Preseason Perspective: Corbin QB Kade Elam

We’re just two months away from the start of another high school football season in the state of Kentucky. Heading into the season, KSR will be interviewing some of the state’s brightest high school football stars, getting to hear some thoughts and perspectives before another exciting year of football in the Commonwealth.

Kicking things off is Corbin junior quarterback Kade Elam, who was one of the best quarterbacks in the state of Kentucky last season as a sophomore. Elam led the Redhounds to their first state championship appearance since 2018, where they fell just short to Boyle County in an instant classic. Elam’s 2,455 passing yards ranked 11th in the state (second in 4A), while his 33 passing touchdowns ranked ninth in the state (third in 4A).

With a new stadium and a refreshed roster led by a young, electrifying quarterback, spirits are high in Corbin.

“They have a lot of expectations coming into every year. I think they’re the best fanbase in Kentucky. It’s fun to play in front of them. Sold out crowds every weekend,” Elam said about the Corbin fanbase.

Elam was extremely impressive in last year’s 4A state title game, throwing for 149 yards and two touchdowns. Boyle County sported one of the best defenses in the entire state last season, led by current Kentucky football freshman DL Tommy Ziesmer. Ziesmer had himself a monster game, totaling five tackles, a rushing touchdown, and a massive tackle for loss.

.@ElamKade finds @bwells34 WIDE OPEN for a 54 yard touchdown! The PAT is blocked by @UKFootball commit @tommy_ziesmer.

Boyle 26 | Corbin 26 | 2:06 3rd | 4A 🏆 pic.twitter.com/YlMbfSdGnK

— Daniel Hager (@DanielHagerKSR) December 3, 2022

Elam spoke about his experience facing Ziesmer, saying “He was a great player, but we tried to just look at him like a regular guy. Obviously, he was tough to block and tough to play against. It was a tough game, and it could have gone either way.”

Elam and Ziesmer would meet once again months later at Kentucky football camp, which Elam attended alongside LCA’s four-star quarterback Cutter Boley, who committed to the ‘Cats back on May 18th. Kade, however, shut down any speculation (for now), reassuring that he’s 100% focused on baseball. Elam committed to play baseball at Louisville back in August 2021.

“It was great getting to meet Coach [Liam] Coen and it was great being around them, but I’m a baseball player right now. I was just seeing what the camps were like, but right now I’m playing baseball.”

Elam’s junior season will be his first without captains Brody Wells and Cameron Combs, who graduated last year. “We’ll just try and have the same season without them, as we have some new guys stepping in. We have Guy Bailey from Somerset and Zander Curry taking Brody’s spot, so I think we’ll be just fine.”

Bailey was Somerset’s leading rusher last season, accumulating 1,388 rushing yards and 15 rushing touchdowns. To say his addition is huge would be an understatement.

It was announced last year that Corbin would be renovating Campbell Field, turning the all-grass field into a sleek, new turf field. After years of asking for a renovation from the Redhound faithful, the school has finally rewarded the fan support with a new facility. “It’s a big deal around Corbin, everybody’s talking about it. It should be sold out every Friday night,” Elam said.

Campbell Field renovations are coming along nicely!#GoHounds pic.twitter.com/P9pS1Uyotl

— Redhound Football (@RedhoundFball) January 17, 2023

The new field should be finished by week five, when Corbin will host Frederick Douglass in a colossal in-state matchup on September 15th. Douglass’ trip to Corbin will be the first ever game played on the new and improved Campbell Field. There’s no doubt that Corbin/Douglass will be all anybody will want to talk about in the state that week.

Back in November, I talked about my experience in the area and detailed the love that the people have for their Redhounds. I wouldn’t be surprised if they deemed September 15th a holiday around there.

“Those are the games you want to play in as a player,” Elam said about their matchup with the Broncos. “They’re a great team and a great program and I’m ready to compete.”

Corbin will open their season on August 18th against Hughes (OH). That game will be played at the University of the Cumberlands due to the Campbell Field renovations. The Redhounds will travel to Lexington Catholic on September 1st, where we’ll see a battle between two of 4A’s best quarterbacks in Elam and Jackson Wasik. Wasik’s 2,954 passing yards ranked fourth in the state (first in 4A) and his 41 passing touchdowns ranked third (first in 4A). That should be a stellar showdown as well.