Gilliam, Leavitt have tough draws
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Once again we're taking a look at all the high school football action involving Kentucky commitments. There are some key story lines to follow.
Jack linebacker commitment Jaylin Bannerman and his Pickerington (Ohio) Central teammates will be looking to bounce back against Columbus (Ohio) Independence, after last week's loss to Trotwood-Madison (Ohio) and Roland Walder. For his part, Walder leads Trotwood-Madison against Thurgood Marshall in their Week Two.
After holding his own against 350-pound Alabama comit Deonte Smith, UK commit Ja'Quize Cross and his New Market (Ala.) Buckhorn squad takes on Hazel Green.
Kash Daniel will look to top his three-touchdown performance last week for Paintsville when he and his squad hosts Pikeville.
Luke Fortner and Sylvania Northview (Ohio) play host to Clay High School on Friday night, a week after their narrow, dramatic win over Waite.
Huber Heights (Ohio) Wayne had no trouble dispatching Canada Prep Academy in a 38-0 shutout last week, and Tobias Gilliam leads them out again in what should be a much tougher draw: on the road at Cincinnati (Ohio) Moeller.
Gilliam and his teammates will have their hands full. Moeller is home to four-star Ohio State tight end commit Jake Hausmann, Pittsburgh quarterback commitment Thomas MacVittie, and Indiana defensive end commit Ryan Smith.
Jordan Griffin was instrumental with key plays in Jonesboro, Ga.'s 17-15 win over Sandy Creek and its talented cast of characters. Now Griffin and his team take the field against Westover.
Quarterback Gunnar Hoak absolutely torched the Springfield (Ohio) defense last week. Now he takes on Dublin (Ohio) Scioto in a city rivalry. Coffman won last week 41-7 and cruised for almost the entire game. Scioto lost a close game to another UK commit last week (more on that in a moment). Kordell Looney was on the other side of that matchup between Dublin Coffman and Springfield. He and Springfield have the week off as they try to regroup.
Thomas Worthington (Ohio) will host Dakota Holtzclaw and Worthington Kilbourne.
James Hudson and Michael Warren were unable to overcome Benedictine out of Cleveland, losing 35-23 last week, but they will have a chance to bounce back in Week Two this Friday against Bishop Hartley.
Zy'Aire Hughes has been quiet as a recruit lately, but his play spoke loudly last week in a win over Warren Central. This week he and McCracken County take on North Hopkins.
Drake Jackson leads Woodford County against Franklin County, an Ohio squad, in Woodford's third game of the year.
Mac Jones thrived in his season opener last week, throwing three touchdown passes on just 15 total attempts and rushing for another score. Now he leads Bolles against Heritage on Friday.
Tate Leavitt and talent-rich Hutchinson C.C. take on Fort Scott C.C. in a game that should feature a lot of FBS players. Last week's game against Sterling's J.V. squad ended in a 70-0 blanking, so Hutchinson will certainly be tested more this week. This is a particularly interesting matchup for Leavitt, because Fort Scott is home to UK defensive tackle target Walvenski Aime. Fort Scott is also home to four-star Tennessee defensive tackle commit Alex Johnson, one-time UK target Koron Crump -- a defensive end - and a lot of talent on their front four.
Punter Grant McKinniss and Findlay play host to Hamilton.
Tight end Justin Rigg got off to a solid start last week but Springboro lost to Mason. They will take on Centerville on Friday in a road game. Rigg could have an interesting matchup against three-star West Virginia linebacker commitment Adam Hensley.
Davonte Robinson will have to help pick up his teammates after a 40-13 loss to St. Xavier. Henry Clay takes on George Rogers Clark squad that should be a more favorable matchup.
Asim Rose had a well-publicized big-time performance last week against Holy Name. Now he leads Garfield Heights against Brecksville-Broadview Heights. He topped the 200-yard mark last week, scoring three touchdowns and even having another called back.
Lawrenceville (Ga.) Archer and Kobe Smith took down the loaded Peachtree Ridge last week. They'll get a week off armed with a 2-0 record and looking good the rest of the way.
Benny Snell takes on New Albany one week after leading Westerville Central to dramatic overtime win over Gahanna Lincoln. Snell scored three times in that game, showing both impressive power and better speed than he's given credit for oftentimes.
Bishop McNamara (Md.) and linebacker Jamar Watson cruised against Riverdale last week. On Friday, they take on the ever-talented Woodberry Forest out of Virginia in an interstate matchup. Woodberry Forest is home to four-star Stanford offensive line commit Clark Yarbrough and juniors like three-star prospects Lindell Stone, their quarterback, and tight end John Kirven.
Class of 2017 UK receiver commit and legacy Russ Yeast gave a herculean effort and basically accounted for all of Fremont (Ohio) Ross' offensive production last week, but it still wasn't nearly enough against the Springfield that's from Holland (Ohio). Ross, the younger Yeast, and his dad - the coach and former Wildcat - will look to get on track against Sylvania Southview - not to be confused with Fortner's squad.
Rivals100 tackle Landon Young - and his fellow Rivals100 teammate Jedrick Wills -- have helped Lafayette to a 2-0 record and they take on Louisville (Ky.) Trinity on Friday on the road. It will be a spotlight in-state matchup for prep sports in the Commonwealth.
