By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Drew Moore and Luke Zajac, two of the senior leaders on the Dixie Heights football team that was Class 6A state runner-up last season, have made their college commitments.
Moore, who had had a combined total of 3,428 rushing and passing yards as the Colonels’ quarterback, has accepted a scholarship from Ohio Dominican, a team that was ranked No. 4 in NCAA Division II last season.
Zajac, a two-way starter who rushed for more than 1,300 yards and made 60 tackles during his senior season, will continue his playing career at Thomas More College, a program with the highest winning percentage (70.9) in NCAA Division III football over the last 25 years.
Drew Moore will attend Ohio Dominican (Photo Provided)
“Drew and Luke will do very well in college,” said Dixie Heights coach Dave Brossart. “They both are tremendous athletes who do well in the classroom, too. Both are leaders and had exceptional careers. If they can work as hard in college as they did for me and Dixie Heights, they will have great football careers.”
Moore is one of two freshman quarterbacks recruited by Ohio Dominican, a team that passed for more than 360 yards per game in senior Mark Miller’s final season as the Panthers’ quarterback.
“That was one of the things that caught my eye,” Moore said. “They have great coaches up there and the quarterback coach is one of them. I think he can make me a great quarterback, so that’s pretty exciting.”
Moore passed for more than 1,400 yards and 11 touchdowns as Dixie’s quarterback last season. But he was much more effective running the ball on option plays, rushing for more than 1,900 yards and 29 TDs.
Luke Zajac is headed to Thomas More (Photo Provided)
He expects to be more of a passing quarterback in the Ohio Dominican offensive scheme and the Panthers’ coaching staff will be looking for someone to step into that position during pre-season practice.
“They have a redshirt sophomore up there who’s pretty good,” Moore said. “But it is pretty wide open because the quarterback they had was a four-year starter and now he’s graduating. I’ve just got to go up there and show them what I can do.”
Zajac was a starting running back and linebacker for Dixie Heights, but he was recruited to play in the offensive backfield by Thomas More. He could help the Saints recover from the loss of Dominque Hayes, who averaged 158 rushing yards per game during his senior season in 2014.
“I think I’m more of a play-maker when I carry the ball and get into open spaces,” Zajac said. “I like hitting people on defense, but I realized I could do that running the ball, too.”
Zajac said the departure of head coach Jim Hilvert did not change his mind about joining the Thomas More team along with his long-time friend and high school teammate Ben Owens, who will play linebacker for the Saints.
“Even though (Hilvert) left I’m still close with other members of the coaching staff,” Zajac said. “They called me and said everything was going to be OK and that helped a lot.”
Moore and Zajac were two of the seniors who led Dixie Heights to its best season ever last fall. The Colonels claimed their first Class 6A district title and won 13 straight games during the regular season and playoffs to make their first appearance in the state championship finals. Louisville Trinity defeated Dixie Heights, 47-14, in the title game with Moore getting 141 yards rushing and 225 yards passing to close out his high school career.
Terry Boehmker, NKyTribune sports writer, is former sportswriter and editor for The Kentucky Post. He is an award-winning writer with extensive background in both print and digital. Reach him at terryboe@yahoo.com.
