Four downs with Newport Central Catholic

Five straight postseason quarterfinal appearances is an impressive feat for any program in the state, but for a program like Newport Central Catholic, they yearn for more.

It’s a program with five state championships, but the last one came in 2012. Since that timeframe, they’ve reached the state championship game three times, semifinals four times and quarterfinals nine times.

In year seven of Stephen Lickert’s tenure, he sees a window of opportunity to change that.

“The expectation is to get to the state championship game,” Lickert said. “We’ve been close, but we need to have better placement in the playoffs.”

The placement Lickert refers to is quarterfinal road games at Campbellsville in 2023, semifinal road game at Pikeville in ’22 after winning at Kentucky Country Day in the quarterfinals, quarterfinal road game at Russellville in ’21, Paintsville in ’20 and Holy Cross (Louisville) in ’19.

“The biggest equation is that is the schedule and the way the RPI is set up. We play up all throughout our non-district schedule, but some of the programs we’ve faced lately in higher classes have fallen on hard times and that kills our RPI,” Lickert said. “Everything is based on win % now. It’s a flawed system. It’s better for us to go travel and play a Pikeville or Raceland than it is a team in our own backyard.”  

Regardless of where they fall in the RPI this season, the Thoroughbreds have a team in the making to make this season special.

FIRST DOWN — RECAP

It was survival of the fittest for the Thoroughbreds in 2023. Not only did they have to replace the majority of their offensive and defensive lines, but they lost a variety of key players throughout the season in key spots. After a 2-4 start, they were able to weather the storm and go undefeated in district play and win six straight games before the season ending loss at Campbellsville in the quarterfinals.

The injuries meant they had to throw some kids in spots whether they were ready or not.

“Every year I’ve been here we’ve had to throw sophomores into the wolves,” Lickert said. “This year we’re upper class heavy. Young guys will have a role, but they won’t have to be the guy.” 

NewCath has owned district opponents in Lickert’s tenure, going 23-0 in said games as they enter as the district preseason favorites.

SECOND DOWN — OFFENSE

Lickert refers to the movie “Moneyball” in having to replace Demetrick Welch, one of the most electric players to don a NewCath jersey. Welch’s 1,364 rushing and receiving yards and 28 touchdowns certainly won’t be easy to replace, but Lickert feels he has a variety of guys to help offset the loss.

“To replace someone like him, I think of the movie “Moneyball”, we’ll try and replace his production with three to four guys,” Lickert said. “We’ll try to put our guys in situations where they can be successful.”

The new look offense will have first-year starter Emmanuel Miles under center while Kaleb Cole will be the featured running back. Miles brings a strong arm with him and the ability to show off his speed as a dual-threat quarterback. Cole’s running style is the opposite of what Welch presented.

“Demetrick was fast, he ran around guys where I’ll run through you,” Cole said. “You can’t replace him and I’ll try to fill it in. I’ll do that role as best as I can.” 

Eddie Bivens and Louie Collopy will also be vital in the running attack, Collopy should see multiple roles offensively. Charlie Ford will be the primary target at receiver with Chris Meyer, Landon Kraft and Grayden Schirmer also receiving some targets. Ford is coming off a strong track and field season where he was one of the fastest in Class A, placing fifth at the state meet.

“The speed helps me run any route,” Ford said. “Short routes, go routes, the quarterback will trust me. Me and Emmanuel played JV together and have a strong connection. I feel like he can throw it anywhere and always get me the ball no matter where I am.”

While it was a big question mark going into last season, the offensive line should be one of the strengths of the team headlined by Mason Baas and Gabe Lyons. Will Sandfoss is a highly touted junior with a year of experience under his belt while Noah Koler got valuable experience as a freshman and should see another significant role this season on the line. They’re hopeful to have ben Colwell ready for the start of the season as he deals with an injury.

THIRD DOWN — DEFENSE

Defensively the front line will be a rotation of guys that include Baas, Lyons and Sandfoss with two returners at middle linebacker in Kraft and Cole while Meyer returns on the edge.

The secondary will feature a lot of speed with Bivens and Collopy at the safety positions, Ford and Schirmer at the cornerback slots. Kraft, Ford, Cole, Meyer, Lyons and Collopy all return with at least 30 solo tackles last season.

“Seven of the nine returning on defense are seniors,” Lickert said. “From there it’s a matter of developing depth on that side and having enough. Who’s the next guy up and what position do they fit? We’ve got the guys not quite there yet, but we feel they’ll be ready to go for when it matters. We’re hoping our leaders push the other guys into getting better.” 

FOURTH DOWN — GOALS/OUTLOOK

The expectation set by the program is to be playing the first weekend in December at Kroger Field for a state championship. NewCath is in the mix nearly every year, but with the returning starters and guys being thrust into roles with all the injuries last season, could this be a year for even more optimism?

“This will be a very tight-knit team with a phenomenal senior class leading the way,” Lickert said. “We have athletes all over the place and a top-notch group of linemen that will clear the road and set the tone.”

Non-district games against Lloyd Memorial, Conner, Campbell County and Raceland will give them a gauge of where they need to be, especially when they host the Rams at Covington Catholic on Sept. 27. Raceland is the Class A runner-up who handed NewCath a 40-14 defeat last season.

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