By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Celebrating the 50th anniversary of Covington Catholic’s football program on a night when the team faced its long-standing rival had a profound effect on the players.
With members of CovCath’s six previous state championship teams in the crowd, the Colonels whipped Highlands, 52-0, in the Class 5A district game Friday and advanced their record to 8-0.
“It was just a great atmosphere with all the returning state champions,” said CovCath junior running back Casey McGinness. “We just had something to prove to them, let them know we’re trying to carry on what they started and get a state championship just like them.”
The Colonels showed why they’re the state’s top-ranked Class 5A team this season with an impressive performance on both sides of the ball. The offense ended up with 570 total yards that included 291 passing and 279 rushing. The defense limited Highlands to 161 yards and had four takeaways with three interceptions and a fumble recovery.
According to past scores posted on the Highlands football website, it was the first time since 2005 that the Bluebirds did not score in a game. The last time CovCath posted a shutout against Highlands was 1985.
“Our defense played lights out,” said CovCath coach Eddie Eviston. “(Highlands) had a couple of big plays, but our defense did a helluva job keeping them out of the end zone all night.”
The Colonels’ first touchdown came on an 8-yard run by Grant Dyer. He was stacked up a few yards short of the goal line, but CovCath’s offensive lineman kept driving him forward until he reached the end zone.
That was the beginning of a big night for CovCath’s front line. They provided the run blocking and pass protection the offense needed to surpass 500 total yards for the second consecutive week.
“It all comes back to the offensive line,” Eviston said. “They’ve been playing well all season long and have just done a great job.”
The Colonels got a field goal and three touchdowns on their next four offensive possessions to open up a 31-0 halftime lead. On the first play on the second half, senior quarterback A.J. Mayer threw a 54-yard touchdown pass to Jack Coldiron and the game was played with a running clock from that point on.
Mayer, who watched the fourth quarter from the sideline, completed 15 of 17 passes for 291 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed for 47 yards and scored a TD. McGinness picked up 108 yards on 12 carries and scored twice.
Highlands senior quarterback Carl Schoellman completed 11 of 21 passes for 102 yards with three interceptions. The team’s leading receiver, Nick Veneman, spent most of the second half on the sideline with an ice pack taped to his leg.
In the third quarter, Schoellman was replaced by junior Grady Cramer, who went 3-for-6 for 54 yards. The Bluebirds had a net total of just five rushing yards in the game and turned the ball over on a fumbled hand-off in the backfield.
“It’s always good for our defense to get involved that way,” Eviston said of the four takeaways. “We work on it a lot (in practice) so it was good to see a couple of them in the game that gave us a short field and we were able to get some good scores that way.”
An interception by senior linebacker Kam Butler set up CovCath’s first touchdown. He deflected a pass, caught the ball above his head and took it to the 13-yard line. The Colonels scored three plays later to take a 6-0 lead.
“Coach E told us all week everybody was coming to watch us play,” Butler said. “That really motivated us to come out excited and play fired up.”
The 52-point victory could give CovCath the top spot in the overall statewide power rankings next week. That’s something few, if any, CovCath teams have ever done in the 50-year history of the program.
“I don’t want to get into the best team (debate), but our program is strong,” coach Eviston said. “I think that’s what they showed in this game, that our program is stronger than ever and we’re going to continue to work hard to make the alumni proud.”
HIGHLANDS 0 0 0 0 — 0
COVCATH 9 22 14 7 — 52
CC — Dyer 8 run (kick failed)
CC — Gronotte 26 FG
CC — Shriver 5 run (Mayer run)
CC — McGinness 3 run (Gronotte kick)
CC — Mayer 10 run (Gronotte kick)
CC — Coldiron 54 pass from Mayer (Gronotte kick)
CC — McGinness 15 run (Gronotte kick)
CC — Reusch 12 run (Felix kick)
RECORDS: CovCath 8-0, 1-0 district; Highlands 3-5, 1-1 district