A 52-49 playoff loss on a foggy November night in Edgewood still burns for Dixie Heights football. Head coach Pat Burke and his seniors are channeling that gut-punch into a reinvented offense built on multi-position playmakers as the Colonels prepare to open the 2026 season at home against Simon Kenton on Aug. 21.
"We preach resiliency and relentlessness, and I thought they displayed that," Burke told Link NKY. "There are no moral victories, but the kids realized they elevated their level of play. Going into the offseason it has motivated us to continue to be relentless."
The Colonels hosted a playoff game for the first time since 2021 last November, rallying from a 21-point deficit against Collins before a last-minute field goal ended their season. Senior Brad Roaden said the loss stays with the team and has been a motivator pushing into the offseason.
Multiple positions, multiple playmakers
Burke's answer to replacing graduated quarterback Mason Fields, who threw for 2,669 yards and 28 touchdowns last season, is to spread responsibility across a roster of athletes who refuse to stay in one spot.
Senior Levi Gilliland, the team's leading rusher, will line up at running back, linebacker and slot receiver. Henry Waters is expected to play four positions: running back, wide receiver, quarterback and safety. Top receiver Parks Vonderhaar could also contribute in the secondary, while leading tackler Brad Roaden adds tight end and backfield duties to his workload.
Burke said the Colonels have several players in elevated roles who are athletic enough to move in and out of positions while all being on the field at the same time. Rather than naming a single quarterback, Dixie Heights plans to lean on an experienced offensive line, productive backs and proven receivers to help their next signal-caller settle in.
Vonderhaar said he's confident in the quarterback position after watching multiple candidates throw, run and lead the team effectively in practice.
Snapping the Simon Kenton streak
The Aug. 21 opener carries extra weight. Dixie Heights has lost three consecutive season openers to Simon Kenton: 23-13 in 2023, 50-35 in 2024 and 20-10 in 2025. This year the Colonels get the Pioneers at home.
It won't be easy. Simon Kenton brings 13 returning starters to Edgewood, including 6-foot-5 junior quarterback Grant Webb.
Gilliland said he hasn't beaten Simon Kenton since arriving at Dixie Heights as a freshman and called the home opener a chance to show the offense can be explosive even without a pass-heavy attack.
A gauntlet schedule
The opener is just the start. Every season since 2019, Dixie Heights has faced Cooper, Ryle, Covington Catholic and Beechwood, programs that have combined for 15 state semifinal or championship game appearances during that span. A pivotal Class 5A district matchup against Boone County, which returns 1,000-yard rusher Malik Johnson, comes Oct. 16 in Edgewood.
Burke said the Colonels have to match the physicality and success of those programs, starting with Simon Kenton, then Beechwood, Covington Catholic and Ryle.
Waters kept it simple: he knows what this team can do, and now they just have to execute.
Kickoff against Simon Kenton is Friday, Aug. 21 at Dixie Heights.
