Herald-Leader Top 10: Kentucky Class 2A high school football preseason poll for 2023

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

Fort Mitchell’s Beechwood High School Tigers bid farewell to legendary head coach Noel Rash upon his retirement after he led the team to its 17th state championship and its third in a row in Class 2A last season.

This year, new head coach Jay Volker, a Cincinnati native, comes in to continue the legacy.

“So far, I love this team’s commitment to excellence,” Volker said. “It has been pushed for many years under Coach Rash and I get to continue to push the envelope. They come wanting to work and willing to learn every day.”

Beechwood begins 2023 as the Herald-Leader’s preseason No. 1 team in Class 2A. Ten of Volker’s fellow 2A coaches voted the Tigers No. 1.

Challengers to the Tigers’ dominance should include No. 2 Mayfield, last season’s runner-up which got four No. 1 votes in our survey, and No. 3 Lexington Christian, which boasts Cutter Boley, the state’s top-rated quarterback. The Eagles received nine No. 1 votes. And don’t forget perennial contender Owensboro Catholic at No. 4.

Those four teams topped last year’s preseason chart, too, but there’s no shortage of quality teams who could make a run to Kroger Field this fall.

Here are the preseason top 10 teams in Class 2A — the second smallest football-playing classification under the Kentucky High School Athletic Association — as voted on by coaches in the division.

1. Beechwood

Head coach: Jay Volker (first season).

Last year: 14-1. State champions with 14-13 win over Mayfield.

Quick look: Eight starters return on offense, including junior quarterback Clay Hayden who threw for 1,822 yards and 21 TDs with only two interceptions. Fellow junior Chase Flaherty excelled after being thrust into the starting running back role midseason and netted 768 yards and 19 TDs to keep the offense on track. Volker believes senior linebacker Xavier Campbell is one of the best players in the state. Campbell is one of four returning starters on the Tigers’ traditionally stingy defense. He’s a two-way starter who also plays in the offensive line with senior Nick Alexander who Volker expects to “dominate in the trenches” on both sides of the ball.

Marquee matchups: Aug. 18 at Archbishop McNicholas (Cincinnati); Sept. 8 vs. Simon Kenton; Sept. 15 vs. Covington Catholic; Sept. 29 vs. Walton-Verona.

2. Mayfield

Head coach: Joe Morris (24th season).

Last year: 14-1. District and region champions. Lost in 2A finals to Beechwood.

Quick look: The Cardinals have 13 starters back from last year’s runners-up, led by senior running back Jutoriaus “Juju” Starks, a powerful 6-foot, 195-pounder who rushed for 1,214 yards and 21 TDs in 2022. Quarterback Zane Cartwright (2,120 yards, 24 TDs) and wideout Brajone Dabney (628 yards, nine TDs) are both four-year starters. Morris has concerns about his offensive line depth, but on defense he returns five of his seven top tacklers, led by linebackers Ian Williams (100) and Carter Morris (68).

Marquee matchups: Aug. 25 vs. Hopkinsville; Sept. 1 at Paducah Tilghman; Sept. 8 vs. McCracken County; Sept. 22 at Henderson County; Oct. 20 vs. Murray.

3. Lexington Christian

Head coach: Doug Charles (fifth season).

Last year: 9-5. District and region champions. Lost 38-28 to Mayfield in the semifinals.

Quick look: With Madison Central transfer Brady Hensley coming over to bolster the offensive backfield, a scary LCA offense that already had heralded quarterback Cutter Boley should get even more dangerous. Hensley rushed for 1,470 yards and 16 TDs in 2022, earning first-team all-state honors despite missing four games due to injury. Former head coach Paul Rains has stepped out of retirement as defensive coordinator to try to rectify an Eagles defense that gave up more than 45 points per game in their five losses. He’ll have senior linebacker Major Brown heading up that effort. Brown set a team record with 136 tackles last season.

Marquee matchups: Aug. 19 vs. Bowling Green (at Western Kentucky University); Aug. 26 at Boyle County; Sept. 2 vs. Pikeville; Sept. 8 at Christian Academy-Louisville; Sept. 15 vs. Lexington Catholic; Oct. 27 at Raceland.

4. Owensboro Catholic

Head coach: Jason Morris (fifth season).

Last year: 9-4. District champions. Lost 33-27 to LCA in region finals.

Quick look: The Aces have one of the state’s top dual-threat quarterbacks in 6-3 junior Brady Atwell (2,743 yards, 30 TDs passing;, 594 yards, nine TDs rushing). Vince Carrico, a junior and Tutt Carrico, a senior, helped shoulder some of the rushing load last season in addition to being standout defensive players. Vince led the team in tackles with 183 with Tutt notching a second-best 131 tackles to go with his team-high five interceptions. Tutt also led the team with 774 yards and 14 TDs receiving. Second-leading receiver Waryn Ebelhar, a junior, (707 yards, three TDs) also returns.

Marquee matchups: Sept. 1 vs. Greenwood; Sept. 8 at Owensboro; Sept. 15 vs. Henderson County; Oct. 27 vs. North Hardin.

5. Breathitt County

Head coach: Kyle Moore (11th season).

Last year: 7-3. District champions. Lost 41-32 to Lloyd Memorial in region finals.

Quick look: Multi-sport junior standout Austin Sperry (891 yards, 13 TDs receiving) and senior wideout Isaac Turner (595 yards, five TDs receiving) will be breaking in a new quarterback to run the Bobcats’ offense with senior Dillon Stacy probably filling that role. They’ll have an experienced offensive line led by seniors Evan Miller, 6-4, 275 pounds; Waylon Abner, 6-2, 250 pounds and Jacob Parker, 6-4, 275 pounds. Breathitt returns 15 starters, eight on defense, including all four of its starting linebackers. Kory Combs (109) and Brady Tincher (96) led them in tackles.

Marquee matchups: Aug. 18 vs. Belfry; Sept. 8 at Johnson Central; Sept. 15 at Hazard; Sept. 29 vs. Somerset; Oct. 20 at Danville.

6. Somerset

Head coach: Clay Clevenger (first season).

Last year: 6-6. Lost 43-13 to LCA in the second round.

Quick look: Clevenger, who led Danville to a state championship in 2017 in his second finals appearance with the Admirals, takes over the Briar Jumpers in the wake of the untimely passing of Coach Robbie Lucas last year. “We’re starting a new era for Somerset,” Clevenger said. “Coach Lucas left a great legacy here for the last 15 years. I will do things a little different, but we hope to be as successful as Coach Lucas was.” Among the six starters returning are junior quarterback Josh Bruner and multi-purpose back Kam Hughes.

Marquee matchups: Sept. 15 at Campbellsville; Sept. 29 at Breathitt County; Oct. 13 vs. Danville; Oct. 27 at Glasgow.

7. Walton-Verona

Head coach: Jeff Barth (16th season).

Last year: 9-3. District champions. Lost 41-0 to Lloyd Memorial in the second round.

Quick look: Quarterback Jackson Smith, a 6-3, 180-pound senior, combined for nearly 2,000 yards of offense and 22 TDs last year. He’s coming off a track season in which he won the Class A 100- and 200-meter sprints among other achievements. “Expect even bigger things in 2023,” Barth said. Seven starters return on each side of the ball, including leading receiver/defensive back Max Montgomery and second-leading tackler Jonathon Seibert.

Marquee matchups: Aug. 25 at Newport Central Catholic; Sept. 8 at Kentucky Country Day; Sept. 29 at Beechwood.

8. Shelby Valley

Head coach: Anthony Hampton (eighth season).

Last year: 10-3. District champions. Lost 49-12 to Beechwood in region finals.

Quick look: Quarterback Russ Osborne (2,787 yards, 27 TDs passing; 649 yards, 12 TDs rushing) broke all the school’s passing records as a junior and is on pace to surpass 10,000 passing yards for his career. “He’s by far the best quarterback I’ve ever coached,” Hampton said. Hampton has 17 starters back, nine on offense. Brett Sturgill and Jack Childers will come out of the backfield along with Osborne in the run game. Senior Brady Bentley (1,637 yards, 29 TDs receiving) leads a receiving corps that has its top six pass-catchers back.

Marquee matchups: Aug. 25 at Lawrence County; Sept. 1 vs. Martin County; Sept. 8 at Middlesboro; Sept. 23 at Elizabethtown.

9. Murray

Head coach: Melvin Cunningham (first season).

Last year: 6-6. Lost 49-14 to Mayfield in second round.

Quick look: Wide receiver/defensive back Jeremiah Jones, a 6-4, 200-pound junior, has offers from Murray State and Eastern Kentucky. Jones led the team in tackles (97) and interceptions (five) in 2022. Zavion Carmen, a 6-6, 200-pound senior, offers another big target. “He has an amazing catch radius,” Cunningham said. The going in District 1 with Mayfield, Caldwell County and Crittenden County won’t be easy. “We understand that this is a process that we are attacking daily,” Cunningham said.

Marquee matchups: Sept. 8 at Union County; Sept. 22 at McCracken County; Sept. 29 at Crittenden County; Oct. 13 vs. Caldwell County; Oct. 20 at Mayfield.

10. Metcalfe County

Head coach: LJ Harbison (10th season).

Last year: 12-1. District champions. Lost 28-0 to Mayfield in region finals.

Quick look: Dual-threat quarterback Mason Estes, a three-year starter, is among 10 starters back from last year’s one-loss squad, but the Hornets must replace their starting offensive line. Harbison said seniors Tyler Vibbert, Brayden Neal, Keegan Williams and Trey Branstetter should fill those roles in the trenches and had solid minutes last season behind the starters. Estes threw for 906 yards and four TDs with 481 yards and six TDs rushing. CT Branstetter racked up 665 yards and 11 TDs rushing as a sophomore.

Marquee matchups: Aug. 18 vs. Barren County; Sept. 1 vs. Campbellsville; Sept. 15 vs. Wayne County.

Others receiving votes

In order of votes received: Martin County, Danville, Crittenden County, Green County, Carroll County, Washington County and Leslie County.

Survey method: These rankings reflect the participation of coaches from 23 of the 35 Class 2A teams (63%). 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.

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