National power IMG Academy will be playing in Indiana this year thanks to a change in the Indiana High School Athletic Association rule that limited schools from playing schools from outside a 300-mile travel radius of the state’s borders. On September 8, Ben Davis will host the Ascenders, the 2020 High School Football America national champ.
Ben Davis is coming-off a 6-4 season, losing to Brownsburg in the first round of the 6A playoffs. The Giants spent a large portion of the season inside our national rankings before finishing the year ranked No. 308 in America.
IMG is coming-off an 8-1 season, ranked No. 8 in the HSFA 300.
The IMG game will be one of two out-of-state opponents for BD in 2023. The Giants will open on the road in Ohio at Archbishop Moeller. Last year, Moeller finished No. 39 in our national rankings.
Ben Davis returns quarterback Thomas Gotkowski (Class of ’24), who has offers from Ball State, Miami (Ohio) and Western Michigan. Last year, the 6-1, 190-pounder completed 188-of-299 passes (62.9%) for 2,341 yards with 24 touchdown against eight interceptions. He also ran for four scores.
The team’s leading rusher in 2022 is also coming back. Junior-to-be Alijah Price averaged 5.9 yards per carry on the way to 968 yards and a dozen touchdowns. He also caught 18 passes for a score.
The program’s top-rated college football prospect is 3-star linebacker Nylan Brown, who has offers from Akron, Ball State and Indiana. He led the team with 109 tackles (80 solo), eight tackles for loss and three sacks.
2023 Ben Davis Schedule
August 18 – at Archbishop Moeller (Ohio)
August 25 – vs. Avon
September 1 – vs. Pike
September 8 – vs. IMG Academy (Florida)
September 15 – vs. Warren Central
September 22 – at Lawrence North
September 29 – vs. Carmel
October 6 – at Lawrence Central
October 13 – vs. North Central
