The NKyTribune will be offering focused coverage of NKY high school football throughout the season, thanks to support from St. Elizabeth Healthcare Sports Medicine. See all our pre-season features on each of NKY’s 21 high school football teams and follow our coverage, including roundups each week at Northern Kentucky High School Football.
By Brett Bibbins
NKyTribune contributor
Coming off a 45-point win over Boone County last week, the Ryle Raiders had all the confidence in the world going into Friday’s game at Highlands. That conviction showed in Ryle’s 48-24 high-scoring victory over the Bluebirds.
Despite the fact that Highlands won last year’s Class 4A state championship and that the Raiders had only beaten the Bluebirds twice in the history of their football program, the Ryle players knew this was the year they could get the job done.
Ryle senior running back Mitchell Bateman believes the confidence comes from the personal connection the players have with one another.
“We’ve just bonded a lot easier this year and that’s the big difference,” said Bateman.
The first three quarters of Friday’s game tell a much different story than the final score shows. The teams battled back and forth in the rain for most of the night.
Highlands struck first when senior Jared Dougherty lined up a 46-yard field goal attempt that sailed through the uprights with more than plenty of leg behind it. After trading a few scoring drives, the teams headed to the locker room with the score knotted at 17 a piece.
The third quarter began with a long drive by Ryle that ended with Mason Molique kicking a 32-yard field goal to give the Raiders a 20-17 lead. The Raider defense stepped up after that, forcing three consecutive three-and-outs from the Bluebird offense and only allowing four yards of total offense. Ryle didn’t even allow a first down in the second half until midway through the final quarter.
“Seeing our defense play like that, it just gives our offense confidence,” said Ryle coach Mike Engler, “And when our entire team can come together and play like that, it just makes for a doggone good football team.”
The Ryle offense fed off the defensive stops and started putting points on the board in a hurry. 
Only up three at the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Raiders found the end zone on their next four possessions for a 28-point final quarter. That onslaught was powered by the success the Raiders were having moving the ball on the ground.
Bateman finished with 147 rushing yards and three scores to go along with senior Colin England’s eight carries for 100 yards and a touchdown. Jake Chisholm added a late rushing touchdown to cap off the Raiders’ win.
Bateman came through when Ryle needed him the most. With the Raiders trying to convert on a fourth-and-one situation, Bateman ran up the middle, broke a tackle near the line of scrimmage and took it all the way to the house for a 31-yard score to give his team a 34-17 lead.
“Honestly, I was just going for the one yard,” Bateman said, “and when I broke it I just went for it.”
The Raiders’ passing game was effective as well. Quarterback Tanner Morgan went 22-of-33 for 249 yards and one TD. Most of Morgan’s yards came on completions to Jake Long, who had four receptions for 104 yards. Grant Beagle caught six passes for 71 yards.
The confidence that the Raiders were displaying Friday night is something that started with solid performances in their first three games and now has them making big plans for this season.
“We’ve built on that and we’ve preached to our kids, you know, ‘Let’s do something that’s never been done,’” Engler said.
RYLE 7 10 3 28 — 48
HIGHLANDS 10 7 0 7 — 24
H — Dougherty 46 field goal
R — England 6 run (Molique kick)
H — Miller 61 pass from Hergott (Dougherty kick)
R — Bateman 3 run (Molique kick)
R — Molique 24 field goal
H — New 23 pass from Hergott (Dougherty kick)
R — Molique 32 field goal
R — Ashley 16 pass from Morgan (Molique kick)
R — Bateman 31 run (Molique kick)
H — Sipple 28 pass from Hergott (Dougherty kick)
R — Bateman 9 run (Molique kick)
R — Chisholm 1 run (Molique kick)
RECORDS: Ryle 4-0, Highlands 1-3