With six weeks left before the start of the 2024 high school football season, here are the top high school sophomores returning for the fall season in Mississippi. MAIS games begin Aug. 16, and MHSAA games follow Aug. 23.
Players are listed in alphabetical order.
Trent Buckley
Columbia Academy | 6-foot-4, 190 pounds | Tight end
Buckley had 29 receptions for 403 yards with three touchdowns, along with five tackles and two sacks, last season.
Ayden Coleman
Louisville | 6-3, 195 | Linebacker
Appearing in five games last season, Coleman had 10 total tackles, including six solo. Coleman has an offer from Jackson State.
Deshawn Dillon
Northwest Rankin | 6-2, 170 | Wide receiver
The Cougars’ leading receiver had 44 receptions for 660 yards with nine touchdowns. Dillon has offers from Ole Miss, Tennessee and Mississippi State.
Sheldon Isaac
McComb | 6-2, 170 | Wide receiver
Isaac had 15 receptions for 307 yards with five touchdowns in eight games last season. Isaac has offers from Grambling and Florida A&M.
Tylan Keys
Poplarville | 6-1, 190 | Running back
Keys rushed for 1,222 yards on 148 carries with 24 touchdowns last season. Keys’ offers include Mississippi State, Boston College, Oregon, Ole Miss and Penn State.
Sam LeJeune
St. Stanislaus | 6-4, 285 | Defensive line
LeJeune recorded 42 total tackles with 12.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and 17 quarterback hurries last season.
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Kymaurion Lindsey
West Jones | 5-11, 175 | Quarterback
Lindsey passed for 1,056 yards with 10 touchdowns and rushed for 810 yards and 11 touchdowns helping West Jones to a MHSAA Class 6A title. Lindsey has an offer from UNLV and interest from other Division I schools.
Dolph McDonald
Morton | 6-1, 155 | Defensive back
McDonald had 65 total tackles with 43 solo, five tackles for loss and seven interceptions. He has offers from Mississippi State, Florida State and UCF.
Nash Morgan
Warren Central | 6-1, 175 | Quarterback
Morgan, who appeared in all of Warren Central’s 12 games, passed for 1,264 yards with eight touchdowns.
Caden Moss
Jackson Academy | 6-5, 270 | Offensive line
Moss has offers from Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Texas A&M, Tennessee and New Mexico State. He’s also a varsity basketball player.
Delwin Perkins Jr.
McComb | 5-11, 160 | Defensive back
Perkins had 44 tackles, including 31 solos, and three interceptions last season. He has an offer from Florida A&M.
Deven Robertson
Oak Grove | 6-3, 250 | Defensive lineman
Robertson holds offers from LSU, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Miami and Texas A&M.
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Tyson Robinson
Brandon | 5-10, 185 | Running back
In eight games, Robinson had 367 rushing yards with 44 carries and six touchdowns. Robinson has offers from Oregon, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Washington and Ohio State.
Sladen Shack
Brandon | 6-1, 185 | Quarterback
Shack, who passed for 68 yards on five completions last season, is the expected starter at Brandon. Shack has an offer from Central Arkansas and visits to other Division I schools.
Ben’Jarvius Shumaker
Choctaw County | 6-3, 270 | Defensive line
Shumaker had 53 total tackles, including 16 solo, and five sacks last season. He has offers from Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Florida State and ULM.
Caleb Unger
Madison-Ridgeland Academy | 6-2, 270 | Offensive line
Unger has offers from Jackson State, Memphis, Southern Miss, Tulane and Arkansas State.
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Ford Wade
Oxford | 6-3, 265 | Offensive line
Wade has an offer from Nebraska and a visit to Ole Miss.
Michael Chavez covers high school sports, among others, for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at mchavez@gannett.com or reach out to him on X, formerly Twitter @MikeSChavez.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: MHSAA, MAIS football: Top high school football sophomores for 2024