2025 Herald-Leader Top 10: Kentucky Class 3A high school football preseason poll

Editor’s Note: This is the third in a series of stories ranking Kentucky’s high school football teams class by class, according to voting by the class’s coaches.

After three straight Class 3A state championships, Christian Academy-Louisville has reached high school football dynasty levels of success.

That’s among the reasons why CAL received 24 of the 26 No. 1 votes cast by 3A coaches in the @HLpreps preseason survey.

“They’ve had a good stint for 10 or 12 years, and for the last three years, they’ve been pretty dominant,” said new Lexington Catholic coach David Clark, who fell victim to CAL’s first title win in its current run as head coach of Bardstown in 2022.

No. 4 Lexington Catholic has easily rolled to district and region titles the last two years only to get blown out by CAL in Louisville each time a mere one game away from Kroger Field. Clark aims to build the Knights up to that level.

“What we’re trying to do is establish a program that gets kids in the Lexington Catholic football system early … a youth program that brings kids to Lexington Catholic so that when they’re in high school we’re able to sustain and compete at that high level all the time,” he said.

But LexCath’s road to the state championship gets tougher this year as it joins a district that now features No. 10 Bardstown and ever-tough Mercer County.

Louisville’s Central ranks No. 2 in the poll, and represents a significant threat in CAL’s own district. The Yellow Jackets upended their relatively new chief rivals 48-28 in the regular season last year, only to succumb to the Centurions 28-6 in the region finals.

Along with the usual contenders such as No. 3 Bell County and No. 5 Union County, the last two 3A runners-up, the division adds No. 6 Murray, a traditional 2A power who moves up a level in the latest KHSAA realignment, and Bardstown, which drops down after a two-year stint in Class 4A.

Class 3A Top 10

Here are the preseason top 10 teams in Class 3A as voted on by coaches in the division.

1. CHRISTIAN ACADEMY-LOUISVILLE

Head coach: Hunter Cantwell (seventh season).

Last year: 12-3. State champions with 42-21 win over Union County.

Quick look: Cantwell reports a three-way battle for quarterback, but there’s no shortage of known factors elsewhere. Junior wideout Ja’Hyde Brown and sophomore lineman Kellen Hall have already garnered big-time Division I offers (Alabama among them), while senior linebacker Jackson Settle is getting some looks after leading the team in tackles (85) and sacks (5) last season. Ball State commit Stone Perkins (445 yards, 4 TDs receiving) should also be a bigger threat on both sides of the ball as a senior.

Schedule highlights: Aug. 22 vs. Pikeville; Aug. 29 at Owensboro; Sept. 5 at Lexington Christian; Sept. 12 at Ryle; Sept. 26 vs. Bowling Green; Oct. 10 at Central.

2. CENTRAL

Head coach: Marvin Dantzler (10th season).

Last year: 9-4. District champion. Lost 28-6 to Christian Academy-Louisville in region finals.

Quick look: Coach Dantzler plans to make his option attack more dangerous by going no-huddle in 2025. Linebacker Destin Basemore ranked second on the team in tackles (64) and first in sacks (6) as a sophomore and will line up at running back this year. Defensive back Jalen Dantzler, a 6-foot-1 junior, has Miami (Ohio) among his college offers. With nine starters back and just four on offense, the learning curve will be steep against the Yellow Jackets’ killer schedule.

Schedule highlights: Aug. 22 at Manual; Aug. 29 at Belfry; Sept. 26 vs. Covington Catholic; Oct. 10 vs. CAL; Oct. 31 at Mayfield.

3. BELL COUNTY

Head coach: Dudley Hilton (25th season).

Last year: 11-2. District champions. Lost 21-8 to Lexington Catholic in region finals.

Quick look: The entire offensive line returns in front of dynamic senior playmakers Kaleb Miller (2,105 yards, 29 TDs rushing), Blake Burnett (1,204 yards, 11 TDs passing, 517 yards, 6 TDs rushing) and Hunter Everage (532 yards, six TDs rushing). Another senior, 6-7, 200-pound wideout/defensive back Joseph Brigmon (545 yards, 5 TDs), has netted some Division I offers, including Eastern Kentucky. Senior linebacker Josh Owens led the team in tackles last season with 103.

Schedule highlights: Aug. 22 at Campbellsville; Oct. 3 vs. Rockcastle County; Oct. 24 at Clay County; Oct. 31 vs. Pulaski County.

4. LEXINGTON CATHOLIC

Head coach: David Clark (first season).

Last year: 7-7. District and region champions. Lost 50-14 to CAL in state semifinals.

Quick look: Senior linebacker Brady Wasik led LexCath in tackles (96) and is among those in consideration for QB1. The Knights were young up front last season and remain so, but linemen like 6-4, 225-pound Micah Osting and 6-1, 210-pound Ben Schlarman, both sophomores, gained experience in a campaign that started 0-6 and ended with district and region trophies for a second year in a row.

Schedule highlights: Aug. 22 at Ballard; Sept. 5 vs. Boyle County; Sept. 12 vs. Great Crossing; Sept. 19 at Lexington Christian; Oct. 10 vs. Mercer County; Oct. 17 at Bardstown; Oct. 31 at Ashland Blazer.

5. UNION COUNTY

Head coach: Derek Johns (10th season).

Last year: 12-3. State runner-up; district and region champion.

Quick look: The Braves must replace more than 3,300 yards of offense and 51 TDs by standout graduate Jarren Johnson, but seniors Abe Fletcher and Willem McPeake combined for 1,180 yards and 11 TDs rushing in supporting roles last year and will be counted on to step up. Eleven starters with big-game experience return for a team Coach Johns believes is his physically strongest, yet.

Schedule highlights: Aug. 22 vs. Madisonville; Sept. 19 vs. McCracken County; Sept. 26 vs. Hancock County; Oct. 17 vs. Murray.

6. ROCKCASTLE COUNTY

Head coach: Chris Larkey (fifth season).

Last year: 10-2. Lost 21-13 to Belfry in the second round.

Quick look: Senior running back Isaiah Jackson rushed for 1,266 yards and 16 TDs while splitting most of the carries last season. On defense, a pair of juniors are threatening school records — Hunter Pingleton notched 134 tackles last year, twice the next best teammate, while Blake Mullins pulled down 10 sacks in addition to his part-time role at receiver where he caught three TDs.

Schedule highlights: Aug. 29 vs. Russellville (at North Laurel); Sept. 26 vs. Clay County; Oct. 3 at Bell County; Oct. 30 vs. Southwestern.

7. MURRAY

Head coach: Melvin Cunningham (third season).

Last year: 8-4. Lost 49-14 to Owensboro Catholic in Class 2A’s second round.

Quick look: The Tigers step into Class 3A for the first time in school history and have 17 starters back, 10 of them on defense. “We have an understanding of who we are as a team,” Cunningham said. “We understand that we have to win games in the trenches.” Ryan Walls, a 6-3, 325-pound sophomore with a Florida State offer, should help there. Murray also returns dual-threat QB Wyatt Robbins, who topped 3,000 yards of offense and 32 TDs as a junior.

Schedule highlights: Aug. 29 vs. Calloway County (at Murray State); Sept. 19 at Russellville; Oct. 17 at Union County; Oct. 31 vs. Caldwell County.

8. HART COUNTY

Head coach: Chad Griffin (10th season).

Last year: 12-1. District champions. Lost 41-21 to Union County in the region finals.

Quick look: The Raiders have questions on defense, but return an experienced offensive line and senior QB Jacob Shoulders (1,485 yards, 19 TDs passing). Fellow senior Jack Crump was among the team leaders in tackles and sacks last season and will add primary ball carrier to his duties. “Defense is where we’ll have to grow as the season progresses, but it’s nothing we can’t do,” Griffin said.

Schedule highlights: Aug. 22 at Logan County; Sept. 26 at Glasgow; Oct. 31 vs. Grayson County.

9. GLASGOW

Head coach: Jackson Arnett (first season).

Last year: 5-6. Lost 45-16 to Union County in the first round.

Quick look: Arnett, a former Barren County head coach and most recently a Boyle County assistant, takes over a Scotties program with 17 returning starters and excellent team speed. Among the returners are seniors at QB, Hudson Gumm (1,333 yards, 14 TDs passing); RB, Cam Bulle (901 yards, 10 TDs rushing) and WR, Jerrick Martin (569 yards, 6 TDs receiving).

Schedule highlights: Aug. 29 vs. Barren County; Sept. 5 vs. Monroe County; Sept. 26 vs. Hart County.

10. BARDSTOWN

Head coach: Justin Grundy (second season).

Last year: 9-4. District champions. Lost 49-12 to Franklin County in the Class 4A region finals.

Quick look: The Tigers have more experience back on defense, but return junior QB Carson Riley (1,381 yards, 16 TDs passing) and senior RB Sevyn Hamilton (603 yards, 8 TDs), who will bear more of the offensive load. Senior LB/TE KJ Stafford ranked among the team’s leading tacklers and is a three-year starter.

Schedule highlights: Aug. 22 at Elizabethtown; Sept. 19 at Owensboro Catholic; Sept. 26 at Mercer County; Oct. 17 vs. Lexington Catholic.

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES

In order of votes received: Lloyd Memorial, DeSales, Russell, Bourbon County, Lawrence County, Mercer County, East Carter, Fleming County, Henry County, Knox Central, Powell County, Adair County, LaRue County, Letcher County Central.

Survey method: These rankings reflect the participation of coaches from 26 of the 39 Class 3A teams eligible for postseason play (66.6%). Every coach in the division was given the opportunity to participate in the @HLpreps annual survey via email. Multiple attempts were made to contact each coach.

Jared Peck

Lexington Herald-Leader

859-488-2883

Jared Peck, the Herald-Leader’s Digital Sports Writer, covers high school athletics and has been with the company as a writer and editor for more than 20 years. Support my work with a digital subscription