Highlands reserves have little trouble adjusting to playoff atmosphere

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

It may have been the playoffs.

But it did not feel different for many of the Highlands Bluebirds players that saw their first playoff action. The Bluebirds led the Boyd County Lions, 49-7 at halftime and that allowed many reserves to earn some playing time. Top-ranked Highlands ended up winning the first-round Class 4A playoff game 56-14.

“Playing football is the same every day and games are games,” said Daniel Kremer, Highlands sophomore linebacker. “There’s not really a big difference between the pressure and other things. It’s great (to have fun) because we practice all summer. We all work hard to play. It’s part of the experience.”

Kremer and teammate Jake Parker ended up recovering fumbles for Highlands against Boyd County. Griffin Urlage returned an interception back 18 yards for the Bluebirds. Urlage ranks second on the team with three interceptions behind just four from Quentin Murray.

What the younger guys got experience facing was a Boyd County offense that ran the Double-Slot Wing-T and some Stack-I. Highlands had not faced a Wing-T team since Scott County on Aug. 24. But the Cardinals run a traditional Wing-T with one back in the slot, another behind the quarterback with another back to the side. The Double-Slot Wing-T has two guys in the slot and another behind the quarterback. The backs try to confuse defender by running in different directions.

Highlands still managed to wear down Boyd County on both sides of the ball. Boyd ran 53 plays offensively to 47 for Highlands. But the Bluebirds gained 464 yards for an average of about 9.9 yards a play to 270 for the Lions for an average of about 5.1 a play.

The Bluebirds do not have guys playing both directions with their 91-player roster. The Lions listed 48 players on their roster on maxpreps.com and did have players going both directions.

“Defensively, we just try to get three-and-outs,” said Jake Lester, senior defensive back. “We try to get the offense on the field as fast as we can. Of course, they try to get the defense on the field as fast as they can. It’s great being a two-platoon team because we don’t have to play every play of the game. Most high school teams have players playing both ways. We save a lot of energy.”

Highlands again used its hurry-up offense to wear down Boyd County. The Bluebirds like to hike the ball as soon as the official puts it on the line of scrimmage. The Highlands defense has had to defend 70-plus plays at times this year as a result of the quick-strike offense.

Words of encouragement from 1982, 1992 state championship teams:

Members of the Highlands 1982 and 1992 state championship teams celebrated their 30 and 20-year anniversaries last night by wishing the current team luck.

The 1982 team defeated Franklin-Simpson, 6-0 to win the Class AAA state title at KFEC Cardinal Stadium at the University of Louisville. The 1992 team beat Paducah Tilghman, 15-6 in the same class at the same site to win the crown. Bill Hermann served as head coach of the 1982 squad and Tom Duffy led the 1992 team.

“It was really meaningful,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands Co-Head Coach. “The guys from those teams were real sincere in how they saw the guys and said positive things.”

Approaching Milestones:

The Bluebirds are just a touchdown and extra-point away from reaching 600 points for the season. They are averaging 53.9 points per game which is a little off last year’s state championship squad that scored a state-record 849 points and averaged 56.6 points. Only the 1930 Ashland Blazer team averaged more points per game at 59.1.

Highlands now has 84 touchdowns for the season. That’s an average of about 7.6 a game. Last year’s team scored a state-record 121 for an average of about 8.1 a contest and the 1998 team scored 113 for an average of about 7.5 a clip.

The Bluebirds have rushed for 2,857 yards and passed for 2,666 for a grand total of 5,523 yards to 3,035 for the opposition. Highlands has outgained opponents by an average of 502.1 yards to 275.9.

Only one team with a minimum of eight games has averaged more than 500 yards of offense per contest. That was Hazard in 2005 with an average of 510.8 a game in 11 games.

No major upsets in 4A:

All the ranked teams in Class 4A won their opening-round playoff games Friday and Saturday.

Like last year, the Bluebirds will most likely have to go through Associated Press ranked opponents to win the state championship. That starts with Ashland Blazer (9-2) on Friday. Blazer received 47 votes to tie rival and District 8 champion Johnson Central (9-2) for eighth. Johson Central slipped from sixth with its 17-12 home loss to Belfry on Oct. 26. Blazer beat Covington Holmes, 41-14 and Johnson Central knocked off Harrison County, 68-14.

Fifth-ranked Covington Catholic (8-3) took care of Rowan County, 67-3 Saturday. The Colonels travel to Johnson Central on Friday.

The Russell County Lakers moved up to second in this week’s poll. The 11-0 District 6 champions handled Marion County, 52-0 in Russell Springs on Friday. They play host to seventh-ranked Boyle County (7-4) on Friday. The Rebels defeated Clay County, 72-20 on Friday in Danville.

On the other side of the bracket, the fourth-ranked and District 5 champion Lexington Catholic Knights (9-2) will play host to the sixth-ranked Knox Central Panthers (10-1). LexCath beat Rockcastle County, 48-0 and Knox Central dispatched Mercer County, 41-20.

The Warren East Raiders are the other undefeated team in 4A outside Russell County. The District 2 champion Raiders (11-0) moved to third in the poll and beat Calloway County, 49-7 to start the playoffs.

Warren East will meet 10th-ranked Lone Oak (8-3) on Friday. Lone Oak tied Owensboro and Madisonville-North Hopkins for the top spot in District 1, but wound up with the second seed in the tiebreaker. Lone Oak beat 2011 4A state runner-up Franklin-Simpson, 53-33 in the playoff opener.

Highlands takes care of business in first round of playoffs

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

Junior Jaylen Hayes epitomized the way the Highlands Bluebirds football team has dominated the competition over the years.

On his first of three touchdowns, Hayes took the ball out of the Highland spread offense and ran left from the Bluebird 30-yard line. Three Boyd County Lion defenders tried to tackle him at about the Bluebird 45. But Hayes lowered his center of gravity, broke free of all three tackles and ran 70 yards for a touchdown.

Three minutes later in the second quarter, Hayes took another handoff left and stiff-armed two Lion defenders for a 35-yard score before adding a 5-yarder 37 seconds after Highlands recovered an onside kick.

Hayes finished with an amazing 110 yards on those three touchdown runs for an average of about 36.7 yards a carry. But more importantly, the runs gave Highlands a 42-7 lead with 7:51 left in the half as the Bluebirds put away another opponent in a 56-14 Class 4A first-round playoff victory Friday at David Cecil Memorial Stadium. That again let Highlands play some reserves in the second half and get some of them their first taste of the playoffs (see sidebar).

“I’m just trying as hard as I can to get into the end zone,” Hayes said. “I’ve been practicing squats (to strengthen the upper body) lately and working more on my power than my speed. That’s a big part of the winter weights we do. We started in January and continued through spring football. Even after that, we still lifted weights and continued what we call getting big.”

Top-ranked Highlands (10-1) moved to 83-3 since the start of 2007, including a 78-1 mark against Kentucky competition. The Bluebirds won their 26th consecutive playoff game and 45th in a row against Kentucky opponents at home.

“They just played great,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands Co-Head Coach. “They executed so well. Defensively, we executed how we wanted to. It went exactly how we hoped.”

Highlands now faces the Ashland Blazer Tomcats (9-2) in the second round Friday back in Fort Thomas. Blazer downed Covington Holmes, 41-14 Friday in Ashland.

Boyd County finished the season 5-6 for the second consecutive season and will graduate 13 seniors from the team. The Lions came into the game on a three-game winning streak following a four-game losing streak.

The Lions hired a new head coach in Ray Brooks in the offseason. They finished 2-8 two seasons ago and have not advanced past the first round of the playoffs since beating McCreary Central, 34-6 in 2008.

“When you play a team like this, all you can do is focus on what you can do,” Brooks said. “You can’t get worried about Highlands is going to do this or Highlands is going to do that. I’m so proud of the kids (overall). All you can do is work hard.”

Highlands outgained Boyd County, 464-270 in total offense. That included 262-105 through the air. Donovan McCoy completed 8-of-9 passes for 121 yards and two touchdowns before Drew Houliston took over midway through the second quarter. Houliston completed 8-of-13 passes for 141 yards and two touchdowns.

After Hayes, senior Ryan Donovan added 77 yards rushing on nine carries for an average of just more than 8.5 a touch. The Bluebird offensive linemen, tight ends and wide receivers blocked well again.

“We’re glad we played well,” said Jack Telek, Highlands sophomore tight end. “We had to block (teammates) all week so we’re glad we were able to execute.”

David Christian led Highlands with three catches for 61 yards. He’d been trying to get back all season from an injury. Luke Turner, Brandon Hergott, Beau Hoge and Alex Veneman followed with two catches a piece. Turner and Hergott had 51 and 43 yards receiving respectively.

Some other stats showed how well Highlands executed offensively. The Bluebirds scored on all six trips to the red zone. They also converted on 4-of-7 third-down opportunities compared to 4-of-13 for the Lions.

Boyd County also scored touchdowns on 1-of-2 trips to the red zone. The Lions lost a fumble on the other.

The Bluebirds led 21-0 after the first quarter scoring three quick touchdowns. McCoy scored on a 17-yard touchdown before throwing a 5-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Greene and a 7-yarder to Nick True.

The Lions did have some hope to start the second quarter. Jacob Barnwell leaped over a Highlands defensive back and rambled 50 yards down the right side for a touchdown with 11:51 left in the second quarter.

But Hayes scored his three touchdowns and Hergott hauled in a 24-yard touchdown pass from Houliston to give the Bluebirds a 49-7 halftime lead. Highlands’ final touchdown came with 4:05 left in the third quarter. Hoge hauled in a 21-yard touchdown on 4th-and-goal.

The Lions scored their second touchdown with 10:15 remaining in the final stanza. Reid Dearfield had a 5-yard touchdown score.

Dearfield led the Lions with 70 yards rushing on 16 carries for an average of 4.4 a touch. Boyd County ran the Double Slot Wing-T and often pitched it to him going outside or up the middle with quarterback Billy McCoy or Gaje Ayers. Ayers finished with 53 yards rushing on 12 carries for an average of 4.4 a touch.

Billy McCoy completed 6-of-11 passes for 105 yards and a touchdown. Barnwell had two receptions for 55 yards.

Highlands moved to 19-0 in first-round playoff games since Mueller took over as head coach. The Bluebirds are 838-225-26 since starting the program in 1915, including an 18-5-1 mark against Blazer.

Highlands opens playoffs against familiar opponent

Photo by G. Michael Graham. The Highlands Bluebirds open the playoffs at 7:30 p.m. Friday against the Boyd County Lions at David Cecil Memorial Stadium.

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The first-round opponent is the same as last year.

But the result may not change much based on the two football teams’ seedings and tradition. The Highlands Bluebirds overwhelmed the Boyd County Lions, 63-7 to open the Class 4A playoffs last year on their way to a fifth consecutive state championship.

Like last year, Highlands (9-1) won the District 7 championship for the second straight year and its 16th title in 17 years while Boyd County comes in with an identical 5-5 record. The Lions finished fourth in District 8 and have to travel about two hours and 39 minutes as a result for the 7:30 p.m. contest Friday.

“We feel good about the game,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands Co-Head Coach. “We’ve definitely had a better season than Boyd has. It is a game we’re looking first to win because it is one-and-out. But it is also a game where we’re looking to execute well and play as well as we can play and not just good enough to win.”

The Lions enter the game on a three-game winnings streak while Highlands pounded Ryle, 58-13 to end the season. But the Bluebirds own five wins over teams with winning records in Boyle County (6-4), Scott County (9-1), Mason County (6-4), Covington Catholic (7-3) and Covington Holmes (6-4). Their only loss came to Ohio High School Athletic Association Division I Cincinnati Elder (7-3).

The two recent wins for Boyd County came against winless Greenup County and West Carter. The Lions, under first-year head coach Ray Brooks, had to hold off the Comets, 14-7 on Friday.

Gaje Ayers ran the ball 17 times for 66 yards and Reid Dearfield had 64 yards on 20 attempts for the Lions. Boyd’s two touchdowns came on a Dearfield 10-yard run in the second quarter and a quarterback Billy McCoy 15-yard touchdown pass to Jacob Barnwell with 4:25 left in the third quarter.

Ayers and Dearfield lead the Lion rushing attack. Dearfield has 628 yards on 117 carries with four touchdowns for an average of 5.3 a carry and Ayers has 592 yards on 123 carries and five touchdowns for an average of 4.8 a touch.

Boyd County has not beaten a team with a winning record this year. The Lions’ other three wins came against Shelby Valley (3-7), East Carter (2-8) and Magoffin County (4-6).

Opponents have averaged 20.4 points, 192.1 yards rushing and 84.4 yards passing per game against the Bluebirds. Highlands scored its first defensive touchdown of the year when sophomore defensive back Griffin Urlage returned an interception back 70 yards on the last play of the game Friday.

“It actually felt really good,” Urlage said of the touchdown. “It was fun. The coaches were telling me to go down. I really didn’t hear them so I took it and ended up scoring. We just have to bring (the intensity) hard (Friday).”

The Bluebirds have 56 tackles for a loss, 16 sacks, 11 interceptions and nine fumble recoveries this year. Reid Schroder leads Highlands with 6.5 tackles for a loss totaling 12 yards and Thomas Wrobleski has 4.5 for 10 yards to go with six sacks for a total of 67 yards. Senior linebacker Joe Paolucci has 4.5 tackles for a loss and 3.5 sacks and senior defensive back Quentin Murray has four interceptions.

Conversely, the Bluebirds will bring out their quick-scoring offense. Highlands averages 53.7 points, 505.9 yards and 7.6 touchdowns a contest.

“(Balanced) is what we hope to be (offensively) every year,” Mueller said. “We are that team this year. We really try to execute the play that gets called. The guys are just great at it.”

Quarterback Donovan McCoy has completed 122-of-194 passes for 1,949 yards, 26 touchdowns and nine interceptions and rushed for 579 yards on 84 attempts and 11 touchdowns for an average of about 6.9 yards a carry.

Zach Harris leads Highlands with 736 yards on 89 carries and 13 touchdowns for an average of about 8.3 a carry. Jaylen Hayes, Ryan Donovan and Colin Seidl have rushed for at least 321 yards for the Bluebirds. Harris has been battling a bone bruise the last couple of weeks and may not play Friday unless it is close so the other running backs could get more carries.

“You have to be prepared for anything,” Donovan said. “If someone gets hurt, you pretty much have to go in and do what you have to do.”

Luke Turner leads a talented Highlands receiving corps with 26 catches for 515 yards and seven touchdowns. He had seven catches for 172 yards and four touchdowns against Ryle. Teammates Luke Brockett, Nick True, Justin Weyer, Brandon Hergott and Ryan Greene have at least 10 catches and two touchdowns.

This will mark just the second meeting between the two teams. The Bluebirds have never lost in the first round of the playoffs since Mueller came on staff in 1994.