Kentucky’s Elite High School football teams for 2020…

Every year people marvel at the utter accuracy of my weekly predictions concerning high school football matchups. It’s really no trick at all. I know what database to access.

Calpreps.com employs a computer algorithm which breaks down teams, sans a person’s hopes and dreams about where a team should or will finish. The computer is able to forecast how teams will finish, which are the best of Kentucky’s 223-teams from top to bottom, and even which team would like beat the other if the two of them were to meet on a neutral field of play.

Every year, the computers at Calpreps.com come out with preseason rankings. These rankings are not classification specific but they merely rank Kentucky’s high school teams from the best one to the worst one. They have done the same for 2020.

We thought we might publish here the top five teams, according to the computer, in each of Kentucky’s 6-classes replete with our commentary in italics. Here we go…

Class 1A

1. Pikeville-This team would be the top of 4 of the 6 classes.
2. Paintsville
3. Hazard-I think the computer isn’t allowing for the defectors who followed Coach Dixon to Perry County Central.
4. KCD- Were top-5 all year in 2019.
5. Crittenden County-Good every single year. Best 1A program outside of Louisville on the western-end of Kentucky.

Class 2A.

1. LCA-Kind of the Pikeville of 2A; unbelievably good in the 2022 class. Need a QB.
2. Somerset-Lost a ton across the OL and the Defensive front two-levels. Will have a hard time getting past LCA. Same district.
3. Mayfield-Graduated almost every single skill guy from off the ’19 squad. Fantastic RB and LB returning. They are always a factor.
4. Breathitt Co.-Best offensive line in the class, maybe in Kentucky HS football. Have lots of length and athleticism across the board in their skills. The class of Eastern KY.
5. Beechwood-The boys from Ft. Mitchell, Kentucky are always tough. Were young last year and made the Semis. Threat to make the title game.

Class 3A

1. Belfry-The 2021 graduating class at Belfry has been thought its deepest and most talented. Lots of talent back from off the Championship team.
2. Bell County- If Dudley Hilton coaches you, you’re in it seemingly always!
3. Ashland Blazer-These guys have lots and lots of talent and size. They’ll be tough like they always are.
4. St. Francis DeSales-Known throughout Kentucky as just “DeSales” the Colts are a private school which draws lots of talent yearly.
5. CAL-Not sure Christian Academy of Louisville is any better than Russell, who almost made this list. Still good…not as good as they were when they won it all in 2018.

Class 4A

1. Johnson Central-They are getting down-hill and coming right at you. Are in the running for Kentucky’s best overall team.
2. Boyle County-No way they don’t drop off, at least partly, with the ’20 class they just graduated. Justin Haddix is Kentucky’s “it” coach among the up and comer set.
3. Louisville Central-Just one year removed from winning 3A (2018), it took Marvin Dantzler some time to get accustomed to 4A (8-6, 2019). We believe he is ready now.
4. Lexington Catholic-This team was 7-5 in 2019 with Kentucky’s best HS QB under center. I think the computer missed here. Sorry Catholic fans.
5. Wayne County-They were 10-2 in 2019 and thought a threat to win it all. Then they ran into the Johnson Central buzz-saw on a cold November night in Paintsville. That was that, as they say.

Class 5A

1. Covington Catholic-Much like we said about Lexington Catholic, no way they can graduated the best two-way player I have personally ever seen play high school football in Kentucky (Michael Mayer, Mr. Football 2019) and not drop off at least a little. Of course, they are Covington Catholic.
2. Frederick Douglass-They have Kentucky’s top receiving prospect and one of Kentucky’s best recruiting programs. Was that a cheap shot?
3. Bowling Green-This team has sort of underperformed since Wallace bolted to St. Xavier. Tells you a lot about their program that going to the Semis in 5A is an underperformance.
4. Owensboro (Senior)-With Kentucky’s (arguably) best QB and LBer, the boys from Senior will be tough again, about like always.
5. South Warren-South Warren in 2019 was in like a lion out like a lamb (not really a lamb, maybe a lesser lion), bounced from the playoffs in round 2 by Bowling Green 20-13. Still, if Justin Haddix isn’t the best young Coach in Kentucky High School football, it is probably Brandon Smith. They pull a ton of talent out of middle Tennessee. Nashville is 45-minutes straight down I-65S.

Class 6A

1. Trinity-If the publics don’t play, this team may have an influx of talent sufficient to make them the most potent high school roster in the Midwest.
2. Male-Don’t know if JCPCS is going to elect to play. If they do, well, Male is Male.
3. North Hardin-Lost some talent from off the roster last season. Still have one of Kentucky’s best athletes in the 2021 graduating class.
4. DuPont Manual-Great players but a public school which may or may not get to play. If they play, lots of depth and talent. They are not likely to get out of the district round (Same district as Saint X, lost to them 28-9 in last year’s second round).
5. St. Xavier-If they get to recruit from off the public school rosters should the publics not play, no telling how good they will be.

Well that is what the Calpreps.com computer spit out and what we thought of their preseason ranking. Hopefully we get good news out of Tuesday’s Board of Control meeting and we will get to see this all play out where it should. On the field and under the lights.

This is Coach HB Lyon, reporting for KPGFootball, and we’re JUST CALLING IT LIKE WE SEE IT!

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