2025 Rankings Update: Linebackers

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With the 2023 high school football season quickly approaching, it is time for some rankings updates! For the state of Kentucky, the updated Top 150 rankings for the talented 2025 class have been posted. With that being said, I will be taking the next couple weeks to breakdown these updated rankings by position. After already covering the offensive side of the ball, I have turned my attention the defensive side of the ball. With the defensive line already being covered, I will now focus on our top linebackers in the class of 2025 in the state of Kentucky.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["735552"],"_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":"[player_tooltip player_id='735552' first='Brock' last='Driver'] is a linebacker that jumped onto our radar quickly last season. He played a key role in the Rebels' 4A State Championship run, finishing with 52 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, and one sack. Driver lines up at outside linebacker where he is very impressive against the run. He does a great job of reading his keys and using his speed to get to the ball in a hurry to make tackles in the open field. Driver is also a dangerous pass rusher, showing the ability to use his speed to blow by opposing offensive tackles off the edge. Brock currently holds offers from Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky, and I expect more to come his way as he has the talent to play linebacker at a Power 5 program.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["422907"],"_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":"[player_tooltip player_id='422907' first='Hunter' last='Adams'] is a linebacker that has been high on our radar for a while now. He had a solid sophomore season, finishing with 55 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks.  Adams is an athletic off-ball linebacker that does a great job of reading his keys and flowing to the ball in a hurry against the run. Once he gets to the football, Adams is a very reliable open field tackler that finishes his tackles with a ton of physicality. He is also a reliable pass rusher, showing the ability to use his speed to blow by opposing offensive tackles off the edge. Adams has also shown some ability in pass coverage, coming away with one interception last season. Hunter currently holds offers from Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky, and I expect more to come his way as he is a Power 5 caliber linebacker prospect.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["735604"],"_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":"[player_tooltip player_id='735604' first='Logan' last='Busson'] is another incoming junior linebacker that jumped onto our radar this past season. He finished his sophomore year with 32 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, and 0.5 sacks. Busson lines up at outside linebacker where he is very reliable in pass coverage. He has shown the ability to drop into zone coverage and also cover tight ends and slot receivers in man coverage. Busson has great ball skills, coming away with two interceptions last season. He is also impressive against the run, showing the ability to read his keys and flow to the ball quickly. Once he gets to the ball carrier, Busson does a great job of exploding through contact to finish the tackle in the open field. Busson currently holds offers from Eastern Kentucky and Miami (OH), and I expect more to come his way as he is a Division I caliber linebacker prospect.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["735603"],"_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":"Joining Busson in the talented Frederick Douglass linebacker core is fellow junior [player_tooltip player_id='735603' first='Kaden' last='Clay']. After missing last season due to an injury, Clay will be looking to have a breakout season in 2023. He is a physical inside linebacker that does a great job of reading his keys and coming downhill while fighting through blocks to get to the ball carrier. Once he gets to the ball, he is a very reliable tackler in the open field. Clay has also shown an impressive ability to blitz against the pass, using his speed to shoot through his gap before opposing offensive linemen can react. Kaden currently holds an offer from Miami (OH) and I expect more to come his way as he puts together more film this season.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["373040"],"_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":"To wrap up our top five linebackers in the class of 2025 in the state of Kentucky, I have [player_tooltip player_id='373040' first='Tucker' last='Roth'] from PRP. Roth has climbed up our rankings quickly after putting together some impressive film last season. Tucker lines up at inside linebacker where he is very impressive against the run. He does a great job of reading his keys and coming downhill in a hurry to make the tackle before the ball carrier can get going. Roth has also shown the ability to be used as a QB spy. He does a great job of reading the quarterback and reacting quickly to rush the passer at the right moment to make sure they can't tuck the ball and run for extra yards. Tucker currently holds an offer from Eastern Kentucky and I expect more to come his way soon as he has the talent to play at the Division I level.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":5,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-64c8311c8c974"} /--> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Best of the Rest (Players Included in Top 150):</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>6. [player_tooltip player_id='586098' first='Brenden' last='Anthony'] (Pikeville)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>7. [player_tooltip player_id='373081' first='Solomon' last='Conley'] (Male)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>8. [player_tooltip player_id='373075' first='Ian' last='Williams'] (Mayfield)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>9. [player_tooltip player_id='735605' first='Davion' last='Sturgis'] (Woodford County)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>10. [player_tooltip player_id='311506' first='Preston' last='Williams'] (Madison Southern)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>11. [player_tooltip player_id='725010' first='Ryan' last='Rayhill'] (Bullitt East)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>12. [player_tooltip player_id='735611' first='Josh' last='Lainhart'] (Collins)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>13. [player_tooltip player_id='735610' first='Garrett' last='Lanham'] (Bethlehem)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>14. [player_tooltip player_id='735601' first='Aiden' last='Augustus Dowds'] (Campbell County)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>15. [player_tooltip player_id='373785' first='Dereon' last='Crowe'] (Owensboro)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>16. [player_tooltip player_id='735606' first='Ethan' last='Reynolds'] (South Warren)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>17. [player_tooltip player_id='331755' first='Jeremiah' last='Parker'] (Atherton)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>18. [player_tooltip player_id='373035' first='Jimmy' last='Mooney'] (Paducah Tilghman)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>19. [player_tooltip player_id='735565' first='Braydon' last='Underwood'] (DuPont Manual)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->