We, at KPGFootball have made an emphasis of covering linemen, particularly offensive linemen. There are lots of reasons for this.
One reason is that is they are the fundamental building block or cornerstone on which all good football teams are built. You will see championship-level football teams with pedestrian skills. You will never see championship-level football teams with nothing along its offensive line.
For instance, everyone in Kentucky is really high on both Treyveon Longmire and Chase Estep. Everyone in Kentucky is amazed at what Corbin routinely does like playing for it all last year and losing to Central by one point and finishing 13-2.
Truth is, Corbin is in the mix to win the whole enchilada every year. They have been reclassified, this year, as a 4A team. They were in the 3A classification. They are still considered, by us, an early favorite to win 4A, in 2019, though it’s the first year they will compete there.
Among the reasons we like Corbin is linemen like Logan Smith. Smith is 6-3 and weighs 270 pounds with a bench press in the mid-300’s and a squat well over 500-pounds. He has the frame, versatility, and is sufficiently athletic to play either tackle post along the offensive front, right or left.
He was selected, preseason, to the Bluegrass Rivals unofficial top-30 OL list. Smith came in at No. 6, regardless of graduating class, and was at the top of the 2021s.
Smith played in 14 of Corbin’s 15 games a year ago. Many believe, had he played in the 15th game, Corbin would well have won it all in 2018.
Regardless, remember this, Corbin scored 542 offensive points a year ago. Corbin passed for 3,080 yards in 2018. Corbin rushed for 2,789 yards, in 2018, in spite of not having a single 1,000 yard rusher in its backfield.
Chase Estep, the QB who graduated in 2019, completed 173 of his 271 passing attempts (.638 passing percentage), for 3,026 yards passing and 38 TDs against only 4 interceptions. He almost had to have the highest QB rating in Kentucky in 2018. He also gained 603 yards from scrimmage with 11 rushing TDs contributed.
All of the above numbers tell me Estep had lots of time to throw the football in 2018 and rarely was faced with having to undertake a course not part of Justin Haddix’s preconceived plan. It also tells me anyone, even old Coach Lyon, could have found a running lane in 2018 to gain some yards from out of the backfield behind this Smith-led offensive front.
Anytime you see offensive production like what is above detailed, and a passer-rating like what Estep must have had, there are reasons why. Those reasons are often unattributable to the “Estep-like” skill player compiling the statistics.
Those reasons why are almost always the five up-front. One of those reasons why has to be the fantastic offensive tackle, Logan Smith.
This is Coach HB Lyon, reporting for KPGFootball, and we’re JUST CALLING IT LIKE WE SEE IT!
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