2024 State Quarterfinals Top Performers: Defense

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As we approach the end of the month of November, the 2024 high school football season has almost come to its end in the state of Kentucky. Last week, we had some very exciting state quarterfinal matchups. With that being said, I will be taking the next couple of days to focus on my top performers on each side of the ball from last week's action. After already covering the offensive side of the ball, here are my top performers from the state quarterfinals in the state of Kentucky on the defensive side of the ball.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["735603"],"_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":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674a113866db3"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='735603' first='Kaden' last='Clay'] is a player who has been high on my radar for a while now and continued to stand out last week. The senior linebacker played a key role in the Broncos' win over Madison Central. Clay is very impressive against the run, showing the ability to read his keys quickly then come downhill in a hurry to meet the ball carrier and make the tackle before they can get going. Kaden finished last Friday's game with eight tackles and four tackles for loss. He also showed the ability to put pressure on the quarterback, finishing the game with one sack. Clay is committed to Southern Illinois where I can see him playing a key role in their defense once he gets there.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["331755"],"_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":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674a113866e28"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='331755' first='Jeremiah' last='Parker'] is another senior linebacker who continued to impress last week. Despite his team's loss to Bowling Green, Parker still put together a strong performance. He was dominant against the run, finishing the game with 16 tackles and four tackles for loss. Parker does a great job of diagnosing the play quickly then using his speed to get to the ball carrier to make the tackle in the open field. He also showed the ability to rush the passer, finishing the game with two sacks. Jeremiah currently holds offers from Eastern Kentucky, Tennessee State, Marshall, Kentucky State, and Walsh, and I can see him making a big impact wherever he decides to play at the next level. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='1577061' first='Bradyn' last='Martin']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'9u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"170","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"field_65b288425ecf6","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2496","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"South Warren","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674a113866ed6"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='1577061' first='Bradyn' last='Martin'] is a player who caught my attention with a strong performance last week. He played a key role in South Warren's dominant win over North Bullitt. Martin lines up at middle linebacker where he is very impressive against the run. He does a great job of reading his keys quickly then exploding downhill out of his stance to meet the ball carrier to make the tackle. Martin finished last Friday's game with five tackles, two tackles for loss, and one fumble recovery which he returned for a touchdown. He also showed reliability when asked to blitz, finishing the game with two sacks. Bradyn doesn't currently hold any offers but he is a player who deserves some attention from college coaches. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["373803"],"_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":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674a113866f63"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='373803' first='Kaden' last='Campbell'] is another player who caught my attention last week. He played a huge role in Franklin County's win over Bardstown. Campbell lines up at outside linebacker where he caused a ton of disruption against the run. He showed the ability to read the play quickly then use his speed to burst into the backfield before the offensive line could have a chance to block him. Once he got to the ball carrier, he proved to be a very reliable tackler, finishing the game with nine tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss. Kaden doesn't currently hold any offers but he should be a player to continue to keep an eye on. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Zac Koger","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'1u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"250","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"field_65b288425ecf6","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2496","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Somerset ","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674a113866fe9"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">My final defensive top performer from last week's state quarterfinals action in the state of Kentucky is Zac Koger. Zac played a huge role in Somerset's win over Prestonsburg. He lines up at middle linebacker where he is dominant against the run. Zac does a great job of reading his keys then coming downhill in a hurry to meet the ball carrier and make the tackle before they can get going. Koger finished last week's game with 19 tackles and one tackle for loss. He also came away with an interception in the win. Zac currently holds an offer from Pikeville and I can see more coming his way as he has the talent to play at the next level. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->