By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Beechwood senior quarterback Cameron Hergott wants to get a scholarship to play college football and he hopes to make that happen by spending another year playing on the high school level.
Hergott, who was named Mr. Kentucky Football after leading Beechwood to the Class 2A state championship last season, announced Tuesday on Twitter that he will take advantage of a bill passed by the state legislature that allows high school students to repeat this school year because of disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cameron Hergott
The bill also grants another year of eligibility to play high school sports for students who do not exceed the participating age limit of 19 years old.
Last summer, Hergott did not get to attend college football camps due to COVID-19 restrictions and the 6-foot-3, 190-pound quarterback did not receive any scholarship offers from NCAA Division I programs that are members of the Football Championship Subdivision.
He still didn’t get the offer he wanted following his exceptional senior season at Beechwood. The dual-threat quarterback passed for 2,467 yards and 26 touchdowns while also rushing for 1,078 yards and 15 touchdowns during his team’s 10-2 campaign.
That’s why Hergott was named Kentucky Mr. Football by the state coaches association and was co-winner of that award in a poll of media members conducted by the Associated Press.
In February, he made a commitment to join the University of Akron as a preferred walk-on, but that program competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision. His goal is to attract a scholarship from a college program on the highest level. And now he’ll have another year to do that.
Walton-Verona pitcher signs letter of intent with Kentucky Wildcats
Walton-Verona senior Travis Smith signed a national letter of intent to play baseball for the University of Kentucky during a ceremony at his school on Monday.
Travis Smith
The right-handed pitcher, who made a commitment with the Wildcats the summer before his sophomore year, opened his senior season with three consecutive no-hitters. He now has a 4-1 record with 70 strikeouts in 32 innings and a 1.54 ERA.
Smith is also the leading hitter on the 19-3 Walton-Verona team with a .426 average, four home runs and 30 runs batted in.
On Thursday, Smith will be on the mound and at the plate when Walton-Verona takes on Owensboro Catholic (18-3) in the championship game of the All “A” Classic state tournament that’s set for 6:30 p.m. at Louisville Holy Cross High School.
Baseball teams playing in Reds Futures Showcase this weekend
The Covington Catholic baseball team that maintained its perfect record with a 7-0 win over Newport Central Catholic on Tuesday will play one of five high school games at Great American Ballpark on Friday and Saturday.
CovCath (23-0) will take on Cincinnati Moeller (14-9) in the final game of the Reds Futures High School Showcase at 5 p.m. Saturday. The first game of the weekend series will be Beechwood (19-3) vs. Dixie Heights (15-9) at 5 p.m. Friday. The other three games will be between Ohio teams.
Last week, Dixie Heights coach Chris Maxwell picked up his 700th career win. He now has a 702-468 record in 37 years with the program and ranks among the top 12 in career wins among Kentucky high school baseball coaches.
Tickets for the Showcase games will be $5 at the ballpark both days. The most valuable players from each game will be invited to the Reds home game on Sunday, May 23 to receive commemorative bats.
