By MIKE MARSEE

Contributing Writer

It was a good year for great two-way players.

Every year there are good players on local football teams who excel on both offense and defense, but this year there are more than usual at the head of the class.

Five of the top two-way players in the area were voted to The Advocate-Messenger 2023 All-Area Football Team on both sides of the ball.

Running back-linebacker Avery Bodner and wide receiver-defensive back Montavin Quisenberry of Boyle County, running back-defensive back Braidin Baughman of Danville, wide receiver-defensive back Hayden Elleman of Garrard County and quarterback-defensive back Thaddeus Mays of Mercer County each received enough votes from local coaches to make the All-Area team at two positions.

By comparison, that happened only three times – and to only two players – over the previous five seasons.

Coaches from the six area schools — Boyle, Casey County, Danville, Garrard, Lincoln County and Mercer — voted for the All-Area team, casting votes for a total of 47 players. Ties in voting for the 24 spots on the ballot were not broken.

Boyle, which took a 13-0 record into its Class 4A semifinal Friday at Franklin County as it pursues a fourth consecutive state championship, leads the All-Area team for the seventh year in a row with seven players.

Mercer, which won nine of 10 regular-season games and finished 10-2, was right behind with six players, followed by Garrard with five, Casey with four, Danville with three and Lincoln with two.

Three of this year’s two-way honorees – Bodner, Mays and Quisenberry – made the All-Area team for the third consecutive year.

Four other players are making their second consecutive All-Area appearance: defensive back Demauriah Brown of Boyle (voted at running back last year), offensive lineman Byron Collier of Mercer, kicker Zak Dailey of Garrard, defensive lineman Seth Horton of Lincoln (voted at wide receiver last year) and offensive lineman Paul McClure of Boyle.

 

THE ADVOCATE-MESSENGER 2023 ALL-AREA FOOTBALL TEAM

OFFENSE

Pos Name School Hgt Wgt Yr

QB Thaddeus Mays Mercer County 5-10 160 Sr.

RB Avery Bodner Boyle County 6-0 175 Sr.

RB Braidin Baughman Danville 5-8 160 Jr.

RB Evan Stephens Casey County 6-1 190 Sr.

WR Montavin Quisenberry Boyle County 5-8 155 Jr.

WR Ashton Drakeford Mercer County 6-1 173 So.

WR Hayden Elleman Garrard County 5-8 155 Sr.

WR Demontrae Trumbo Danville 5-8 150 Sr.

OL Austin Gorley Boyle County 6-4 270 Sr.

OL Paul McClure Boyle County 6-2 287 Jr.

OL Caleb Scenters Garrard County 6-2 280 Sr.

OL Byron Collier Mercer County 6-0 210 Sr.

OL Logan Lawson Lincoln County 6-4 270 Sr.

OL Luke McQueen Casey County 6-4 300 Sr.

OL Gavin Rodriguez Mercer County 5-11 255 Jr.

OL KeSean Jones Danville 5-7 230 Sr.

K Zak Dailey Garrard County 5-4 104 Jr.

 

DEFENSE

Pos Name School Hgt Wgt Yr

DL Kingston Mays Mercer County 6-3 250 Sr.

DL Braydon Coppage Casey County 5-10 190 Jr.

DL Jayce Crowe Boyle County 5-8 170 Sr.

DL Seth Horton Lincoln County 6-2 205 Sr.

LB Nathaniel Dougherty Garrard County 5-10 150 Jr.

LB Avery Bodner Boyle County 6-0 175 Sr.

LB Brock Driver Boyle County 6-1 210 Jr.

DB Hayden Elleman Garrard County 5-8 155 Sr.

DB Thaddeus Mays Mercer County 5-10 160 Sr.

DB Braidin Baughman Danville 5-8 160 Jr.

DB Cameron Bottoms Mercer County 6-0 172 Jr.

DB Demauriah Brown Boyle County 5-10 170 Jr.

DB Andrew Price Casey County 6-1 155 Sr.

DB Montavin Quisenberry Boyle County 5-8 155 Jr.

P Jaghyr Wood Garrard County 5-9 148 Jr.

 

HONORABLE MENTION: Boyle County — Bryce Bullock, DL; Andrew Carr, K; Sage Dawson, QB-DB; Colt Kelly, OL-DL; Casey County — Caleb Brown, WR-DB; Landon Elrod, LB; Bo Patterson, LB; Danville — Marquis Elmore, LB; Kaleb Wilcher, P; Garrard County — Malachi Simmons, RB; Lincoln County — J.C. Bryant, DB; Bryce Floyd, DB; Grady Foster, OL-DL; Elan Lane, RB; Mercer County — Gage Bennett, LB; Juhon Goodman, OL; Denim Griffieth, DB; Mason Kirkland, OL; Aiden McKinney, DL; Liam Potts, K.

 

AREA LINEMAN OF THE YEAR

Austin Gorley, Boyle County

 

AREA COACH OF THE YEAR

Craig Yeast, Mercer County