What local records has a Highlands wide receiver broken and where did Hoge verbally commit over the weekend?

Allen Ramsey Photo. Highlands wide receiver Alex Veneman (6) hauls in a touchdown pass a few weeks ago against Covington Holmes. Veneman broke the Northern Kentucky record for the most receptions and receiving yards in a season in the Highlands win over Ashland on Friday.

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The senior tandem of quarterback Beau Hoge and Alex Veneman for the Highlands Bluebirds football team (10-2) have tormented defenses all season.

Hoge, Hergott prepare for time as Highlands signal-callers

G. Michael Graham Photo. Beau Hoge (left) and Austin Hergott (right) stand next in line as quarterbacks of the deeply talented Highlands Bluebirds football team.

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

It’s the football position that garners a lot of attention, especially in a balanced offense.

Highlands seniors contributed well to program legacy

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The end result did not turn out the same for the previous six senior classes.

But the senior class of this past football season did what it could to add to the great history of Highlands Bluebird football. The Bluebirds rank second in the nation for the most wins in school history with 855 dating back to 1915. Valdosta (Ga.) is first with 882 victories since 1913.

Bluebirds Notebook: Mueller earns 300th win as Head Coach

G. Michael Graham Photo. Highlands senior Zach Harris (center) pounces on the ball after a John Hardin onside kick attempt with about 43 seconds left in Saturday's game while teammates like Luke Brockett (88) and John Hardin's DaQuan DeVille (33) converge. Highlands held on for a 33-26 non-district victory to move to 4-0 on the year.

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

RADCLIFF – Like many coaches, Highlands Bluebirds football Head Coach Dale Mueller may not be crazy about his record.

But one can only admire the body of work done since the 1973 alum came back to his alma mater in 1994. Mueller recorded his 300th win in 29 seasons as a head coach in Highlands’ 33-26 win over the John Hardin Bulldogs on Saturday.

Mueller’s record is 300-65 overall and 241-34 at Highlands with 11 state championships, including the last six in a row. Mueller guided Cincinnati Withrow to a 48-12 mark and Cincinnati Sycamore to an 11-19 mark before coming back to Fort Thomas.

“We wanted to win the game, but numbers aren’t that big of a thing to me,” Mueller said. “What really means a lot to me is being a high school football coach for so long. I’m just so blessed that this is what I can do for a living. That’s what I’ll look back on (when retired).”

The Bluebirds are 846-225-26 overall good for second in the country so about 35 percent of the wins in school history have come since Mueller became head coach. That includes a 91-3 mark since the start of 2007.

The milestone win puts him there with the elite coaches in Kentucky. Mueller’s record at Highlands ranks 21st in all-time wins in Kentucky. The Kentucky High School Athletic Association only recognizes wins in the state of Kentucky toward its coaching wins list.

Of those 20 coaches ahead of him, only five are still actively coaching in Kentucky. Longtime Newport Central Catholic Head Coach Bon Schneider (second with an overall record of 345-183-2 in 44 seasons) still assists current head coach Dan Wagner and 32-year Danville Head Coach Sam Harp (fifth at 326-106) took a job east of Nashville in Lebanon to be closer to his daughter and family who live in Hendersonville just north of Nashville.

The leader for the most wins in Kentucky is 39-year veteran Belfry Head Coach Philip Haywood. Haywood’s record is 365-124 at the 3A school located in Pike County of eastern Kentucky.

Mueller can pass two coaches this year. Longtime Murray Head Coach Preston “Ty” Holland finished 249-159-28 in 43 seasons and Hilliard Howard finished 244-69-1 in 25 seasons at Pikeville and Letcher County Central.

Improvements needed on Defense:

The Bluebirds know things need to improve on defense with Covington Catholic and Cincinnati Elder on the horizon. Highlands has allowed an average of 361.8 yards a contest on 252 plays for an average of 5.7 a play. Teams have run for 617 yards and passed for 830.

“The big plays just killed us,” said Patrick Schoepf, Highlands junior linebacker. “We just want to keep them short and get three-and-outs. Other than that, I thought we did pretty well. They didn’t pull (offensive linemen) as much as University Christian. They were more of a get downfield team.”

On the other side, the Bluebird offense averages 443 yards per game on 203 plays for an average of 8.7 yards a play. Highlands has passed for 1,316 yards and run for 456.

Record against schools in Hardin County:

Saturday’s game marked the first time in school history Highlands played a regular-season game against a team located in Hardin County just south of Louisville.

Highlands has won both meetings against John Hardin. The other one came 35-7 in the 2009 Class 5A state championship game.

The only other two times Highlands faced a team from Hardin County came when the Bluebirds beat the Elizabethtown Panthers twice for two of their state-record 22 state championships. The first came in the 1981 Class 3A title game, 40-24 in Louisville. The other came in the 1968 2A title game, 32-7 in Lexington when Mueller was in the eighth grade.

Highlands has never played North Hardin or Central Hardin. Central Hardin is in Class 6A and North Hardin is in Class 5A, District 3 with John Hardin.

More Saturdays on the Road:

Highlands plays the second of three straight road Saturday games at Paducah Tilghman on Saturday. Game time is 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

“Honestly, the bus rides are a lot of fun. It helps us focus too,” said Beau Hoge, Highlands junior wide receiver/quarterback. “We go over things on the bus. I think it’s an advantage because we have time together compared to the other team. We make sure things are down 100 percent.”

The Blue Tornado enter the game on a three-game losing streak at 1-3 overall. Tilghman opened the year edging newly-formed McCracken County, 24-23 comprised of players from the old Heath, Lone Oak and Reidland High Schools.

But since then, Tilghman has lost to Evansville (Ind.) F.J. Reitz (28-16), 1A power Mayfield (28-21) and Graves County (30-27) in overtime.

Highlands is 4-1 all-time against Tilghman. That includes the two Class 3A state championships in Louisville when Tom Duffy was head coach. The Bluebirds won the 1992 game 15-6 and the 1989 contest 27-3.

This comes a week before the annual showdown at Covington Catholic in Sept. 28. That game starts at 1 p.m. in Park Hills.

District 7-4A update:

All three Highlands district opponents played Friday. Covington Catholic also traveled west and won 18-0 over Henderson County. The Colonels are 3-1 with the only loss coming 45-7 to defending Ohio Division I champion Cincinnati Moeller. Moeller is the high school alma mater of Colonel Head Coach Dave Wirth.

Covington Holmes also improved to 3-1 with a 27-14 home win over Class 2A Walton-Verona. Holmes and first-year Head Coach Ben Nevels have only lost to undefeated Class 5A Scott, 40-14 on Aug. 30.

Harrison County fell to 2-2 with a 41-19 home loss to Mason County. The Thoroghbreds have still doubled last year’s win total.

Valdosta update:

Highlands’ overall record since starting the program in 1915 ranks second in the country only behind Valdosta of south Georgia. The Wildcats entered the year at 876-209-34.

So far, the Bluebirds have gained just one game on the Wildcats because they started their season one week earlier. Valdosta moved to 3-0 on the year with a 40-6 win over Crisp County (Georgia) on Friday.

The Wildcats started their program in 1913. They have one non-region game left before venturing into play in the rugged Class 6A (largest in Georgia), Region 1.

Highlands escapes no-quit Bulldogs, 33-26

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

RADCLIFF – The Highlands Bluebirds football team learned why it has to prove itself each and every game Saturday.

The undefeated 4-0 Bluebirds have not been challenged much during their 91-3 run since the start of 2007, especially in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. But the John Hardin Bulldogs (2-2) made them earn a 33-26 non-district victory on their home turf forcing the starters to play the entire game.

“(John Hardin) played well. You have to give them some credit,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator. “If we don’t turn the ball over, I think we have a better outcome. It’s a John Hardin team that had won 77 games in six years and we’d won 87 so it was a good game between two teams used to winning.”

Ryle, Covington Catholic and in the playoffs, Lexington Bryan Station in 2008 and Johnson Central in 2010 were among the few Kentucky teams that have challenged the Bluebirds during that time. Ryle handed the Bluebirds their lone loss to a team from Kentucky, 28-26 on Oct. 28, 2010 since the start of 2007.

Highlands senior quarterback Drew Houliston and senior running back Zach Harris once again led the Bluebirds to victory. Houliston completed 20-of-29 passes for 281 yards and four touchdowns. Harris rushed for 64 yards on 13 carries and a touchdown and caught five passes for 59 yards and a score.

“It’s like coaching a (National Football League) quarterback,” Mueller said. “He just reads things so well. (Houliston) can come over and tell me what’s there. It’s so much fun coaching him. Drew plays so well one game after another.”

Harris also made sure John Hardin did not receive a chance to tie the game. He pounced on an onside kick with about 45 minutes left. That let Highlands go into victory formation and run out the clock.

Nine different receivers caught passes for the Bluebirds. Beau Hoge, Jensen Feggins and Brandon Hergott followed Harris with three each for 63, 34 and 29 yards each and Alex Veneman had two catches for 53 yards. Hergott scored two touchdowns and Feggins added the other.

The receivers did a good job finding holes to complete third-and-long situations. Highlands converted 6-of-9 on third-down and 2-of-3 on fourth down. John Hardin coverted 9-of-16 on third and 1-of-4 on fourth.

“Coach Mueller does a great job with the play calls on third-and-long situations,” Hoge said. “He gets us in good position to make those kind of plays. Once we get the ball, it’s easy.”

The Bluebirds did reach the Red Zone inside the John Hardin 20 on all seven possessions. The reason they did not score the other two times is they lost two fumbles. John Hardin also recovered an oneside kick near the end of the first quarter.

The Highlands offensive line did another fantastic job limiting John Hardin to just one quarterback sack. The Bluebirds contained Bulldog senior 6-foot-6-inch, 330-pound defensive lineman Matt Elam and even got him to jump offside a couple times. Elam has offers from several NCAA Division I schools such as Ohio State, Alabama and Kentucky.

“We didn’t game plan for (Elam) any differently,” said Tyler Schweitzer, Highlands senior offensive lineman. “I made sure I got low and moved my feet just like I would for anyone like Campbell County or (Covington Catholic). We didn’t care who he was. We’re just trying to win the game and win state.”

John Hardin had 14 penalties for 116 yards compared to nine for 67 for Highlands. The Bulldogs gained three first downs on penalties compared to one on penalties for the Bluebirds.

The big reason for the close score is John Hardin put up 466 yards of total offense to 341 for Highlands. That included 253-60 on the ground. That statistic did not please Highlands Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Coordinator Brian Weinrich.

“It was a crazy game,” Weinrich said. “(The Bulldogs) played well and executed their offense. It’s a bad situation right now. We have to figure some things out.”

John Hardin controlled the time possession holding the ball for 33 minutes and three seconds of the game’s 48 minutes in its ball-control Wing-T attack. The Bulldogs ran 75 plays to 47 for Highlands and garnered 24 first downs to 15 for the Bluebirds. Highlands had 6 first downs via the ground compared to 14 for John Hardin.

John Hardin quarterback Patrick Anderson led the way completing 17-of-26 passes for 213 yards and a touchdown. Anderson also rushed for 51 yards on eight carries and a touchdown.

Khalil Frazier led the Bulldogs with 79 yards on 12 carries and DaQuan Deville had 79 on 14 carries. Elijah Smith had the other rushing touchdown.

Dimitri Cooper and Justin Carter led John Hardin with four catches each for 89 and 66 yards respectively. Cooper also had a touchdown reception.

“I don’t think they did anything we were not prepared for,” said Matt Gall, Highlands junior defensive lineman. “We just didn’t do our jobs collectively as a unit. We let our hearts get in the way. We didn’t play with our heads at the end of the game. It’s about better focus and I’m sure we’ll work on that this week.”

Highlands jumped out to a 12-0 lead to start the first quarter. Harris hauled in a 7-yard touchdown from Houliston with 9:14 left and Hergott caught a 5-yard touchdown minutes later.

John Hardin cut the margin to 12-6 with two Jacob Drexler field goals. The second one came with 7:42 left in the half.

Highlands increased its lead to 20-6 after Harris scored from five yards out before adding the two-point conversion run. Highlands missed the first extra-point attempt and did not convert the two-point attempt after the second touchdown.

The Bluebirds looked to put the game away in the third quarter when Hergott hauled in a 16-yard touchdown pass from Houliston. But Smith responded with an 11-yard touchdown. That left the score at 27-12 in favor of Highlands after three quarters when John Hardin failed to convert the two-point try.

Houliston then completed a 12-yard touchdown strike to Feggins. That put Highlands up 33-12 with 11:43 remaining.

But John Hardin did not quit. Anderson completed a 41-yard touchdown to Cooper with 8:50 left before Anderson scored from two yards out to make the final score with 48.3 seconds left in the game setting up Harris’ onside kick recovery.

Highlands hits the road again Saturday at the Paducah Tilghman Blue Tornado. Game time is 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Highlands hopes to wrap up another outright district title against Holmes

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

Good football teams do not take plays off.

That has been a major trademark of the Highlands Bluebirds throughout the years. It has Highlands on the verge of another district title. There is one opponent left in the way of that.

“The guys have been well-coached at a young age,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands Co-Head Coach. “It means a lot to them. They just try so hard every play. We are looking to do everything we’re doing the best we can. The more we do everything the best we can, then we got 11 guys on the field every play doing everything they can the best they can. That’s what makes a team difficult to beat.”

The Class 4A top-ranked, undefeated Bluebirds (7-0 overall, 3-0 District 7) hope to wrap up another outright district championship with a win over the improved Covington Holmes Bulldogs. Highlands has outscored district opponents, 174-31.