2022 Statewide Top Performers: State Semifinals

<!-- wp:paragraph {"style":{"typography":{"fontSize":"15px"}}} --> <p style="font-size:15px">While the regular season was fun, the Kentucky state high school football playoffs have been even better! This year's postseason action has had plenty of exciting games, surprises, and outstanding performances. This past week's state semifinal action was no exception as there was a lot of great football being played. While there were several great performances to choose from, these are the players that stood out the most from the state semifinal games. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["328124"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"The top performance that stood out to me from this past week's semifinal action came from Bullitt East quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='328124' first='Travis' last='Egan']. Egan led his team to hard fought 55-41 victory over Bryan Station, completing 19/28 passes for 249 yards and four touchdowns. He showed the ability to complete passes all over the field, hitting his receivers in stride out of their breaks. Egan also showed an impressive ability to make throws on the run. He also showed true dual-threat ability, running the ball 17 times for 74 yards and a touchdown. Egan holds an offer from Kentucky Wesleyan but I believe he deserves more to come his way as he has the potential to develop into a very good quarterback at the next level. He will have one more chance to prove himself as he will lead his team into a tough match up against Louisville Male for the 6A State Championship.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["340071"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Bowling Green has had an incredible 2022 football season so far and [player_tooltip player_id='340071' first='Deuce' last='Bailey'] has been a big reason why. The sophomore quarterback continued to impress on Friday, leading his team to a 47-20 victory over Southwestern. Bailey completed 11/16 passes for 159 yards and four touchdowns. He showed off an incredible arm with the ability to stretch the field and lead his receivers away from opposing defensive backs in the deep passing game. Bailey also showed impressive accuracy, hitting his receivers in stride out of their breaks all over the field. He also showed the ability to tuck the ball and use his speed to make plays on the ground, running the ball two times for 44 yards on Friday. Deuce doesn't currently hold any offers but he will have another opportunity to show that he should be on the radar of college programs as he faces a tough challenge against a talented Frederick Douglass team in the 5A State Championship Game this weekend.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["386751"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"While he has been mainly known for his talent on defense, [player_tooltip player_id='386751' first='Brody' last='Wells'] made an impact on both sides of the ball this past Friday in a 49-35 victory over a talented Franklin County team. On offense, Brody lined up at receiver and caught two passes for 68 yards and two touchdowns. He also carried the ball three times for 17 yards. Wells continued to impress on defense at outside linebacker, finishing the game with four total tackles and an interception which he returned for a touchdown. Wells is committed to play at Eastern Kentucky where I see finding a key role eventually but first he will look to help lead his team to one more victory in the 4A State Championship Game against a very talented Boyle County team this weekend.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["287574"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"Speaking of Boyle County, junior running back [player_tooltip player_id='287574' first='Avery' last='Bodner'] had a very impressive game this past Friday. Bodner played a huge role in the Rebels' 35-21 victory over Central, running the ball 20 times for 201 yards and three touchdowns. He has great vision as a ball carrier, hitting the running lane hard as soon as he sees it open. Once he hits the open field, Bodner has the speed to simply run away from the defense but has also shown the strength and contact balance to break tackles without breaking stride. He also played a role on defense, finishing the game with two tackles. Bodner has yet to pick up an official offer but will have another chance to prove himself against a strong Corbin defense.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["145017"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"Another Boyle County Rebel that stood out in their win this past Friday was [player_tooltip player_id='145017' first='Tommy' last='Ziesmer']. The senior defensive end continued to show that he is one of the best players in the entire state, finishing the game with nine total tackles, one tackle for loss, and two sacks. He is an explosive player off the edge that has a quick first step and uses his speed to win off the edge. Ziesmer also has the strength to power straight through opposing offensive tackles on his way to the quarterback and finishes with a ton of physicality once he gets there. Against the run, Ziesmer plays with a high motor and uses his speed to run down plays from all over the field. The future Kentucky Wildcat will have one more chance to showcase his talent at his future home field in the 4A State Championship Game.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_player":["313643"],"_player_evaluations_5_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"[player_tooltip player_id='313643' first='Cole' last='Hodge'] has made a few appearances on my Top Performers list and continued to impress this past week. He led CAL to a dominant 50-7 victory over Ashland Blazer, completing 13/16 passes for 147 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception. Hodge showcased a tremendous deep ball, leading his receivers down the field and placing it where only they could get to it. He also showed the ability to zip passes into tight windows while hitting his receivers in stride. Hodge also showed the ability to make plays with his legs, running the ball five times for 63 yards and a touchdown. Cole currently holds offers from Eastern Kentucky and Central Michigan, and will look to try to continue to put college coaches on notice this weekend in the 3A State Championship Game against Bardstown.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_6_player":["386899"],"_player_evaluations_6_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"Another player from CAL that stood out to me this past week was [player_tooltip player_id='386899' first='Gavin' last='Copenhaver']. Copenhaver finds himself on my Top Performers list for the second straight week as he made a huge impact on both sides of the ball. On offense, he ran the ball eight times for 158 yards and a touchdown. He showed that he is very difficult to bring down once he hits the open field, showing the contact balance to bounce off defenders without breaking stride and the speed to run away from the defense. He also showed reliability as a pass catcher, catching one pass for 16 yards and a touchdown on Friday. Copenhaver also continued to impress on the defensive side of the ball, flying all over the field from the inside linebacker spot to make plays. He finished the game with twelve tackles and one tackle for loss. Gavin holds offers from Valparaiso, Dayton, and McKendree, and will look to continue to impress college coaches in the weekend's 3A State Championship Game.","_player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_7_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_7_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_7_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_7_player_details_player_name":"Tyleeq Williams","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_7_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_7_player_details_height":"5'5u0022","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_7_player_details_position":"2411","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_7_player_details_school":"Bardstown","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_7_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_7_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_7_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_7_evaluation":"Another player making my Top Performers list for the second straight week is Tyleeq Williams. Williams played a key role in Bardstown's impressive 38-28 victory over Mason County this past Friday. On offense, Williams did a ton of damage on the ground, running the ball 26 times for 168 yards and four touchdowns. He showed the speed to get to the outside and turn up the field to pick up big gains. Williams also showed tremendous vision, finding the running lane and hitting it with a sense of urgency. Once he got into the second level, he showed the speed to run away from the defense but also showed the strength to keep his feet churning to pick up extra yards through contact. Williams also caught a three-yard touchdown pass and finished with four tackles on defense. While Tyleeq doesn't currently hold any offers, he has a big opportunity to make a statement this weekend against a very talented CAL defense.","_player_evaluations_7_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_8_player":["385943"],"_player_evaluations_8_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_8_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_8_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_8_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_8_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_8_evaluation":"[player_tooltip player_id='385943' first='Blake' last='Birchfield'] is another player that is no stranger to my Top Performers list. He continued to be the focal point of Pikeville's offense this past Friday, helping lead them to a dominant 50-14 victory over Newport Central Catholic. Birchfield finished the game with 20 carries for 168 yards and three touchdowns. While Birchfield continued to show his dangerous speed in the open field, he also showed the strength to run straight through defenders and keep his feet churning through contact to pick up extra yards. He also showed the ability to make plays in the passing game, catching two passes for 42 yards and a touchdown. Blake currently holds offers from Centre, Denison, Hanover, and Pikeville, but before he decides where to play at the next level, he will look to wrap up his impressive high school career with another ring as Pikeville will face Raceland in the 1A State Championship Game this Friday.","_player_evaluations_8_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_9_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_9_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_9_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_9_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_9_player_details_player_name":"Logan Reed","_player_evaluations_9_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_9_player_details_graduating_class":"2023","_player_evaluations_9_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_9_player_details_height":"5'9u0022","_player_evaluations_9_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_9_player_details_position":"2495","_player_evaluations_9_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_9_player_details_school":"Pikeville","_player_evaluations_9_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_9_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_9_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_9_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_9_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_9_evaluation":"Another Pikeville senior that stood out to me this past week is corner Logan Reed.  Reed played a key role in his team's dominant defensive effort. Against the run, Reed showed the ability to read the play and shed blocks on his way to the ball carrier. He was able to fly all over the field to make plays, finishing the game with five tackles. While that is good, he made his biggest impact in pass coverage. Reed was able to showcase his impressive ball skills, finishing the game with two interceptions. Logan doesn't currently hold any offers but has received some college interest and will look to make a strong final impression on college coaches on the biggest stage in this Friday's 1A State Championship Game.","_player_evaluations_9_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":10,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6386dd9e5cd53"} /-->