Highlands faces 134th different opponent in school history

G. Michael Graham photo. Highlands defensive lineman Seth Hope (82) pursues Cincinnati Elder quarterback Peyton Ramsey in last Friday's game. The 8-1 Bluebirds play host to the 5-4 Warren Central Dragons on Friday at 7:30 p.m.

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The Highlands Bluebirds football team opened the regular season against a team it had never faced before.

Highlands (8-1 overall) will end the regular season against the 134th different opponent in school history when the 5-4 Warren Central Dragons located in Bowling Green come to Fort Thomas on Friday. Game time is 7:30 p.m.

Highlands thrashes CovCath, 42-6

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

PARK HILLS – They picked an excellent Saturday afternoon to turn in their most complete football game of the year.

The Highlands Bluebirds came out determined from the opening kickoff and dominated the host Covington Catholic Colonels, 42-6 to stay undefeated and earn the valuable leg up in the Class 4A, District 7 race. Highlands (6-0) also avoided a potential second-round road trip to eastern Kentucky and could be playing at home in the first three rounds of the playoffs.

“It was a matter of getting focused for the games that count,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands Head Coach. “This is a game that counts for us. In reality, we play a 10-game regular season. But CovCath is The Game. I was really pleased with the way the guys played (Saturday).”

Bluebirds Take Advantage of Cold

 

G. Michael Graham Photo. Highlands rising juniors Jacob Noe (left) and Daniel Kremer (right) do leg exercises in a recent workout. The Bluebirds just concluded spring practice on March 27 and continue to prepare for the upcoming season.

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

March saw a lot of cold temperatures, particularly in the 20s and 30s.

While many high school football teams schedule practice later in the spring to avoid them, the Highlands Bluebirds took advantage of them. Their last spring practice took place March 27.

“We have an artificial turf field and we love to (have spring practice) when it’s cold because the games we’re trying to win are those playoff games,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands Co-Head Football Coach. “It turns cold for your most important games.”

Highlands has won plenty of those games lately with a Kentucky record six consecutive state championships. The Bluebirds took down Lexington Catholic on a cold night the day after Thanksgiving in the state semifinals before beating Collins for the Class 4A crown last season. The state championship game was not bad unlike previous years.

Aside from that, Highlands worked on developing its depth. Nearly 100 players are expected to grace the sidelines this fall. This marks the third year that junior varsity and varsity players have played on just offense or defense. The staff lets players go both ways as freshmen before deciding which direction they go as sophomores.

“The guys have seen the other guys before them and they’re fired up about it,” Mueller said. “You take someone from another school, who has played offensive half the time and defense half the time, they only got half the practices. It goes up exponentially when all the guys on the team have benefitted from that.”

The majority of those players participated in spring practice. The ones that didn’t are playing other sports like baseball and track and field.

The depth gives Highlands more time to prepare for specific opponents. The Bluebirds will need that this fall. They face nine teams that had winning records last year.

“It’s a great help. When we go against a team that runs the Wing-T, our defense is practicing against the Wing-T all practice long,” Mueller said. “When we go against a unique defense like a 6-2 man, we’re going against that defense all practice long as opposed to practicing against the defense half the time then telling those same guys to quit thinking about that and go think about this. It gives the guys more time to develop their particular skills.”

Even though spring practice is done, many of those players continue to lift and work out for the season. The first mandatory practice is allowed to be July 15.

Highlands returns a lot from last year’s 14-1 team. That includes rising senior running backs Zach Harris and Jaylen Hayes. Harris run for 1,001 yards and 20 touchdowns with Hayes going for 602 yards and 10 touchdowns.

“It’s a blessing to have so many guys here that are self-motivated,” Harris said. “We could run practice ourselves. The coaches are there to make sure everyone is doing what they’re supposed to be doing. We come to work every day and work hard for what we get.”

The Highlands defense benefits from facing players like Harris and Hayes among other good linemen and skill players. The defenders play at a high intensity level in practice all week and it carries over into games. They often face better players in practice than the players they face in games.

“That’s good practice for the regular season and playoffs,” said Jackson Bardo, Highlands rising junior defensive back. “Zach has gotten faster over the years so he’s hard to take down so is Jalen.”

The coaches notice that dedication. Unlike other coaching staffs, this staff does not have to spend a lot of time motivating the players to do what it takes to be successful.

“We have such a determined group of guys,” Mueller said. “They just want to do well. It might be one of the worst places in the world to exercise, but they don’t care. They wait for us to tell them what we’re going to do then they go do it as hard as they can. They could go out in the woods, pick up some rocks and run around with them to work out.”

It helps that the Highlands football staff has had continuity for a while. This fall marks Mueller’s 20th season on the sidelines.

“When you’re young, like a second-grader, you go through Junior Football League and have Coach Mueller talking to you,” Bardo said. “It’s exciting when you finally get to play for him.”

Many people think freshmen have a difficult time adjusting to high school football. But Mueller said the staff pays close attention to the sophomores for a big reason. That’s why a lot of them play on the junior varsity as opposed to varsity right away.

“Your whole life, you’ve played against guys your same age or a year older. That’s the way leagues are formed,” Mueller said. “When you’re a sophomore, you play against seniors. A lot of teams lose a lot of sophomores because they’re afraid to play against seniors. We really try to gear the guys that are ready to go against seniors and the guys that are not ready to go against appropriate competition.”

Highlands had contributions from many sophomores last year like wide receiver Justin Weyer, running back Josh Watson, defensive back Andrew Abner, linebacker Brady Murray and defensive back Griffin Urlage. Urlage had the team’s lone defensive touchdown last year returning an interception back about 60 yards on the final play of the regular season against Ryle.

Highlands faces six new opponents this fall. The Bluebirds open the season against defending Florida Class 2A champion University Christian of Jacksonville on either Aug. 23 or 24. Class 2A is the second-smallest of eight classes in the Sunshine State.

“It gives us something to look forward to trying to win a national championship. I’m honestly glad we got them,” Harris said. “We set up to have the hardest schedule we possibly could to be the best Highlands football team ever.”

Highlands also has its annual scrimmage against defending 6A champion Louisville Trinity a week before that. The game takes place in Shamrock territory this year on Aug. 16 at 7:30 p.m.

Highlands pulls away from Ashland in second half

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The Highlands Bluebirds football team knew it had history on its side entering Friday’s second-round Class 4A playoff game.

The Ashland Blazer Tomcats had not beaten the Bluebirds since 1954. Despite that, Ashland made a game of it trailing just 16-13 at halftime. But the top-ranked Bluebirds (11-1) gave the visiting Tomcats (9-3) no more hope of an upset in the second half outscoring them, 32-0 to pull away for a 52-13 victory at David Cecil Memorial Stadium. Highlands moved to 84-3 since the start of 2007.

“(Ashland has) some good football players,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands co-head coach. “They played well. Their problem is they didn’t have as many good football players as we do. Halftime was about getting ready to run the plays we were going to run in the second half.”

With their 27th consecutive playoff win, the Bluebirds earned another trip to the Region 4 championship. They will face the arch-rival Covington Catholic Colonels (9-3) back in Fort Thomas on Friday. CovCath downed host Johnson Central, 45-15 Friday in Paintsville. The Bluebirds beat the Colonels, 35-21 on Sept. 21, also in Fort Thomas.

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.

Bluebirds welcome Mason County for Homecoming

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

Even though they are putting up jaw-dropping numbers, any of the coaches and players for the top-ranked football team in Class 4A would tell you they can play better.

The Highlands Bluebirds enter tonight’s Homecoming contest against Mason County at 3-0 overall fresh off their biggest win of the season, 51-23 at Louisville Western. The Bluebirds are outscoring teams 54.3-30.3. They are also outgaining opponents, 512.3-370.3 in total offense including 336.3-264.3 rushing and have a plus-five turnover ratio.

But the Bluebirds were not happy with the slow start, the defense against the running game up the middle and the special teams play against Western. Highlands hopes to clean those things up against an improving Royals team that comes in 1-3 off a 37-22 victory against Harrison County, a Class 4A, District 7 opponent of Highlands. The win snapped a seven-game losing streak for the Royals.

The Bluebirds led just 10-0 at halftime before Western scored eight straight to pull within two at 10-8. The Bluebirds recorded an interception and scored. After that touchdown, Highlands senior center Mitch Dee. shouted, “We score every time, not just once.” The Bluebirds led 30-8 at halftime and did not put the game away until the fourth quarter.

In the win over Western, Highlands allowed 279 yards rushing on 44 attempts for 6.3 a carry. The Bluebirds also gave up 278 yards on nine kickoff returns for an average of 31 per return and had four turnovers.

Two running backs rushed for more than 100 yards for Western. Cory Durham ran for 147 yards on 18 carries for an average of just more than 8.1 a touch and Dion Sutton ran for 123 yards on 16 carries for an average of just more than 7.6 a touch.

The Bluebirds will line up their 3-4 defense against another offense capable of putting up big numbers on the ground. The Royals line up in an I-formation set and ran for 247 yards against Harrison County. Junior Rashon Nelson had 191 yards on 35 carries for an average of just under 5.5 a carry and two touchdowns to lead Mason County.

“The key is playing great team defense,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands head coach of defending Nelson. “It’s about everyone doing their job.”

While Highlands focuses on those things, Mason County knows it could be overmatched against the deeply talented Bluebirds. Highlands is 76-2 since the start of 2007 and owns a 41-game home winning streak with 23 straight wins overall.

“We are really impressed with them,” said David Buchanan, Mason County head coach. “We are going to try to be sound and get the best keys and reads we can get. They have great players and their schemes are very good as well.”

Highlands ran for 798 yards total in home wins over Boyle County and Scott County. But the Bluebirds passed for a season-high 256 yards at Western out of their spread offense. Quarterback Donovan McCoy completed 16-of-35 passes for 256 yards and three touchdowns to nine different receivers. McCoy also ran for 94 yards on 11 carries.

Overall, McCoy has completed 25-of-54 passes for 456 yards and four touchdowns. Luke Turner and Colin Seidl lead the Bluebirds with seven catches each for 121 and 120 yards respectively.

McCoy, Zach Harris and Jaylen Hayes have rushed for more than 200 yards. Harris has 320 yards on 50 carries with six touchdowns for an average of 6.4 a carry and McCoy has 296 yards on 32 rushes for an average of 9.25 a run and eight touchdowns. Hayes did not have any carries against Western but still has 208 yards on 17 carries for just more than 12.2 a carry and four scores.

Mason County mixes up its coverages on defense. Western keyed on the running attack. But that did not bother Highlands.

“We plan on doing whatever the defense gives us and being good enough to take advantage of it,” Mueller said. “They are a well-coached team with 11 good defensive players.”

Mason County struggled to a 2-8 campaign last year after going 10-2 in 2010 losing to eastern Kentucky power Belfry, 27-14 in the second round of the 3A playoffs. Highlands beat Mason County, 71-8 last year in Maysville.

The Royals went 11-1 with an undefeated regular season in 2009 before losing 26-23 to Pike County Central in the second round of the 3A playoffs. Mason County is in Class 3A, District 6 with Fleming County, East Carter, West Carter, Russell and Lewis County. Buchanan has been the head coach since 1996.

“It is the same formula as always,” Buchanan said. “We try to get better on a daily basis and we try to play one play at a time the best we can. We still have a long way to go, but we really like this group.”

Game time is 7:30 p.m. in Fort Thomas.

Bluebirds tame Warriors, 51-23

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

LOUISVILLE – The Louisville Western Warriors football team gave its best punch on its home field Friday.

But the Class 4A top-ranked Highlands Bluebirds responded every time and left with a 51-23 victory. Highlands still recorded its largest margin of victory this year after opening with 52-31 and 60-37 victories over Boyle County and Scott County at home. The Bluebirds’ average margin of victory is 24.

“We made some mistakes,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands head coach. “But we’re 3-0 and ready to move on to the next (game).”

But the Warriors of Class 4A, District 4 made the visitors earn the win despite falling to 0-3. The Highlands starters played the entire game. Western lost 13-12 to Collins in the state quarterfinals last year and lost 56-0 to Highlands last year in Fort Thomas.

The Warriors could not match the Bluebirds’ offensive balance. Highlands outgained Western, 467-296 in total offense. That included 256-17 in the air.

Highlands came into the game averaging 399 yards per contest on the ground. But Western ran a 5-3 stunting defense and held the Bluebirds to 211 carries on 32 rushes for an average of just under 6.6 a carry.

Thus, the Bluebirds attacked through the air and had a lot of success throwing deep. Highlands quarterback Donovan McCoy had career-highs completing 16-of-35 passes for 256 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. McCoy also rushed for 94 yards on 11 carries with two touchdowns for an average of just more than 8.5 a carry.

“We’ve been running the ball more (lately),” Mueller said. “But in this game, we passed it more. We’re pleased with (the offensive balance) because we have a lot of good athletes.”

McCoy completed passes to nine different receivers. Luke Turner led the way with three catches for 46 yards and Colin Seidl had three catches for 35 yards. Teammates Ryan Greene, Brandon Hergott and Zach Harris all had two catches each for 74, 32 and 27 yards respectively.

“Getting separation and coming down with the ball is the most important thing,” Greene said. “(The quarterbacks and receivers) just have to get in sync with each other. It will come. We have a good quarterback in Donovan McCoy and good receivers.”

Harris also ran for 86 yards on 14 carries. McCoy has eight rushing touchdowns for the season and Harris has six.

Highlands still may have some work to do with its passing game. But it has made some strides since struggling in the scrimmage against Louisville Trinity. McCoy completed 9-of-19 passes for 200 yards with just a 33-yard touchdown to Turner against Scott County.

On the other side, Western quarterback Bryson Harris completed just 2-of-11 passes for 17 yards and three interceptions to Blake Schutte, Quentin Murray and Brady Murray. Ryan Love had both receptions for Western.

The Warriors turned the ball over five times to four for the Bluebirds. Both teams lost two fumbles each. Both Highlands’ lost fumbles came on onside kicks.

Western did have some success lining up in the I-formation and attacking between the tackles but could not convert on fourth-down inside the Red Zone. The Warriors also had some success on special teams (see sidebar).

Highlands took the lead for good at 10-0 after the first quarter converting on two Western turnovers. Harris scored from two yards out and Luke Brockett hit a 32-yard field goal.

The Warriors did gain some momentum in the second scoring eight points. But the Bluebirds answered with 20 to go up 30-8 at halftime. McCoy scored on a 32-yard run before throwing touchdowns of 35 and 21 yards to Greene and Brockett.

Western cut the margin to 30-15 in the third. But the Bluebirds answered quickly. Harris ran it in from a yard out to put Highlands up 37-15 after three.

McCoy had a hand in both Highlands touchdowns in the fourth quarter. He scored from 14 yards out and found Hergott from 13 yards out with 8:15 left in the game.

Highlands recorded two sacks by Schutte and Thomas Wrobleski for a loss of 17 yards. On the other hand, the Warriors sacked McCoy three times resulting in a loss of 21 yards.

Highlands returns home Friday to take on Mason County (1-3). The Homecoming game starts at 7:30 p.m.

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.