2026 Rankings Update 2.0: Running Backs
Rank Player Height High School Commitment Weight 1 Evan Hampton 6’0″ Owensboro 180 2 Chayce Burton 5’10” Male 185 3 JayQuan Crawford 6’0″ Franklin County 200 4 BJ Evans 5’10” Tates Creek 175 5 Markezz Hightower 5’10” Madisonville-North Hopkins 180…
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Rank
|
Player
|
Height
|
High School
|
Commitment
|
Weight
|
|
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
6’0″
|
Owensboro
|
||||
2 |
5’10”
|
Male
|
||||
3 |
6’0″
|
Franklin County
|
||||
4 |
5’10”
|
Tates Creek
|
||||
5 |
5’10”
|
Madisonville-North Hopkins
|
||||
6 |
5’11”
|
DuPont Manual
|
||||
7 |
5’9″
|
Paducah Tilghman
|
||||
8 |
5’8″
|
Randall K. Cooper
|
||||
9 |
6’0″
|
Trigg County
|
||||
10 |
5’5″
|
Belfry
|
||||
11 |
5’8″
|
Breathitt County
|
||||
12 |
5’8″
|
Monroe County
|
||||
13 |
5’10”
|
Christian Academy of Louisville
|
||||
14 |
5’2″
|
John Hardin
|
||||
15 |
5’7″
|
Bowling Green
|
||||
16 |
5’10”
|
Frederick Douglass
|
||||
17 |
5’10”
|
Fern Creek Highschool
|
||||
18 |
5’7″
|
South Oldham
|
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Continue ReadingAs we get deeper into the 2024 high school football offseason in the state of Kentucky, it is time for another round of rankings updates. The updated Top 150 player rankings for the class of 2026 in the state of Kentucky has been officially published! With that being said, I wanted to take the next week or so to break down these rankings by position. After already covering the quarterbacks, here are our top running backs in the class of 2026 in the state of Kentucky.
Evan Hampton Evan Hampton 6’0″ | 180 lbs | RB Owensboro | 2026 State KY has continued to establish himself as the top running back in the state in his class. Hampton had a strong sophomore season, carrying the ball 145 times for 1,552 yards and 25 touchdowns in 14 games. Evan has very explosive speed, showing the ability to hit the running lane with a sense of urgency and run away from the defense in the open field. Once he hits the open field, Hampton has shown the elusiveness to make defenders miss with ease. He also played a huge role in the passing game this past season, leading his team with 44 receptions for 527 yards and two touchdowns. Evan is committed to play baseball at Kentucky but also holds football offers from Eastern Kentucky and Illinois State, and definitely has the talent to play football at a high level in college if he were to have a change of heart.
Chayce Burton Chayce Burton 5’10” | 185 lbs | RB Male | 2026 State KY climbed up our rankings following a strong sophomore season. Burton split carries out of the backfield but was still very productive this past season, finishing the year with 109 carries for 717 yards and seven touchdowns in 13 games. Burton is an elusive ball carrier, showing the contact balance and quickness to make defenders miss without breaking stride. He has also shown that he has the speed to run away from the defense once he hits the open field. Burton also finished his sophomore year with 11 receptions for 82 yards. Chayce currently holds an offer from Louisville and I expect more to come his way as he is a very talented running back prospect.
JayQuan Crawford JayQuan Crawford 6’0″ | 200 lbs | RB Franklin County | 2026 State KY is a running back that has been on our radar for a while now and has continued to stand out. While he shared the backfield last season, he still produced when on the field, finishing the year with 62 carries for 294 yards and eight touchdowns in 14 games. Crawford is a hard runner, showing the ability to lower his shoulder and run straight through defenders without breaking stride. He has also shown the speed to run away from the defense once he hits the open field. Crawford currently holds offers from Eastern Kentucky and Eastern Michigan, and I expect more to come his way as he is a Division I caliber running back prospect.
BJ Evans BJ Evans 5’10” | 175 lbs | RB Tates Creek | 2026 State KY is a player that continued to climb up our rankings after putting together some solid sophomore year film. He played in mainly a backup role this past season at Lexington Christian Academy but was still productive, running the ball 29 times for 258 yards and five touchdowns in 13 games. Evans has impressive vision, showing the ability to find the running lane and hit it in a hurry once it opens. Once he gets into the second level, Evans has shown the elusiveness to make defenders miss in the open field. He also made an impact on defense this past season, finishing the year with 33 tackles, six tackles for loss, one sack, and two interceptions. Evans currently holds an offer from Eastern Kentucky and I expect more to come his way as he is a very talented running back that should be the feature back this season after recently transferring to Tates Creek.
To wrap up our top five running backs in the class of 2026 in the state of Kentucky, I have Markezz Hightower Markezz Hightower 5’10” | 180 lbs | RB Madisonville-North Hopkins | 2026 State KY . Markezz is coming off a strong sophomore season in which he finished with 153 carries for 1,206 yards and 19 touchdowns in 10 games. Hightower is a very strong runner, showing the ability to hit the running lane with a sense of urgency and keep his feet churning through contact to break tackles without losing stride. Once he hits the open field, he has shown the speed to run away from the defense on long runs. He also played a key role in the passing game this past season, catching 21 passes for 294 yards and four touchdowns. Hightower doesn’t currently hold any offers but he has received some college interest and definitely has the talent to play at the next level.
Other Players Included in Top 150:
6. Gerian Traynor Gerian Traynor 5'11" | 155 lbs | RB DuPont Manual | 2026 State KY (DuPont Manual)
7. DJ Wilson DJ Wilson 5'9" | 190 lbs | RB Paducah Tilghman | 2026 State KY (Paducah Tilghman)
8. Keagan Maher Keagan Maher 5'8" | 170 lbs | RB Randall K. Cooper | 2026 State KY (Cooper)
9. Davaree Gude Davaree Gude 6'0" | 210 lbs | RB Trigg County | 2026 State KY (Trigg County)
10. Ace Caudill Ace Caudill 5'5" | 140 lbs | RB Belfry | 2026 State KY (Belfry)
11. Jayden Gibson Jayden Gibson 5'8" | RB Breathitt County | 2026 State KY (Breathitt County)
12. Brayden Baxter Brayden Baxter 5'8" | 155 lbs | RB Monroe County | 2026 State KY (Monroe County)
13. Jeffrey Vazzana Jeffrey Vazzana 5'10" | 180 lbs | RB Christian Academy of Louisville | 2026 State KY (Christian Academy of Louisville)
14. Laysen Anderson Laysen Anderson 5'2" | 160 lbs | RB John Hardin | 2026 State KY (John Hardin)
15. Jaxen Smith Jaxen Smith 5'7" | 150 lbs | RB Bowling Green | 2026 State KY (Bowling Green)
16. TayTay Allen TayTay Allen 5'10" | 180 lbs | RB Frederick Douglass | 2026 State KY (Frederick Douglass)
17. Erik Pickett Erik Pickett 5'10" | 190 lbs | RB Fern Creek Highschool | 2026 State KY (Fern Creek)