I made a list and deleted it. There are players that weren't on my list that I just love and appreciate so much for what they did (and do) that I just couldn't bring myself to make a list and leave anyone off. GO BIG RED!

Can't really remember the 70's, so I will give my list from the 80's to present.

 

1. Marcus Moss

2. Jon Redd

3. Jonathon Jackson

4. Terrel Starks

5. William Murrell

 

its really hard to pick a 4 and 5.

 

I changed my mind, Terrel starks played when Tony Franklin opened it up. He was more of a slot/RB. So, Murrell goes to 4th. Dont forget about Ricky Rush.

I wanted to put Jonathan Jackson on there but, imo, there were others that were better RBs.. Now, LBs is a different story..He's definitely one of the best there..

Mikey Bright was obviously great (his size/athleticism combo was CRAZY). And I think Bae Parrott got the most out of his ability. He was the best RB for Mayfield his SOPHOMORE year going forward. Had some good competition around him, but his desire and motor were non-stop. And he was a shutdown CB.

William Murell knocked us out of a ring by 3pts my Jr. year. He could fly!! Barnes was tough too. I knew William led the OVC in rushing and was a legend at EKU. Thought he played in the Canadian Football League. While looking it up ran across him being Alabama tailback and KY High School great Damian Harris's Dad. Mind is blown! See where the wheels come from! 2 backs that could burn!

Out of all the players only 1 I can think of was all state both sides of the ball at the same time

 

Joe Morris

He did not, just a tryout. Also with the Bucs.

This list starts with Marcus Moss. Hands down the best back I have ever seen on a high school field. Unbelievable balance, stop and start, change directions. And oh did the tearaways make it difficult. The rest of the list is a long difficult list.

An equally difficult question would be best linebacker group. I go with Kerry Sherrill, Steve Lovelace, Tony Brown. But, individually might go with Jonathan Jackson or Chris Barnes. Lots of good ones here too. Which, leads to the bread and butter staple of Mayfield football has been good RBs and LBs (and pretty solid at others as well).

There was a star running back that graduated in 1952. He held all the rushing and TD records at Mayfield for three decades. He was recruited by none other than legendary coach Bear Bryant to play for UK, and received a full ride. He was slated to play as a freshman for the Bear. But, He got homesick for his gal, and went back to Mayfield and got married. Heck of a RB. I'm talking about Otis Cannonball Elliott, who in my mind is the best RB ever at Mayfield.

One of our greatest running backs is not on the list, Herbert "bird dog" Shoemaker, from 1932.

 

Herbert was a massive fellow, standing tall at 6'5", weighing 320 pounds and could run the 40 yard dash in under 4 seconds. He was virtually impossible to tackle. Unfortunately, Bird dog had been born completely blind and could not see his hand in front of his face. The Mayfield coaches refused to give up on Herbert and sought to utilize the extra-sensitive hearing he had developed in compensation of a lifetime of blindness.

 

They would give a trainer a dog whistle and position him at the back of the endzone. The quarterback, Jim "Cornmeal" Smith, would hand the ball to Bird dog and yell "run." Ole Bird Dog would commence to running, slinging opposing players off him like gnats, and trampling any player who had the misfortune of being in front of him, including his own "blockers." Whenever Bird dog ended up facing the end zone, the trainer would blow the dog whistle and he would run toward the sound.

 

The strategy worked for a time, Bird dog had 43 carries, all for touchdowns, with a 63 yards per carry average. Opponents caught on to the strategy though, and began bringing their own dog whistles to the games, which caused Bird dog quite a bit of confusion, and lots of injured people standing near the sidelines. Bird dog's career came to an abrupt end when he ran full speed into the brick wall of the stadium, deceived by a Tilghman dog whistle.

 

Happily the concussion knocked something loose and Bird dog could see for the first time. He refused to run anymore though, he had never seen the horizon before, and was terrified that if he ran, he might run off the face of the earth. He spent his days after selling lemon ice treats at county fairs.

^lol

There was a star running back that graduated in 1952. He held all the rushing and TD records at Mayfield for three decades. He was recruited by none other than legendary coach Bear Bryant to play for UK' date=' and received a full ride. He was slated to play as a freshman for the Bear. But, He got homesick for his gal, and went back to Mayfield and got married. Heck of a RB. I'm talking about Otis Cannonball Elliott, who in my mind is the best RB ever at Mayfield.[/quote']

 

I know exactly who you're talking about and he was a heck of a back for that era (150lb guards) but I wouldn't put him on this list.