Thursday Highlands Results

Highlands Boys Soccer Earns Much-Needed Win 

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands Bluebirds boys soccer team knocked off Cincinnati (Ohio) Madeira on Thursday, 3-0.

The Highlands Bluebirds boys soccer team (11-5-4 overall) came together for a 3-0 non-region win in the final home game of the regular season over the Madeira (Ohio) Mustangs.

Highlands Head Coach Chad Niedert said the Bluebirds built off the second half of the 3-2 loss at Loveland (Ohio) on Tuesday. Highlands won the half, 1-0 despite being two players down because of two red cards.

Thursday Highlands Results

Highlands, Conner Soccer Tie

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands senior Ford Orem gets in position in the tie against Conner.

The Highlands Bluebirds boys soccer team has hit a rough patch.

But the good news is Highlands (4-2-1 overall) did salvage a scoreless tie against the improved Conner Cougars on Thursday at Tower Park. Conner is 5-1-1.

Conner made waves in the 33rd District Tournament last year with a 2-1 win over the Ryle Raiders in the semifinals. The Cougars finished 13-7 losing 2-1 in double overtime to Dixie Heights in the 9th Region quarterfinals.

Saturday Sports Notes

Highlands Cross Country Runs Well in Region Race; JV Football Season Concludes

Submitted Photo. The Highlands girls cross country team won its seventh straight Class 2A, Region 4 Meet on Saturday at Sherman Elementary in Dry Ridge.

Submitted Photo. The Highlands boys cross country team finished second in the Class 2A, Region 4 Meet on Saturday.

 Add another banner Class 2A, Region 4 Meet to the the long list of achievements in the history of the Highlands Bluebirds Cross Country teams.

The Highlands girls won a seventh straight region championship and the boys finished runner-up qualifying for the state meet at Kentucky Horse Park next weekend. The meet took place at Sherman Elementary in Dry Ridge.

Thursday Sports Notes

Highlands Volleyball, Freshman Football Team Record Victories

PHOTO: Allen Ramsey, DWCPhoto.com. The five Highlands volleyball seniors pose with their families on Senior Night. Highlands celebrated with a 3-0 win over Bishop Brossart. The five seniors, from left, are Joy Kappesser, Maddie McCoy, Skyler Phillips, Mary Claire Redden and Gracie Schweitzer.

The Highlands Ladybirds volleyball team is headed into the postseason with the most wins since 2010.

Weekend Round-Up

Bluebirds Finish Regular Season with Convincing Win

PHOTO: Allen Ramsey, DWCPhoto.com. Highlands junior Will Hochleutner (13) dribbles up the field in a recent game against North Oldham.

The Highlands Bluebirds soccer team served notice it is playing some great soccer headed into the postseason on Saturday.

The Bluebirds (12-7 overall) took down the solid Simon Kenton Pioneers (15-5) by a convincing 5-1 mark at Tower Park. They finished the solid week with two wins over teams with 15-plus wins. They recorded a huge 2-0 win at Ryle on Tuesday.

Thursday Sports Round-Up

Highlands Soccer, Volleyball, Frosh Football Post Victories

PHOTO: Allen Ramsey, DWCPhoto.com. Highlands wide receiver Sam Vinson (3) looks for yards in a recent game while Diego Carlos (4) trails.

The Highlands volleyball team made it back above .500 at 7-6 overall with a 3-0 (25-14, 25-23, 25-17) victory at Walton-Verona on Thursday.

Bluebirds dominate GRC to finish regular season

PHOTO: Allen Ramsey, DWCPhoto.com. Highlands sophomore Kyle Turner waits to make his move on a kick-off on Saturday's junior varsity contest against Dixie Heights. Highlands won 58-0.

The Highlands Bluebirds soccer team wanted to put two halves together better in its final tune-up before the postseason.

Saturday Briefs

Ladybirds record fourth shutout in as many games

PHOTO: Allen Ramsey, DWCPhoto.com. Highlands sophomore Cooper Schwalbach (left) lines up in Saturday's junior varsity game against Campbell County. Highlands won 14-0 to move to 2-0 on the season.

The Highlands Ladybirds soccer team recorded yet another shutout on the season with a 4-0 victory at Dixie Heights on Saturday.

Highlands moved to 4-0 and has outscored opponents by a combined 10-0 on the season. Highlands outshot Dixie Heights (1-3-2), 16-1. Ladybird junior goalkeeper Olivia McQueary received credit for her fourth shutout on the season.

Four Highlands athletes sign letters of intent

PHOTO: Allen Ramsey, DWCPhoto.com. Highlands senior Taylor Vaughn fires off a shot last season. She signed her letter of intent to play college soccer at Wittenberg University on Wednesday.

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

It’s the day when high school athletes all over the country cement their letters of intent to take their talents to the next level.

Highlands continues District 7 action at Harrison County

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

It is a tale of two football teams at completely opposite ends of the Class 4A spectrum.

The Highlands Bluebirds sit pretty at 5-0 overall and 1-0 in District 7 action following a 35-21 win over Covington Catholic on Friday. Class 4A’s top-ranked squad owns a 25-game winning streak and is 78-2 since the start of 2007. The Bluebirds average 51.8 points, 7.4 touchdowns and 492.8 yards of offense per contest. Highlands’ average margin of victory is 28.8 points.

Highlands travels to Cynthiana on Friday to face a struggling Harrison County Thorobreds football team that has a new head coach in Jim Carr. Harrison County is 0-5 coming off a bye week and faces Highlands for its first district contest of the year. The Thorobreds average just 12.6 points and 213.4 yards a game.

Highlands won last year’s contest 68-0 and this year’s result could be similar based on two common opponents in Scott County and Mason County. A week after Highlands handed 2011 Class 6A state runner-up Scott County its only loss this year 60-37, Scott County manhandled Harrison County, 61-6. Mason County beat the Thorobreds, 37-22 on Sept. 7 before coming to Fort Thomas and losing 61-3 to the Bluebirds a week later.

Highlands just has to be itself to win this game. The Bluebirds wear teams down with their depth. They don’t plan to take their feet off the gas pedal even though they are heavy favorites. Teams often get upset when that happens.

“One thing about us offensively and defensively is we’re geared to adjust to whatever the other team is doing,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands Co-Head Coach. “This week is getting ready for Harrison County, but really, it is a lot more so getting better as a football team. Even (Tuesday at practice), we put our ones against our ones working on making blocks and getting off blocks.”

With their spread offense, teams don’t know if Highlands will pass a lot, run a lot or use a balanced attack on a weekly basis. The Bluebirds have run for 1,457 yards and passed for 1,007.

“It just says we’re a group of guys that work really hard to do a lot of things,” said Justin Weyer, Highlands sophomore wide receiver. “We have a lot of confidence in Coach Mueller that he’ll come up with great schemes to help us win the game.”

Highlands senior quarterback Donovan McCoy leads Highlands with 441 yards on 62 carries with 10 touchdowns for an average of just more than 7.1 a touch. Teammate Zach Harris has 392 yards on 66 carries with eight touchdowns for an average of just less than six yards a touch. Ryan Donovan, Colin Seidl and Jaylen Hayes have rushed for at least 168 yards for the Bluebirds.

McCoy has also completed 63-of-105 passes for 919 yards and 11 touchdowns. Fourteen different receivers have catches for Highlands. Luke Turner leads the way with 12 for 217 yards and Seidl has nine for 136. Nick True, Ryan Greene, Turner and Jac Collinsworth have two touchdown receptions a piece for the Bluebirds.

The Highlands defense is allowing 23 points per game but has improved in recent weeks. The Bluebirds just have to watch the trick plays. Covington Catholic and Scott County burned them for scores on those trick plays. Quentin Murray and Blake Schutte lead Highlands with two interceptions each.

“You just have to play your key better,” Schutte said of defending trick plays. “If you know what you need to do, things will play out right. We’re trying to get better and better.”

Harrison County has rushed for 628 yards and passed for 439. Deshon Talbott has 376 yards rushing on 47 carries with four touchdowns for an average of eight yards a carry. Quarterback Robbie Stroub has completed 26-of-55 passes for 354 yards. Harrison County’s leading receivers are Justin Hunter with 11 catches for 123 yards and LeeRonte Roberts with 10 catches for 205 yards.

Teams are scoring an average of 44.6 per contest against the Thorobreds. Robert Pawley has one interception for Harrison County.

“They play a very attacking defense,” Mueller said. “Mason County had a tough time getting the ball off against them. They were sending six, seven or eight guys regularly. With it being a new head coach, we’re not really sure what they’re going to wind up doing against us. We’re going into the game prepared for anything.”

Game time is 7:30 p.m. in Cynthiana.

Coaching Clarification:

After the win Friday against Covington Catholic, Mueller said to call himself and Brian Weinrich co-head coaches. The roster lists Mueller as Head Football Coach and Weinrich as Assistant Head Coach.

The two consult each other on a lot of aspects of the program. Mueller makes a lot of the decisions on offense and Weinrich on defense.

Mueller took over the program in 1994. Weinrich joined the staff a year later and has been the Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Coordinator for 10 years.

Highlands responds to hype with big win over CovCath

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

Following a week of the usual hype that saw even some well-known figures get into the act, it was time to decide things on the football field.

The result proved similar to the last seven meetings between the two Northern Kentucky powers. The Highlands Bluebirds showed they are still the team to beat in Class 4A with a 35-21 win over the arch-rival Covington Catholic Colonels on Friday at David Cecil Memorial Stadium in the District 7 opener for both teams.

Highlands moved to 78-2 since the start of 2007 including 8-0 against CovCath. The Bluebirds (5-0 overall, 1-0 district) have won 25 in a row and 43 straight at home. The Bluebirds also improved to 42-17 all-time against the Colonels.

The Bluebirds did it once again with their offensive versatility. They played quick-strike football the first four games. But in this contest, Highlands moved the quick Colin Seidl into the backfield and grinded things out from many different angles in the victory and kept CovCath’s potent offense off the field.

“It is a great defense,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands Co-Head Coach, of the Colonel defense. “They have a lot of starters back and we have a lot of respect for them. We felt the run was there and we have a pretty versatile offense so we went with that.”

The Bluebirds ran the ball 61 times for 291 yards for an average of just more than 4.77 a contest. Quarterback Donovan McCoy led the way with 29 carries for 110 yards and a touchdown. Seidl finished with 86 yards on 11 carries with a touchdown and Zach Harris had 75 yards on 16 carries with two touchdowns.

Highlands prepares for another big game vs. CovCath

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The date of Nov. 11, 2006 seems like ages ago.

The Highlands Bluebirds ventured to Covington Catholic and fell 25-15 in the second round of the Class AAA playoffs. The Colonels won the state championship weeks later in the final year before the Kentucky football playoffs expanded to six classes.

But since then, it has been all Blue and White. The Bluebirds have racked up seven consecutive over their arch-rivals going 77-2 since that day just more than 70 months ago. This includes two victories last year, 42-39 at CovCath in the regular season and 42-14 in Fort Thomas in the state quarterfinals en route to a fifth straight state championship. Highlands increased its all-time record to 41-17 against CovCath with those two wins.

The atmosphere at David Cecil Memorial Stadium should again be rocking Friday when the two Northern Kentucky football powers meet again. The Bluebirds enter the game with a perfect 4-0 mark and the Colonels come in at 4-1 in the Class 4A, Region 4, District 7 opener for both squads.

Covington Catholic’s lone loss came on Aug. 31, 27-11 at Cincinnati La Salle of the Greater Catholic League South Division. The Lancers used stellar defense to win the game and scored when senior defensive back Jaleel Hytchye intercepted CovCath quarterback Blake Bir and returned it 66 yards for a touchdown.

La Salle forced four Colonel turnovers in that game. Freshman running back Jeremy Larkin returned a punt 65 yards and defensive back Lemuel Weyer picked up a fumble and brought it back another 10 yards for two more Lancer touchdowns.

Playing in big games is nothing new for either squad. During the 77-2 run, Highlands also has huge wins over Greater Catholic League South powers Cincinnati Elder and Cincinnati St. Xavier. The Bluebirds opened the year with huge wins over Boyle County and Scott County. Since losing 60-37 in Fort Thomas on Aug. 24, Scott County has won three in a row over Harrison County (61-6), Madison Central (41-16) and Tates Creek (71-13) to move to 4-1 overall.

“We purposely try to play in big games to get ready for the big games,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands head coach. “So many guys on our team have been playing sports for so long. They’ve been good athletes and have played in championship games so they’re used to playing in big games.”

The best news for Highlands is the Bluebirds come in after playing their most complete game of the year in a 61-3 Homecoming domination of Mason County. Highlands increased its season averages to eight touchdowns, 56 points and 529 yards of offense per contest and also increased its average margin of victory to 32.5 points.

The Bluebirds hope to use their depth to win another big contest. Out of their spread offense, the Bluebirds have run for 1,164 yards and passed for another 952. Quarterback Donovan McCoy leads the balanced attack with 326 yards rushing on 35 carries with nine touchdowns for an average of just more than 9.3 a carry. He’s also completed 58-of-98 passes for 864 yards and 10 touchdowns.

The Bluebirds fine-tuned their passing game against the Royals. McCoy completed 33-of-44 passes for 400 yards and six touchdowns. Highlands did not run the ball much until late in the game. The offensive line gave McCoy plenty of time to throw.

Fourteen different receives have catches for the Bluebirds. Luke Turner leads the way with 10 catches for 193 yards and Colin Seidl has nine for 136. Turner, Ryan Greene and Nick True have two touchdown receptions each.

“It throws (defenses) off a lot because they have to worry about the run and the pass,” said Brandon Hergott, Highlands junior wide receiver. “When we’re running up the middle, it makes teams tighten up their defense so we can throw the ball over the top. We go as hard as we can every play. That makes us so successful.”

Highlands ran the ball well against Boyle County and Scott County before reverting to a balanced attack against Louisville Western. The Bluebirds have four guys with more than 200 yards rushing. After McCoy, they are Zach Harris with 320 yards rushing on 50 carries with six touchdowns for an average of 6.4 per touch; Ryan Donovan, 217 yards on 18 carries with two touchdowns for just more than 12 yards a carry; and Jaylen Hayes, 208 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns for an average of just more than 12.2 a carry.

Highlands will face a stingy Covington Catholic 3-3 stack defense. The Colonels have blanked three opponents allowing just 33 points this year for an average of 6.6 a contest. Sophomore linebacker Sam Burchell leads the Colonels with 41 tackles and senior defensive lineman Dan Hellman has 32. The Colonels have picked off four passes and recovered two fumbles.

“I’ve been real impressed with how they’ve played,” Mueller said. “Each guy is quick on the field and has been doing his job. They’re playing a great as a team. You can see football means a lot to them.”

The Bluebird 3-4 defense squares off against a prolific CovCath spread offense led by Bir. Bir is being recruited by Northwestern University, Duke Univeristy, Indiana University and Mississippi State. Bir has completed 82-of-144 passes for 1,315 yards and 17 touchdowns.

“We just have to keep our depth and keep everything in front of us,” said Griffin Urlage, Highlands sophomore defensive back. “Their receivers are very good and (Bir) is really good. (Bir) has a really good arm and he’s really accurate. We have to know who we’re covering and know our keys.”

Eleven different receivers have catches for CovCath. Junior Evan Braun leads the way with 19 catches for 328 yards with three touchdowns and senior Ethan Egbers has five catches for 305 yards and three touchdowns.

Bir is also dangerous on the ground. He ran some quarterback draws against Campbell County. He has 120 yards rushing on 25 carries for an average of 4.8 per carry.

“It’s difficult when you’re playing a quarterback who can do so many things,” Mueller said. “He throws it short and deep well. He also runs it well so you have to play great team defense.”

The Colonels thought Sam Dressman would emerge as a solid running threat in place of the graduated Gabe Gray. Dressman has just 40 yards on 13 carries with two touchdowns. Bir’s younger brother Luke and Bobby Beatrice have carried the load so far running the ball. Beatrice has 214 yards on 42 rushes and a touchdown averaging just more than five per attempt and Luke Bir has 208 yards on 29 carries for an average of just more than 7.1 per attempt. Beatrice and Luke Bir have one rushing touchdown a piece.

The Highlands defense has done a good job recording turnovers all season. The offense constantly turns the turnovers into points. The Bluebirds scored a combined 39 points off turnovers against Boyle County and Scott County.

Blake Schutte leads Highlands with two interceptions. Urlage had one against Mason County last week.

Game time is 7 p.m. in Fort Thomas.

Highlands heads to Louisville for first road game Friday



By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM
Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter
The deep talent pool does not just help Class 4A's top-ranked Highlands Bluebirds football team physically.
It also helps the Bluebirds' mental approach in games they're supposed to win handily. If a player goes in thinking, "They're no good, so we can take the night off," that player will come out. But generally, Highlands has not had this issue over the years.
"Our guys work at football year-round," said Dale Mueller, Highlands head coach. "We have maybe 200 practices a year and we only have 15 games so when they get a chance to play a game, they're looking forward to that game. So we never have a problem overlooking anybody."
The 2-0 Bluebirds hit the road for the first time to take on the Louisville Western Warriors of District 4. Western is also in Class 4A with Highlands. The Warriors finished 7-6 last year losing 13-12 in the regional title game to Collins, including a 56-0 loss in Fort Thomas.
Western is 0-2 in two home games so far this year under new head coach Torrey Shinholster. The Warriors fell 20-6 to Louisville Ballard on Aug. 17 before losing 28-0 to Louisville Male.
Male happens to be the second-winningest program in Kentucky with 818 wins all-time behind Highlands' 830. Highlands and Male rank second and third in the country behind Valdosta (Ga.) with 870 wins.
The Warriors have struggled finding an offensive identity in the first two games. They've tried a number of formations like the Power-I and the Spread.
"They have some good players on (offense)," Mueller said. "When they find what they're good at, they're going to be dangerous."
Highlands will counter with its 3-4 defense. The Bluebirds have allowed 815 yards of total offense, including 514 on the ground. Scott County ran for 253 yards as a team, but most of that came in the second half with the Bluebirds up comfortably.
The Bluebirds constantly disrupted the Scott County Traditional Wing-T attack in the first half. The Cardinals had to take to the air down big and Blake Schutte and Ben Streeter picked off passes to set up Highlands scores. Schutte also recovered a Cardinal fumble. The Bluebirds have a plus-4 turnover margin and have scored 39 points off those turnovers to none off two turnovers for opponents.
"(Pressure on quarterbacks) definitely helps because the quarterback has to make a quick decision," Streeter said. "Many times, he ends up throwing it to the wrong guy so you get interceptions. If it is a run, defensive penetration helps linebackers because the running back will bounce outside or cut in (to the other defenders)."
The Highlands offense will face a Western 5-3 defense that likes to stunt a lot. Male quarterback Tyler Erny threw for more than 300 yards and three touchdowns in Male's win Friday.
"They're difficult to block," Mueller said. "They're really looking to disrupt your game because they'll bring eight different guys. They put you in bad field position. They've made a lot of teams go three-and-out regularly."
The Bluebirds will bring their prolific spread offense to Western. They average eight touchdowns, 535 yards and 56 points per game.
Highlands has averaged 399 yards per contest rushing the ball. Zach Harris leads the Bluebirds with 36 carries for 234 yards with Jaylen Hayes going for 208 yards on 17 carries and quarterback Donovan McCoy running for 202 yards on 21 touches. McCoy has six touchdowns with Harris and Jayes running for four each.
Highlands' offensive line has done a good job opening up holes. The linemen constantly push defensive linemen upfield. But their job does not stop when the runner gets 20 yards or more up the field.
"We are conditioned to run down the field and follow the ball because anything can happen," said Scott Turner, Highlands offensive lineman. "Balls can pop out or helmets get on the ball and the ball goes flying. You just have to be there to get the ball."
The Bluebirds can throw the ball if necessary. McCoy also has completed 9-of-19 passes for 200 yards and a 33-yard touchdown pass to Luke Turner. Senior wide receiver Jac Collinsworth said he hopes to make his season debut after sitting out the first two games with a hamstring injury.
Game time is 7:30 p.m. in Louisville.

Highlands seeks to enhance fear factor during bye week

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

Football teams have their own ways of handling bye weeks.

For the top-ranked team in Class 4A, it may not be as intense as game weeks. But the deeply talented Highlands Bluebirds still plan to find ways to become even scarier.

“We played two really physical games,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands head coach. “It’ll be more speed, quickness, fast-motion, running through stuff. It will be a week of getting ready for a state championship because we are. During the bye week, you’re getting ready for your season. We’ll be in pads. But it will be a week where we don’t bang into each other much.”

Mueller said the Bluebirds will also lift weights three times this week and look to get healthier. Highlands saw several players not dress for various reasons in the Scott County win.

The Bluebirds come into the week 2-0 overall with impressive wins over two talented 1-1 teams in Boyle County and Scott County. Yet Highlands beat both teams by an average of 56-34. Most of Scott County’s points came in the second half.

The Rebels beat Collins, 49-26 on Saturday. They are 53-6 since Larry French took over as head coach in 2008 including spotless 15-0 runs to the Class 4A state championships in 2009 and 2010.

The Cardinals are 45-13 since the start of the 2008 season. Veteran head coach Jim McKee’s teams have been to at least the Class 6A regional finals the last four years. They were state runner-up last year falling 62-21 to Louisville Trinity in the title game.

Eye-Popping Numbers:

Many did not believe the Bluebirds would put up offensive numbers similar to last year’s team with the graduation of quarterback Patrick Towles, last year’s Kentucky Mr. Football who is now playing down Interstate-75 at the University of Kentucky, among others.

But the Bluebirds are on pace to put up similar numbers through two games. The 2011 team broke state records with 849 points, 121 touchdowns and 7,517 total offensive yards. Highlands averaged 56.6 points, just more than eight touchdowns and a little more than 501 yards per game.

Through two games, Highlands has 16 touchdowns, 112 points and 1,077 yards of total offense. That averages 8 touchdowns, 56 points and 538.5 yards per contest.

The Bluebirds have done most of their damage on the ground rushing for 795 yards with 15 touchdowns. None of them players go both ways so Highlands rotates in many players, especially on the offensive line that has some players weighing above 240 pounds.

Quarterback Donovan McCoy and running backs Jaylen Hayes and Zach Harris have 14 of the 16 Highlands touchdowns. The other two touchdowns came when McCoy connected on a 33-yard strike to Luke Turner and a Colin Seidl 43-yard score, both against Scott County.

Harris leads the team with 235 yards rushing on 38 carries with four touchdowns for an average of 6.2 yards per carry. Hayes is second with 211 yards on 17 carries with four touchdowns for an average of 12.4 per touch. McCoy has 197 yards rushing on 20 carries with six touchdowns for an average of 9.85 a touch.

Highlands’ defense has helped set up six of those touchdowns. The Bluebirds have a plus-4 turnover ratio (6-to-2) and have scored 39 points off those turnovers. Scott County and Boyle County did not score any points off the Bluebird miscues.

The Bluebirds currently carry a 22-game winning streak. They are 75-2 since the start of 2007 and own a 41-game home winning streak.

Eyeing the Colonels on Sept. 21:

Highlands needs to defeat the host Louisville Western Warriors on Sept. 7 and the Mason County Royals on Sept. 14 at David Cecil Memorial Stadium before worrying about a potential showdown with the arch-rival Covington Catholic Colonels.

On paper, neither game looks like much of a challenge. Western is 0-1 losing 20-6 at home to Louisville Ballard on Aug. 17. Highlands handled the Warriors, 56-0 last year in Fort Thomas.

The Royals are 0-2 to start this year. They lost 55-6 at Lexington Lafayette on Aug. 17 and 21-14 to Montgomery County on Aug. 24. Mason County finished 2-8 last year.

The Royals have had success recently. They finished 10-2 losing to eastern Kentucky power Belfry, 27-14 in the second round of the Class 3A playoffs in 2010. They had an undefeated regular season in 2009 finishing 11-1 before losing 26-23 to Pike County Central in the second round of the 3A playoffs.

The Colonels have rolled through their first two opponents by scores of 37-0 and 54-0 over Campbell County and Dixie Heights. Standout quarterback Blake Bir completed 22-of-35 passes for 295 yards and three touchdowns against Campbell County. He then completed 17-of-25 passes for 317 yards and six touchdowns against Dixie Heights.

Covington Catholic still has to take down Cincinnati LaSalle, Boone County and Beechwood before facing the Bluebirds. The schedule could favor the Bluebirds.

Chasing Valdosta:

Highlands entered the season ranked second in the country behind the Valdosta Wildcats of south Georgia for the most wins all-time. Highlands could catch Valdosta in a matter of years if certain trends keep up.

The Wildcats entered the year with an overall record of 869-205 with 34 ties. They open their season Friday in what is their 99th season of football. They started their program in 1913 but the 1918 season was cancelled because of World War I and a flu epidemic.

On the other hand, Highlands moved to 830-224-26 with the win over Scott County on Friday against 131 different opponents. The Bluebirds started their program in 1915 and did not miss the 1918 campaign going 4-5-1 that year. The 2014 season will mark the 100th in school history.

The Bluebirds have just eight losing seasons in school history and none since 1955 when they went 4-5-1 for a total of 56 consecutive winning seasons. Highlands has won 21 state championships tied with Louisville Trinity for the most in Kentucky and own nine state titles since 1998.

Meanwhile, Valdosta did go 1-9 in 2006 for its first losing season since 1974. The Wildcats own 23 state championships, six mythical national championships and have just five losing seasons in school history. However, Valdosta has not won any state championships since 1998 mostly because it plays in a tough region. Teams in their Region 1-AAAAA (largest of Georgia’s five classes) have won seven state championships since then including three by cross-town rival Lowndes County. The success of Lowndes County, Valdosta High and NCAA Division II Valdosta State University in football helped the town become Title Town, USA by ESPN in 2008.

The Bluebirds have also had the same head coach in Mueller during that time while Valdosta is on its fourth in third-year head coach Rance Gillespie. The Wildcats went 8-3 last year losing in the first round of the AAAAA playoffs.

Valdosta and Highlands are two of just five teams nationally with more than 800 wins in school history. The other three entering the season are Louisville Male (currently with 817 program wins), Massillon Washington (811) located near Akron, Ohio, and Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania (801) located 88 miles northwest of Philadelphia.
Video Highlights of Highlands' win over Scott County

Highlands-Scott Co. side notes

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM
Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The Highlands Bluebirds defense faced another tricky offense this game.

The Scott County Cardinals brought a traditional Wing-T offense to the table after the Boyle County Rebels used a Wishbone look in the season-opener. Two running backs lined up side-by-side behind quarterback Clay Mckee in the backfield and had another back line up in the slot. Like Boyle County, Scott County motioned one of its backs and the second back often came through with the ball.

Highlands (2-0) struggled in the first half of the win over Boyle County with that Wishbone style. But the Bluebirds contained the Cardinals' potent attack holding them to 256 yards on 37 carries for an average of just 6.9 per carry in a 60-37 win.
Scott County (1-1) ran for 360 yards in its season-opening win over Louisville Seneca. But the Cardinals had to throw when the Bluebirds went up big in the second quarter.

McKee completed 5-of-11 passes for 158 yards. But Blake Schutte and Ben Streeter picked off one pass each and Schutte recovered a Cardinal fumble.

McKee broke in at quarterback for the graduated Jay Lawler. Lawler took his talents to Eastern Kentucky University.
The Bluebirds scored 20 points off those turnovers after scoring 19 off Boyle County turnovers last week. Highlands is at plus-4 in the turnover department. Opponents have not scored any points off Highlands' two turnovers.

"The guys exectued so well," said Dale Mueller, Highlands head coach. "If you can get up on a team and make them throw, you've really helped yourself. Some of those (interceptions) were zone coverage things where they made their reads and were in good position to make a play."

Scott County did play standout running back Dieries Dumphord. He gained 122 yards on 13 carries for an average of 9.3 a run. He broke free for a 50-yard run in the second quarter. But he fumbled it at the end and Schutte recovered it. Dumphord ran for 1,148 yards and 19 touchdowns last year.

Dumphord sprained an ankle in a preseason scrimmage and did not play against Seneca. Kevo Edwards and Kevin Clausen rushed for 148 and 110 respectively against Seneca. Edwards ran for just 32 in the loss Friday.

Edwards did burn the Bluebirds for a touchdown in the first quarter. McKee faked a few handoffs before rolling left to find Edwards wide-open for an 80-yard touchdown with 3:59 left in the stanza. But no Cardinal receivers found themselves that wide-open again.

"We had a couple slip-ups," said Jake Heck, Highlands senior defensive back. "But overall, we did a good job. We just had to focus on what we were doing. The corners stayed back and watched everything in front of them."

Improvements:
Mueller said the Bluebirds plan to get better during the bye week.

That is even scarier for opponents for a team that has 112 points and 16 touchdowns in two games so far against two formidable opponents. Scott County finished 14-1 last year losing 62-21 to Louisville Trinity in the Class 6A title game. Boyle County came into the Aug. 17 with a superb 52-5 record since the start of 2008 when Larry French took over as head coach.
One area of improvement is converting extra-points. The Bluebirds converted just 5-of-8 against the Cardinals. It did not matter in that game, but could be crucial in close contests. Evan Allen and Luke Brockett are the listed kickers on the Highlands roster.

"We try to be as perfect as we can," Allen said. "They are going to be mistakes sometimes. They (Cardinals) were rushing hard up the middle. The snap and kick were good. We just have work on the blocking."

Getting healthier:
The Bluebirds did see several players not suited up Friday.

The most noticable is senior wide receiver Jac Collinsworth. After the win over Scott County, Collinsworth said he's recovering from a hamstring injury but he'll be back for the game against Eastern.

Highlands travels to Louisville Western at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 7.