Covington Catholic Defends Home Turf in Win Over Beechwood
The No. 13 Covington Catholic Colonels and junior Willie Rodriguez sent a message in a home rout over No. 6 Beechwood 31-14 on Friday night in northern Kentucky. The score was knotted at 0-0 after one quarter before Covington Catholic broke open a 21-7 lead at the halftime break. It was all Colonels the rest of the way.
Another Rodriguez Stars in the Commonwealth
Willie Rodriguez showed why he’s drawing interest from the likes of Notre Dame, Louisville, and Kentucky. The big tight end led all receivers with 91 yards and a touchdown. The 6’4, 210-pound pure athlete (who stars in wrestling and baseball, by the way) is taking a visit to Notre Dame this weekend.
He was a pure matchup nightmare for Beechwood, and it seems like he could be at the next level, too. The Colonels also used him as a blocker for the 37 carries and 162 yards that running back Owen Lee rushed for. Not to mention, he even had a tackle for loss; Mr. Do It All come to the front.
When Covington Catholic head coach Eddie Eviston was about Rodriguez, he couldn’t help but smirk.
“Obviously, physically, he’s a presence; he’s really, really progressing,” Eviston said. “He’s only a junior and can be a mismatch offensively. He’s very long defensively. We definitely look for him to make plays on both sides of the ball.”
Rodriguez was elated after the win, and rightfully so.
“They mention me in the backfield, bounce around,” Rodriguez said. “I can block, go up the middle; that’s where the hybrid thing comes in. Receiver jump ball, I can lead up the middle and do whatever you guys need.”
All Good Things Must Come to an End
Beechwood came into this game riding a 27-game winning streak, including a win over Covington Catholic last year. Tigers head coach Noel Rash has built a program that is dominant in 2A. After defeating Lexington Christian Academy in the 2021 2A Championship game, Beechwood had looked dominant until running into the Colonels.
The score doesn’t look great; Coach Rash will be the first to admit that. However, his guys fought against a much bigger squad and a hostile crowd. You can only begin to imagine how this game prepares the Tigers for the rest of 2A.
“Win, Lose, or Draw. You gotta get better from it. It creates a playoff atmosphere,” Coach Rash said. “Your kids get a sense of what you need to do when you’re going to get into those big games.”
Beechwood was battling the Colonels and the injury bug on Friday night. Third-string freshman quarterback Cash Harney was forced into a tough situation, but made a handful of plays for his team.
“I thought he played his butt off. He didn’t get much time,” Coach Rash added. “No excuses we got beat. I don’t like to do the excuses game, everybody has to deal with injuries. ”
Future Demon Deacon Scary in Return Game
Senior three-star wide receiver Antonio Robinson did not record a catch. He did however run for a total of 123 yards in special teams, including an 80-yard touchdown. The breakaway speed was reminiscent of Devin Duvernay of the Baltimore Ravens.
Robinson will be attending Wake Forest University next year. It’s easy to tell how a coach could fall in love with him. However, he suffered without a veteran quarterback, something that Covington Catholic had.
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