The 2016 Kentucky High School Football season is once again upon us, and with it the rite of passage that signifies the moment that any blue-blooded follower of High School Football officially turns the calendar from Summer to Fall. The releasing of the inaugural rankings.

 

In Class 1A we awake to a new day and a powerhouse of yester year restored at the top. Pikeville’s journey to the catbird seat of 1A Football took decades to come full circle, but Coach MacNamee’s Maroon Platoon will be in no hurry to relinquish despite significant losses. Out West, Russellville has been one of those “close but no cigar” type of programs. With a talented and explosive group of returning starters is this the year the Panthers make the short trek up US 68 to play at WKU? Beechwood has been one of the teams that everyone has been chasing in 1A since before their team was even born, can the Tigers find enough in reserve to make another push?

 

Class 1A

1. Pikeville vs. 2A Prestonsburg

2. Russellville vs. 3A Trigg County

3. Beechwood -- OPEN

4. Raceland at 3A West Carter

5. Hazard at Pineville

6. Paintsville vs. Sheldon Clark

7. Frankfort vs. Paris at Montgomery County (8/20)

8. Kentucky Country Day vs. 5A Atherton

9. Nicholas County at Bethlehem

10. Campbellsville at 2A Glasgow

Class 2A looks to have as strong of a group of top teams, and as stout of parody from spots 5-15 as it has had in quiet some time. Mayfield continued their winning ways after making the move up in 2015 and slayed powerhouse after powerhouse en-route to the Title. The Cardinals are the clear cut #1 with a veteran team returning led by a pair of potential Mr. Football candidates, but looming in their Region is the darkhorse Butler County Bears and their own candidate for the State’s Top Individual Award. Desales and CAL have become the gold standard of Class 2A and will once again beat each other into a pulp, is this the year CAL finally breaks the string of losing to the Colts in November? On the East side of the bracket it is all about three teams who have been no stranger to using their Group Discount for booking rooms at the State Finals. Danville, Newport Central Catholic, and LCA all have hoisted the hardware at some point over the past ten years and figure to lead the pack. Covington Holy Cross has the individual talent to compete though, will this be a year similar to 2011 that they put it together and make a run of their own?

 

Class 2A

1. Mayfield vs. 3A Fort Campbell

2. Christian Academy - Louisville vs. 6A #4 Simon Kenton

3. DeSales vs. 5A Fairdale

4. Danville at 3A LaRue County

5. Newport Central Catholic vs. 4A #8 Scott (8/20)

6. Lexington Christian at 1A Williamsburg

7. Holy Cross - Covington vs. 4A Holmes

8. Owensboro Catholic vs. Evansville Mater Dei (IN)

9. Butler County at 4A Logan County

10. Murray at West Greene (TN) (8/20)

Class 3A seems too easy to pick. Belfry is in the midst of a historic run and return 9 starters each way from a team that left little doubt in 2015. The Pirates stiffest competition, and one of the few teams to match their returning experience for that matter, is Corbin. Can the Redhounds make up that four touchdown deficit though from 2015 when they lost to Belfry in the Semi-Finals? With that said, what defines Class 3A outside of the Pirates and Redhounds is a youth movement with numerous teams seemingly entering a transition year where extremely strong underclassmen talent will be steeled. Traditional powerhouses such as Boyle County, Central, and Lexington Catholic all will take lumps as they build toward the playoffs and the future. With the bulls eye on the Pirate's broadside, and the usual suspects transitioning, could we see a team like Waggener, Garrard County, or Caldwell County shock the world?

 

Class 3A

1. Belfry -- OPEN

2. Corbin vs. 5A Whitley County

3. Lexington Catholic vs. 6A Boone County

4. Boyle County vs. 6A North Hardin at Mercer County (8/20)

5. Caldwell County at 5A Christian County (8/20)

6. Central vs. 6A Manual

7. Waggener vs. 5A Iroquois

8. Garrard County vs. 4A Shelby County

9. Paducah Tilghman vs. 6A McCracken County (8/20)

10. Russell -- OPEN

If Kentucky High School Football was represented on Twitter, [#SouthWarren] would be the hottest trending topic over the past few years. Class 4A saw the Spartans’ success finally match their hype in 2015 when they dominated the field and won a State Title in the most impressive of fashion. South Warren once again enters as the unanimous favorite, but 2016 should be a banner year for this class as it is littered with quality teams which return stables of talent. Johnson Central “Survived and Advanced” to escape the East last year, will the Golden Eagles and their upgraded schedule help them close the gap on the Spartans? Franklin-Simpson and John Hardin both appear to have the talent to push South Warren, will they put it all together enough to make a run? One of the best story lines of 2015 was the Scott Eagles and their surprising season as well as the Wayne County Cardinals. Both should once again have solid teams, so which flock of Birds have the best chance to rule the air and send the Golden Eagles into a tail spin?

 

Class 4A

1. South Warren vs. 2A Monroe County at Western Kentucky University (8/20)

2. Johnson Central -- OPEN

3. Wayne County vs. 6A Bryan Station at Madison Central (8/20)

4. John Hardin vs. 5A #1 Bowling Green at Western Kentucky University (8/20)

5. Franklin-Simpson vs. Portland (TN)

6. Spencer County vs. 3A Bardstown at Nelson County (8/20)

7. Hopkinsville vs. 5A Graves County (8/20)

8. Scott at 2A #5 Newport Central Catholic (8/20)

9. Knox Central at 6A Madison Central (8/20)

10. Shelby County at 3A #8 Garrard County

 

When Bowling Green and Highlands were both placed into the same 5A Classification by the KHSAA, I am not sure anyone in the State could not salivate at the thought of finally seeing these two flagship programs meet for a State Championship. Bowling Green has held up their end of the bargain and once again enters as the favorite in the Class, but Highlands became the talk of the State when they limped to a 1-5 start in 2015 before rallying and falling in the Semi-Finals to a veteran Pulaski County team. With Pulaski saying goodbye to essentially everyone except Mr. Football candidate Jake Johnson, it has seemingly opened up the East into sprint that would rival those we are seeing in Rio. Is this finally the year Covington Catholic gets over their streak of losses to Highlands? Will Pulaski still have enough young talent to reach Bowling Green for the 4th consecutive time, or will rivals Southwestern or North Laurel make a run? In the West, is everyone playing for moral victories against Bowling Green or will teams like Christian County, South Oldham, and Owensboro have a shot to shock the Bluegrass like Graves County did a couple years ago?

 

Class 5A

1. Bowling Green vs. 4A John Hardin at Western Kentucky University (8/20)

2. Fern Creek at 6A Seneca

3. Christian County vs. 3A #5 Caldwell County at Hopkinsville (8/20)

4. Highlands vs. 6A Cooper

5. Owensboro vs. 4A Warren Central

6. Covington Catholic at 6A #8 Ryle

7. Pulaski County vs. Harlan County

8. South Oldham vs. Anderson County

9. Southwestern vs. Jeffersonville (IN) at Pulaski County

10. Greenwood vs. Warren East

The 2015 edition of Louisville Male was loaded to the point they could have stood a fighting chance against ANY program in America, and the results followed on the field as Male rolled to the 6A Title. Coach Wolfe’s pack though must transition from a heavy Senior Class and this is not an easy chore in Jefferson County. Trinity is not accustomed to playing second fiddle to anyone, so expect the Rocks to give no quarter to Male or any other team in 6A West as they look to be the favorite entering the season. St. Xavier has not been to their normal standards over the past 5+ years, but the Tigers do have experience and playmakers back. Can St. X spoil their bitter rivals’ dreams? On the more equal footed Eastern Semi-State it is Lafayette who catches everyone’s eye. The Generals are the defending Runner-Up’s and have a supremely talented team back led by several major D-1 recruits. Teams like Simon Kenton, Cooper, and Scott County though will all breathing down the neck of the Generals and it may very well come down to who matches up the best. Is this the year that Fayette County finally gets a 6A Title? Will it be the year that Simon Kenton finally takes that next step? Or will it just be another Jefferson County domination?

 

Class 6A

1. Trinity at Ensworth (TN)

2. Male at Floyd Central (IN)

3. Lafayette vs. Paul Dunbar

4. Simon Kenton at 2A #2 Christian Academy of Louisville

5. St. Xavier -- OPEN

6. Scott County vs. Tates Creek

7. Manual at 3A #6 Central

8. Ryle vs. 5A #6 Covington Catholic

9. Central Hardin at 4A Mercer County (8/20)

10. McCracken County at 3A #9 Paducah Tilgham (8/20)

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