More mayhem Friday night.
From Fort Mitchell to Park Hills, the two had some doozies.
The rest? Not so much as plenty of teams in NKY either won or lost comfortably.
Shout out this week goes to Scott High. The Eagles winning their first game of the season and doing so convincingly with a 52-8 victory over Holmes. Scott was dealt an unfair shake three weeks prior to season beginning when Jake Owens, who was hired in February, had to resign and return to Florida. Steve Hensley filled in and the Eagles have been battling since. They’ve put up 104 points their last three games and finally got the defense in tune last week. The Eagles face a bye week now to prepare for what will be an uphill battle in Class 5A, 6th District play, opening up with Conner on Sept. 22.
Here goes…
- Covington Catholic (4-0, Previous Week: 1) — Sometimes you have to have that defining moment to look back on in a special season. Friday night could be that night. Facing a fourth down at the Dixie Heights 23-yard line, Evan Pitzer hit Willie Rodriguez for the game-winning touchdown and a 31-24 victory in the battle of the Colonels. Maybe it wasn’t pretty for CovCath standards, but Dixie Heights is a really talented football team that can’t be taken lightly by anybody. Get by Beechwood this week and a 10-0 regular season looks more and more likely.
2. Highlands (3-1, Previous Week: 2) — Wow. That word should sum up the Bluebirds performance in their dominance over Ryle. Many thought it had the potential to be the game of the week, but Highlands led 35-7 at halftime and scored on 8-of-9 possessions. A interesting matchup at Raceland looms. Certainly not an easy place to get a victory against a 1A power.
3. Beechwood (4-0, Previous Week: 3) — The Tigers are must see TV now. While Jay Volker may not like what he’s seeing on defense, as a casual fan who doesn’t want to watch 49-48 and 58-54 games? The PAC-12 has come to Fort Mitchell and Clay Hayden is doing his best Caleb Williams impersonation. Hayden with another 400-plus yard passing game on Friday as he’s now tallied 1,461 passing yards and 18 touchdowns. Also, many know Tyler Fryman from the baseball diamond and his defensive prowess in centerfield. Well, he can play football, too. The freshman had a breakout game with 190 receiving yards and three touchdowns. CovCath comes to town in the game of the week Friday, maybe the top game in the state.
4. Lloyd Memorial (4-0, Previous Week: 4) –That Juggs defense is something fierce. They flat out get after the quarterback and were able to post their first shoutout with a sound victory over a solid 1A opponent in Bethlehem from Bardstown. They now have 25 sacks on the season, adding five more on Friday. They’ve also forced seven turnovers. Yuri Collins Comer and Isaiah Sebastian get their third 100-yard rushing game each in the first four. Go ahead and circle Oct. 13 on the calendar when Lexington Catholic comes to town.
5. Dixie Heights (1-3, Previous Week: 8) — Moving up while losing? Yes, the Colonels have made a believer in me despite their shortcomings the last two weeks. No one has played Covington Catholic as tight as Dixie did on Friday yet this year. They get a much needed week off to regroup before they enter district play starting with Boone County on Sept. 22. The Class 5A, 6th District should be a fun ride. Everyone is chasing Highlands, but Dixie, Cooper and Conner are all looking like formidable competition.
6. Ryle (2-2, Previous Week: 5) — What looked to be a promising start quickly turned into a nightmare for the Raiders on Friday night in Fort Thomas. After scoring the opening touchdown, they surrendered 38 straight points to the Bluebirds and adding insult to injury was Logan Verax unable to return to the game due to an injury. Let’s hope one of Northern Kentucky’s most prolific passers is okay and ready to go Friday when the Raiders take on the No. 1 team in Class 3A when CAL comes to Union. They also need to get healthy, missing several key players last week.
7. Cooper (3-1, Previous Week: 6) — The passing game got back on track in a victory over Campbell County, but the rushing numbers continue to be a concern, with just 21 rushing yards on 18 attempts. Cam O’Hara threw for 295 and four touchdowns, Isaiah Johnson and Austin Alexander continuing to make plays on the outside while the Jags defense picked off three passes.
8. Simon Kenton (1-2, Previous Week: 7) — 655 yards of offense wasn’t enough, the Pioneers coming up just short in a valiant comeback effort at Beechwood. Brady Lee 317 yards passing and two touchdowns, Durrell Turner 292 yards rushing and four touchdowns. Face Conner on Friday in a battle of two teams that can really run the football.
9. Conner (3-1, Previous Week: 9) — The Cougars rushing attack has now tallied over 900 yards through the first four games of the season. They get into the meat of their schedule now with Simon Kenton this week and five straight district games to follow. The third win of the season on Friday over NewCath already surpasses 2022’s win total as Conner can surprise some folks in the competitive Class 5A, 6th District.
10. Newport Central Catholic (2-2, Previous Week: 10) — Thoroughbreds coach Stephen Lickert knew what he was doing with their schedule. They’ve played up in class the first four weeks and will continue that next week with Campbell County. Lickert wanted his team tested instead of posting 9-1, 8-2 records in the regular season and being battle tested come November.
Big School Top 5 (4A-6A)
- Covington Catholic
2. Highlands
3. Dixie Heights
4. Cooper
5. Simon Kenton
Small School Top 5 (1A-3A)
- Beechwood
2. Lloyd Memorial
3. Newport Central Catholic
4. Newport
5. Walton-Verona
200-yard passing club
Clay Hayden, Beechwood vs Simon Kenton (24/34, 433 yards, 5 TD)
Brady Lee, Simon Kenton vs Beechwood (20/31, 317 yards, 2 TD)
Cam O’Hara, Cooper vs Campbell County (17/24, 295 yards, 4 TD)
Kyle Lee, Newport vs Boone County (19/28, 240 yards)
Evan Pitzer, Covington Catholic vs Dixie Heights (18/25, 236 yards, 2 TD)
100-yard rushing club
Durrell Turner, Simon Kenton vs Beechwood (30 carries, 292 yards, 4 TD)
Yurii Collins Comer, Lloyd Memorial vs Bethlehem (17 carries, 172 yards, TD)
Jordan Pendleton, Bellevue vs Lynn Camp (15 carries, 172 yards, 2 TD)
Armani Gregg, Dixie Heights vs Covington Catholic (22 carries, 124 yards, 3 TD)
Jackson Smith, Walton-Verona vs Kentucky Country Day (18 carries, 118 yards, TD)
Isaiah Sebastian, Lloyd Memorial vs Bethlehem (11 carries 107 yards, 3 TD)
Demetrick Welch, Newport Central Catholic vs Conner (8 carries, 101 yards, TD)
100-yard receiving club
Tyler Fryman, Beechwood vs Simon Kenton (6 rec, 190 yards, 3 TD)
Braylon Miller, Covington Catholic vs Dixie Heights (9 rec, 128 yards)
Demetrick Welch, Newport Central Catholic vs Conner (4 rec, 120 yards, TD)
Isaiah Johnson, Cooper vs Campbell County (6 rec, 111 yards)
Landon Stacks, Newport vs Boone County (3 rec, 110 yards)
Austin Alexander, Cooper vs Campbell County (3 rec, 108 yards, TD)
Carson Class, Highlands vs Ryle (8 receptions, 107 yards)
Defensive Standouts
Brach Rice, Dixie Heights vs Covington Catholic (15 tackles, 3.5 tackles, for loss, 2.5 sacks)
Ethan Powell, Ludlow vs Dayton (15 tackles)
Jack Lonaker, Cooper vs Campbell County (14 tackles, interception)
Kai Workman, Ryle vs Highlands (14 tackles)
Tate Kruer, Covington Catholic vs Dixie Heights (13 tackles, sack)
Kaleb Cole, Newport Central Catholic vs Conner (13 tackles, sack)
Jacob Savage, Ryle vs Highlands (12 tackles, .5 tackle for loss)
Wyatt Messman, Bellevue vs Lynn Camp (12 tackles)
Enrique Soard, Dayton vs Ludlow (11 tackles, .5 sack, fumble recovery)
Spencer Brandenburg, Ludlow vs Dayton (11 tackles)
Tyler Copeland, Lloyd Memorial vs Bethlehem (11 tackles)
Hayden Blair, Simon Kenton vs Beechwood (11 tackles)
Adam Duncan, Conner vs Newport Central Catholic (10 tackles, sack, tackle for loss)
Landon Brown, Simon Kenton vs Beechwood (10 tackles, tackle for loss, sack)
Aiden Dickerson, Bellevue vs Lynn Camp (9 tackles, interception for TD)
Eric Simpson, Dayton vs Ludlow (9 tackles, interception for TD)
Carson Sanders, Newport vs Boone County (9 tackles, 4 tackles for loss)
D’Angelo Jimenez, Dayton vs Ludlow (9 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, sack)
Quinten Tischner, Bishop Brossart vs Nicholas County (9 tackles, tackle for loss)
Drake Meadows, Ryle vs Highlands (8 tackles, interception)
Blake Dodds, Dixie Heights vs Covington Catholic (8 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, sack)
Mason Johnson, Dayton vs Ludlow (8 tackles, 2 fumbles forced)
Jordan Pendleton, Bellevue vs Lynn Camp (8 tackles, sack)
Aba Selm, Simon Kenton vs Beechwood (8 tackles, sack)
Isaiah Sebastian, Lloyd Memorial vs Bethlehem (8 tackles, interception)
Landon Geyer, Bishop Brossart vs Nicholas County (8 tackles, tackle for loss)
Elijah Westwood, Lloyd Memorial vs Bethlehem (8 tackles, 1.5 sacks)
Caleb Crutchfield, Dayton vs Ludlow (7 tackles, interception, fumble recovery)
Derek Smith, Bishop Brossart vs Nicholas County (7 tackles, tackle for loss, .5 sack)
Avander Abrams, Lloyd Memorial vs Bethlehem (7 tackles, sack)
Boomer Klusman, Scott vs Holmes (7 tackles, tackle for loss, sack)
Khalil Buck-Barber, Newport vs Boone County (6 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, sack, fumble recovery for TD)
Brayden Schoborg, Simon Kenton vs Beechwood (6 tackles, 2 tackles for loss)
Blake Puchta, Dayton vs Ludlow (6 tackles, fumble forced)
Littello Johnson, Holy Cross vs Middletown Christian (Ohio) (6 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, sack, fumble recovery)
Matt Brock, Ludlow vs Dayton (6 tackles, tackle for loss, sack, fumble recovery)
Ayden Stachel, Newport vs Boone County (6 tackles, tackle for loss)
Aven Bohms, Simon Kenton vs Beechwood (6 tackles, sack, fumble forced)
Nathan Heck, Bishop Brossart vs Nicholas County (5 tackles, tackle for loss, .5 sack)
Mason Wiseman, Campbell County vs Cooper (5 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, sack)
Gabe Lyons, Newport Central Catholic vs Conner (5 tackles, 2 tackles for loss)
Jordan Kennedy, Dayton vs Ludlow (5 tackles, sack, fumble recovery)
Breckin Ralston, Ludlow vs Dayton (5 tackles, sack)
Aiden Dowds, Campbell County vs Cooper (4 tackles for loss)
Carter Schroer, Dixie Heights vs Covington Catholic (4 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss)
Ryshawn Clifford, Holmes vs Scott (4 tackles, tackle for loss, sack)
Mitchell Doeker, Newport Central Catholic vs Conner (4 tackles, interception)
Mark Ober, Simon Kenton vs Beechwood (4 tackles, sack)
Isaac Brown, Cooper vs Campbell County (3 tackles, interception)
Javon Burke, Newport vs Boone County (3 tackles, 2 tackles for loss)
Nate Brooks, Scott vs Holmes (3 tackles, tackle for loss, fumble forced)
Nicholas Cozzi, Bishop Brossart vs Nicholas County (2 tackles, interception)
Elian Ruzindana, Conner vs Newport Central Catholic (2 tackles, interception)
Austin Alexander, Cooper vs Campbell County (2 tackles, interception)
Abe Bowlin, Walton-Verona vs Kentucky Country Day (2 tackles, interception)
Jaylan Hartness, Newport vs Boone County (2 tackles for loss)
Malcom Perrin, Scott vs Holmes (2 tackles for loss, sack)
Jaden Galicia, Ryle vs Highlands (2 tackles, fumble recovery)
Braylon Thornsberry, Holy Cross vs Middletown Christian (2 tackles, interception)
Christopher Pompilio-Green, Newport vs Boone County (2 tackles, fumble recovery)
Dustin Wilson, Scott vs Holmes (tackle, fumble recovery)
Mohammed Lafi, Lloyd Memorial vs Bethlehem (.5 sack, fumble recovery for TD)
Brayden Donato, Walton-Verona vs Kentucky Country Day (tackle, interception)
Shawn Sowder, Beechwood vs Simon Kenton (interception)
Jamari Lockett, Holmes vs Scott (interception)
Matte Hinkle-Bonham, Dayton vs Ludlow (fumble recovery)
Nate Welch, Highlands vs Ryle (fumble recovery)
Kaymon Coleman, Scott vs Holmes (interception)
Dylan Giffen, Scott vs Holmes (interception)
Carter Blades, Simon Kenton vs Beechwood (fumble recovery)
