How KSR's Kentucky High School Football Top 25 Fared in Week Two

Week two of the 2023 Kentucky high school football season featured some marquee top 25 matchups with #4 Frederick Douglass’ defense holding off #7 Trinity on the road and #1 Boyle County outlasting #10 LCA 47-38 in a Rebel Bowl shootout. Most of the top teams in the state dominated their lower competition, but there never fails to be a surprising upset inside the top 15.

Here’s how KSR’s Week One Top 25 fared in Week 2 action.

Top 25 rundown

1. Boyle County (47-38 W vs. #10 LCA) — If there was any doubt who the best team in the state of Kentucky was so far this season, Justin Haddix’s Rebels squashed that Saturday night with their 47-38 shootout victory over #10 Lexington Christian. In his first game as a Rebel, Danville transfer Demauriah Brown received Rebel Bowl MVP honors. Brown hauled in a 45-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Sage Dawson, returned an 86-yard kickoff for six, and picked off Cutter Boley twice. Check out my full recap of Boyle/LCA as part of Kroger‘s Kentucky High School Football Rundown. Boyle County makes the short drive to Danville High School for a rivalry matchup with the Admirals next Friday night.
2. St. Xavier (21-6 W vs. Central) — St. Xavier improved to 2-0 on the season with a 21-6 win over three-star running back Cortez Stone and Central Saturday night. Senior running back Davis Yates built onto his strong start to the season with 139 rushing yards in the win. Senior quarterback Trevor Havill passed for 88 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for two more scores. The Tigers face their first major test of the season next Friday night when they host #5 Male at home.
3. Corbin (OFF) — The Redhounds were slated to face North Hardin in the Garrard County Bowl this weekend, but it was rained out and will not be rescheduled. Corbin heads up to Lexington for a matchup with Lexington Catholic on Friday night.
4. Frederick Douglass (17-14 W vs. #7 Trinity) — Saturday’s win over #7 Trinity marked a nice bounce back from the Broncos’ lopsided loss to Archbishop Hoban (OH) to open the season. Freshman quarterback Jaxon Strautman has earned the starting job for coach Nathan McPeek’s squad and continues to impress. His 75-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver Derion Talbert was the deciding score, as Douglass allowed two Trinity scores in the final five minutes but held on for the win. Frederick Douglass is off next week but hosts Tates Creek at The Farm when they return to action on September 8.
5. Male (34-3 W vs. #16 Ballard) — Male’s Saturday night meeting with Ballard didn’t quite go down to the wire as last season’s playoff matchup did, as senior receiver Max Gainey’s three touchdown receptions led the Bulldogs to a dominant 34-3 win. Male has a chance to make a loud statement next Friday night when they travel to #2 St. Xavier for the best top 25 matchup on next week’s schedule.
6. Scott County (35-14 W vs. Great Crossing) — After being rescheduled to Saturday night due to Friday’s monsoon in Georgetown, Jim McKee’s Scott County Cardinals took care of Great Crossing 35-14 for their fifth Battle of the Birds trophy. Since Great Crossing’s first season in 2019, they are 0-6 against Scott County. Senior running back Ellis Hugely was named 2023 Battle of the Birds MVP after recording 189 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns. The Cardinals travel to Lincoln County next Friday night.
7. Trinity (17-14 L vs. #4 Frederick Douglass) — A late flurry for the ‘Rocks wasn’t enough to overcome a 14-point deficit as Trinity fell to #4 Douglass 17-14. Freshman quarterback Zane Johnson showed great poise late, throwing two touchdowns in the final four minutes. Johnson is the first freshman EVER to start at quarterback for Trinity. He finished with 133 yards passing and two passing TDs. The Shamrocks travel to Indiana next week for their first of two consecutive matchups with Indiana teams. They face Center Grove in Greenwood next Friday night before hosting Carmel (IN) at home on September 8.
8. Covington Catholic (35-21 W vs. #24 Highlands) — The Colonels handled rival #24 Highlands 35-21 Friday night in Fort Thomas. Three-star Kentucky commit TE Willie Rodriguez had another big outing, hauling in 53 receiving yards and a touchdown. Senior quarterback Evan Pitzer was nearly perfect, passing for 205 yards and three scores. Cov Cath heads to Simon Kenton next Friday night, as Rodriguez will face off against future Kentucky teammate four-star OL Aba Selm and the Pioneers.
9. Christian Academy-Louisville (49-0 W vs. New Albany, IN) — Fresh off their state championship last season, the Centurions have looked sharp to begin the 2023 season. Three-star East Carolina commit QB Cole Hodge was stellar once again throwing five touchdown passes in the win over New Albany (IN). Through just two games, Hodge has already thrown eight touchdown passes. CAL returns to the state of Kentucky next weekend for a matchup at North Hardin next Saturday night.
10. Lexington Christian (47-38 L vs. #1 Boyle County) — LCA played in yet another instant classic Saturday night as they were outlasted 47-38 by the state’s top-ranked Boyle County Rebels. Four-star Kentucky commit QB Cutter Boley was stellar in the loss passing for 406 yards and three touchdowns. Having passed for 748 yards through the first two games of the season, Boley looks well on his way to repeating as the KHSAA’s passing yards leader. Senior running back Brady Hensley continued his strong start to the season as well rushing for 153 yards and a score. The Eagles look to regroup next Saturday when they host #Pikeville in a top 25 matchup at the LCA Bowl.
11. Mayfield (59-6 W vs. Hopkinsville) — Coach Joe Morris’ Mayfield Cardinals have started their 2023 campaign with a vengeance winning their first two games against Graves County and Hopkinsville by a combined score of 101-13. Mayfield is currently not scheduled to face any team ranked in KSR’s Top 25 rankings the rest of the season. They travel to Paducah Tilghman next Friday night.
12. Beechwood (50-7 W vs. Campbell County) — Beechwood’s first season under head coach Jay Volker begins with their 12th consecutive win, a 50-7 blowout of Campbell County on Friday night. Junior quarterback Clay Hayden was stellar once again passing for 285 yards and four touchdowns. Junior running back Chase Flaherty poured in 78 rushing yards and two rushing scores. The Tigers travel to Dixie Heights next Friday night.
13. Bullitt East (27-20 L vs. Pleasure Ridge Park) — After their 41-28 win over #21 Woodford County last week, the Chargers were upset 27-20 on the road at Pleasure Ridge Park. Saturday’s win over Bullitt East marked one of PRP’s biggest wins in recent history. PRP senior Santana Crayton tore up the field scoring twice. Head coach Keegan Kendrick and Bullitt East will look to regroup next week when they travel to North Bullitt for a rivalry matchup with the Eagles.
14. Bowling Green (42-28 W vs. #22 Owensboro) — The Purples rebounded nicely from their 56-52 loss to #10 LCA last week with a 42-28 victory over #22 Owensboro Friday night. Junior quarterback Deuce Bailey was outstanding tallying 348 total offensive yards with one rushing and five passing touchdowns. Bailey now has tossed nine touchdowns through Bowling Green’s first two games of the season. The Purples will make the trip to Lexington next week to face Bryan Station at LCA on Saturday night. Check out KSR intern Piper McCoun’s recap of Bowling Green/Owensboro here.
15. Pikeville (21-14 W vs. #18 Johnson Central) — The Panthers received a bit of a scare on Saturday night from #18 Johnson Central but held on for a 21-14 victory. Junior running back Blake Caudill’s 78-yard touchdown run with 6:53 remaining in the game put Chris McNamee’s squad on top for good. Caudill was named MVP of the Pike County Bowl for his efforts. Pikeville improves to 2-0 as they prepare to make the neary two-and-a-half-hour trip to #10 Lexington Christian next Saturday night for an intriguing top 25 contest.
16. Ballard (34-3 L vs. #5 Male) — It was a rough one for Ballard as they managed just a field goal in their 34-3 loss to rival #5 Male. They host a sneaky Pleasure Ridge Park team at home next Friday night.
17. DuPont Manual (20-7 W vs. Central Hardin) — In their first season under new head coach Josh Gillispie, Manual takes down Central Hardin 20-7 to start the season 2-0. The top 25 Crimsons will make the trip out of the state to Cincinnati next Friday night for a matchup with Taft (OH).
18. Johnson Central (21-14 L vs. #15 Pikeville) — Johnson Central fell just short of a massive win at Pikeville Saturday night allowing a go-ahead Pikeville 78-yard rushing touchdown with 6:53 remaining. The Golden Eagles failed to respond falling 21-14. The Golden Eagles will travel to #25 Belfry next Friday night for a top 25 matchup.
19. Southwestern (OFF) — Southwestern dropped their opener to Ballard 41-34 then had a week off to reset. The Warriors look to notch their first win of the season when they host South Warren next Friday night.
20. Ashland (56-13 W vs. West Jessamine) — Ashland has been one of the surprise teams so far this season as they downed West Jessamine 56-13 Saturday night to begin their season 2-0. The Tomcats will travel to West Virginia next Friday night for a matchup with George Washington (Charleston, WV).
21. Woodford County (OFF) — Woodford County was originally scheduled to face Simon Kenton in the Kroger KSR Game of the Week, but it was rained out and will not be rescheduled. The Yellow Jackets look to earn their first victory next Friday night when they host WEB DuBois.
22. Owensboro (42-28 L vs. #14 Bowling Green) — The Red Devils were no match for Deuce Bailey and the Purples Friday night as they fell 42-28 starting off their season 0-2 with losses to teams both ranked in the top 25 of KSR’s rankings. Owensboro travels to Daviess County next Friday night as they search for their first victory of the season.
23. Owensboro Catholic (50-0 W vs. Daviess County) — Coach Jason Morris’ Aces have kicked off the 2023 season with two convincing wins as they blanked Daviess County 50-0 on Friday night. The Aces look to keep things rolling next Friday night when they host Greenwood.
24. Highlands (35-21 L vs. #8 Covington Catholic) — Following their impressive win over Lexington Catholic to kick off the season, many were picking Highlands as an upset pick over #8 Covington Catholic this week. That did not pan out as the Bluebirds fell to Cov Cath 35-21 in their rivalry matchup. Seniors Brody Benke (153 yards rushing, one touchdown) and Cameron Giesler (125 rushing yards, two touchdowns) had big individual games, but they were no match for the Colonels. Highlands will host Campbell County at home next Friday night.
25. Belfry (53-27 L vs. George Rogers Clark) — Belfry seems to be one-and-done in KSR’s Top 25 rankings as they were boat raced 53-27 by George Rogers Clark on Friday night. Things don’t get any easier for Phillip Haywood’s squad as they host #18 Johnson Central next Friday night.

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