

But Uncle Judd is allowed to judge what he sees.

And what I see is a system that appears far too interested in keeping parents satisfied and not nearly interested enough in answering the most important question:

ARE THESE KIDS ACTUALLY BEING DEVELOPED?

That should be the mission.

Not making every adult happy.

Not protecting feelings.

Not charging families significant money simply to participate.

TEACH FOOTBALL.

Because ultimately those kids belong to the future of Bloomington football.

SOUTH MAY BE WINNING IN SPITE OF THE YOUTH STRUCTURE

That might be the most interesting part of this entire breakdown.

Look at what Bloomington South is doing at the varsity level.

Then look underneath it.

Those two things don’t match.

South has a championship tradition.

They have a strong varsity culture.

They have established middle-school pathways.

And they continue to produce quality high-school football.

But imagine what the Panthers could become if the youth level were truly aligned with the high school.

Imagine kids being taught correctly from the beginning.

Imagine South-district kids wearing purple and already feeling connected to Panther football.

Imagine North doing the same thing.

Imagine youth coaches being chosen primarily because they can develop football players.

That’s how you protect a program for the next generation.

Bloomington South has a strong house.

I’M NOT CONVINCED THE FOUNDATION UNDERNEATH IT IS AS STRONG AS IT SHOULD BE.

And that is why the feeder grade is a D-.

NOW LET’S TALK ABOUT THE HOOSIER HILLS CONFERENCE

In 2027, Bloomington South officially becomes a member of the Hoosier Hills Conference.

That move is already official.

South will join Bedford North Lawrence, Columbus East, Floyd Central, Jeffersonville, Jennings County, New Albany and Seymour beginning with the 2027–28 school year.

And Uncle Judd is putting his opinion on the record now.

I DON’T THINK BLOOMINGTON SOUTH SHOULD HAVE BEEN ADDED TO THE HHC — AT LEAST NOT FROM A FOOTBALL COMPETITIVE-BALANCE STANDPOINT.

That is not an insult to Bloomington South.

It is a compliment.

I think this program may be operating at a different level than most of the conference it is about to enter.

And history gives us at least one good example.

ASK BNL WHAT PLAYING SOUTH HAS LOOKED LIKE

Bedford North Lawrence knows Bloomington South football.

Those programs played 33 times in the historical series I found.

Bloomington South leads that series:

27–6.

So yes, BNL has beaten Bloomington South.

Six times.

There were wins in 1979, 1980, 1982, 1986, 2010 and 2011.

But South won approximately 82% of the meetings.

And some of those games were ugly.

South beat BNL:

63–3 in 2002.

54–6 in 2003.

52–0 in 2014.

Then South saw Bedford again in the 2014 sectional and won 51–7.

The last listed meeting in that series came in 2015.

South won that one 28–0.

That doesn’t mean history automatically repeats itself.

It doesn’t mean current BNL players are responsible for anything that happened twenty years ago.

And it doesn’t mean the rest of the HHC should simply give up before South gets there.

But history does show something:

WHEN A STRONG BLOOMINGTON SOUTH PROGRAM HAS FACED BNL, SOUTH HAS WON FAR MORE OFTEN THAN IT HAS LOST.

That matters when we’re talking about what could happen in the new HHC.

WHOEVER FINISHES SECOND MAY HAVE A CASE WITH UNCLE JUDD

Here is where I’m going to get myself in trouble.

Fine.

I’ll say it anyway.

If Bloomington South enters the HHC in 2027 playing football anywhere near the level we’re seeing right now, I expect them to become the immediate team to beat.

That doesn’t mean the conference is weak.

Floyd Central has had quality teams.

New Albany has athletes.

Columbus East has tremendous football history.

BNL is trying to build something.

Seymour has improved.

Jeffersonville has talent.

There are proud programs in this league.

But Uncle Judd isn’t going to pretend all football programs are automatically equal because they are now standing in the same conference.

BLOOMINGTON SOUTH MAY BE COMING INTO THE HHC AS THE NEW MEASURING STICK.

And if they start running through the league the way I believe they might?

Then yes — in Uncle Judd’s eyes, the team finishing second may become the most interesting team in the conference.

Officially, the HHC champion will be whoever wins the standings.

That isn’t changing.

If South wins it, they earn the trophy.

But among the traditional HHC programs?

I may be looking at that second-place finisher and saying:

THAT’S THE TEAM THAT WON THE RACE EVERYBODY ELSE WAS REALLY RUNNING.

Provocative?

Absolutely.

But I’m putting it on record before South ever plays its first HHC football game.

Bring it back to me later if I’m wrong.

AND HERE’S THE OTHER SIDE: IS THE HHC GOOD FOR SOUTH?

This is the part people may overlook.

Everybody is asking what South might do to the HHC.

I’m also wondering what regular HHC football will do for South.

Because the Panthers’ stated goal shouldn’t simply be winning a conference championship.

This team reached a Class 5A semi-state last year.

They should be preparing themselves to beat the type of opponent they are going to see deep in November.

And Gabe Johnson has already talked publicly about that problem while putting together the 2026 schedule.

After Conference Indiana broke apart, South had difficulty finding opponents. Johnson said he wanted games against appropriately sized teams and didn’t want to simply fill the schedule with opponents that would do nothing to prepare the Panthers for the tournament. South eventually had to look outside Indiana for one of its games.

That tells me Johnson understands exactly what I’m talking about.

GOOD TEAMS NEED TO BE TESTED.

You need games where somebody punches back.

You need fourth quarters where the starters are still playing.

You need games where your offense gets stopped.

You need to know how your quarterback reacts after an interception.

You need to see what your defense does when somebody drives the field.

You need to play from behind.

You need adversity.

Because November will eventually provide it whether you’re ready or not.

South learned that last season when New Palestine beat them 42–0 in semi-state.

That wasn’t a failure of the entire program.

South had an excellent season.

But it showed exactly how large the jump can become when you finally run into an elite postseason opponent.

That is the standard South should be preparing for.

THE 2026 SCHEDULE SHOULD EVENTUALLY TELL US MORE

This is also why Uncle Judd isn’t handing Bloomington South a state trophy after three games.

There are harder tests coming.

South’s remaining schedule includes Muncie Central, Greenfield-Central, Columbus North, a road trip to Ironton, Ohio, Brebeuf Jesuit and then Center Grove.

That last stretch is where this evaluation becomes really interesting.

Because beating Terre Haute North 77–0 tells me South was massively better than Terre Haute North that night.

It does not tell me South is ready to beat Indiana’s best football teams.

That requires a different kind of evidence.

How does South look when somebody matches its physicality?

How does South look when it can’t score whenever it wants?

Can the Panthers win 17–14?

Can they make a stop with two minutes remaining?

Can they overcome a turnover?

Can they handle somebody who refuses to be intimidated by the purple jerseys?

Those are the questions that matter now.

THOSE ARE CHAMPIONSHIP QUESTIONS.

And Bloomington South has earned the right to be judged that way.

UNCLE JUDD’S PROGRAM GRADES

VARSITY PERFORMANCE — A+

I don’t know what else you give a team that is 3–0 and has outscored opponents 169–20.

The results speak for themselves.

DEFENSE — A+

Twenty points allowed in three games followed by a 77–0 shutout.

That is domination.

PROGRAM TRADITION — A+

State championship history.

Rex Grossman.

Decades of winning football.

A Class 5A semi-state appearance just last season.

South has earned this grade.

HEAD COACH / VARSITY DIRECTION — A

Gabe Johnson has South operating at a very high level.

The next step is proving the Panthers can handle the elite teams waiting later in the schedule and tournament.

YOUTH FEEDER SYSTEM — D-

This is the glaring weakness in the overall structure.

Too disconnected from the high schools.

Too little identity.

Low numbers in the upper division.

Concerns about coaching and development.

Too much emphasis, in my opinion, on satisfying adults rather than creating football players.

OVERALL PROGRAM — A-

Why not an A+?

Because a program isn’t only Friday night.

South’s varsity product is outstanding.

The youth foundation needs significant improvement.

UNCLE JUDD’S BOTTOM LINE

Bloomington South football does not need Uncle Judd to tell anybody that it matters.

THE PANTHERS HAVE ALREADY PROVEN THAT.

This is a program with history.

A program that produced Rex Grossman.

A program that won a Class 5A state championship during his era.

A program that returned to semi-state just last season.

And now a program that has opened 2026 by going:

3–0.

169 POINTS SCORED.

20 POINTS ALLOWED.

77–0 IN WEEK 3.

The varsity Panthers look like a machine right now.

But if this Program Breakdown has taught me anything, it is that Bloomington South is almost two different stories.

At the top?

ONE OF THE BEST FOOTBALL PROGRAMS IN SOUTHERN INDIANA.

At the bottom?

A youth system that, in Uncle Judd’s opinion, is nowhere close to matching the standard of the high school it should eventually help serve.

That needs fixing.

And then there is the future.

In 2027, Bloomington South enters the Hoosier Hills Conference.

My prediction is already on the record.

SOUTH WILL ENTER THE HHC AS THE TEAM TO BEAT.

Maybe somebody proves me wrong.

Maybe Floyd Central steps up.

Maybe Columbus East returns to its old championship form.

Maybe BNL becomes the program it believes it can become.

Maybe New Albany, Seymour, Jeffersonville or somebody else decides they’ve had enough of hearing about Bloomington South.

Good.

That would make the conference better.

Because the last thing Bloomington South needs is everybody stepping aside.

THE PANTHERS NEED SOMEBODY TO HIT THEM BACK.

South has already proven it can dominate.

The question now is whether it can become something greater than dominant.

Can it become championship-level again?

That answer isn’t coming from a 77–0 scoreboard.

It’s coming later.

When the game gets uncomfortable.

When somebody refuses to go away.

When the Panthers are finally standing across from a football team that believes just as strongly as they do.

THAT’S WHEN UNCLE JUDD WILL FIND OUT JUST HOW GOOD BLOOMINGTON SOUTH REALLY IS.

— Uncle Judd

The Hoosier Gridiron Critic

Praise when it’s earned. Criticism when it’s deserved. Nobody gets a free pass.