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KHSAA sets football realignment plan for 2025-26 seasons; 24 schools to switch classes

DeSale's Peyton Molter makes a throw Thursday night while playing against Jeffersontown. Oct. 12, 2023.
DeSale's Peyton Molter makes a throw Thursday night while playing against Jeffersontown. Oct. 12, 2023.

LEXINGTON — A total of 24 high school football teams — including three from Louisville — will move classes for the 2025-26 seasons as part of a draft realignment proposed by the Kentucky High School Athletic Association’s Board of Control on Tuesday.

The draft still must be approved during the board’s meeting in May.

Of the 24 schools moving, 15 will drop in class and nine will move up. The board previously voted to not allow teams to move up in class.

The board voted Tuesday that the initial draft would not include a district with fewer than four teams, which forced one change in Class 6A. Originally, Central Hardin, Daviess County, Meade County, North Hardin and South Warren were placed in District Two. Manual, Pleasure Ridge Park and St. Xavier were placed in District Three. The board voted to move North Hardin from District Two to District Three.

In Louisville, Jeffersontown will jump from Class 4A to 5A and DeSales and Western will drop from Class 4A to 3A.

As a result, Class 3A, District Three will include Bardstown, Central, Christian Academy, DeSales, Thomas Nelson and Western. Central, CAL and DeSales have all won state championships since 2014.

Here are the other schools moving up in class: Hopkinsville (4A to 6A), South Warren (5A to 6A), Franklin-Simpson (3A to 4A), Elizabethtown (3A to 4A), Marion County (3A to 4A), Murray (2A to 3A), Edmonson County (2A to 3A) and Carroll County (2A to 3A).

Here are the other schools dropping in class: Barren County (6A to 5A), Warren Central (6A to 5A), Highlands (5A to 4A), Harlan County (5A to 4A), Bardstown (4A to 3A), Thomas Nelson (4A to 3A), Henry County (4A to 3A), Letcher County Central (4A to 3A), Trigg County (3A to 2A), Hancock County (3A to 2A), McLean County (3A to 2A), West Carter (3A to 2A) and Belfry (3A to 2A).

Here’s the complete draft:

Class A

District One — Ballard Memorial, Caverna, Fulton County, Russellville

District Two — Bethlehem, Campbellsville, Kentucky Country Day, Louisville Holy Cross

District Three — Bellevue, Dayton, Newport, Newport Central Catholic

District Four — Bishop Brossart, Covington Holy Cross, Ludlow, Trimble County

District Five — Berea, Eminence, Frankfort, Sayre

District Six — Fairview, Nicholas County, Paris, Raceland

District Seven — Harlan, Lynn Camp, Middlesboro, Pineville, Williamsburg

District Eight — Hazard, Jenkins, Paintsville, Phelps, Pikeville

Class 2A

District One — Caldwell County, Crittenden County, Fort Campbell, Mayfield, Todd County Central, Trigg County

District Two — Fort Knox, Hancock County, McLean County, Owensboro Catholic

District Three — Clinton County, Green County, Metcalfe County, Monroe County, Somerset

District Four — Danville, DuBois, Lexington Christian, Shawnee, Washington County

District Five — Beechwood, Bracken County, Gallatin County, Owen County, St. Henry, Walton-Verona

District Six — Breathitt County, Jackson County, Morgan County, West Carter

District Seven — Floyd Central, Knott County Central, Leslie County, Martin County, Prestonsburg

District Eight — Belfry, Betsy Layne, East Ridge, Pike County Central, Shelby Valley

Class 3A

District One — Hopkins County Central, Murray, Union County, Webster County

District Two — Adair County, Butler County, Edmonson County, Glasgow, Hart County

District Three — Bardstown, Central, Christian Academy, DeSales, Thomas Nelson, Western

District Four — Casey County, Garrard County, LaRue County, Lexington Catholic, Mercer County

District Five — Bourbon County, Carroll County, Henry County, Lloyd Memorial, Pendleton County

District Six — Bath County, East Carter, Fleming County, Lewis County, Russell

District Seven — Bell County, Clay County, Knox Central, McCreary Central, Rockcastle County

District Eight — Estill County, Lawrence County, Letcher County Central, Magoffin County, Powell County

Class 4A

District One — Allen County-Scottsville, Calloway County, Franklin-Simpson, Logan County, Paducah Tilghman, Warren East

District Two — Breckinridge County, Elizabethtown, John Hardin, Marion County, Nelson County

District Three — Doss, North Oldham, Valley, Waggener

District Four — Franklin County, Shelby County, Spencer County, Western Hills

District Five — Covington Catholic, Grant County, Harrison County, Highlands, Holmes, Mason County

District Six — Ashland Blazer, Boyd County, Greenup County, Johnson Central, Rowan County

District Seven — Boyle County, Lincoln County, Russell County, Taylor County, Wayne County

District Eight — Corbin, Harlan County, Perry County Central, Whitley County

Class 5A

District One — Apollo, Graves County, Madisonville-North Hopkins, Marshall County, Muhlenberg County, Owensboro

District Two — Barren County, Bowling Green, Grayson County, Greenwood, Ohio County, Warren Central

District Three — Atherton, Butler, Iroquois, Seneca

District Four — Bullitt Central, Fairdale, Jeffersontown, Moore, North Bullitt

District Five — Boone County, Conner, Cooper, Dixie Heights, Scott

District Six — Anderson County, Collins, Scott County, South Oldham, Woodford County

District Seven — East Jessamine, Madison Southern, Montgomery County, West Jessamine

District Eight — North Laurel, Pulaski County, South Laurel, Southwestern

Class 6A

District One — Christian County, Henderson County, Hopkinsville, McCracken County

District Two — Central Hardin, Daviess County, Meade County, South Warren

District Three — Manual, North Hardin, Pleasure Ridge Park, St. Xavier

District Four — Bullitt East, Fern Creek, Male, Southern

District Five — Ballard, Eastern, Oldham County, Trinity

District Six — Campbell County, Great Crossing, Ryle, Simon Kenton

District Seven — Henry Clay, Lafayette, Paul Dunbar, Tates Creek

District Eight — Bryan Station, Frederick Douglass, George Rogers Clark, Madison Central

Vote now: Who's your pick for Louisville-area high school boys athlete of the week?

Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com; Follow on X @kyhighs.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: KHSAA football: Realignment plan set for 2025-26; 24 schools to move