Two players who replaced injured starters in the Highlands offensive backfield made big plays the Bluebirds needed to defeat Ryle, 31-14, on Friday in Fort Thomas.
Highlands senior running back Tyler Fennell rushed for 204 yards and sophomore quarterback Patrick Towles threw for one touchdown and ran for another in the regular-season finale.
The victory lifted the Bluebirds’ record to 10-0 and extended their winning streak against in-state opponents to 36 games. Ryle finishes the regular season with a 7-3 mark. Both teams will host first-round playoff games next week.
In Friday’s game, Fennell found himself filling in for Highlands senior running back Austin Collinsworth, who injured his left hand in a game against Covington Catholic two weeks ago.
“I’ve been jumping all over this season, playing offense and defense,” Fennell said. “They just said I was running the ball (Friday) so I took my chance and hopefully I proved something.”
Towles has been the Bluebirds’ quarterback since senior starter Will Bardo injured his left arm in a game against Cincinnati St. Xavier on Sept. 25.
Even though the offense got off to a slow start against Ryle, Towles showed his poise and helped his team take a 17-0 halftime lead. Highlands scored on its last three possessions in the second quarter
“I knew that we could do it,” Towles said. “With the defense they were playing I knew we would execute.”
A 45-yard yard run by Fennell set up the first touchdown. Two plays later, Jordan Streeter took it into the end zone from three yards out.
The next time the Bluebirds got the ball, Towles threw a short pass to Nate Buten, who slipped a couple tackles and scored on a 54-yard play.
In the final seconds of the second quarter, Highlands made it 17-0 when Adam Weinel kicked a 47-yard field goal with a brisk wind carrying the ball through the uprights.
Ryle opened the second half with an 80-yard scoring drive. The final play was a 17-yard pass from quarterback Conner Hempel to 6-foot-7 tight end Tate Nichols that made the score 17-7.
The next time Hempel threw a pass, however, the ball slipped through the hands of his receiver and was intercepted by Highlands senior linebacker Colin Rosenhagen near midfield.
After a 20-yard run by Fennell, Towles took a snap from center and darted 27 yards to the end zone to put the Bluebirds ahead, 24-7, going into the fourth quarter.
“When they came out and scored (in the second half) we knew we had to answer them,” Fennell said. “We realized we had a game and just played hard and fought to the end.”
The same thing happened in the fourth quarter after Ryle sophomore running back Travis Elliott scored on an 11-yard run to make it 24-14.
On the next play from scrimmage, Fennell broke free on a 55-yard run before being dragged down at the Ryle 25. That play led to 1-yard touchdown run by Bardo, who saw action at running back with a heavy wrap protecting his injured left arm.
“Our guys are really good with playing every play,” Highlands coach Dale Mueller said. “It’s like coaching a professional team. They don’t get up and down.”
Highlands finished with 389 total yards (296 rushing, 93 passing) compared to Ryle’s 220 yards (106 rushing, 114 passing).
Elliott was limited to 58 yards, which was 100 yards below his per-game average.
Ryle coach Bryson Warner wasn’t disappointed with his team’s effort despite the loss.
“We’re a good football team right now,” Warner said. “But we are going to be a great football team and playing teams like (Highlands) will accelerate that process.”RYLE 0-0-7-7–14
HIGHLANDS 0-17-7-7–31
H–Streeter 3 run (Weinel kick)
H–Buten 54 pass from Towles (Weinel kick)
H–Weinel 47 FG
R–Nichols 17 pass from Hempel (Pederson kick)
H–Towles 27 run (Weinel kick)
R–Elliott 11 run (Pederson kick)
H–Bardo 1 run (Weinel kick)
RECORDS: Highlands 10-0, Ryle 7-3.
