Anderson High School's Ace Alston will line up on both sides of the ball when the nationally ranked Raptors open their 2026 season against Louisville Trinity on Friday, August 21.

Alston, a 4-star cornerback and Notre Dame verbal commit ranked Ohio's No. 4 overall player in the 2027 class by the 247Sports Composite, is adding wide receiver to his workload for the first time since middle school. It's a move that head coach Evan Dreyer said is part of a broader shift: for the first time in his 11 years leading the program, the coaching staff is asking several players to compete on both offense and defense.

"The transition has been good," Alston told WCPO on Wednesday. "Just learning the offense and staying on top of my defensive stuff. It's a challenge for sure but it's a challenge that I can handle. I love it."

The receiver bloodline runs in the family. Alston's father, Dee Alston, played Division I wide receiver at West Virginia. Dreyer said the senior has the ability but noted the staff will use a "pitch count" early in the season to keep him healthy for the postseason. Alston will also handle kick returns and punt returns.

His junior-year numbers explain why opponents avoided his side of the field: 53 tackles, 17 pass breakups, two interceptions, two tackles for loss, and a forced fumble. He was targeted on just 12 percent of coverage snaps and held opponents to a 29 percent completion rate, according to WCPO.

That commitment made Alston the first Anderson football player to pledge to Notre Dame since offensive lineman Zeke Correll, a 2019 graduate. He chose the Fighting Irish over Tennessee, Ohio State, LSU, and USC, among others.

Anderson enters 2026 with serious momentum. The Raptors went 14-1 last fall, falling 37-20 to Avon in the Division II state championship game on Thursday, December 4, 2025, in Canton. It was their second straight state-final loss to Avon and their third consecutive trip to the Final Four. Over that three-year stretch, Anderson is 42-3, with all three losses coming against Northeast Ohio opponents.

The program is ranked No. 25 nationally in USA Today's Super 25 preseason poll and was named Ohio's top team in USA Today's best-team-by-state feature, alongside key returners quarterback Owen Scalf and wide receiver Tysin Weaver.

Dreyer said the roster's depth and senior experience fuel the expectations.

"We've got a bunch of depth, a bunch of experience and a lot of seniors that want to get back and know what we have to do to get back," Dreyer told WCPO on July 23.

The Raptors host Louisville Trinity, which went 13-2 in 2025, at Charles L. Brown Stadium on Friday, August 21.