2029 Rankings Update: DB

<!-- wp:acf/position-ranking-table {"name":"acf/position-ranking-table","data":{"class":"2029","_class":"field_65cfb7374abb9","position":"2495","_position":"field_65cfbfcb19ad6","national_rankings":"0","_national_rankings":"field_660c1d73c0e49","state":"2494","_state":"field_65cfb88a603fe"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a57d98c0be88"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As we get deeper into the month of July, the 2026 high school football offseason is in full swing and the regular season is quickly approaching. With that in mind, we have begun a new wave of rankings updates in the state of Kentucky. To start things up in this round of updates, we have officially released our updated Top 125 players in the class of 2029. With these updates being published, I will be taking some time to break them down by position. After already covering the offensive side of the ball, I have turned my attention to the defensive side of the ball. With the front seven already taken care of, here are our top defensive backs in the class of 2029 in the state of Kentucky.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["868416"],"_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-6a57d98c0c1d4"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='868416' first='Drew' last='Anderson'] played a key role in the Somerset defense as a freshman. He lines up on the outside at corner where he has proven to be very effective in coverage. Anderson does a great job of dropping into his zone and reading route combinations then flowing through the secondary to put himself in position to make a play. When the ball is thrown his way, he has shown the reaction skills to break on the ball to either break up the pass or come away with a interception, finishing this past season with one interception and 12 pass breakups in 13 games. He has also shown the ability to provide support against the run, recording 58 tackles as a freshman. Anderson is a player who college coaches should start to pay attention to this upcoming season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1650792"],"_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-6a57d98c0c214"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='1650792' first='Rylan' last='Kelsey'] is coming off an impressive freshman season at safety for Johnson Central. Kelsey has great recognition skills, reading both the quarterback and routes to put himself in the best position to make a play. He has shown solid ball skills when the ball is thrown in his direction, recording a team-leading two interceptions in 12 games as a freshman. Kelsey also recorded 57 tackles, and caught three passes for 56 yards and a touchdown this past season. Rylan will be a player worth keeping an eye on as he continues to develop moving forward. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1518213"],"_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-6a57d98c0c24b"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='1518213' first='Brandon' last='Smith'] is another safety who stood out to me as a freshman. He has tremendous range in the secondary and he has the ability to use his speed to cover a ton of ground quickly when the ball is in the air, often going unnoticed by the quarterback. Smith has shown very good ball skills when the ball is thrown his way, coming away with two interceptions in 12 games (tied for team lead) this past season. He has also shown the ability to come downhill to make tackles against the run, finishing his freshman year with 51 tackles. Brandon has received some college interest and I expect his recruitment to continue to heat up going into his sophomore year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1665544"],"_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-6a57d98c0c280"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='1665544' first='Aiden' last='Zuniga'] is coming off an impressive freshman year. He lines up at corner where he is at his best in zone coverage. Zuniga does a great job of reading routes then reacting quickly to make a play on the ball when it is thrown his way. Aiden finished his freshman year with one interception and several pass breakups in 10 games. He also recorded 53 tackles and caught four passes for 32 yards this past season. Aiden will be a player to keep an eye on as his role continues to grow in the Taylor County defense. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1648917"],"_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-6a57d98c0c2b2"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">To wrap up our top five defensive backs in the class of 2029 in the state of Kentucky, I have [player_tooltip player_id='1648917' first='Jamaal' last='Haskins']. Haskins lines up at safety where he is very dependable in coverage. He reads both routes and the quarterback effectively then flows through the secondary to put himself in position to make a play. Haskins has shown great ball skills when the ball is thrown in his direction, coming away with a team-high two interceptions in nine games as a freshman. He also accounted for 21 tackles this past season. Jamaal will be a player worth keeping an eye on as he continues to grow and develop over the next three seasons. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->