@samuelcornett10 from @FDouglassFB gives @coachnatemcpeek the type of drop-back passer every program craves. @KyHighFootball @minguabeefjerky @PrepSpin @1776Bank

Things are looking very bright for Frederick Douglass High School’s football program. It seems like every year Coach McPeek has the Broncos in the thick of the title hunt in the 5A classification. It seems like every year the Broncos carry some of Kentucky’s finest D-I talent in the commonwealth.

Why should ’21 be any different? Who says it will be?

One of the Bluegrass’ top “Pro-style QB’s” will be steering the ship this coming fall for the premier program. His name is Samuel Cornett and man is he ever a specimen. Reminds lots of people of Cameron Jones, though not as thick.

Jones was in the ’19 class, was signed by the Cincinnati Bearcats, played QB at Frederick Douglass, and (we hear) has been moved to TE. Of course, Jones left high school around 6-8 and 260.

Cornett is close to the 6-8 (he’s 6-7), but he tips the scales around the 215-220 mark. Every indication is he will remain a next-level QB, though nothing is ever certain.

Speaking of bodies, Cornett had a terrific body of work in ’20, over the course of leading Frederick Douglass to a 7-2 mark. Sadly, his charges narrowly bowed-out of the semis, 28-27 at Owensboro.

No crime in getting bounced from the playoff in the Semis by the Red Devils. Owensboro is among Kentucky’s winningest, all-time programs.

Over the course of an abbreviated season, Cornett completed 102 of his 163-passing attempts for a completion percentage around 66%. He threw for 1,565 passing yards with 26-TDs against only 8-picks.

Cornett came to Lexington by way of Bellevue (Washington) Christian School when his father moved with his job to Lexington, Kentucky before the start of the ’20 season. Both of Cornett’s parents are Bluegrass natives.

Coach McPeek, being interviewed by 247Sports.com, told Steve Wiltfong, “Samuel has a very live arm and moves much better than I thought…He is very coachable and works really hard. He is confident in his abilities but humble enough to work and fix the flaws….in my opinion, he’s a ‘Power-Five’ college football player.”

Photo: Carter Trend

There are quite a few Power-Fives, and solid FBS mid-majors, who agree with Coach McPeek’s assessment of Cornett’s likely collegiate level. We have heard, at KPGFootball, that Nevada, Michigan State, Cincinnati, UCF, and Arizona have reached out with Kentucky and Louisville exhibiting interest.

Where this one ends is anyone’s guess. We like him to stay in-Kentucky should that be an afforded opportunity.

We could also see the Bearcats (Cincinnati), Boilermakers (Purdue), Hilltoppers (WKU), Mountaineers (West Virginia University), and the Thundering Herd (Marshall) all throw hats into the ring before Cornett’s high-school career closes. One thing is for certain, this will be quite a train-ride before this particular engine pulls into the station.

This is HB Lyon reporting for Kentucky Prep Gridiron reminding you that WE’RE JUST CALLING IT LIKE WE SEE IT! 

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About Henry Lyon 1210 Articles
Have coached at the high school and middle school level. Have worked in athletic administration. Conceal my identity to enable my candor on articles published by this magazine. Only members of the editorial board are aware of my true identity.

2 Comments

  1. This kid has grown into his body during the off-season. He is much faster and moves extremely well. His twitter shows a laser 40 at 4.85. Only 9 games played last season with 26 TD’s according to the schedule and one of those games lasted only a quarter before called due to weather. I don’t think I have seen a player iverlooked by colleges more than this kid. His senior season will be full and I wouldn’t be shocked to see him lead the state in passing yards and TD’s. I know the family and from what I hear, he is not the same player you saw last season figuring out Douglass’s offense early on. His Dad says he played under center his Fresh and Sophomore year and came into a shotgun spread system at Douglass. I hear he is extremely more mobile and physical, putting on about 15 – 20 pds of muscle. A lot of colleges will jump on him and a lot will be sorry they didn’t do it earlier. Can’t wait to see how his camps go as it will be the first time college coaches have seen him live.

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