2021 BluegrassPreps Mr. Football Watchlist (8/25)

[DevilMayCare]

Owensboro's star shines bright on Week 1's biggest stage; The reigning Mr. Football takes his show on the road to Louisville; And speaking of the 'Ville... Male's BIG10 bound game breaker wastes no time in making his mark on the 2021 season, while another JCPS star showcases some triple threat ability.

 

In alphabetical order:

Vinny Anthony (WR), Male

Season to date: 1 reception for 46 yards ; 1 kick return touchdown

Highlights: vs. Floyd Central (IN)

Week 1: Floyd Central only got an abbreviated look at the Wisconsin commit, but if you ask them, it was probably still more than they would have liked. He got Male's season off to a rousing start by fielding the opening kickoff on the run, making one guy miss, and turning on the afterburners for six. 

 

Grant Bingham (OL, Johnson Central)

Week 1: The biggest of JC's big boys helped set the tone against Henry Clay by dictating the line of scrimmage early and often. The Golden Eagles ran over, around, and through their opposition for nearly 400 yards on eight yards a pop.

 

Xavier Brown (ATH), Lexington Christian Academy

Season to date: 8 carries for 48 yards ; 2 receptions for 20 yards

Week 1: Brown had the most inconspicuous season debut of anyone from the preseason watchlist. LCA's offense, which should be one of the most potent in any class this year, struggled to put points on the board against Madison Central. Brown's teammate, Mason Moore, had the standout game for the Eagles.

 

Isaac Dixon (ATH), Belfry

Season to date: 13 carries for 120 yards and two touchdowns 

Highlights: vs. Pulaski County

Week 1: The only similarity between this year's Belfry vs. Pulaski County matchup was Dixon making things happen with the ball in his hands. He still has the burst of speed and never surrender attitude that made life hard on the Maroons last year. Aside from that, it was a completely different experience for both sides, as Pulaski County blew the Pirates out.

 

Jagger Gillis (QB), Boyle County

Season to date: 13/18 for 119 yards and 2 touchdowns

Week 1: Gillis is mostly playing the role of game manager until the Rebels' offensive identity comes more into focus. Cole Lanter is a proven go-to receiver, but the rest of his supporting cast has yet to be fleshed out. With Boyle's track record of producing quality skill people year in and year out, it's just a matter of time before the offense, and Gillis' production, take off. This week against LCA would be a swell time for that to happen.

 

Cam Hergott (QB), Beechwood

Season to date: 7/14 for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns ; 81 rushing yards and a touchdown 

Highlights: vs. Fairdale

Week 1: Hergott began his pursuit of an unprecedented second Mr. Football award with a more than respectable outing against Fairdale. He received a helping hand - and a pair of legs - from teammate Avery Courtney on two touchdown passes where Courtney caught a short screen and did most of the work himself. Hergott added a rushing touchdown to his two scoring tosses, but his two most impressive runs were called back due to penalties, including a dazzling 54 yard trek to the end zone where he snaked his way through Fairdale's defense.

 

Dane Key (WR), Frederick Douglass

Season to date: 4 receptions for 64 yards and a touchdown 

Week 1: Key punctuated Douglass' first possession of the season with a touchdown grab against Bryan Station. For the magnitude of game that it was, you hope to see a little more from a player of his caliber. But he did nothing to hurt his stock and the Broncos won, so all in all it was a successful Friday night for the state's top receiver prospect.

 

JaWaun Northington (RB), Manual

Season to date: 16 carries for 70 yards and a touchdown ; one touchdown pass; one sack

Highlights: vs. Central

Week 1: Add another wrinkle to the skill set of an already well rounded back. Northington was essential in finally getting the Crimsons over the hump against Central last friday. After struggling for three quarters, he bookended Manual's offensive awakening against the Yellowjackets with a rushing touchdown to get his team on the board and a sack in the waning moments of the game to seal the win. And in between? A scoring strike on a half back pass to give Manual a lead it would not relinquish.

 

Caden Veltkamp (QB), South Warren

Season to date: 12/20 for 121 yards and 2 touchdowns ; 1 rushing touchdown 

Week 1: The Spartans methodically wore down North Hardin with Veltkamp completing balls on short and intermediate routes. It wasn't a performance that will raise his stock, but it won't tank it either. The offensive arsenal for South Warren is plentiful, so an uptick in production should be anticipated.

 

Gavin Wimsatt (QB), Owensboro

Season to date: 23/37 for 282 yards passing and 3 touchdowns ; 58 yards rushing and a touchdown

Week 1: If this were the Kentucky Derby, Wimsatt would be the thoroughbred that broke fastest from the gate. Facing one of the best defenses in the state, the future Rutgers Scarlet Knight threw bullets and touch passes, displayed quick and nimble feet to evade a stout St. X pass rush, and even showed off his hand/eye coordination by corralling his own fumble before setting sail on a touchdown run that culminated with a dive over the pylon. It was everything you want to see from Owensboro's prized quarterback, minus a win, of course. 

 

Noteworthy performances from Week 1:

Clayton Davis (ATH, Lincoln County) - 205 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns on eight touches against Somerset 

Kylan Galbreath (RB, Mayfield) - 135 yards rushing and two touchdowns against Graves County 

Drew Polston (QB, Pulaski County) - 327 passing yards and five touchdowns against Belfry 

Jack Sivori (QB, St. Xavier) - 287 yards of total offense and six touchdowns against Owensboro 

Jadarion Smith (DL, Ballard) - 3.5 sacks against Hopkinsville 

[DevilMayCare]

For anyone wondering, there was no indication that Male standout Selah Brown played last week against Floyd Central.

[Purple88]

Great job DMC!

I was in attendance in Owensboro and Wimsatt didn't disappoint.  A quality many haven't mentioned is that he is super difficult to sack due to his elusiveness.  Multiple times St X defenders had him dead to right and he would wiggle out of the situation and make a pass or run.  He has really developed that dual threat skill well.  Rutgers got a steal IMO.

[Brown]

Glad Gavin played great against X.  He is on another level this year passing, decision making, scrambling and running.  Great leader.

[DevilMayCare]

53 minutes ago, Brown said:

Glad Gavin played great against X.  He is on another level this year passing, decision making, scrambling and running.  Great leader.

The St. X game was huge for his Mr. Football candidacy. No other game on the schedule will provide him an opportunity to play at that level against an opponent of X's stature. The only thing missing was a win, but otherwise, he made a better first impression this season than anyone.

[Purple88]

19 minutes ago, DevilMayCare said:

The St. X game was huge for his Mr. Football candidacy. No other game on the schedule will provide him an opportunity to play at that level against an opponent of X's stature. The only thing missing was a win, but otherwise, he made a better first impression this season than anyone.

Thing is, without Wimsatt, I don't think O is in this game.  Remember he led the O comeback and tied it at the half at 24.  He willed them to come back (they were down 17-0 early and they could have folded) and had an awesome TD run that was super impressive against X's D.  So I get what your saying and you're not wrong, but his presence was measured in this game I think and it was big.  Big for Owensboro on a statewide stage as well.

[Tigerpride94]

Going to be hard for St.X QB Jack Sivori to replicate that 6 TD performance. Set a high bar for himself to jump over.

[LongTimeReader]

1 hour ago, Brown said:

Glad Gavin played great against X.  He is on another level this year passing, decision making, scrambling and running.  Great leader.

Is first TD pass was a pass not many can make, and one that probably kept air in the sails of the Red Devils. He’s a DUDE. 

[Brown]

7 minutes ago, Tigerpride94 said:

Going to be hard for St.X QB Jack Sivori to replicate that 6 TD performance. Set a high bar for himself to jump over.

Watching the game over, OHS seemed to try and key on Mekhi and Walsh, and Sivori made them pay.  Sivoris job will be to make the right decisions, so I agree, he might not get 6, but he will make the right decisions.  Throws a good ball too.

[Tigerpride94]

13 minutes ago, Brown said:

Watching the game over, OHS seemed to try and key on Mekhi and Walsh, and Sivori made them pay.  Sivoris job will be to make the right decisions, so I agree, he might not get 6, but he will make the right decisions.  Throws a good ball too.

Right. If you sell out to stop the run then will leave Mekhi and Duddy open. If focus on those two then able to run especially with running QB.

[LethalPG]

I'm happy to see Clayton Davis (ATH) from Lincoln County on the list.  The kid may be the most underrated player in the state.  He does it all on both sides of the ball for the Patriots.  If he stays healthy all year, his numbers will be astronomical.  

[Kanaka Kahakai]

I'm pretty vocal about this, and I'll say it again. NO re-do student- athletes should be eligible to get any post season accolated (ie. all- district, all- region, all- city, all- state) NOTHING.