2020 Class of the Commonwealth: Kentucky’s top high school football seniors
The Lexington Herald-Leader is proud to present its 29th edition of the Class of the Commonwealth, an annual selection of the state’s top football-playing seniors.
All choices were made by Herald-Leader digital sports writer Jared Peck using criteria that included: career statistics and accomplishments, senior-season stats and accomplishments, recruiting rankings, advancement in the postseason and any other notable accomplishments in athletics.
The list includes 25 players, with each of the 12 state finalist teams guaranteed at least one selection and 10 honorable mentions named. Each group of players is listed in alphabetical order.
STATE FINALIST HONOREES
JAYLIN BROSS, MALE
Position: Running back.
Credentials: Led the Bulldogs with 1,077 yards rushing and 19 TDs on his way to having more than 3,000 rushing yards for his career and three appearances in the state finals. He gained 1,658 yards and scored 23 rushing TDs as a junior, also a team high. And he contributed three TD runs and a scoring catch as a sophomore during Male’s last state title-winning season.
JORDAN DINGLE, BOWLING GREEN
Position: Tight end.
Credentials: A three-star recruit, according to 247Sports.com, Dingle led the Class 5A champion Purples in receiving each of the last three seasons, including 473 yards and two TDs as a senior. The Kentucky signee also chipped in as a runner out of the backfield and occasionally on the defensive line. In this year’s state title game, he scored on a short TD plunge, picked up 5 yards on a key fourth-and-2 play and notched a sack against Owensboro.
FRED FARRIER, FRANKLIN COUNTY
Position: Wide receiver.
Credentials: Has led the Flyers in receiving each of the last three years and earned at least 23 college offers, including Cincinnati, according to 247Sports.com, as a three-star recruit. Had 977 yards receiving and 12 TDs for Franklin County in 2020 on its way to its first state finals ever and helping the Flyers win their first regional championship in 41 years.
CLAY GAMES, ELIZABETHTOWN
Position: Quarterback.
Credentials: Led the state with 2,526 passing yards and had 31 TD throws in an offense that averaged 42.7 points per game, eighth best in the state. A three-year starter, Games led the Panthers through an undefeated regular season and the Panthers’ first state finals appearance since 2003. He totaled 5,713 yards and 72 TDs passing for his career.
AUSTIN GOUGH, OWENSBORO
Position: Linebacker.
Credentials: After missing most of his junior year due to injury, Gough returned to lead the Red Devils in tackles with 112 in 2020, spearheading one of the toughest defenses in Class 5A and the state on their way to a runner-up finish. Gough’s 131 tackles as a sophomore set a single-season school record and his 82 tackles as a freshman led the squad, as well.
CAMERON HERGOTT, BEECHWOOD
Position: Quarterback.
Credentials: Led the Tigers to state titles as a sophomore and a senior. Threw for 2,467 yards and 26 TDs and also led the team in rushing with 1,078 yards and 15 scores. Had two passing TDs and one rushing TD in this year’s title game and was named its most valuable player. Also named the 2018 Class A state championship MVP rushing for two scores and throwing for another in that game. Had 6,214 yards and 65 TDs passing and 2,376 yards and 34 TDs rushing for his career.
JAKE HYDEN, PAINTSVILLE
Position: Quarterback/running back/defensive back.
Credentials: Missed two months of this season with a torn MCL, but returned and contributed to the Tigers’ wins in the semis and finals, scoring three TDs in the championship game. Before the injury, he had 1,047 yards and nine TDs passing. He also finished with 462 rushing yards and 12 scores as a senior. Hyden led the team at QB on its run to the 2019 finals as a junior with 1,609 yards and 15 TDs passing and 776 yards and 10 TDs rushing. He started at QB all four seasons.
MATTIE LEBRYK, LEXINGTON CHRISTIAN
Position: Linebacker.
Credentials: Lebryk led Lexington Christian in tackles each of the last two seasons with 121 tackles and 5.5 sacks this year. His total of 324 tackles for his career has set the Eagles’ all-time mark for a team that won district and regional championships on its way to the 2020 Class 2A finals. Contributed 121 yards and two TDs receiving on offense as a senior.
WILL MCDANIEL, BOYLE COUNTY
Position: Running back.
Credentials: Named Class 4A player of the year by the Kentucky Football Coaches Association, McDaniel rushed for 1,219 yards and 21 TDs in 2020. His 196 yards and two touchdowns against Franklin County in the state championship game helped him earn the finals’ most valuable player honors and the Rebels’ ninth state title. He also anchored the defense as the team’s starting safety and had 32 tackles as a senior. He had 887 yards and 17 TDs as Boyle’s No. 1 rusher in 2019 when they also made a trip to the finals.
KEONTAE PITTMAN, ASHLAND BLAZER
Position: Running back.
Credentials: Pittman, an Army commit, rushed for more than 1,000 yards each of the last three seasons, including 1,557 yards with 24 TDs on the ground this season as the Tomcats went undefeated on their way to a Class 3A state title. Pittman was named Class 3A player of the year by the KFCA and earned MVP honors in the state finals after going for 253 yards and three TDs against Elizabethtown.
JALEN TODD, KENTUCKY COUNTRY DAY
Position: Wide receiver/linebacker.
Credentials: Todd led KCD in tackles with 71 and sacks with 6.5 a season after finishing second in those categories with 104 and seven, respectively. Todd also proved a threat as a receiver his senior year, leading the team with 529 yards and six TDs receiving as the Bearcats reached the Class A state finals.
BRAD WEST, TRINITY
Position: Running back.
Credentials: West has been named most valuable player in back-to-back Class 6A state title games. He rushed for 96 yards and three TDs in the Rocks’ 28-0 state finals win over Male in 2020 and 189 yards and a score in their 28-6 win in 2019. After getting some time at QB as a sophomore, West developed into a run threat as a junior, tallying 1,022 yards and 10 TDs. In this COVID-19 shortened season, he gained 697 yards with 15 scores, plus a pair of TD catches.
AT-LARGE HONOREES
JAGER BURTON, FREDERICK DOUGLASS
Position: Offensive/defensive lineman.
Credentials: Ranked as the No. 1 recruit in the state and the No. 3 offensive guard in the nation for the class of 2021 by a number of recruiting services, Burton dominated both sides of the ball for the Broncos in helping lead them to back-to-back district and region titles his junior and senior years and a state finals appearance in 2019. The Kentucky signee recently received the Paul Hornung Award as the state’s top high school player from the Louisville Quarterback Club. He is the first offensive lineman to win the award in its 28-year history.
LEETAVIOUS CLINE, WEST CARTER
Position: Running back.
Credentials: Cline led the state in rushing yards with 2,115 to go along with 31 TDs in 2020. He was the only 2,000-yard rusher in this COVID-19 shortened season and helped the Comets to district and regional championships. Cline’s 3,986 career rushing yards are a school record. He’s also totaled 56 rushing TDs, 980 receiving yards and 13 TD catches and 209 tackles as a defender over his four-year varsity career.
TRISTAN COX, PULASKI COUNTY
Position: Running back/linebacker.
Credentials: Cox made his mark early as the Maroons’ leading rusher each of his first three years, but he gained Purdue’s attention as a linebacker. He led Pulaski in tackles his senior year with 126 and was still counted on in clutch moments on offense for eight touchdowns, including the game winner in the final moments against rival Southwestern during the regular season. Named KFCA District 8 player of the year. All-told, Cox finished with 2,276 yards and 45 TDs rushing for his career and 335 tackles.
DEKEL CROWDUS, FREDERICK DOUGLASS
Position: Wide receiver.
Credentials: Crowdus, one of the state’s three four-star recruits, according to 247Sports.com, caught at least one TD pass in each of the Broncos’ playoff games this season, including a 100-yard game against Scott County. The Kentucky signee totaled 397 yards and 10 TDs this year. Crowdus led Douglass in receiving as a sophomore, netting 831 yards and 11 scores and had six scores and nearly 500 total yards as a freshman. He spent his junior season at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.
ISAAC DIXON, BELFRY
Position: Running back.
Credentials: Dixon has been a game-breaking force in one of the state’s most dominant offenses for three seasons, rushing for 4,471 yards and 58 TDs over his career, including 1,690 yards and 25 scores as a senior. He also has nine career receiving TDs on a team that almost never throws it. In Belfry’s state title win over Bell County last year, Dixon had a 69-yard breakaway among his three TDs.
JANTZEN DUNN, SOUTH WARREN
Position: Safety.
Credentials: Rated as a four-star recruit and the No. 7 safety in the nation, according to 247Sports.com, Jantzen, an Ohio State signee, helped lead one of the state’s toughest defenses, and he chipped in on offense as well, scoring three touchdowns in limited action as a senior. As a sophomore, he caught a 43-yard TD pass for the opening score in the Spartans’ 20-16 Class 5A state championship win over Covington Catholic.
JAGGER GILLIS, BOYLE COUNTY
Position: Quarterback.
Credentials: Helped lead the Rebels to the program’s ninth state title with 168 yards passing and a TD and 85 yards rushing with a TD and no interceptions. For the season, Gillis threw for 2,037 yards and 25 scores with 415 yards on the ground and 12 more TDs. Before transferring to Boyle, Gillis was a three-year starter for Anderson County and accumulated more than 4,500 yards and 52 TDs passing and more than 1,100 yards and 33 TDs rushing.
REECE JESSE, HOPKINSVILLE
POSITION: Wide receiver.
Credentials: A three-star recruit with at least 11 Division I offers, Jesse has led the Tigers in receiving each of the last three seasons, including 745 yards and seven TDs in 2020 in helping Hopkinsville to district and regional titles. As a junior, he had 1,184 yards and 15 TDs receiving.
MICHAEL LUNZ, NORTH HARDIN
Position: Linebacker.
Credentials: Lunz, a three-star recruit and Tulane signee, led the Trojans in tackles this season and was among his team’s leaders in the category as a sophomore and a junior. His 140 tackles in 2020 ranked second overall in the state and No. 1 in Class 6A and included 15 tackles for a loss. He also forced five fumbles, recovered two of them and had an interception on the year.
DYLAN PRESTON, JOHNSON CENTRAL
Position: Running back/defensive back.
Credentials: Named MVP of the 2019 Class 4A state title game after rushing for 97 yards and a touchdown, forcing a fumble and grabbing an interception. The turnovers came in a pivotal, tone-setting first half. Preston followed that by leading the state in scoring with 210 points in 2020 and leading the Golden Eagles in rushing as a senior with 1,679 yards and 29 TDs to go with 168 yards and four TDs receiving. He also played defensive back where he had 43 tackles and a team-high eight sacks.
KAIYA SHERON, SOMERSET
Position: Quarterback.
Credentials: Sheron, another Kentucky signee, led the Briar Jumpers to the program’s first state title in 2019 in which he orchestrated a five-play, 86-yard game-winning drive in the contest’s last 28 seconds. The comeback included passes of 38 yards and then 20 yards for the go-ahead score as time ran out. In three seasons as a starter, Sheron threw for more than 7,000 yards and 56 TDs and ran for 1,474 yards and 25 more scores.
BRAEDON SLOAN, WAYNE COUNTY
Position: Running back.
Credentials: Sloan, an Eastern Kentucky signee, led the state in average rushing yards per game each of the last two seasons with 230 yards per game in 2020. Despite missing time due to injury as a senior, he rushed for 1,609 yards and 27 TDs in seven games. As a junior, he ran for 2,804 yards and 48 TDs. His 5,768 career rushing yards broke the Wayne County record set by his father, James Sloan, in 1990. KFCA Class 4A, District 7 player of the year for 2020.
LA’VELL WRIGHT, NORTH HARDIN
Position: Running back.
Credentials: Wright led the Trojans in rushing each of his four years, including 884 yards and 11 TDs this season despite missing games due to injury. The Kentucky signee has 4,396 yards and 56 rushing TDs and 1,260 yards and six TDs receiving for his career, and was named Class 6A player of the year by the KFCA.
HONORABLE MENTION
Braedon Babin, Christian Academy-Louisville (LB): Led the Centurions in tackles each of the last two seasons and had 130 tackles, 10 sacks and 34 tackles for loss, tops in the state. Led team in sacks with 8.5 during Class 2A state title year as a sophomore.
Nick Broyles, Franklin County (QB): Led the Flyers to the Class 4A finals throwing only one interception all season while going 130-for-177 for 2,176 yards and 26 TDs in just eight games.
Javy Bunton, Bowling Green (RB): Led the Purples in rushing each of the last two seasons, including 964 yards and 19 TDs in 2020 to go with a pair of TD catches.
Jack Dingle, Trinity (LB): Three-star recruit signed with Cincinnati and was a leader on the Rocks’ back-to-back state title teams.
Cole Durbin, North Bullitt (RB): Rushed for 1,581 yards and 25 TDs for Class 5A district champ following up a 1,813 yards, 31-TD campaign as a junior.
Jackson Green, West Jessamine (WR): Led the state in total receiving yards (1,078) and receiving yards per game (137) with 11 TDs. Also led the team with nine rushing TDs.
Jordan Lovett, North Hardin (S): Three-star recruit and Kentucky signee who led the state with 15 interceptions as a junior and ranked among the team’s top tacklers the last two years.
Nathan McElroy, Trinity (QB): Butler signee led the Shamrocks to back-to-back Class 6A state titles, suffering only two losses as a starter and throwing for nearly 4,000 yards and 48 TDs.
Wes Oliver, Taylor County (RB): Rushed for more than 1,000 yards each of his four seasons, including 2,265 during the Cardinals’ run to the state semis. Totaled 5,885 yards and 79 TDs rushing for his career.
Gavon Thomas, Williamsburg (WR): Recorded his second consecutive 1,000-yard receiving season for the Tigers with 1,078 yards and 15 TDs. One of two 2020 receivers with more than 1,000 yards.
This story was originally published December 27, 2020 at 8:57 AM.
