Football Flashback: CovCath two-way starter played nearly every down during 19-0 district win over Newport

By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter

Covington Catholic senior Mike Woolf played nearly every down during his team’s 19-0 win over Newport on Friday, Oct. 23, 1987 that clinched the Class 3A district title and gave the Colonels a 9-1 record going into the playoffs.

According to a newspaper account, the two-way starter was wincing in pain as he walked off the Newport Stadium football field with grass stains and grime nearly blotting out the number 33 on his jersey.

Woolf scored all three of the Colonels’ rushing touchdowns in the game and played linebacker on a defensive unit that recorded its fifth shutout by holding Newport to 58 total yards.

CovCath’s first two offensive possessions began inside the Newport 25-yard line following fumble recoveries. Woolf scored on runs of 8 and 5 yards to give his team an early 13-0 lead. His final touchdown came on a 1-yard plunge in the third quarter.

The Colonels went on to win the program’s first state championship that season. In the fourth quarter of the title game, Woolf returned an interception 35 yards for a touchdown to clinch the 16-6 victory over Paducah Tilghman.

Woolf went on to play linebacker for Thomas More College and set team records for most tackles in a season (167) and career (445). After coaching for many years, he became athletic director at Ryle High School in 2022.

Here’s a look at other Northern Kentucky high school football games played between Oct. 20-26 over the last five decades.

Oct. 25, 1996 — Highlands senior Steve Lickert returned the opening kickoff 65 yards for a touchdown to spark his team’s 34-0 win over Ryle in a Class 3A district game. Lickert went on to rush for 177 yards and three touchdowns in the best game of this varsity career. Two of his scoring runs came on breakaways of 33 and 61 yards.

Oct. 20, 2000 — With four seconds left on the clock, Bellevue senior wide receiver Mike Gullett caught a tipped pass from senior quarterback Nate Berkley in the end zone to beat Newport Central Catholic, 22-20, in a Class 1A district game at Bellevue. The 35-yard touchdown pass capped a six-play, 80-yard drive that began with only 45 seconds remaining in the game.

Oct. 21, 2011 — Both junior quarterbacks had big nights when Lloyd edged Newport, 28-27, in a Class 2A district game at Newport Stadium. Lloyd quarterback Dexter Smith rushed for 120 yards and two touchdowns. His counterpart, JaShawn Short, had a combined total of 253 yards (184 passing, 69 rushing) with one passing and two rushing TDs for Newport.

Oct. 23, 2020 — Holmes had three players surpass 100 rushing yards during a 50-25 win over Scott in a Class 4A district home game. The Bulldogs’ team leaders were brothers Tayquan and Quantez Calloway with 159 and 121 rushing yards, followed by Emauryon Arnold with 101. All seven of their team’s touchdowns came on the ground with Tayquan, Arnold and Curtez Hill getting two each.

The post Football Flashback: CovCath two-way starter played nearly every down during 19-0 district win over Newport appeared first on NKyTribune .