For a team that likes to do a lot of damage with their run game, a downpour doesn’t change the game plan.
Weather was no issue for Dixie Heights Saturday after the Colonels defeated Boone County 44-12 on the road in a Class 5A, District 6 opener for the two.
The Colonels rushed for 180 yards and averaged over eight yards per carry in the victory. Armani Gregg did most of the damage with 131 yards and four touchdowns, David Anderson adding 42 yards and a rushing score.
“Offensively, you know we’re going to run the ball,” Colonels head coach Pat Burke said. “We wanted to do exactly that today and we were able to get the ball in space which allowed us to break out well on the run.”
Anderson got the offense going early with a 50-yard kickoff return. He later scored from 29 yards out. The game hit a stalemate for a while from there, Boone County countered thanks to a forced fumble by junior Marveen Moise, which set up senior Jayden Jackson with a 37-yard run.
Jackson followed up the run with a six-yard carry to even the score at six with 10:08 left in the half.
Dixie quickly answered when Mason Fields connected with senior receiver JJ Kriger for a 50-yard gain. Gregg followed the play up with a 12-yard run to mark his first touchdown the day.
“We’re always confident in our ability to run the ball even if it is pouring rain,” Gregg said. “I feel like our offense is at a high right now and we’re gaining confidence at the right time.”
Gregg’s second touchdown, a seven-yard carry, kept the run game rolling. Despite having three losses on the season, the Colonels offense hasn’t lacked as the team has produced at least 20 points in all five games.
“Definitely wanted to work on our run game today,” Burke said. “I think we got a few things corrected but it’s really just the small details that matter.”
Limiting the Rebels to just 53 yards, the Colonels defense took a step in the right direction after giving up 300-yards rushing to Covington Catholic in their previous matchup.
The third quarter presented similar success for Dixie as Gregg capped off his night with 25 and 23-yard touchdowns. Colonel’s senior Max Neal followed it up with a pick-six to make the score 44-6 with a quarter to go with a running clock.
Boone County quarterback Peyton Storer helped the Rebels in the fourth quarter connecting with three different receivers. In the final seconds, Storer’s pass to junior Mason Coughenour gave the game its final score.
Saturday’s loss drops the Rebels to 2-3 on the season as they’ll look for a bounce back game Friday at Scott.
Boone County was held to their lowest passing and rushing performance on the year.
Defensively, the Rebels showed signs of success. A pick by senior Cole Vires gave Boone County their first interception of the year off Fields who had thrown just two all season.
Besides the pick, Fields threw for 113 yards passing to four receivers.
“With the strong run game, it allowed me to counteract that with a positive day passing,” Fields said.
After last week’s bye and this week’s victory, Dixie took what Gregg called “a much needed step in the right direction.”
At 2-3, the Colonels will face Highlands in Fort Thomas on Friday.
“Going into the Highlands game, we’re ready and we know how tough our schedule is,” Gregg said. “It’s one of the toughest schedules in the state because we’re confident enough to play in it. We’re not happy with our record and we want to show everyone why.”
From a coaches perspective, Burke has a different sense of what next Friday might present.
“Our run game is going to have to show up big against a very tough Highlands team. They lost today so we’re going to have to be ready to weather the storm.”
Some more photos of Saturday’s contest between Dixie Heights and Boone County below, provided by Charles Bolton:
COLONELS 44, REBELS 12
DIXIE HEIGHTS — 6-14-24-0 — 44
BOONE COUNTY — 0-6-0-6 — 12
Scoring Plays
1st Quarter
(DH) Anderson 29-yard run (10:31) Gregg kick blocked
2nd Quarter
(BC) Jackson 6-yard run (10:08) Moise kick no good
(DH) Gregg 12-yard run (8:42) Gregg kick blocked
(DH) Gregg 7-yard run (3:24) Gregg 2-point conversion
3rd Quarter
(DH) Gregg 25-yard run (5:07) Gregg 2-point conversion
(DH) Neal 20-yard pick six (4:54) Gregg 2-point conversion
(DH) Gregg 23-yard run (1:26) Anderson 2-point conversion
4th Quarter
(BC) Storer 8-yard pass to Coughenour (0:07)
Game Stats
Passing Yards: Dixie Heights 113 (Fields 10/15), Boone County 74 (Storer 9/22,)
Rushing Yards: Dixie Heights 180 (Gregg 16-131, Anderson 5-42, Fields 1-7), Boone County 53 (Jackson 13-71, Johnson 9- -3, Newberry 1- -3, Storer 4- -11)
Receiving: Dixie Heights 106 (Kriger 3-51, Linville 3-24, Goetz 2-22, Anderson 2-16) Boone County 74 (Hodges 1-27, Johnson 4-23, Coughenour 3-22, Vires 1-6, Jackson 1-4)
First Downs: Dixie Heights 10, Boone County 10
Turnovers: Dixie Heights 2, Boone County 1
Penalties: Dixie Heights 6-55, Boone County 6-50
Records: Dixie Heights (2-3, 1-0) Boone County (2-3, 0-1)