Two plays after Cooper junior Tyler Morris returned an interception for a touchdown to tie the score at 7-7 with 14 seconds left in the first half, Elliott raced 62 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the half, then returned the second-half opening kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown as Ryle went on to post a 41-17 win at Borland Stadium.
Elliott, who needs 2,259 yards rushing this season to break Shaun Alexander’s Northern Kentucky record of 6,662 career yards, finished with 173 yards rushing on 12 carries, 330 all-purpose yards and five touchdowns (three rushing, the kickoff return and a 48-yard reception that was mostly him running with the ball).
“Travis Elliott, we feel is the best player in the state of Kentucky and tonight he showed why in a lot of ways,” said Ryle coach Bryson Warner.
After not playing in the first quarter because Warner said he wanted to keep Elliott fresh for the fourth quarter, Elliott turned his third touch of the season into a 48-yard touchdown reception a little over three minutes into the second quarter to put Ryle on top 7-0, but otherwise was stymied for much of the quarter, gaining just nine yards rushing on his first five attempts.
Cooper’s defense not only played well for much of the first half, it also pulled the Jaguars into the tie when Morris swiped a pass that junior Nathan Davis tried to throw into double coverage and raced 66 yards for a touchdown.
There was still time, though, for Elliott to provide some magic, which he did when he took a handoff with 0.9 seconds left in the half and against a prevent defense zig-zagged his way into the end zone.
“They had their linebackers and secondary back deep and I was just following my lead block Mac Vollett and he led me into the end zone,” said Elliott, who has committed to Western Kentucky University.
“There were so many great blocks down the field on that play, but when you get the ball to Travis you know he can make a play,” said Warner. “We know if there’s time on the clock we feel like we can score.”
Elliott said it was tough watching his team play to a 0-0 tie in the first quarter, so he was looking to make good the rest of the game.
“It was pretty hard, but I just kept my composure,” said Elliott, who also punted three times for a 41.7 yard average. “I stretched out a little and cheered my team on and came out fired up. Coach just told me he wanted me fresh for the fourth quarter and I agreed with him.”
After Davis was injured with just under six minutes left in the game on a clean, but hard hit from Cooper senior J.P. Williams and had to come out, Elliott took the next snap from center and raced 23 yards for a touchdown and added a 72-yard touchdown run with 1:57 remaining in the game also on a direct snap from center.
Ryle, which was held to just 126 yards until Elliott’s TD run at the end of the first half, finished with 372 yards of total offense. Davis, a transfer from Grant County who is expected to be OK, and possibly could have gone back into the game if needed, according to Warner, completed 5 of 14 passes for 88 yards and also rushed 19 times for 97 yards and a touchdown.
Cooper was held to just 200 yards of total offense with junior running back A.J. Collins gaining 87 yards rushing on 14 carries and Morris, who also plays quarterback and tailback, rushing for 61 yards on 20 carries.
RYLE 41, COOPER 17
By Rick Broering | NKYSportsBlog.com
Ryle star running back, Travis Elliot, had to wait a little bit longer than the rest of his teammates to start his 2011 teammates. The standout senior sat the entire first quarter of the Raiders' first game against Cooper Friday night.
It didn't take him long to make his mark on the game once he entered at the beginning of the second quarter though.
Elliot scored on a screen pass that he took 48 yards for the score on just his third touch of the game to break a 0-0 tie early in the second quarter. The touchdown would mark his first of five that he would eventually score as he dazzled the fans in attendance with big run after big run.
"He was fresh. He was ready to go," Ryle head coach Bryson Warner said about his star running back. "He's a guy we're doing a lot of different things with. He's going to be hard to defend all season."
After Elliot's first score, Ryle was looking to add another touchdown before halftime. New Raider quarterback Nathan Davis, who was making his first start for Ryle, marched the Ryle offense near midfield but as he dropped back from his own 43 his ensuing pass was picked off by Cooper safety Tyler Morris. Morris returned it 65 yards for a touchdown to tie the game up at 7-7 with 19 seconds left in the half.
Elliot wasn't content to go into the locker rooms tied up.
Following an average kickoff return, a keeper by Davis got Ryle out to their own 38 yard line. With .9 left on the clock, Ryle called a simple draw up the middle for Elliot. Sixty-two yards later, Elliot had his second touchdown to put Ryle back on top 14-7 heading into halftime.
"They had their linebackers and secondary back deep and only three down linemen so I was just following my lead block Mac Vollett and he led me into the end zone," Elliot said.
The second half started off the same way the first ended, with Elliot finding the endzone on a long, impressive run. This time it was the opening kickoff of the half that Elliot took 85 yards for the score to extend Ryle's lead to 20-7 after a missed extra point attempt.
"Right when I got it on the right side, the seam was just open and I just bursted for it," Elliot said about the kickoff return.
Nearly three minutes later, it was Davis' turn to get in on the scoring act for the Raiders. After marching the team into the redzone, the junior signal-caller shook off four would-be tacklers on his way to a 24-yard touchdown. He then tossed a successful two-point conversion pass to put the Raiders up 28-7.
Both defenses started bearing down a little bit after that. The teams exchanged possessions a few times and it would be the middle of the fourth quarter before anyone would score again.
Not surprisingly, that next score came from Elliot. Taking a direct snap out of the shotgun due to Davis being injured on the previous play, Elliot scored from 24 yards out with 5:50 left in the game.
Cooper responded with a nice drive that culminated in a 35-yard field goal from Senior kicker Michael Hollifield.
Elliot had one more run in him as he took another direct snap filling in for Davis and turned it into another touchdown after a 72-yard scamper. Elliot's final run left him with five touchdowns and 173 yards on just 12 carries, plus an 85 yard kickoff return.
"I'm must following my blocks," Elliot said, deflecting attention after the game when asked about his success.
Davis added 97 yards and a score on 19 carries to go along with 88 yards through the air while completing 5-of-14 attempts. Warner said after the game that Davis' injury was not serious and that he was "fine."
"He's an excellent leader. He handles the football well and makes good decisions. His first night here at Ryle on the big stage - he did a great job for us," Warner said about his quarterback.
Cooper was led by running back AJ Collins who carried 14 times for 87 yards and scored a late touchdown with under a minute to play in the game to make the final score 41-17.
Morris tacked on 61 yards on 20 carries from both the quarterback and running back positions for the Jaguars.
It didn't take him long to make his mark on the game once he entered at the beginning of the second quarter though.
Elliot scored on a screen pass that he took 48 yards for the score on just his third touch of the game to break a 0-0 tie early in the second quarter. The touchdown would mark his first of five that he would eventually score as he dazzled the fans in attendance with big run after big run.
"He was fresh. He was ready to go," Ryle head coach Bryson Warner said about his star running back. "He's a guy we're doing a lot of different things with. He's going to be hard to defend all season."
After Elliot's first score, Ryle was looking to add another touchdown before halftime. New Raider quarterback Nathan Davis, who was making his first start for Ryle, marched the Ryle offense near midfield but as he dropped back from his own 43 his ensuing pass was picked off by Cooper safety Tyler Morris. Morris returned it 65 yards for a touchdown to tie the game up at 7-7 with 19 seconds left in the half.
Elliot wasn't content to go into the locker rooms tied up.
Following an average kickoff return, a keeper by Davis got Ryle out to their own 38 yard line. With .9 left on the clock, Ryle called a simple draw up the middle for Elliot. Sixty-two yards later, Elliot had his second touchdown to put Ryle back on top 14-7 heading into halftime.
"They had their linebackers and secondary back deep and only three down linemen so I was just following my lead block Mac Vollett and he led me into the end zone," Elliot said.
The second half started off the same way the first ended, with Elliot finding the endzone on a long, impressive run. This time it was the opening kickoff of the half that Elliot took 85 yards for the score to extend Ryle's lead to 20-7 after a missed extra point attempt.
"Right when I got it on the right side, the seam was just open and I just bursted for it," Elliot said about the kickoff return.
Nearly three minutes later, it was Davis' turn to get in on the scoring act for the Raiders. After marching the team into the redzone, the junior signal-caller shook off four would-be tacklers on his way to a 24-yard touchdown. He then tossed a successful two-point conversion pass to put the Raiders up 28-7.
Both defenses started bearing down a little bit after that. The teams exchanged possessions a few times and it would be the middle of the fourth quarter before anyone would score again.
Not surprisingly, that next score came from Elliot. Taking a direct snap out of the shotgun due to Davis being injured on the previous play, Elliot scored from 24 yards out with 5:50 left in the game.
Cooper responded with a nice drive that culminated in a 35-yard field goal from Senior kicker Michael Hollifield.
Elliot had one more run in him as he took another direct snap filling in for Davis and turned it into another touchdown after a 72-yard scamper. Elliot's final run left him with five touchdowns and 173 yards on just 12 carries, plus an 85 yard kickoff return.
"I'm must following my blocks," Elliot said, deflecting attention after the game when asked about his success.
Davis added 97 yards and a score on 19 carries to go along with 88 yards through the air while completing 5-of-14 attempts. Warner said after the game that Davis' injury was not serious and that he was "fine."
"He's an excellent leader. He handles the football well and makes good decisions. His first night here at Ryle on the big stage - he did a great job for us," Warner said about his quarterback.
Cooper was led by running back AJ Collins who carried 14 times for 87 yards and scored a late touchdown with under a minute to play in the game to make the final score 41-17.
Morris tacked on 61 yards on 20 carries from both the quarterback and running back positions for the Jaguars.
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