2023 Mid-Season Top Performers: 5A Defense

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Now that we are a little past the midway point in the 2023 high school regular season in Kentucky, I want to take a look back at what has happened so far. With that being said, I'm going to focus on my top performers on both sides of the ball in each class from so far. After covering class 6A, I have now turned my attention to class 5A. With the offense already being covered, here are my mid-season top performers on the defensive side of the ball in class 5A.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["438173"],"_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='438173' first='Brach' last='Rice'] is a player that has been high on my radar for a while now and he has continued to impress this season. Rice lines up at linebacker where he has been dominant against the run. He does a great job of reading his keys and coming downhill in a hurry to get to the ball carrier. Once he gets to the ball, he does a great job of exploding through contact to secure the tackle. Through his first five games, Rice has accounted for 70 tackles and 20.5 tackles for loss. He has also shown the ability to rush the passer off the edge, coming away with 10 sacks so far. Rice is committed to Miami (OH) where I can see him becoming a key piece of their defense once he gets there.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["373821"],"_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='373821' first='Austin' last='Alexander'] is another player that came into this season with high expectations and he has lived up to them so far. Alexander is a big, athletic defensive end that is able to use his impressive combination of strength and speed to wreak havoc off the edge as a pass rusher. He has eight sacks through the first six games. Alexander has also proven to be reliable against the run, showing the ability to shed blocks quickly and get to the ball in a hurry to make tackles. He has 44 tackles and four tackles for loss so far. Austin has also shown the ability to make plays in pass coverage, coming away with one interception. He has also played a key role on offense at tight end, catching 34 passes for 573 yards and eight touchdowns. Alexander currently holds a long list of Power 5 offers and I expect more to come his way as he is a truly special prospect.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["423659"],"_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":"Another member of the Cooper defense that has stood out to me this season is [player_tooltip player_id='423659' first='Jack' last='Lonaker']. Jack lines up at linebacker where he is very impressive against the run. He does a great job of reading his keys and getting downhill with a sense of urgency to meet ball carriers before they can get going. Lonaker is currently the 5A leader in tackles with 76 along with five tackles for loss. He has also shown the ability to rush the passer and drop into coverage, coming away with two sacks and an interception so far. Jack currently holds offers from Baldwin Wallace, Massachusetts Maritime, Thomas More, and Mount Saint Joseph, and I expect more to come his way as he has the talent to play at the next level.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_3_player_details_player_name":"Noah Smith","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_3_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_3_player_details_height":"6'2u0022","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_3_player_details_position":"2496","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_3_player_details_school":"South Laurel","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_3_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_3_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_3_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"Noah Smith is a player that has jumped onto my radar this season. Smith lines up at middle linebacker where he does a great job against the run. He has shown the ability to read his keys and flow to the ball quickly, taking great angles to get there. Once he gets to the ball carrier, he has proven to be a very reliable tackler in the open field. Through his first six games, Noah has 68 tackles and 12 tackles for loss. He is also impressive against the pass as both a rusher and in coverage. Smith has two sacks and one interception so far. While Noah doesn't currently hold any offers, he is definitely a player for college coaches to keep an eye on over the next two seasons.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_4_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='1121532' first='Layton' last='Starks']","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_4_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_4_player_details_height":"6'5u0022","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_4_player_details_position":"2406","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_4_player_details_school":"Woodford County","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_4_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_4_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"[player_tooltip player_id='1121532' first='Layton' last='Starks'] is another player that has quickly jumped onto my radar this season. He is a long, athletic defensive end that is able to use his speed off the edge to pose as a very dangerous pass rusher. Layton has eight sacks through his first four games this season. He has also proven to be reliable against the run, showing the ability to read the play and run all over the field to make tackles. Starks currently leads his team with 33 tackles and 12 tackles for loss. Layton currently holds an offer from Ball State and I expect more to come his way as he is a true Division I caliber prospect.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_5_player_details_player_name":"Blake Dodds","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_5_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_5_player_details_height":"5'6u0022","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_5_player_details_position":"2496","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_5_player_details_school":"Dixie Heights","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_5_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_5_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_5_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_5_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"Blake Dodds is another player that has quickly grabbed my attention this season. Dodds lines up at outside linebacker where he is able to use his speed to blow by opposing offensive tackles off the edge as a pass rusher. He has seven sacks through his first five games this season.  Dodds has also shown that he is reliable against the run, showing the ability to read the play and get to the ball in a hurry to make tackles in the open field. He has 43 tackles and eight tackles for loss so far. Blake currently holds offers from Anderson Broaddus and Calumet College of St. Joseph, and I expect more to come his way as he has the talent to play at the next level.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_6_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_6_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_6_player_details_player_name":"Grayson Newman","_player_evaluations_6_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_6_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_6_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_6_player_details_height":"5'11u0022","_player_evaluations_6_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_6_player_details_position":"2495","_player_evaluations_6_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_6_player_details_school":"Bowling Green","_player_evaluations_6_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_6_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_6_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_6_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_6_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"Grayson Newman is a defensive back that has truly stood out to me so far this season. Newman lines up at safety where he is very impressive in pass coverage. He has shown the ability to read route combinations and the quarterback to put himself in a position to make a play. When the ball is thrown his way, Newman has shown great ball skills, coming away with three interceptions through the first six games. Newman has also shown the ability to fill the lane and make tackles against the run as he currently leads the team with 37 tackles along with two tackles for loss. Grayson doesn't currently hold any offers but I expect some to come his way eventually as he has the talent to play somewhere at the next level.","_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":"[player_tooltip player_id='1149574' first='Kwame' last='Anderson'] ","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_7_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_7_player_details_height":"5'7u0022","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_7_player_details_position":"2495","_player_evaluations_7_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_7_player_details_school":"Fairdale","_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":"To wrap up my mid-season defensive top performers in 5A, I have [player_tooltip player_id='1149574' first='Kwame' last='Anderson']. He has had a very impressive year so far as a defensive back. Anderson has shown tremendous ball skills through the first five games, coming away with three interceptions so far. After the interception, he has shown the ability to take the ball the other way for big plays, returning one interception for a touchdown. He has also shown that he can come downhill and make tackles against the run as he has 24 tackles so far. Kwame doesn't currently hold any offers but he is a player to keep an eye on over the next couple seasons.","_player_evaluations_7_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":8,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-651484e2e6a55"} /-->