Who will be Jackson-area's high school football offensive player of year? Vote in our poll

Tennessee high school football is back for the 2024 season.

The TSSAA football season kicks off this week across the state and Jackson area teams are preparing for the long road to try and win a state championship.

Some of the top offensive players hope to bring the excitement to the field this season. Before the season kicks off, take time to vote in The Jackson Sun's preseason offensive player of the year poll.

Fans are able to vote once per hour. The poll closes at 5 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 22.

Here are the nominees for the Jackson area's preseason offensive player of the year poll.

Caden Harris, Haywood, Junior: Harris has garnered plenty of Power Five attention for his play on both sides of the ball, especially defensively. As for offense, he didn’t have the eye-boggling stats others have, but he still had 520 yards and six TDs in a run-heavy Tomcat offense.

Ben Hill, Adamsville, Junior: Hill threw for 1,978 yards and 23 touchdowns against seven interceptions for the Cardinals last season.

Austin Kelley, Jackson Christian, Senior: Kelley threw for a JCS single-season best 2,808 yards last season and totaled 40 touchdown passes. He was named All-State and DII-1A All-Region.

Jay’len Mosley, Jackson Christian, Senior: The Tennessee Titans Mr. Football winner from last year had staggering numbers with 1,482 receiving yards on 74 receptions and 26 touchdowns – all before a knee injury cut his season short. Mosley is listed as a four-star recruit on 247Sports Composite and has 18 offers, including 11 from Power Five schools.

Colt Norden, McKenzie, Senior: Norden helped the Rebels advance to the Class 1A state title game by hauling in 44 catches for 898 yards and 16 touchdowns.

Jacob Saunders, Hardin County, Senior: Saunders rushed for 1,905 yards on 134 carries, totaled 305 receiving yards and 20 total touchdowns for the Tigers. He averaged 92.7 rushing yards per game and rushed for over 100 yards four times.

Tate Surber, McKenzie, Senior: Surber threw for totaled 2,864 yards (2,444 passing) and 34 total touchdowns as he led the Rebels to their third-straight appearance in the BlueCross Bowl. He was The Jackson Sun’s All-West Tennessee Third Team quarterback last season.

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Lekhy Thompkins, TCA, Junior: Thompkins put up big numbers for the Lions last season with 1,540 rushing yards on 273 carries and 25 touchdowns. He averaged 140 rushing yards per game and gained more than 100 yards in a game seven times last season.

Brayden Waller, TCA, Senior: Waller racked up 1,073 passing yards last season for the Lions with 11 touchdowns. He ranked No. 4 in the state with his total yardage and had a 341-yard single-game -performance this season.

Kemonte Williams, Haywood, Senior: Williams rushed for 1,889 yards on 198 attempts and 29 touchdowns for the Tomcats last season. He averaged 145.3 yards per game and rushed for over 100 yards nine times in 2023.

Austin Chastain is a sports writer covering West Tennessee high schools. Reach him by email at achastain@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @ChastainAJ.

This article originally appeared on Jackson Sun: Who will be Jackson-area's high school football offensive player of year? Vote in our poll