2027 Rankings Update 6.0: LB

As we get deeper into the month of December, we have entered the final round of rankings updates for the year. The latest class to be updated in state of Kentucky is the class of 2027. With the class update being officially posted, I have been taking the past week to break the rankings down by position. After already covering the offensive side of the ball, I have now turned my attention to the defensive side of the ball. With the defensive line and edge defenders already taken care of, here are our top linebackers in the class of 2027 in the state of Kentucky.    [player_tooltip player_id='1200577' first='Ty' last='Ashley'] continued to separate himself as the top linebacker in the state in his class this season. He lined up at inside linebacker where he was dominant against the run. Ashley does a great job of reading his keys quickly then using his strength to fight through blocks and speed to get to the ball carrier in a hurry. Once he gets to the ball carrier, he does a great job of running his feet through contact to secure the tackle, finishing his junior year with a team-high 148 tackles and 10 tackles for loss in 15 games. Ashley has also shown the ability to make plays against the pass, finishing this past season with four interceptions (tied for team lead) and three sacks. He also scored one rushing touchdown and caught a touchdown pass this year. Ty currently holds multiple Power 4/Division I offers and I expect more to come his way going into his senior year.     [player_tooltip player_id='1284257' first='Tacori' last='Fields'] has been high on our radar for a while now and continued to stand out this season. He lines up at inside linebacker where he was very impressive against the run. Fields reads the play quickly then explodes out of his stance to meet the ball carrier before they can get going. He does a great job of finishing the tackle quickly once he gets to the ball carrier, finishing this season with a team-leading 95 tackles along with 2.5 tackles for loss in 13 games. Fields also recovered three fumbles this year, returning one of them for a touchdown. Tacori currently holds several Power 4/Division I offers and I expect more to come his way this offseason.     [player_tooltip player_id='482999' first='Gage' last='Chapman'] is another 2027 inside linebacker who continued to impress this season. He proved to be very reliable against the run, reading his keys effectively then using his speed to flow to the ball carrier with a sense of urgency. Once he gets to the ball carrier, Chapman explodes through contact and finishes his tackles with a ton of physicality. He finished his junior year with 149 tackles in 13 games. Chapman also recorded five sacks and an interception, which he returned for a touchdown, this season. He also played a key role on offense, carrying the ball 58 times for 539 yards and nine touchdowns. Gage currently holds an offer from Murray State and I expect a lot of college coaches to be showing interest in him this offseason.     [player_tooltip player_id='2074522' first='Thurman' last='Wade'] jumped onto our radar with a strong junior season. He lined up at outside linebacker where he proved to be very good at stopping run. Wade showed the ability to diagnose the play quickly then use his speed to get to the ball carrier to make the tackle before they could get going. He finished this past season with 66 tackles and six tackles for loss in 13 games. Wade also recorded one sack this season. Thurman currently holds offers from UT-Martin and Grambling State, and he is a player who I expect college coaches to have on their radar heading into his senior year.     To wrap up our top five linebackers in the class of 2027 in the state of Kentucky, I have [player_tooltip player_id='652507' first='Brody' last='Simpkins']. Simpkins had a strong junior year at inside linebacker for Ashland. He was very impressive against the run, showing the ability to read his keys quickly then come downhill in a hurry to meet the ball carrier before they could get going. Once he gets to the ball carrier, he does a great job of exploding through contact to finish the tackle quickly. Brody finished his junior year with a team-high 106 tackles and eight tackles for loss in 12 games. He also came away with an interception this season. Simpkins also made an impact on offense this year, carrying the ball 77 times for 576 yards and six touchdowns while also catching a touchdown pass. Brody currently holds an offer from Morehead State and I wouldn't be surprised to see more come his way soon.