The Kentucky Football Coaches Association (KFCA) has announced their 2025 players, linemen and coaches of the year. The Northern Kentucky area acquitted itself well with many locals being honored.

Here is a look at the 2025 KFCA Players, Linemen and Coaches of the Year:

Players of the Year

Class 1A

District 1: Zayden Kinney, Fulton County
District 2: Kace Eastridge, Campbellsville
District 3: Eddie Bivens, Newport Catholic, Sr, RB/DB – Ran for 1,389 yards, had 22 receptions for 218 yards, snared three interceptions on defense and found the end zone 28 times (24 rush, three rec, one IR) for the 8-5 Thoroughbreds.
District 4: Charles Oglesby, Holy Cross, Jr, RB/LB – Ran for 832 yards, had 12 rushing touchdowns, was in on 49 tackles, with one sack, 10.0 tackles for losses, a forced fumble and two interceptions including a pick six.
District 5: Caden Jones, Sayre
District 6: Landen Stiltner, Raceland
District 7: Deakon Partin, Middlesboro
District 8: William Shoptaw, Hazard

Class 2A

District 1: Caden Howard, Crittenden County
District 2: Miles Edge, Owensboro Catholic
District 3: Kris Hughes, Somerset
District 4: Tyler King, Lexington Christian
District 5: Tyler Fryman, Beechwood, Jr, WR/DB – A stat sheet filler, Fryman had 62 receptions for 1,320 yards (21.3/rec), 283 yards rushing, 30 touchdowns (23 rec, four rush, three PRs), 35 tackles, one forced fumble and three takeaways (two INTs, one FR) for the 12-2 Tigers.
District 6: Waylon Abner, Breathitt County
District 7: Devan Maynard, Martin County
District 8: Jonah Bartley, Shelby Valley

Class 3A

District 1: Wyatt Robbins, Murray
District 2: Hudson Gumm, Glasgow
District 3: Ja’Hyde Brown, Christian Academy-Louisville
District 4: RJ Blair, Garrard County
District 5: Kaleb Evans, Lloyd Memorial, Sr, QB – Completed 69.1% of his passes for 2,471 yards and 36 touchdowns (also had two rushing touchdowns) for the 13-1 Juggernauts.
District 6: Jayden Frasure, Russell
District 7: Blake Burnett, Bell County
District 8: Luke Fetherolf, Lawrence County

Class 4A

District 1: Avery Thompson, Paducah Tilghman
District 2: Cavalli Pittman, John Hardin
District 3: Colin Daniels, North Oldham
District 4: Keyon Davis, Spencer County
District 5: Tayden Lorenzen, Highlands, Jr, RB/TE – Accounted for 24 touchdowns (18 rush, four rec, two pass), ran for 541 yards, caught 26 balls for 321 yards and had an interception on defense for a 10-3 Bluebirds squad.
District 6: Logan Music, Johnson Central
District 7: Seneca Driver, Boyle County
District 8: Cole Stevens, Corbin

Class 5A

District 1: Markezz Hightower, Madisonville-North Hopkins
District 2: Davis Chaney, Greenwood
District 3: Garyon Hobbs, Atherton
District 4: AJ Lee, Bullitt Central
District 5: Cameron O’Hara, Cooper, Sr, QB – Threw for 2,231 yards, with 26 touchdown passes and three scores on the ground for the 8-4 Jaguars. O’Hara finished his career with 11,227 yards passing 126 touchdown passes (most in Northern Kentucky history) and eight rushing touchdowns.
District 6: Timmy Emongo, Scott County
District 7: Cooper Swaim, West Jessamine
District 8: Mason Griffin, South Laurel

Class 6A

District 1: James Bradley, Hopkinsville
District 2: Kayden York, South Warren
District 3: Gerian Traynor, Manual
District 4: Steron Davidson, Male
District 5: Zane Johnson, Trinity
District 6: Jacob Savage, Ryle, Sr, RB/LB – The Indiana commit was named POY for a second straight year. Savage ran for 1,222 yards, caught 12 balls for 204 yards, found the end zone 29 times (24 rush, five rec), recorded 112 tackles,  with 15.0 tackles for losses, a forced fumble and three takeaways (two INTs, one FR) for the 10-4 Raiders.
District 7: Darnell Burnside, Tates Creek
District 8: Dakari Talbert, Frederick Douglass

Linemen of the Year

Class 1A

District 1: Drake Thorpe, Fulton County
District 2: Kris Mandy, KCD
District 3: Will Sandfoss, Newport Catholic
District 4: Beckett Meersman, Bishop Brossart, Jr., OL/DL – Emerged as one of the top linemen in Northern Kentucky as a junior. Meersman recorded 42 tackles, 4.0 sacks, 10.5 tackles for losses and a fumble recovery this season.
District 5: Wyatt Moore, Sayre
District 6: Jacob Litteral, Raceland
District 7: Christian Davis, Middlesboro
District 8: Caden Thacker, Pikeville

Class 2A

District 1: Ashton Rodgers, Mayfield
District 2: Caden Conkright, Owensboro Catholic
District 3: Andrew Houk, Green County
District 4: Sasha Wade, Danville
District 5: Lucas Tillery, Owen County
District 6: Waylon Abner, Breathitt County
District 7: Preston Shepherd, Knott County Central
District 8: Bo Wolford, Belfry

Class 3A

District 1: Ryan Walls, Murray
District 2: Matt Stephens, LaRue County
District 3: Kellan Hall, Christian Academy-Louisville
District 4: Mark Hosinski, Lexington Catholic
District 5: King Lee, Bourbon County
District 6: Zack Brown, Russell
District 7: Spencer Phipps, Bell County
District 8: Ty Brooks, Lawrence County

Class 4A

District 1: Ben Myers, Paducah Tilghman
District 2: Bryten Close, Taylor County
District 3: Josh Vaughan, Valley
District 4: Richard Gilbert, Spencer County
District 5: Max Merz, Highlands, Sr, OL – The Bluebirds were a combined 42-11 in Merz’s four years as starter. He has signed with Louisville.
District 6: Drew Ferguson, Johnson Central
District 7: Trashaun Bryant, Wayne County
District 8: Malachi Brown, Corbin

Class 5A

District 1: JW Muster, Owensboro
District 2: Zach Jordan, Bowling Green
District 3: Jeremiah Jackson, Iroquois
District 4: Chaz Tutt, Fairdale
District 5: Noah Reichel, Cooper, Sr, OL/DL – The anchor of a Jaguars o-line that helped pave the way for an offense that averaged 328.7 yards per game in 2025.
District 6: Justyn Perez, Woodford County
District 7: Isaiah Wilkinson, West Jessamine
District 8: Brady Hull, Pulaski County

Class 6A

District 1: Foster Jackson, Hopkinsville
District 2: Malik Butler, South Warren
District 3: Josiah Hope, North Hardin
District 4: Christian White, Male
District 5: Nate Shields, Trinity
District 6: Bo Gay, Ryle, Sr, DE – Despite playing in just nine games, Gay still managed to record 5.0 sacks and 6.0 tackles for losses.
District 7: Josiah Hernandez, Paul Laurence Dunbar
District 8: Camden Burke, Madison Central

Coaches of the Year

Class 1A

District 1: James Bridges, Fulton County
District 2: Dale Estes, Campbellsville
District 3: Steve Lickert, Newport Catholic – Guided the Thoroughbreds to an 8-5 mark. Lickert is 68-34 in eight years at NewCath and 137-109 overall (22 years).
District 4: Curt Spencer, Holy Cross – Led the Indians to their first undefeated regular season in school history in his second year at the helm.
District 5: Chad Pennington, Sayre
District 6: Michael Salmons, Raceland
District 7: Larry French, Middlesboro
District 8: Brian Melvin, Paintsville

Class 2A

District 1: Cliff Dew, Mayfield
District 2: Robert Eubanks, Hancock County
District 3: John Petett, Monroe County
District 4: Lawrence Smith, Washington County
District 5: Steve Tarter, Bracken County
District 6: Mark Easterling, Morgan County
District 7: Randall Mullins, Knott County Central
District 8: Matt Varney, Belfry

Class 3A

District 1: Melvin Cunningham, Murray
District 2: Josh Robins, Butler County
District 3: Hunter Cantwell, Christian Academy-Louisville
District 4: David Clark, Lexington Catholic
District 5: Kyle Niederman, Lloyd Memorial – Guided the Juggernauts to 13-1 record and a state semifinals appearance. Niederman has compiled a 55-25 mark in seven years as the head coach at Lloyd.
District 6: TJ Maynard, Russell
District 7: Dudley Hilton, Bell County
District 8: Alan Short, Lawrence County

Class 4A

District 1: Coby Lewis, Calloway County
District 2: Josh Boston, Nelson County
District 3: Brock Roberts, North Oldham
District 4: Eddie James, Franklin County
District 5: Bob Sphire, Highlands – Led the Bluebirds to  a 10-3 finish. Sphire is 47-17 in his five seasons as the head coach at Highlands.
District 6: Jesse Peck, Johnson Central
District 7: Justin Haddix, Boyle County
District 8: Jacob Saylor, Harlan County

Class 5A

District 1: John Edge, Apollo
District21: William Howard, Greenwood
District 3: Gary Wheeler, Butler
District 4: Louis Dover, Fairdale
District 5: Randy Borchers, Cooper – The Jaguars finished 8-4 for the program’s fifth consecutive winning season. Borchers, the only head coach in Cooper history has compiled a 118-95 record in 21 years at the school.
District 6: Dennis Johnson, Woodford County
District 7: Scott Marsh, West Jessamine
District 8: Steve Nelson, North Laurel

Class 6A

District 1: Tyler Brooks, McCracken County
District 2: Brandon Smith, South Warren
District 3: Kevin Wallace, Saint Xavier
District 4: Chris Wolfe, Male
District 5: Jamie Reed, Oldham County
District 6: Mike Engler, Ryle – Guide the Raiders (10-4) to their third straight district title and second straight state semifinals finish, both firsts for the program. Engler is 101-60 in 13 years at the school.
District 7: Jon Lawson, Lafayette
District 8: William Blair, Madison Central