Herald-Leader Top 10: Kentucky Class 6A high school football preseason poll for 2020
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2020 Kentucky high school football preview
The 2020 high school football season kicked off Friday, Sept. 11. High school sports beat writer Jared Peck wrote numerous stories in the Herald-Leader and on Kentucky.com previewing the season around the city, region and state and highlighting the top players and games and rankings. Click below to read all of his stories in case you missed any of them.
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Editor’s Note: This is the last in a series of stories ranking Kentucky’s high school football teams class by class, according to voting by the state’s coaches.
The 2020 season, hopefully there is one, won’t look like any other.
Trinity at No. 1 in a preseason poll for Kentucky’s largest football class, however, that’s a constant. And that’s good for those clad in the Shamrocks’ green and white.
The defending champions, who have won more state titles (26) than any program, swept all 21 votes cast for No. 1 among the division’s head coaches participating in the @HLpreps Class 6A Preseason Football Survey. They were the only 2020 team to get every No. 1 vote in their class across all six of the state’s classes.
Here are the preseason top 10 teams in the Kentucky High School Athletic Association’s Class 6A as voted on by coaches in the division.
1. Trinity
Head coach: Bob Beatty (21st season).
Last season: 13-2. Won 28-6 against Male in the Class 6A state championship.
Quick look: How does one of the biggest, baddest teams in the state get even scarier coming off a state title? Well, incredibly, it’s because many of their key players from 2019 are back, including senior quarterback Nathan McElroy and 1,000-yard rushers Armon Tucker and Brad West. They will run behind an offensive line that includes 6-3, 275-pound tackle Alex Moore, an Air Force commit. McElroy threw for 2,597 yards and 31 TDs. Wait, there’s more. On defense, they have three-star Cincinnati commit Jack Dingle at linebacker along with fellow seniors Charlie Ely and lineman Alton Jefferson Jr.
2. Male
Head coach: Chris Wolfe (11th season).
Last season: 14-1. 5th District champs, regional champs. Lost 28-6 to Trinity in the state championship.
Quick look: The Bulldogs get 10 starters back, six of them on defense, including standout junior lineman Selah Brown, who led the team with nine sacks, and Elijah Manning, who was second on the team in tackles with 74. Senior Nick Coates leads the secondary along with junior Romel Sheffield who was among the team leaders in tackles and interceptions. The offense will need some retooling after losing most of its offensive line and top two receivers, but having leading scorer and 1,658-yard senior rusher Jaylin Bross in the backfield is a pretty good place to start building around.
3. St. Xavier
Head coach: Kevin Wallace (third season).
Last season: 8-5. 3rd District champs. Lost 33-7 to Male in regional finals.
Quick look: Coach Wallace has experience in the offensive line, at wide receiver and in the secondary, but he has some questions about who will emerge to lead a young team at quarterback and running back this season. QB looks to have been answered by Giles Pooler, a 6-4, 210-pound senior, who just transferred from Colorado. Wallace calls Naval Academy commit Evan Brown, a 6-4, 270 pound senior tackle, a “legit” Football Bowl Subdivision offensive lineman. Wideout Mekhi Smith had 618 yards and four TDs receiving as a sophomore just behind fellow junior Michael Duddy’s team-high 646 yards and five TDs. Senior linebacker Kurtis Cotten II was among the team’s leaders in tackles (73). Senior corners Parker Guillaume and Anthony Woods and senior safety Braden Wilson combined for more than 120 tackles and five interceptions.
4. North Hardin
Head coach: Brent Thompson (ninth season).
Last season: 13-1. 2nd District champs, regional champs. Lost 54-7 to Trinity in the state semifinals.
Quick look: The Trojans had a dominating 2019 regular season and look to keep rolling with two Kentucky commits among a wealth of talent that includes eight returning starters on offense. La’Vell Wright rushed for 1,819 yards and 25 TDs before committing to the Cats in May. Manie Wimberly tossed for 2,649 yards and 24 TDs as a sophomore. Sophomore offensive lineman Trevon Alexander was just offered by Kentucky. Jordan Lovett, a three-star safety who had a stunning 15 interceptions in 2019, will join Wright in Lexington next year. Senior linebacker Michael Lunz, a Tulane commit, also ranks among the top 10 recruits in the state and was second on the team in tackles last year.
5. Manual
Head coach: Scott Carmony (fifth season).
Last season: 9-3. Lost 28-9 to St. Xavier in the 3rd District finals.
Quick look: Coach Carmony likes his chances with 10 returning starters on defense, including senior lineman Darren Miller, who had 48 tackles and five sacks, and senior linebacker Ramont Townsend, second on the team in tackles (61). The offense gets back JaWaun Northington, who rushed for 1,036 yards and 20 TDs as a junior, and leading receiver Eli Blakey, who will look to improve on his 432 yards and six TDs from 2019.
6. Ballard
Head coach: Adrian Morton (fourth season).
Last season: 6-6. Lost 42-12 to Trinity in the 5th District finals.
Quick look: The Bruins had to play all of their games on the road in 2019 as their stadium was rebuilt. They have a solid foundation for success this year with four starters back on the offensive line and talented senior tight end Demetrius Huguley. Ballard rushed for nearly 2,400 yards last year and senior running back Kenton Jackson and junior Ke’shaun Hargrove are hoping to reap the benefits of that O-line experience. On defense, the top three tacklers return in senior linebackers Justice Thompson and Brendan Mullaney and junior lineman Jadarion Smith.
7. Fern Creek
Head coach: Joshua Abell (seventh season).
Last season: 8-4. Lost 27-8 to Male in the 4th District finals.
Quick look: Coach Abell believes he could have perhaps his most potent Fern Creek offense yet with 1,100-yard rusher Terrance Mitchell back with an experienced offense that also includes quarterback Gerard Traynor and backfield mate Hervè Blodè. A young defense will be led by senior linebacker BJ Pepper, who was among the team leaders in tackles last year with 72 to go along with four sacks.
8. Simon Kenton
Head coach: Jeff Marksberry (21st season).
Last season: 8-5. 6th District champs. Lost 47-8 to Tates Creek in the regional finals.
Quick look: Chase Crone proved to be a productive dual-threat quarterback as a freshman with 1,740 yards passing and 14 TDs with 669 yards rushing and six scores. Two of his top receivers are back in seniors Caleb Livers and Trey Little, who combined for more than 700 yards and four TDs last season. Senior linebacker Nate Walker comes back to lead the defense off his 87 tackles in 2019.
9. Central Hardin
Head coach: Tim Mattingly (seventh season).
Last season: 9-3. Lost 31-7 to North Hardin in the 2nd District finals.
Quick look: With only five starters back, Coach Mattingly admits he has a young, inexperienced team, but he sees talent. Senior running backs Gabe Ramirez and Trent Hill and sophomore Terry Brooks will get their chances in an offense that generated nearly 5,000 yards on a nearly equal 50/50 run/pass split in 2019. Two seniors, Blaine Mattingly and Kyle Browning, lead the offensive line. The future of the D-line looks bright with sophomores Adam Hobbs (6-4, 235 pounds) and Andrew Hobbs (6-5, 265). Senior kicker Evan Jones ranked among the state’s leaders by making 41 of 42 extra-point attempts and six of nine field goal tries. Senior wideout Zander Mayes had 586 yards and four TDs.
10. McCracken County
Head coach: Marc Clark (fifth season).
Last season: 9-4. 1st District champs. Lost 38-2 to North Hardin in the regional finals.
Quick look: With 14 starters back, eight on defense, Coach Clark is very excited about his 2020 Mustangs even though he has to replace his quarterback and top receiver. But he has leading rusher Hunter Bradley, a 6-1, 212-pound senior who had 1,669 yards and 22 TDs on the ground and another 215 yards and two TDs via the pass. Three starters return on the O-line, including seniors Blakley Miller (6-5, 295) and Gavin Trueblood (6-1, 275). LeAndre Bolen racked up 14 sacks as a sophomore and was third in tackles behind fellow junior Isaiah Keys.
Others receiving votes
(In order of votes received)
Clark County, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Tates Creek, Oldham County, Henderson County, Ryle, Pleasure Ridge Park, Butler, Dixie Heights and Apollo.
Survey method: Rankings reflect the participation of 21 of the 33 Class 6A teams (63.6%). Every Class 6A coach was given the opportunity to participate in the @HLpreps annual survey, emailed to their address listed on KHSAA.org. Multiple attempts were made to contact each coach.
This story was originally published September 3, 2020 at 6:56 AM.
