In keeping with previous years, we will come along between now and the season and feature some of the football players expected to give big performances in the upcoming season. One guy who figures largely in the offensive plans of McCracken County’s high-octane offensive attack is its left tackle, Blakley Miller.
While he is No. 72 on the team’s roster, the appointed expert on Bluegrass Rivals has him much higher on his preseason list of top Kentucky High School offensive linemen. Matter of fact, the online site has Miller its No. 8 (all classes) offensive lineman entering the Fall of 2020. Looking over his frame and watching his highlights from 2019, it is readily apparent to this particular reporter why there is so much fuss over the 6-5, 275-pound LT.
Miller squares up nicely on opposing defenders and moves laterally quite well. Miller shows on film an ability to reach edge guys other high school tackles either miss or block into the ball-carrier. Miller has an aggressive punch, locks on the defender well, and has active and persistent feet.
We would like to see him play with lower pad-level and get off the line quicker but those are things common to high school linemen with his height and length. They are also traits which seem to improve as players mature. We love the fact so many of his down the line and down the field blocking targets end up sprawled across the turf.
Miller and his cohorts had quite a year in 2019. The team finished 9-4, winning Class 6A’s First-District, but lost to North Hardin in the Regional Championship game. The team came a long way from the one which dropped its opening game to Paducah Tilghman (3A) by one point.
Overall, the offensive line anchored by Miller led one of the KHSAA’s more potent and even balanced attacks. The Mustangs threw for 2,807 yards on 163 completions in 313 attempts with 34 aerial scores against 10-picks. On the ground, the team ran the football 381-times for 2,585-yards in its 13 games with 32 TDs rushing.
The team scored 509 points in 13-games. That is slightly over 39-points an evening. Considering Henderson County and Christian County (0-11, in 2019 and lost to McCracken in McCracken County by five, 19-14) both held the Mustangs under 20 and North Hardin nearly shut them out (McCracken scored 2-points), that is a lot of scoring in the other 10 opportunities. McCracken lit up Apollo for 81 in 2019.
Defensively, maybe Coach Clark should consider putting Miller on the defensive line too. The Mustangs couldn’t stop an Autumn’s breeze in 2019. The team allowed opponents to run for 2,724 yards and pass for 1,888 while allowing 27.85 points a game. Teams don’t win championships letting opponents gash them on the ground for nearly 3,000-yards in a 13 game schedule.
All of that aside, Paducah, Kentucky produces a ton of great athletes. Many of those great athletes star on the gridiron on Friday nights and even go on to be stars on Saturdays and Sundays too.
Keep an eye on Mr. Miller. It appears to KPGFootball that his time among the pantheon of next-level football talent regularly getting cultivated from out of the region of Kentucky known as the Jackson Purchase is at hand. We’re just glad we’re here to record it.
This is Coach HB Lyon, reporting for KPGFootball, and we’re JUST CALLING IT LIKE WE SEE IT!
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