KSR's 2024 Kentucky High School Football Preview: Class 5A
It’s once again football time in the Bluegrass. With less than one week remaining until the kickoff of the 2024 Kentucky High School football season, KSR will preview all six classes. We’ve already covered Class 1A, Class 2A, Class 3A, and Class 4A. Up next is Class 5A, home to KSR’s preseason No. 4 team Bowling Green and last year’s biggest surprise in all of high school football, the Cooper Jaguars.
Class 5A | District 1
Apollo (2-9), Graves County (8-4), Madisonville-North Hopkins (8-3), Marshall County (3-7), Muhlenberg County (4-6), Owensboro (9-5)
Owensboro finished the 2023 regular season with a disappointing 6-4 record but won three postseason games before losing to Bowling Green in the state quarterfinals.
The Red Devils bring back a solid foundation highlighted by junior running back Evan Hampton, who holds offers from Kentucky, Louisville, West Virginia, and Illinois among others. As a sophomore last season, Hampton rushed for 1,552 yards and 25 touchdowns. He also led the Devils in receiving with 527 yards and two touchdowns. He’ll make a strong push for Class 5A District 1 Player of the Year this season.
TD from last nights scrimmage against Boyle County. Gotta keep working! pic.twitter.com/tUVrmZL5uv
— Evan Hampton (@Evanhampton34) August 17, 2024
Graves County and Madisonville-North Hopkins also both had solid seasons in 2023, as the Eagles won eight games for the third time in four seasons and the Maroons won eight games for the first time since 2019. Neither team however was able to capitalize on their success, as they failed to make it past the second round of the postseason.
Apollo, Marshall County, and Muhlenberg County look to crawl out the gutter this season. It’s been a long ride for Marshall County, however, as the Marshals haven’t sported a plus-.500 record since the 2007 season. Apollo has been over .500 just once in the last five seasons, while Muhlenberg County has been plus-.500 just once since 2014 (2016).
Class 5A | District 2
#4 Bowling Green (12-3), Greenwood (7-4), Ohio County (1-10), #22 South Warren (9-3)
Preseason Class 5A Player of the Year quarterback Deuce Bailey returns for his senior season as the Bowling Green Purples look to make it back-to-back State Championships this season. Bailey committed to Missouri State back in June.
Bailey has flown under the radar as quite possibly one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the state over the last three seasons. He enters his final season of high school ball with 7,803 career passing yards, 85 career passing touchdowns, 741 career rushing yards, and 14 career rushing touchdowns. He passed for three touchdowns in last season’s Class 5A State Championship victory over Cooper.
The Purples also return last year’s leading rusher Jaxen Smith (2023: 464 YDS, 10 TD), last year’s leading receiver Trevy Barber (2023: 1189 YDS, 16 TD), and last year’s leading tackler Grayson Newman (2023: 101 TACK, 3.5 TFL, 3 INT). Safe to say the Purples believe back-to-back titles should become reality this season.
South Warren snuck into KSR’s Top 25 Preseason Rankings at 22, led by senior quarterback and Eastern Michigan commit Bryce Button. As a junior last season, Button threw for 3,274 yards and 38 touchdowns with just five interceptions. The Spartans also return senior linebacker Colton Veltkamp, who totaled 70 tackles and six sacks last season. They’ll look to avenge their 53-22 blowout loss to Owensboro in the playoffs this season.
Greenwood finished with a 7-4 record last season, making it four in a row with a plus-.500 record. The Gators however have made it past the first round of the playoffs just once in that span. Their future however remains brighter than Ohio County, which has won six games in a season just once since 2012 (2016). The Eagles are 10-41 over the last five seasons.
Class 5A | District 3
Atherton (11-2), Butler (4-8), Fairdale (7-6), Iroquois (0-11)
If you aren’t familiar with what head coach Anthony White has done with the Atherton program, it’s about time you learn.
Last season, the Ravens won 10-plus games for the first time in school history. They had won nine games twice (1959 and 1973) but had never crossed that 10-win threshold. They upped the ante and won 11 games, including two postseason games by a combined score of 55-0.
1,000-yard rusher Micheal Curry (2023: 1,124 rushing yards, 17 touchdowns) returns alongside quarterback QuaShawn Thompson (2023: 786 passing yards, eight touchdowns). The Ravens are looking to repeat history this season, and maybe even make a longer postseason run.
Just like Greenwood earlier, Fairdale has experienced a lot of wins recently but has yet to make a real postseason splash. The Bulldogs have won at least seven games in five consecutive seasons, but are losing by an average of 37 points per game in playoff losses.
It’s also been a rough stretch for the Iroquois Raiders, who have won at least four games in a season just twice since (2015). After going 0-11 last season, one win for the Raiders this season would be an improvement.
Class 5A | District 4
Bullitt Central (1-9), Grayson County (10-2), Moore (6-5), North Bullitt (5-6), Seneca (4-6)
2023 was a rough year for Class 5A District 4, as only Grayson County finished with more than six wins on the season.
Head coach Bryan Jones’ Cougars entered the postseason with an impressive 9-1 record but were swiftly eliminated in their second-round matchup against Fairdale (41-22). They return 1,000-yard rusher sophomore running back Kadin Hanshaw, who torched the turf for 1,369 yards and 23 touchdowns as a freshman.
Moore, North Bullitt, and Seneca were all ousted in the first round of the playoffs last season by a combined score of 74-12, so one win postseason would be an improvement this season.
Bullitt Central looks to wipe away last year’s disappointing 1-9 season and start fresh in 2024, as it suffered its worst season since 2005 (2-8). The Cougars won at least seven games for five consecutive seasons from 2014-2018, but have reached that mark just once since then (2021).
Class 5A | District 5
Anderson County (1-9), Collins (6-5), #24 Scott County (9-3), South Oldham (6-5), Woodford County (6-4)
After entering the 2023 season as the preseason No. 6 ranked team in the state, Scott County squeaks into KSR’s Top 25 Preseason Rankings at No. 24 in 2024.
The Cardinals ran into the buzzsaw that was Cooper in the second round of the playoffs last season, suffering a 28-point loss. It marked the second time in three seasons that the Cardinals had suffered a postseason loss of at least 28 points (48-7 loss to Frederick Douglass in 2021).
Sophomore wide receiver Timmy Emongo, who holds offers from Kentucky, Louisville, and Miami (OH) will look to burst onto the scene this season after totaling 465 total yards and six total touchdowns as a freshman in 2023. He’ll catch passes from senior quarterback Andrew Hickey, who enters the 2024 season with 2,900 career passing yards and 32 career passing touchdowns.
Coach Dennis Johnson’s Woodford County Yellow Jackets look to get back on track in 2024, led by senior wide receiver Makhi Smith and sophomore wide receiver/defensive back Jordan Holman. Both Smith and Holman hold offers from Kentucky.
Smith, who also holds offers from Louisville, West Virginia, Western Kentucky, and Eastern Kentucky, played in just three games last season due to lingering injuries. In those three games, he totaled 147 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Johnson’s Jackets had lost just four total games from 2021-2022 before dropping four last season.
Collins and South Oldham will look to nab a postseason win, as both squads were dominated by an average of 39 points in their first-round matchups last season. While they look for a postseason win, Anderson County will just look for a win. The Bearcats finished with a 1-9 record last season, and are 9-43 overall since the 2019 season.
Class 5A | District 6
Boone County (2-8), Conner (5-6), #8 Cooper (12-3), Dixie Heights (5-7), Highlands (12-2), Scott (2-8)
The Cooper Jaguars are coming off of one of the best years in school history, led by four-star EDGE Austin Alexander (North Carolina commit). Alexander dominated on both sides of the ball last season, totaling 1,138 receiving yards and 19 receiving touchdowns as a tight end and 81 tackles and 19 sacks as an EDGE rusher.
After opening the 2023 season 4-2, the Jags rattled off eight consecutive wins en route to a State Championship appearance, where they fell to Bowling Green 28-14.
Coach Randy Borchers’ squad returns some massive pieces in Alexander, one of the most talented quarterbacks in the state of Kentucky Cam O’Hara (2023: 3,361 passing yards, 47 passing touchdowns), KSR’s 2023 Best Wide Receiver Award winner Isaiah Johnson (2023: 1,372 receiving yards, 21 receiving touchdowns), and 1,000 yard rusher junior running back Keagen Maher (2023: 1,204 rushing yards, 18 rushing touchdowns). It’s going to be another exciting season of football in the Boone County area.
O’Hara holds college offers from Kentucky, Miami (OH), Western Kentucky, and Austin Peay.
Highlands just narrowly missed opening the season ranked inside the Top 25 rankings, but it’ll likely earn a number beside its name at some point this season. The Bluebirds were just one of three teams to take down Cooper last season, but eventually fell to the Jaguars 17-15 in their Class 5A semifinal rematch.
Coach Bob Sphire, who earned his 300th win last season, will however be replacing his starting quarterback, starting running back, leading receiver, and leading tackler from last season. Junior interior offensive lineman Max Merz, who holds offers from Louisville, Toledo, Troy, and Marshall among others, will look to anchor a rebuilding offense.
The schedule is no joke either, as the Bluebirds will face three teams present in the preseason Top 25 this season (No. 8 Cooper, No. 14 Covington Catholic, No. 21 Lexington Catholic).
Dixie Heights, Conner, Boone County, and Scott all finished below .500 last season and will look to try and be somewhat competitive in an extremely talented Class 5A District 6.
Class 5A | District 7
East Jessamine (2-9), Madison Southern (7-5), Montgomery County (3-8), West Jessamine (6-5)
Madison Southern finished the 2023 season 7-5, anchored by all-purpose player Ethan Moore. Moore threw for 267 yards and two touchdowns, rushed for 777 yards and 12 touchdowns, hauled in 219 receiving yards and four touchdowns, and totaled 39 tackles and 2 TFL last season. For his efforts, the Berea native was extended an offer from Vince Marrow and Kentucky.
He’ll make a strong push for Class 5A District 7 Player of the Year in 2024, as the district is lacking as of late.
East and West Jessamine both suffered disappointing years last season, although West was still able to pull out a thrilling 24-22 victory over rival East. By pulling out the victory, West Jessamine has still never lost to East Jessamine in the 21st century. They’ll look to push for better win totals this season alongside Montgomery County, who opened the 2023 season 2-1 before dropping seven of its final eight games to end the season.
Class 5A | District 8
Harlan County (1-10), North Laurel (8-5), Pulaski County (4-8), South Laurel (5-5), Southwestern (9-4)
Southwestern just narrowly missed on KSR’s Top 25 Preseason Rankings as well. The Warriors look to continue their impressive run as of late, as they’ve totaled at least eight wins in nine of their last 10 seasons. They made it to the third round of the postseason in 2023, where they fell to Cooper 24-14.
Although they lost their starting quarterback, running back, and leading wide receiver, the Warriors return leading tackler Braxton Walters (2023: 95 tackles, seven TFL) and brought in senior wide receiver Antajuan Dumphord from Wayne County, who hauled in 1,047 receiving yards and 12 receiving touchdowns last season.
North Laurel and the fightin’ Reed Sheppards also had a nice 2023 season, finishing with an 8-5 season before losing to Highlands in the third round of the postseason. South Laurel and Pulaski County look to get over the .500 hump, while Harlan County looks to get to the two-win mark.
This district will however belong to Southwestern.
Preseason Honors
- Class 5A Player of the Year – QB Deuce Bailey (Bowling Green)
- Class 5A Coach of the Year – Randy Borchers (Cooper)
- Class 5A State Champion – Cooper Jaguars
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