Kroger KSR Game of the Week Preview: Simon Kenton at Woodford County

Week one of Kentucky high school football kicked off the 2023 Kroger KSR Game of the Week series with a bang. Lexington Christian Academy and Bowling Green lit up the scoreboard on Saturday night, with the Eagles finally prevailing 56-52 in a star-studded event hosted by WKU. Four-star Kentucky QB commit Cutter Boley threw for 342 yards on 22-35 passing for three touchdowns and one interception.

Looking ahead to Week two, the second Kroger KSR Game of the Week will travel to Woodford County to see the Yellow Jackets host Kentucky commit Aba Selm and the Simon Kenton Pioneers. Versailles will be the site of the first Vallozzi Bowl (named after an Italian restaurant coming to Versailles) and the site of two games. Mercer County and Dunbar will meet in the opener at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, while Woodford and Simon Kenton will be the main event later in the night.

Here’s what you need to know about the primetime matchup between No. 21 Woodford County and Simon Kenton.

Simon Kenton Pioneers

Lexington football fans will get their first look at Aba Selm. The three-star offensive lineman committed to the Wildcats on February 2nd, adding to the stacked Kentucky 2024 recruiting class. In week one, the Pioneers handled Dixie Heights 29-19 at home. Quarterback Brady Lee went 4-4 on the day for 83 yards and a passing touchdown. Another quarterback, Tucker Ober, went 3-11 with a passing touchdown.

If Lee is available on Friday, most assume he will start under center. However, the younger Ober is known as having a great arm, which could stretch out the Woodford County secondary.

TOUCHDOWN PIONEERS.

Simon Kenton responds with a 25-yard TD pass from Tucker Ober to Carter Blades.

Simon Kenton 7, Dixie Heights 6, 2:37, 1Q. pic.twitter.com/gjVcagyejD

— Evan Dennison (@EvanDennison1) August 18, 2023

Elsewhere on the offense, Durell Turner and Landon Brown combined for 127 yards rushing with a touchdown in the season-opener. Carter Blades and Nathan Kitchens caught touchdowns, while Tysin Weaver led the team in receiving yards with 64. Selm allowed the offense to run behind him and provided stellar pass blocking. The Pioneers ran for 229 yards and added two touchdowns on the ground.

On defense, Aven Bohms led the Pioneers with 18 total tackles. Kaleb Bleier added a forced fumble for Simon Kenton as the defense showed up against a solid Dixie Heights offense.

Most assume that Aba Selm is the only reason for any Simon Kenton football hype. However, this is the perfect opportunity for the team to prove everyone wrong. The atmosphere should be incredible with a packed house and KSR in the stands. The question remains: Will Roy Lucas’ Pioneers show up or get shut out?

Woodford County Yellow Jackets

Dennis Johnson and the Woodford County faithful traveled to Mercer County in week one for an emotional matchup with powerhouse Bullitt East. Unfortunately for Woodford, quarterback Andrew Nason was injured in the third quarter, and Kentucky target Makhi Smith didn’t suit up as they lost 41-28. However, Woodford County is still ranked 21st in KSR’s Week Two rankings, and expectations remain high for the program.

Even as the final seconds were ticking down, the consensus around the Yellow Jacket sideline was a “we’ll be back” mentality. Expectations surrounding the program are that Makhi Smith will be back for this Friday night lights matchup. However, Nason took a heck of a shot, which led to the injury. If he plays this week, it will be through true heart and grit.

If Nason isn’t able to suit up, it will be freshman Lemmie Coons who will be tasked with the start. He showed growing pains against Bullitt East. However, he did add his first touchdown pass against the Chargers.

TOUCHDOWN! 🚨 @WoodfordFBall. On a series that looked dead in the water with time winding down, @AndrewNason21 finds a seam and goes 64 yards for a TD. Yellow Jackets lead 21-20 with 0:16 left 2Q. Quite a ballgame pic.twitter.com/2wfWlToRfF

— Jared Peck (@HLpreps) August 19, 2023

Woodford County’s X-factors are WR/CB Makhi Smith, LB Dayvion Sturgis, and LB Darrian Tomlin. Sturgis and Tomlin may be the best linebacker duo in all of 5A. Especially considering Sturgis is a junior and Tomlin only a freshman. However, when seeing them come off the edge, they look far from younger athletes.

Woodford sometimes struggled to defend the Bullitt East run, which will be a key for them to shut down Simon Kenton. Last week, the Yellow Jackets allowed Bullitt East RB Mikey West to run for five touchdowns. If that happens on Friday against Simon Kenton, we will have little of a game. But I think we’re in for something special. Kickoff is Friday night at 9:30 p.m. EST in Versailles.

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