2021 BluegrassPreps Mr. Football Watchlist (11/10)

[DevilMayCare]

Not much to sink your teeth into this week, but the stars made the most of limited game action; A fast start by Gillis and Lanter quickly propels Boyle County into LexCath week 2.0; Dixon rewrites the Belfry history books; And a "key" component for Douglass gets his postseason off on the right foot

 

In alphabetical order:

Xavier Brown (ATH, Lexington Christian Academy)

Season to date: 84 carries for 1,051 yards and 13 touchdowns ; 343 yards receiving and 5 touchdowns

Round 1: Brown hit the playoff ground running, literally. He carried the ball three times in an abbreviated night's work - a common theme last week with so many mismatches - against Washington County for 121 yards and two touchdowns. Over his last five games, he's compiled 781 yards from scrimmage on 26 touches. No worries, I'll do the math for you: that's 30 yards every time he's gotten his hands on the football for the last month.

 

Brady Clark (QB, Bardstown)

Season to date: 134/192 for 2,340 yards and 34 touchdowns with 3 interceptions ; 379 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns ; 2 sacks and 1 interception

Round 1: Thomas Nelson's Generals yielded command of the gridiron to Bardstown's field general in a 37-0 rout. Clark finished 11/16 for just shy of 200 yards and two touchdown passes and chipped in a touchdown run, as well. He leads class 3A quarterbacks in all three triple crown categories - passing yards, touchdowns, and completion percentage (minimum 100 attempts).

 

Clayton Davis (ATH, Lincoln County)

Season to date: 70 receptions for 1,066 yards and 12 touchdowns ; 62 rushes for 736 yards and 10 touchdowns ; 58 tackles ; 1 interception 

Highlights: Regular Season

Round 1: Davis gets a promotion this week after racing past Knox Central's defense for 246 total yards and four touchdowns on ten touches. The sight of #8 leaving defenders grasping at air is not unique to Knox Central. Corbin can relate. He worked the Redhounds for 200+ yards and a couple of scores a few weeks ago, and has another crack at them this week. The 30 catches for 522 yards he's amassed over the last month have placed him in a tie for the statewide lead in receptions and the outright lead in receiving yards. Including his defensive contributions and his role as part time quarterback last year, he's one of the most well rounded football players in Kentucky. 

 

Isaac Dixon (ATH, Belfry)

Season to date: 97 carries for 1,036 yards and 16 touchdowns ; 3 receiving touchdowns ; one passing touchdown ; one pick-six 

Round 1: Dixon roasted Pike Central on two rushes for 100+ yards and two catches for another 100. Three of his four touches went for scores. Here's an astounding stat for you: since 2018, 16 of his 23 touches against the Hawks have reached the endzone, including 11 of his last 13. His two carries last week netted him enough yards to surpass Belfry legend Doug Howard and become the school's all-time leading rusher.a 

 

Jagger Gillis (QB, Boyle County)

Season to date: 129/189 for 1,965 yards and 25 touchdowns with 2 interception ; 377 yards rushing and 9 touchdowns

Round 1: Boyle County's level of competition dipped precipitously from the week prior, but Gillis' form did not. Wasting no time in pursuit of a running clock, he got the ball to Cole Lanter on a shovel pass for a touchdown on the Rebels' first snap. It was the first of six completions on as many attempts with three touchdown passes against Anderson County. A big one awaits this week against a Lexington Catholic defense that kept him out of the endzone a few weeks back.

 

Cam Hergott (QB, Beechwood)

Season to date: 107/150 for 1,990 yards and 25 touchdowns with 3 interception ; 1,248 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns

Highlights: vs. Newport

Round 1: First, the good: Hergott joined the 20/20 club by virtue of three touchdown runs versus Newport. He now has 20+ scores through the air and another 20 via the run. It's not a feat you see every year. Now the bad: The Wildcats picked him off for the second time this season. Unlike the first, controversial interception a couple of weeks ago, this one was picked clean. This is what it takes to find blemishes on his season; pointing out a meaningless interception in a 50 point win.

 

Joe Humphreys (QB, Daviess County)

Season to date: 233/339 for 3,530 yards and 42 touchdowns with 8 interceptions ; 490 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns

Round 1: A five touchdown game would be a career night for most players. But for Humphreys, it was actually just another night at the office. He averages five touchdowns per game. He's gone for six or more, seven times this year alone. His 355 yards of offense and five scores helped bring McCracken County's season to a merciful end.

 

Dane Key (WR, Frederick Douglass)

Season to date: 40 receptions for 667 yards and 7 touchdowns

Round 1: Key lands back on the watchlist following a four catch, 112 yard, two touchdown performance against Montgomery County. It's hardly the magnitude of game necessary to get his name back in serious contention, but it's a step in the right direction. This was a season high output for yards. With a lot of ground to make up, Key needs to hit beast mode for a playoff run that we expect to go on for a while.

 

Cole Lanter (WR/ATH, Boyle County)

Season to date: 58 catches for 1,019 yards and 18 touchdowns ; 23 carries for 184 yards and 3 touchdowns ; 2 interceptions ; 2 kick return touchdowns

Round 1: Lanter was just as eager as his quarterback to put Anderson County away and set his sights on LexCath. He scored Boyle County's first two touchdowns of the game on his first - and possibly only - two touches of the night. Aside from the shovel pass to open the game, he also took a punt to the house.

 

Jack Sivori (QB, St. Xavier)

Season to date: 132/195 for 1,526 yards and 19 touchdowns with 7 interceptions ; 822 yards rushing and 17 touchdowns

Round 1: Following a personal setback against Bowling Green, Sivori began the road back by accounting for four touchdowns versus Butler. One area of his game that continues to shine, is his accuracy. He's completed 76% of his throws over St. X's last six games.

 

Noteworthy performances from Round 1:

Samuel Cornett (QB, Frederick Douglass) - 11/11 for 229 yards and 3 touchdowns against Montgomery County

Logan Landers (QB, Dixie Heights) - 334 yards (198 passing/136 rushing) of total offense and 4 touchdowns against Simon Kenton

Clint McKee (RB, Graves County) - 140 rushing yards and a touchdown against Breckinridge County

Caden Veltkamp (QB, South Warren) - 7/8 for 206 yards and two touchdowns in one half against Christian County

[DevilMayCare]

I want to give special recognition to a player that deserved some watchlist love this year, but didn't get it because of weekly oversights on my part.

Davontaye Saunders (RB/LB) of Eminence was an absolute stud for the Warriors this year on both sides of the ball. His season ended last week with him leading the state in scoring - 246 points and 39 touchdowns - and 2,539 yards from scrimmage. He tallied 97 tackles and 5 sacks from his linebacker position.

[Tigerpride94]

Saw on Facebook some Male people upset Selah Brown not on watch list. If I was selecting one player off Male it would be Vinny Anthony over Selah.

[DevilMayCare]

41 minutes ago, Tigerpride94 said:

Saw on Facebook some Male people upset Selah Brown not on watch list. If I was selecting one player off Male it would be Vinny Anthony over Selah.

I don't begrudge them their feelings on the matter. He's probably the single most disruptive force in the state at his position and he plays for the state's best team. The problem is, it's hard to include a player on the watchlist that doesn't have the numbers to justify the spot. It would be tricky. I would listen to anyone that wanted to make the case that Selah Brown is the best football player in Kentucky, but I need something I can point to as justification for his inclusion. Statistics are important. It is what it is. Jadairion Smith made several appearances on the watchlist before getting hurt, and he made it largely because his week to week production was without equal. Brown's reputation precedes him, therefore teams are going to gameplan their way around him. It's not his fault. 

In order to fully appreciate a player like Selah Brown, you have to watch him every week, which is something Male supporters do and I don't/can't.