The word valuable gets thrown around too loosely these days. In the sports world, one figures out what or who is valuable often times when it’s gone. Notre Dame commit Chris Tyree has proven to be very valuable to the Chester (Va.) Thomas Dale football team. The Knights are 4-1 in games that their star running back has played in and just 3-2 when he was sidelined due to an ankle injury. The offense lacks explosiveness when the speedster Tyree is out of the lineup, but when he plays and is turned loose Thomas Dale becomes one of the best teams in Richmond. RELATED: Commit Tracker | Latest On Clarence Lewis | Nuggets on Wyat Milum

Notre Dame commit Chris Tyree — the nation’s No. 2 all-purpose back and No. 40 overall prospect per Rivals — has the talent to lead Chester (Va.) Thomas Dale on a deep playoff run. (Nick Lucero/Rivals.com)

Last Friday in a 46-44 victory over Dinwiddie (Va.) High, Tyree played strictly receiver and caught four passes for 56 yards and a touchdown. He will be needed at running back this Friday against Chesapeake (Va.) Grassfield (5-5), winners of three of their last four outings. Tyree, the nation’s No. 2 all-purpose back and No. 40 overall player per Rivals, is a game-changing back, but he has eclipsed 100 rushing yards in a game just twice this fall. Some of that is obviously due to games missed, and also because he was taken out of contests in which his team had a big lead. Thomas Dale reached the Virginia High School League Region 6A state semifinals last year, and it will be on the shoulders of Tyree to lead his team to another deep run.

Notre Dame has two class of 2020 commitments from the state of Kentucky. The Irish landed tight end Michael Mayer, the nation’s No. 58 overall recruit according to Rivals, from Park Hills (Ky.) Covington Catholic, and defensive back Landen Bartleson, the No. 8 prospect in Kentucky, from Danville (Ky.) Boyle County. Both of their high school teams have had similar seasons, and ithe two Notre Dame commits have had similar individual performances as seniors. Covington Catholic, a 5A program, and Boyle County, a 4A school, are both 11-0 and have cruised to many of their victories. Both teams had blowout wins in their first-round playoff games last Friday and have second-round matchups Nov. 15.

Boyle County’s closest margin of victory this season was in a 30-0 triumph Sept. 27. Covington Catholic had a wild 38-37 victory against Lexington (Ky.) Catholic Sept. 6, but other than that also had comfortable margins in all of its other matchups.

Now to how Bartleson and Mayer have had similar seasons. Mayer is a high level tight end, and Bartleson is an underrated cornerback, but it has been their play on the opposite side of the ball that has been very impressive this season. Mayer has been a dominant force in the defensive front seven, making several sacks and interceptions, while Bartleson has been an asset as a running back, scoring touchdowns on one of every four rushing attempts. As the star recruits on their respective teams in the Bluegrass State, Bartleson and Mayer will need to continue to produce on both sides of the ball.

Tyler Buchner has been pretty good this season. That may be understatement of the year. The Notre Dame class of 2021 quarterback commitment threw for 3,358 yards and 41 touchdowns plus added 1,149 yards and 20 scores on the ground while leading La Jolla (Calif.) The Bishop’s School to a 10-0 record in the regular season. Buchner accounts for 450.7 yards of total offense and 6.1 touchdowns per game.

Let's go back to the whole “valuable” discussion. The Bishop’s School has outscored its opponents 554-152 on its way to a perfect regular season. Last year, Buchner was hurt on the fourth play in the first game of the season, and without their star quarterback, the team went 5-5 and only outscored its opponents 253-250. The team has been a complete 180 from last year with Buchner healthy and leading the way. For The Bishop’s School to have a shot at the ultimate goal of winning the California Interscholastic Federation San Diego Section Division II championship, Buchner will have to continue his incredible play. The competition from here on out will only get tougher. To open the playoffs this Friday, Buchner's squad will face Poway (Calif.) High, a 7-4 team coming off a 47-0 victory. Poway may be one of The Bishop’s Schools toughest opponents of the season, and Buchner will need to be on his “A” game.

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