Ryle fans cheer on the Raiders during Saturday's Class 6A final against Louisville Trinity. Photo provided | Charles Bolton
There’s at least one thing Ryle senior Shane Reim will never do.
He’ll never cheer for Cooper.
Cooper senior Emily Green was more charitable when asked whether she’d pull for the Raiders.
“Yeah, kind of,” Green said. “They’re from Union.”
Saturday was nevertheless a chance for the 7,671 Union residents to unite because the Boone County city’s two high schools competed for high school football titles at Kroger Field in Lexington – Ryle in the Class 6A against Louisville Trinity and Cooper against Bowling Green in 5A.
Things didn’t go well for either the Raiders or Jaguars. Trinity won its 29th title, 42-23, and the Purples won their second straight over Cooper, 37-20.
Two Union schools going for trophies mattered little to Reim.
Our motto is ‘Lead With Love’,” Reim said. “(Against Cooper) we lead with hate.”
Cooper sophomore Caleb Dietz didn’t hear Reim, but he returned verbal fire.
“They’re just mad we beat them,” Dietz said of the Jaguars’ 21-14 win on Sept. 6.
Cooper’s student section cheers on the Jaguars during the Class 5A state championship on Saturday at Kroger Field in Lexington. Photo provided | Charles Bolton
Cooper and Ryle are just five miles and a 12-minute drive on Longbranch Road, Orleans Boulevard and Old Union Road to U.S. 42. In between are upscale homes, tree-lined streets and a pizzeria.
The Raiders and Jaguars share more than a city and a county. Cooper at 2855 Longbranch Road, opened in 2008 and was named after the late Randy Cooper – Ryle’s first principal when the school opened in 1992.
Ryle was named after Larry A. Ryle, a former Boone County teacher, principal and administrator.
Both schools have sent basketball players to the professional ranks, too.
Cooper grad Adam Kunkel (2018), who played collegiately at Belmont and Xavier, is a member of Zunder Palencia in Spain. Sean McNeil (Cooper grad, 2018) recently signed with the Cleveland Charge, the Cleveland Cavaliers G-League affiliate for the NBA.
Ryle alumnus Justin Doellman, who led the Raiders to the 2002 Ninth Region title, went to Xavier and for several teams in Europe. (He later took Kosovan citizenship and played with the senior men’s Kosovan national teamat the EuroBasket 2017‘s qualification tournament.)
Some Ryle fans made it to Lexington from far away.
Shane Reim’s father, Kirk Reim, moved to Northern Kentucky from Las Vegas five years ago after Covid-19 eliminated his job as a long-haul trucker; his wife’s brother lives in Florence.
The elder Reim appreciates Ryle’s extensive list of extracurricular activities – something his son’s school in Nevada didn’t have.
“This is a whole new universe to him,” the elder Reim said.
Jacob Walbourn, a 2003 Ryle graduate, lives in Lexington. “I can’t not cheer for my alma mater when we’re two miles down the road,” he said.
At least one Raider fan said she’d cheer for Cooper. Cassie Landrum’s son, freshman Colby Landrum, was on the sidelines.
“They’re not playing us,” she said. “It’s good for Northern Kentucky. Absolutely we’re cheering for them.”
Near the end of Trinity’s win, Shane Reim was understandably “super-disappointed.”
“We had one great run for Ryle,” he said.
Union resident Paul Wilburn and his son Jacob were in the stands. His Saturday wish: a big-school championship because it’s never happened.
As the Wilburns headed for the concession stands at halftime, Paul was hopeful, despite Cooper’s two missed extra points. He also praised Bowling Green quarterback Deuce Bailey.
“I think it’s a great game so far,” Paul said. “Special teams play a role. (Bailey’s) elusive, very hard to tackle, let’s put it that way.”
The second half was very hard to watch; Bowling Green extended its 13-12 halftime lead to 27-12 on third quarter touchdowns by Bailey and Jaxen Smith.
“Somebody’s gotta lose,” Florence resident Zac Conrad said. “(Ryle and Cooper) both made it here. That’s an accomplishment in itself.”
