Power Eleven for 2025

Here is the final Power Eleven, which includes the eleven highest-rated football teams in Western Kentucky.  We didn't get a State Champion this year, but Murray did reach the 3A Final:

17.  Paducah Tilghman:  12-2

25.  Murray:  14-1

30.  Mayfield:  10-2

32.  Logan Co:  10-3

41.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  8-3

55.  Hopkinsville:  7-5

62.  Union Co:  7-6

65.  Henderson Co:  6-7

66.  McCracken Co:  6-6

78.  Graves Co:  4-7

110.  Crittenden Co:  8-4

KHSAA Update

As usual, we won't really pay attention to the KHSAA Football Playoffs until they get down to the quarter-finals, which will be next week.  This week is the Round of 16.  Here is the current Top 20 KHSAA football programs, according to MaxPreps:

1.  Lou. Trinity:  9-2

2.  Lou. St. Xavier:  8-3 (On Sept. 26, Trinity beat St. X 35-24)

3.  S. Warren:  10-0

4.  Christian Academy-Louisville:  11-0

5.  Lou. DuPont Manual:  9-2

6.  Johnson Cent:  11-0

7.  Boyle Co:  10-1

8.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  9-2

9.  Cov. Catholic:  8-3

10.  Pulaski Co:  9-2

11.  Owensboro:  9-2

12.  Woodford Co:  10-1

13.  Lex. Frederick Douglass:  7-4

14.  Pad. Tilghman:  10-1

15.  Bell Co:  10-1

16.  Owensboro Catholic:  10-1

17.  Franklin Co:  11-0

18.  Belfry:  10-1

19.  Ryle:  8-3

20.  Corbin:  8-3

Trinity leads the all-time rivalry with St. X, 51-41-2.  In the 21st century, Trinity leads 28-11.  KHSAA football would be more interesting if that rivalry was more competitive.

Here is the Power Eleven, for the best teams in the Commonwealth west of Owensboro:

14.  Pad. Tilghman:  10-1

28.  Murray:  11-0

29.  Mayfield:  9-1

44.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  8-3

54.  Hopkinsville:  7-4

66.  McCracken Co:  6-5

81.  Graves Co:  4-7

87.  Union Co:  6-5

90.  Henderson Co:  5-6

112.  Calloway Co:  6-5

116.  Crittenden Co:  8-3

Madisonville was eliminated last week in the first round of the 5A playoffs by Greenwood, 21 to 18.

MaxPreps Kentucky Rankings

After four weeks of high school football, we have enough data to use the MaxPreps rankings for the KHSAA.  Here is the top 20:

1.  Lou. Trinity:  3-1

2.  Christian Academy-Louisville:  4-0

3.  Lou. St. Xavier:  3-0

4.  Boyle Co:  3-1

5.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  3-1

6.  S. Warren:  4-0

7.  Lex. Frederick Douglass:  1-3

8.  Cooper:  2-2

9.  Franklin Co:  4-0

10.  Scott Co:  4-0

11.  Lou. Manual:  3-1

12.  Corbin:  3-1

13.  Lou. Male:  2-1

14.  Beechwood:  3-0

15.  Cov. Catholic:  2-2

16.  Pad. Tilghman:  3-1

17.  Bowling Green:  0-4

18.  Johnson Cent:  4-0

19.  Ryle:  2-2

20.  Woodford Co:  3-1

And here are the Power Eleven for western Kentucky:

16.  Pad. Tilghman:  3-1

29.  Mayfield:  3-1

30.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  4-0

42.  Union Co:  2-2

58.  Murray:  4-0

59.  Henderson Co:  1-2

61.  Graves Co:  1-3

73.  McCracken Co:  1-3

81.  Hopkinsville:  3-1

105.  Caldwell Co:  3-1

111.  Crittenden Co:  2-2

Final KHSAA Football Rankings

Here is the final top 20 from MaxPreps.  State Champions are in bold:

1.  Lou. Trinity:  13-2 (6A Champ)

2.  Cooper:  14-1

3.  Paducah Tilghman:  15-0 (4A Champ)

4.  Ryle:  12-3

5.  Bowling Green:  13-2 (5A Champ)

6.  Boyle Co:  12-1

7.  Franklin Co:  13-1

8.  Lex. Frederick Douglass:  9-5

9.  Christian Academy-Louisville:  12-3 (3A Champ)

10.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  11-3

11.  Corbin:  12-2

12.  Covington Catholic:  11-3

13.  Lou. St. Xavier:  7-5

14.  Lou. Manual:  10-2

15.  S. Warren:  12-2

16.  Beechwood:  14-1 (2A Champ)

17.  Woodford Co:  10-2

18.  Great Crossing:  10-4

19.  Ashland Blazer:  11-2

20.  Lou. Male:  9-3

And here is the Power Eleven for the teams in our end of the Commonwealth:

3.  Paducah Tilghman:  15-0 (4A Champ)

29.  Union Co:  12-3 (3A Runner-Up)

34.  Graves Co:  9-3

39.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  7-4

43.  Mayfield:  9-3

68.  Henderson Co:  4-7

75.  Murray:  8-4

81.  McCracken Co:  6-6

102.  Caldwell Co:  5-7

103.  Hopkinsville:  3-7

116.  Crittenden Co:  4-7

The MaxPrep rankings go back to 2004.  This season is the first in which Tilghman finished at the top of the Power Eleven rankings.  It is also the first time that a Power Eleven team has finished in the MaxPreps Top Ten since Mayfield did it in 2017.  And it's the only time (going back to 2004) where a Power Eleven team has finished in the MaxPreps Top Five.  So it seems clear that this year's Tilghman team is the best football team in our section since at least 2004.  Congratulations to everyone at Tilghman!

And now, on to basketball season!

KHSAA Top 20

The regular season ends in Kentucky tonight for high school football.  It all goes so quickly, but it stays with you forever.  Here is the MaxPreps top 20:

1.  Boyle Co:  9-0

2.  Lou. Trinity:  8-2

3.  Cooper:  10-0

4.  Franklin Co:  9-0

5.  Ryle:  7-2

6.  Lou. St. Xavier:  6-3

7.  Lou. Manual:  8-1

8.  Paducah Tilghman:  9-0

9.  Lex. Frederick Douglass:  6-3

10.  Lou. Male:  8-1

11.  Christian Academy-Louisville:  6-3

12.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  8-2

13.  Corbin:  8-1

14.  Ashland Blazer:  8-1

15.  S. Warren:  8-1

16.  Woodford Co:  8-1

17.  Owensboro Catholic:  9-0

18.  Bowling Green:  7-2

19.  Lex. Christian:  7-2

20.  Cov. Catholic:  7-2

It's amazing that they have six classes in Kentucky, and somehow Paducah Tilghman ends up in the same class as the number-one team in the Commonwealth.

Here's the Power Eleven, for schools in western Kentucky:

9.  Paducah Tilghman:  9-0

33. Graves Co:  7-2

34.  Mayfield:  6-2

43.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  6-3

49.  Henderson Co:  4-5

52.  Murray:  7-2

58.  McCracken Co:  5-4

62.  Union Co:  7-2

84.  Hopkinsville:  3-6

98.  Caldwell Co:  3-6

115.  Marshall Co:  3-6

Latest KHSAA Football Rankings

Here is the current top 20 football teams in KHSAA, according to MaxPreps:

1.  Boyle Co:  7-0

2.  Lou. Trinity:  6-2

3.  Cooper:  8-0

4.  Franklin Co:  7-0

5.  Lou. Manual:  6-1

6.  Lou. Male:  6-1

7.  Ryle:  5-2

8.  Lou. St. Xavier:  4-3

9.  Christian Academy-Louisville:  5-2

10.  Lex. Frederick Douglass:  4-3

11.  Paducah Tilghman:  7-0

12.  Lex. Christian:  5-2

13.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  6-2

14.  Bowling Green:  6-1

15.  Corbin:  6-1

16.  Owensboro Catholic:  7-0

17.  Ashland Blazer:  7-1

18.  S. Warren:  6-1

19.  Lex. Bryan Station:  4-3

20.  Scott Co:  5-3

And here's the Power Eleven for Western Kentucky:

11.  Paducah Tilghman:  7-0

35.  Graves Co:  5-2

37.  Mayfield:  4-2

46.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  5-2

53.  Henderson Co:  2-5

55.  Murray:  6-1

63.  McCracken Co:  3-4

73.  Union Co:  5-2

93.  Hopkinsville:  2-5

97.  Marshall Co:  3-4

102.  Logan Co:  3-4

KHSAA Top 20

Here are the top 20 high school football teams in Kentucky, according to the MaxPreps rankings:

1.  Boyle Co:  6-0

2.  Lou. Trinity:  5-2

3.  Cooper:  7-0

4.  Lou. Male:  5-1

5.  Lou. St. Xavier:  4-2

6.  Franklin Co:  6-0

7.  Ryle:  4-2

8.  Christian Academy-Louisville:  5-2

9.  Lex. Frederick Douglass:  3-3

10.  Paducah Tilghman:  7-0

11.  Lou. Manual:  5-1

12.  Lex. Christian:  5-2

13.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  5-2

14.  Bowling Green:  6-1

15.  Corbin:  5-1

16.  Owensboro Catholic:  7-0

17.  S. Oldham:  6-1

18.  Ashland Blazer:  6-1

19.  Cov. Catholic:  5-2

20.  S. Warren:  5-1

And here are the Power Eleven rankings for the teams at our end of the Commonwealth.  Please note that no Power Eleven team has finished in the Top Ten for the Commonwealth since Mayfield did it in 2017.

10.  Paducah Tilghman:  7-0

34.  Graves Co:  5-2

40.  Mayfield:  4-2

46.  Henderson Co:  2-4

51.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  5-2

62.  Murray:  6-1

73.  McCracken Co:  2-4

77.  Union Co:  5-2

97.  Hopkinsville:  2-5

100.  Marshall Co:  3-4

103.  Logan Co:  3-4

KHSAA State Football Champions

Here are your KHSAA State Finals in football:

Class 6A:

Lou. Trinity 41, Lex. Bryan Station 20

Class 5A:

Bowling Green 28, Cooper 14

Class 4A:

Boyle Co. 41, Cov. Catholic 0

Class 3A:

Christian Academy-Louisville 41, Bell Co. 16

Class 2A:

Mayfield 53, Owensboro Catholic 48

Class 1A:

Pikeville 21, Raceland 0

Let's make a comment here about Mayfield.  None of the State Champs had a harder row to hoe than the Cardinals.  In the quarter-finals, they had to play Lexington Christian, which MaxPreps had as the number 9 team in the whole Commonwealth, regardless of class.  Mayfield beat them 58-36.  Then they had to play Beechwood, who beat Mayfield in last year's state title game.  They beat Beechwood on a last-second field goal:  31-28.  And finally, they had to play an undefeated Owensboro Catholic team that had outscored its opponents by over 500 points.  The Cardinals beat them 53-48 in one of the greatest state title games ever played.  I know that Mayfield has an amazing history -- this was their 13th State Championship.  And I know that they have a lot of drama every year.  But to me, and especially given the recent history around the tornado, this was their greatest triumph in their long and great history.

Here is the final MaxPreps Top 20, showing that Boyle Co. was the best team in the Commonwealth this year.  (State Champs are in bold):

1.  Boyle Co.:  15-0

2.  Lou. Trinity:  12-3

3.  Lex. Frederic Douglass:  8-5

4.  Corbin:  11-1

5.  Christian Academy-Louisville:  14-1

6.  Lou. Male:  11-2

7.  Lex. Bryan Station:  11-4

8.  Bowling Green:  12-3

9.  Cov. Catholic:  14-1

10.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  12-2

11.  Lou. St. Xavier:  8-4

12.  Mayfield:  14-1

13.  Cooper:  12-3

14.  Lou. Ballard:  10-4

15.  Franklin Co:  13-1

16.  Lex. Christian:  11-2

17.  Lou. Manual:  9-3

18.  Paducah Tilghman:  13-1

19.  Owensboro Catholic:  14-1

20.  S. Warren:  9-3

And here is our final Power Eleven, with the Cardinals on top:

12.  Mayfield:  14-1

18.  Paducah Tilghman:  13-1

37.  Union Co:  11-2

42.  Graves Co:  8-4

52.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  8-3

53.  Henderson Co:  5-7

61.  McCracken Co:  6-7

63.  Logan Co:  8-4

88.  Crittenden Co:  7-5

92.  Murray:  7-5

115.  Webster Co:  6-5

It's the first time a Power Eleven Team has won a State Title since Mayfield won the 2A Title in 2015.  Since then, Mayfield had lost four times in the 2A Final:

2017:  Danville 35, Mayfield 21

2018:  Christian Academy-Louisville 34, Mayfield 26

2019:  Somerset 34, Mayfield 31

2022:  Beechwood 14, Mayfield 13

That's a lot of heartache for a small town, before you even get to the tornado.  But as we like to say here on the Heath Post, Defeats Are Not Always Forever, and this year Mayfield is back on top.

Power Eleven

Here are the top ten high school football teams in Kentucky, according to MaxPreps (highest team in its class in bold):

1.  Boyle Co:  8-0 (4A)

2.  Lou. Trinity:  6-3 (6A)

3.  Lou. Male:  7-1 (6A)

4.  Corbin:  8-0 (4A)

5.  Lex. Frederick Douglass:  4-3 (6A)

6.  Cov. Catholic:  8-0 (4A)

7.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  8-1 (5A)

8.  Lex. Christian:  7-1 (2A)

9.  Lou. Manual:  7-1 (6A)

10.  Lou. St. Xavier:  5-3 (6A)

Here is the Power Eleven for Western Kentucky:

17.  Paducah Tilghman:  8-0 (4A)

22.  Mayfield:  6-1 (2A)

38.  Union Co:  8-0 (3A)

41.  Henderson Co:  3-5 (6A)

62.  Graves Co:  5-3 (5A)

64.  Logan Co:  6-2 (4A)

68.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  6-2 (5A)

76.  McCracken Co:  4-4 (6A)

84.  Crittenden Co:  4-4 (2A)

88.  Murray:  6-2 (2A)

117.  Webster Co:  5-3 (3A)

Power Eleven

Here are the top ten high school football teams in Kentucky, according to Max Preps:

1.  Boyle Co:  7-0

2.  Lou. Trinity:  5-3

3.  Lou. Male:  6-1

4.  Corbin:  7-0

5.  Lex. Frederick Douglass:  3-3

6.  Cov. Catholic:  7-0

7.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  7-1

8.  Lex. Christian:  6-1

9.  Lou. Manual:  6-1

10.  Lou. St. Xavier:  4-3

And here are the Power Eleven teams in western Kentucky:

16.  Paducah Tilghman:  7-0

24.  Mayfield:  5-1

37.  Union Co:  8-0

41.  Henderson Co:  2-5

62.  Logan Co:  5-2

66.  Graves Co:  4-3

68.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  6-2

73.  McCracken Co:  3-4

83.  Crittenden Co:  4-3

84.  Murray:  5-2

116.  Christian Co:  2-5

Power Eleven

Here is the latest top 10 in Kentucky H.S. Football, based on Max Preps:

1.  Lou. Male:  5-1 (Class 6A)

2.  Boyle Co:  6-0 (4A)

3.  Lou. Trinity:  4-3 (6A)

4.  Corbin:  6-0 (4A)

5.  Lex. Frederick Douglass:  2-3 (6A)

6.  Cov. Catholic:  7-0 (4A)

7.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  6-1 (5A)

8.  Lou. St. Xavier:  4-2 (6A)

9.  Lex. Christian:  6-1 (2A)

10.  Christian Academy-Louisville:  6-1 (3A)

And here's the Power Eleven for teams in our region.  The big news last weekend was that Crittenden County stunned Murray 28-14, and Tilghman crushed Logan County 63-20.

16.  Paducah Tilghman:  7-0 (Class 4A)

23.  Mayfield:  5-1 (2A)

38.  Union Co:  7-0 (3A)

47.  Henderson Co:  1-5 (6A)

63.  Logan Co:  5-2 (4A)

64.  Graves Co:  4-3 (5A)

68.  McCracken Co:  3-3 (6A)

75.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  5-2 (5A)

81.  Crittenden Co:  3-3 (2A)

82.  Murray:  5-2 (2A)

105.  Christian Co:  2-4 (6A)

Power Eleven

Here's the HP Power Eleven, based on MaxPreps, after last week's games:

18.  Paducah Tilghman:  6-0

22.  Mayfield:  4-1

38.  Union Co:  6-0

47.  Henderson Co:  1-5

60.  Logan Co:  5-1

61.  Graves Co:  3-3

63.  Murray:  5-1

70.  McCracken Co:  3-3

75.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  4-2

93.  Crittenden Co:  2-3

106.  Christian Co:  2-3

Here are the top 10 teams in the Commonwealth, according to MaxPreps:

1.  Boyle Co:  6-0

2.  Lou. Male:  4-1

3.  Lou. Trinity:  3-3

4.  Corbin:  5-0

5.  Lex. Frederick Douglass:  2-3

6.  Cov. Catholic:  6-0

7.  Lex. Christian:  5-1

8.  Lou. St. Xavier:  3-2

9.  Ft. Thomas Highlands:  5-1

10.  Christian Academy-Louisville:  5-1

NFL Week 2

Here's the new ESPN Top 10:

1.  San Francisco:  1-0

2.  Philadelphia:  1-0

3.  Kansas City:  0-1

4.  Dallas:  1-0

5.  Miami:  1-0

6.  Baltimore:  1-0

7.  Detroit:  1-0

8.  Jacksonville:  1-0

9.  Buffalo:  0-1

10.  San Diego:  0-1

For the second week in a row, the Chiefs get a top-10 game, as they travel to Jacksonville for a noon Central game on Sunday.  That's the only top-10 game of the week.

In Survivor Pool, I have to choose between Dallas at home against the Jets and Buffalo at home against the Raiders.  I have very little faith in Dallas or Buffalo, but I just don't see the Bills starting off 0-2.  So I'm going with Buffalo.

Survivor picks so far:

1.  Baltimore 25 - 9 Houston

It's that Time

Here are the football scores from last weekend in western Kentucky (home teams listed first):

Friday, August 18:

Franklin-Simpson 40 - 28 Christian Co. (at Warren East) (J. Allen Builders Bowl)

Russellville 7 - 29 Butler Co. (at Logan Co.) (Logan Co. Bowl)

Bethlehem 55 - 14 Marshall Co.

Webster Co. 8 - 31 Crittenden Co.

Northwest (Clarksville, Tenn.) 17 - 20 Ft. Campbell

Greenwood 49 - 14 Hopkinsville (at Allen-Co.-Scottsville)

Henderson Co. 35 - 34 Meade Co.

Hopkins Co. Cent. 20 - 14 Caldwell Co.

Mayfield 42 - 7 Graves Co.

Ballard Mem. 0 - 40 S. Fulton (Tenn.)

Union Co. 21 - 14 Madisonville-N. Hopkins

Saturday, August 19:

Fulton Co. 20 - 48 Gleason (Tenn.)

Harrison Co. 40 - 33 Calloway Co.

Trigg Co. 21 - 41 Murray

McCracken Co. 7 - 42 Paducah Tilghman

The two most interesting results of the weekend -- besides Tilghman's huge win over McCracken County -- were:  (1) Lexington Christian beat Bowling Green 56 - 52 at the Rafferty's Bowl played on the campus of Western Kentucky U., and (2) Lex. Frederick Douglass, which outscored its opponents 611-70 last year in rolling to the 5A title, were crushed 45-6 in Canton, Ohio by Archbishop Hoban H.S. of Akron, Ohio.

Later in the season, we are going to start tracking our Power Eleven -- the Top 11 teams in our end of the Commonwealth.  It will take a few weeks to have enough data for the rankings to be meaningful this year, so here are last year's final rankings (each team's final MaxPrep ranking in parentheses):

2022 Power Eleven:

1.  Henderson Co:  10-3 (20)

2.  Mayfield:  14-1 (25)

3.  Union Co:  12-1 (35)

4.  Paducah Tilghman:  6-7 (38)

5.  Logan Co:  11-2 (47)

6.  Madisonville-N. Hopkins:  7-5 (61)

7.  Hopkinsville:  6-6 (62)

8.  Graves Co:  6-5 (74)

9.  Christian Co:  3-8 (98)

10.  Trigg Co:  7-4 (102)

11.  Murray:  6-6 (106)

And here's the list of the Power Eleven Champions going back to 2004 (final MaxPrep ranking in parentheses):

2025:  Paducah Tilghman:  12-2 (10)

2024:  Paducah Tilghman:  15-0 (3)

2023:  Mayfield:  14-1 (12)

2022:  Henderson Co:  10-3 (20)

2021:  Mayfield:  12-2 (27)

2020:  McCracken Co:  6-3 (23)

2019:  Mayfield:  13-2 (17)

2018:  Mayfield:  14-1 (14)

2017:  Mayfield:  13-2 (8)

2016:  Christian Co:  9-3 (17)

2015:  Mayfield:  14-1 (16)

2014:  Mayfield:  14-1 (7)

2013:  Mayfield:  14-1 (15)

2012:  Mayfield:  14-1 (14)

2011:  Mayfield:  14-1 (17)

2010:  Mayfield:  15-0 (8)

2009:  Lone Oak:  14-1 (7)

2008:  Christian Co:  13-2 (9)

2007:  Ft. Campbell:  13-2 (10)

2006:  Henderson Co:  10-3 (18)

2005:  Christian Co:  8-5 (19)

2004:  Hopkinsville:  13-1 (8)

Hooray for football!