Hillsboro 35, DeSoto 17
The Gridiron Geek’s absolute favorite kind of football game is the rare contest that helps both teams. We don’t mean the pabulum that’s heard after a sloppy Week 1 scrum, when coaches say stuff like, “This will be everybody’s best week of practice.” Nor does it always apply when coaches of Friday Night Lights blow-out victims say, “(Blow-Out Winner) is who we hope to become going forward.” We mean a 4-quarter clash that both organizations can look back on and be GRATEFUL for, regardless of the W/L outcome, like when the early-’80s San Francisco 49ers creamed the Washington Redskins, propelling themselves into a playoff run. QB Joe Theismann of the ‘Skins, to that date a petulant and selfish young player, showed up at head coach Joe Gibbs’ house in tears at 1 AM on Monday morning, and asked if they could settle their differences and find common ground. Within a few years, both franchises were considered to be the epitome of National Football League success.
It wasn’t supposed to be so entertaining at Joachim Junction on Friday. DeSoto vs Hillsboro wasn’t supposed to be so sharp and crisp, so high-scoring, or filled with tide-turning plays instead of blunders and boo-boos. Most of all, it wasn’t supposed to mint the upbeat vibe that became of it. It was an open secret going into Week 7’s kickoff that Hillsboro’s All-State quarterback Preston Brown had suffered injury to his non-throwing hand in Mississippi Conference play, and that Brown “Kurt Warner”-d his way through a Player Of The Week performance against Windsor while nursing 2+ broken digits last weekend. Brown’s big throwing arm, his seam-lacin’ fingers, and scholarship to North Dakota State are all fine and dandy. Week 6 showed that Preston Brown can play better with one arm than most of his colleagues using both of theirs, not unlike Def Leppard’s drummer in his heyday. NDSU’s program would seem to have cooperated with Hillsboro on a plan to allow Preston one more conference date as a Varsity send-off. But they also requested that Brown have a seat on the bench, and undergo careful surgery and rehab, before his OTA cycle begins with North Dakota State next semester. As such, Hillsboro needed a different QB to step in against DeSoto and onward in 2024, but the lack of a prying local media made that quarterback’s identity a mystery, if the Hawks had even settled on one.
Braxton Chazelle is the new man behind center, a fact that was revealed to all of Missouri’s prying eyes in the first series at DeSoto. Live Stream STL and other pundits called for Hillsboro’s typical run-away win over DeSoto without realizing what a BIG DEAL it was for Blue & White to have to replace Mr. Brown in midseason. In fact, Ray Halbrook’s crew didn’t even seem to KNOW about a story that’s been bubbling to the surface for weeks now, until HC Russ Schmidt mentioned on-air that Chazelle had been the opposing QB instead of Hillsboro’s senior prospect bound for Fargo. (Matt Bates of Live Stream STL said, “No one around here predicted that the Hillsboro-DeSoto game would be close,” showing that Bates ignores The Geek’s efforts at poetry, in addition to the scoops he could find on Mississippi Magazine with only a brief browse.) It had to have been a pressured-packed scenario for Chazelle, a junior receiver, to step into the spot from which Brown has taken virtually every snap for years running. No other Hillsboro quarterback had tried so much as a single pass attempt in an official game since 2021. Chazelle was everything the Hawks needed him to be, and more, flinging enough accurate passes to keep DeSoto honest while leading a “Pistol Snap” version of what looked like Hillsboro’s old-school option offense from the 2010s. The 6’0″ upperclassman became one of MSHSAA’s only players to ever shine in a victory while making his first official pass-attempts AND his first official rush attempts, bolting away on a scintillating 60-yard option carry to score HHS’ second TD. It probably shocked the Dragons that Chazelle played like such a veteran, and might’ve produced 6 TD drives were it not for a fumble that put wind at DeSoto’s back midway through the opening half.
Bill Sucharski of Hillsboro has clearly done a great job devising a new HHS playbook around Chazelle. Leon Hall’s attack certainly fared better while coming back to win in the final 24:00, but The Geek didn’t see a lot of gaskets-blown by Hillsboro in the 1st half at DeSoto, save for that Red Zone fumble. One mishap occurred in plus-territory when the Hawks decided to shift into a “Lee Freeman” look with Chazelle right under center, a ball-handling knack that a backup QB with no experience is likely to have problems with. Hillsboro took a 5-yard flag before even running the play, and then shifted right back into the “Preston Brown formations” of 2023-24, not really trying the under-center gambit again as opposed to a simpler version of Hillsboro ’24. That’s probably the best idea. If the HHS athletes were asked to go back to a playbook of yore, that would be a half-baked solution. Hillsboro staying versatile allowed the Hawks to show that they’ve been about more than just a QB.
How did Friday’s game help DeSoto? Let us count the ways! The 3-4 DeSoto Dragons outscored Hillsboro 17-7 between that fumble recovery and Quarter 2’s whistle, producing Joachim Junction’s first breakthrough against Hillsboro’s first string in 4 years. Russ Schmidt’s junior RB Brenton Drummond took a classic Wing-T sweep all the way down to the 2-yard line to help get DeSoto on the board, while Chazelle’s offense started fast and then began to be contained. Austin Missey played his best game-to-date as DeSoto’s starting quarterback, picking up his own bobbled snap and throwing on the run to convert a 4th-and-long on the Dragons’ second scoring drive. Before you knew it, a nice field goal from Josh Golightly had given DHS its first lead over Hillsboro High since the COVID-19 era.
Schmidt told postgame interview hosts that DeSoto’s lack of upperclass numbers compared to Hillsboro’s told the tale in the latter 24:00. Maybe that’s true, but we’re still delighted with how the contest worked out for both schools, because of the resilient play-making of both offenses under duress. Brown was doubling as a safety for Hillsboro prior to his (eventual) season-ending injury, which might have made it easier for a pass-happy opponent to take advantage of the Hawks’ defense as it also hurries to try to replace a key piece. But given DeSoto’ power-running style in 2024, no opposing safety would have made that much of a difference in whether Dragon rushers found daylight in Week 7. DeSoto might have had a few more open WRs thanks to Brown’s absence, but the Dragons made their statement in the trenches against the enduring strength of HHS football. It was a taste of real success against MSHSAA’s elite, and it could unleash a feeding frenzy of confidence and momentum.
Friday got even MORE promising for Joachim Junction when other final scores rolled in. DeSoto should be favored over its last 2 regular-season rivals Potosi and Herculaneum, once again putting that magic 5-4 mark in the Dragons’ sights. However, if you believe the quest for a #5 District seed is just another “symbol” type of achievement for Schmidt’s upstart team, think again. Perryville is one upset loss away from seeding #4 and drawing a Week 10 Q-Final rematch that DeSoto could easily win. Even if DeSoto must visit a #4 seeded North County, that’s not a given defeat whatsoever, because…
North County 14, Windsor 12
Beg your pardon, Jefferson Blue Jays and Grandview Eagles. We’ll get to your terrific Friday fracas here in a moment. But the North County vs Windsor result compels breaking the “county vs county games go on top” rule, given how amazing it was to see DeSoto AND Windsor making hay against the big-shots of their conference on the very same night. Windsor walked into Bonne Terre and put on a ball-control clinic, fighting through hard downs-and-distances to make as many 1st downs by the nose of the pigskin as Crystal City’s option offense in its upset of #4 ranked Tipton High. North County’s offense wasn’t awful, but the Windsor Owls played their finest bend-but-don’t-break defense against a league contender since the Festus-Windsor contest of 2015, and Bonne Terre just couldn’t get Luke Patterson’s pesky offense off the field often enough to knock the frost off its passing game. Week 7’s scrum at NCHS turned into a YouTube treat, thanks to the “UniTec” student media project, and the delightful commentary team of Zarek Knox and Jaycee Allen. Windsor, losing by 8 points with time running out, embarked on a drive of pure guts (and some North County penalties), scoring on a gorgeous TD toss from Patterson to Logan Wilson at the buzzer, but coming up 2′ short of forcing OT on a 2-point conversion attempt in what was easily the most dramatic JCAA finish of 2024.
Take notice, DeSoto…and Perryville, and Sikeston. A couple of weeks ago the District 1 championship race still looked preordained, with a likely Hillsboro-Festus collision course to the final and North County as the only worthwhile spoiler’s bid. That’s been flipped on its head in a matter of 48 hours. Hillsboro prevailed in the win-loss department while losing its superstar to Fargo in the quarterback department. Festus has its first loss of the season and its first blow-out defeat since 2022. Factor in how shaky #4 North County looks after Friday, and 2024’s bracket may be turning into a free-for-all.
Jefferson 20, Grandview 12
Jefferson continues to win at the brisk pace we’re accustomed to, but without the blocking, tackling, or overall defense that has characterized the best JHS lineups since 2012. That’s not to say that Matt Atley’s Varsity Blue Jays can’t triumph in the District playoffs, but it will be a matter of individual efforts by difference-making players, even more so than when Colby Ott took the region’s breath away against New Madrid County Central about 4 calendar years ago. Cooper Frisk and Landon Weiss were the top names again in Jefferson’s road win, but Frisk was held to just 4-of-12 passing the bean.
Weiss’ wonderful night couldn’t keep Grandview from making a statement in defeat. QB/DB Brendan Martin played an outstanding game against the I-55’s long-time title contenders, galloping for more yards than Grandview’s rushing star Wyatt Keim, and snagging an interception. Keim had a good outing against Jefferson also, helping the Birds of Prey build a 12-6 halftime lead in a moment of glory that matched DeSoto’s vibe after taking a lead over Hillsboro into the break. But another running back, Issac Walker, finished with more yards-gained than Keim, a product of Grandview play callers going more toward the option running game than in past seasons. Tailbacks are competitive souls, but Keim – who led Grandview’s defense with 14 total tackles against the Blue Jays – has done so much heavy lifting for the offense that he’s probably glad to be out-paced by 2 teammates for a change. Grandview’s bolstered balance could make GHS a difficult matchup for St. Pius in the quarterfinals.
Is GHS’s offensive and defensive line the comeback story of Mississippi Magazine’s year so far? The Varsity Eagles have a line with all the size, power, and bone girth you could ask for in Class 2, but not enough second-string depth that the coaches can really threaten to replace anybody. It’s up to the Eagles’ limited contingent of 6-7 bruisers to sink or swim on their own. GHS was so disorderly at the line of scrimmage early this season that it allowed Cuba to win a war in the trenches for the first time since 1967 (that includes Fidel Castro’s army), and later, the GHS Eagles let poor Principia annoy their defense for another embarrassing 24 minutes. Maybe the squad needed its shut-out defeat to Perryville in Week 5 to take stock and regroup. In any event, by the 2nd half of the Herculaneum victory, Tucker Rhinehart and Grandview’s group of big men got all of the kinks worked out. Grandview’s yards-per-carry almost beat R-7’s YPC in Week 7’s squeaker, a watershed for the Eagle backfield.
DeSmet 42, Festus 13
Okay, so, about that 4th quarter. The Festus Tigers’ supposedly deepest lineup ever ran flat out of gas late on Friday night, allowing Class 6’s #5 ranked DeSmet Spartans to rack-up touchdowns on a scoreboard that looked perfectly fine through most of 3 frames at Tiger Stadium. By not holding on to a sub-13 point defeat and scoring “quality loss” points against a MSHSAA Top 10 team for the first time in school history, the boys blew an opportunity to blast a shock-and-awe final score out over the wires, and grab our pigskin region’s attention like never before. Regretfully, if the state’s pattern of ranking Jefferson County teams continues, Festus will be voted out of Class 4’s Top 10 rankings now, while DeSmet is ranked down to #10,679th in the Midwest for not properly blowing-out Festus.
But oh, what a show Festus (and DeSmet) put on in the first 36:00. The Festus Tigers spent the 1st quarter erasing ANY idea that they couldn’t compete with CBC’s rivals, stopping the Spartans 3-and-out with aid of a penalty, then marching down to the 1-yard-line. Incredibly, FHS nearly took a 7-0 lead over DeSmet while cautiously hiding the Tigers’ real goal-line playbook, simply running 4 times up the middle on an unsuccessful goal-to-go turn. Black & Gold’s defense stood stoutly, however, containing DeSmet’s amazing roster of RBs to about 200 yards on over 30 rushes. DeSmet held merely a 7-0 edge after a 1st half in which R-6 shined on special teams, with Avery Edwards picking up a blocked opposing field-goal try and racing to midfield as the Senior Night throng went wild. Midmeadow Lane’s phony play-calling in the Red Zone wasn’t a product of having clinched top seeding. It occurred because the coaches knew that a LOT of eyes were watching Friday’s fireworks.
Then came the start of Quarter 3, and one of the most spectacular tit-for-tat sequences of the year in Missouri football. Essien Smith began the 2nd half with a Moon-shot, nailing Trey Lacey on a bomb down the right sideline for an 80+ yard touchdown and a 7-7 deadlock. QB Dillon Duff of DeSmet accepted the challenge, and fired a 63-yard TD bomb to the Spartans’ receiving star Nathan Hatcher. By then, both teams’ offenses were starting to get mad. RB Kamden Yates looped into a hole and sprinted for a 50+ yard touchdown carry just seconds later, displaying almost as much functional speed as a sophomore as DeSmet’s vaunted seniors. There were, at that moment, only 53 seconds elapsed in the 3rd quarter, in which the Tigers and Spartans had combined for 225 yards and 20 points! Lacey’s unreal development as a big-play wide receiver – in addition to a scholarship defensive back – gives Midmeadow Lane its best receiving weapon since Arhmad Branch left for Purdue in 2022-23.
Sure, things quieted down after that, especially for the FHS offense. But what we got in that 53 seconds was a glimpse of a Festus team that could go as far as the Hillsboro Hawks or Park Hills Central Rebels of 2023. The Geek didn’t have to check around for head coach A.J. Ofodile’s postgame remarks, because he already knew what Coach O would have to say, and it’s all good news. “Regardless of the outcome, we LEARNED a few things,” his interview would begin. “We learned that Trey Lacey can be a game-changing receiver against anyone, and we learned that Kamden Yates…well, he’s a Yates!”
Ofodile is getting the hang of it at Festus R-6. When in doubt, go with any Bates, Yates, Lucas, or Eggemeyer you’ve got handy. It’s been a reliable method for staying on top of Class 3 and Class 4 over the years. Those family trees just didn’t lay as much lumber on Class 6 opponents, at least until Coach O’s staff got ahold of them.
St. Pius 29, Miller Career Academy 18
The Geek briefly posted about a would-be Facebook Group user named “AYFM BUTT” on Friday, then wound up deleting them (upon finding evidence of spam, of course) and the accompanying group post once our editor Christine logged online, wondering why The Geek would “ass” her a question like that at 10 AM. It’s especially galling to Mississippi Magazine that the world’s glut of fake Varsity sports “streams,” promoted by fake accounts, are programmed by people who don’t even care to look up what the dirty (or funny) words are in the countries they’re trying to rip people off in. People can tell a real High School Football stream from its direct, specific, and low-key presentation, as opposed to the “HIGH-SKULE SPORTING CHAMPIONSHIP” in “SUPER MEGA HI-DEF LIVE ACTION!”
Then again, gosh, did you see the 2nd half of St. Pius versus Miller Career Academy? Or the 4th quarter of Crystal City at Duchesne, for that matter? Readers know how much we love our Tri-City teams on these scrolls, but them’s were some snooze-inducing frames of football that took place in the latter half of Friday’s Tri-City small school games. Hill Valley’s “23-6” tally was just one of the scoreboards that sat inert so long, it was like a lightning suspension. We may actually need some “AWESUM VARSITY LIVE STREEM!” ads to get folks to tune into Friday Night Lights next week, if not at $49.99.
Really, we don’t think the Lancers and Hornets forgot how to move the ball, complete passes, or score touchdowns in Quarters 3-4 of Friday’s critical wins. Both coaching staffs were as nervous as a spammer sitting next to Christine after having taken substantial leads over Miller and Duchesne respectively, because in each case, the W was so, so much more important than style points. The Varsity Lancers, for instance, had to complete a 3-game midseason run of victories before walking the plank against an NCAA-lite opponent in Baylor, and an old-timey bugaboo opponent in Week 9’s visiting Olympic Athletes of Valle Catholic. Now that St. Pius stands at a hard-earned 4 wins and 3 losses, the Lancers can absorb a couple of losses, if need be, and still hope to host Grandview instead of visiting GHS in Week 10’s inevitable playoff pairing. St. Pius used its offense as a ball-control weapon until finally getting on the 4th-quarter scoreboard and sealing its Homecoming win, though spectators could see those bye-week “Turbo” legs aiding Miller’s comeback bid. The Varsity Phoenix plays Jackson in Week 8, so perhaps Miller chose to go all-out with an academic loss lurking.
Crystal City 22, Duchesne 7
This blogger has taken flack for invoking other sports in previews all the time, for example Mississippi Magazine’s fetish for old-timey NHL coach references. One reason for that, of course, is to help our beginners who became football fans when their nephews joined the Crystal City Hornets, and to add colorful tales for those readers who may have only ever *watched* other sports until now (“Ted Nolan walked in wearin’ a Team Latvia blazer, a suede overcoat, silk pants, chewin’ on Juicy Fruit gum, and chompin’ on mint cigars. I didn’t know whether to shake his hand, OR KISS HIM!” – Don Cherry). Remember, though, that some of the best Friday Night Lights maxims are true elsewhere in the sports universe. For instance, one of Scotty Bowman’s weird-but-true ideas was that good teams go plunging into slumps with average performances, and they also come OUT of a slump with average, forgettable games, like the St. Louis Blues finishing a bad road trip with a 1-1 tie in Ottawa.
It doesn’t sound right. Players do not go into a slump by performing average. Bad things happen to knock their morale down a peg, and they look lousy in a big game, and THAT causes the slump. Then, when they snap out of it, it’s supposed to be a “Casey at the Bat” scenario where the team grits its teeth, and either wins by 5 touchdowns/runs/goals or falls flat 100%, and keeps trying to fight out of the funk. But nonetheless, Bowman’s theory proves true across sports and nations and age groups, and it’s become true again with Crystal City this pigskin season. 2024’s CCHS Hornets were dreadfully average in the 2nd half of their Homecoming Game against Bayless, not pulling away and maintaining a large-enough lead to keep a late, lucky TD from giving Bayless a watershed win. Then occurred the Slump of 2024 in which Crystal City couldn’t get out of its own way against schools Bradley’s Farm has battered in the recent past, like Three Rivers Confluence in Week 4. Friday’s “Brahms Lullaby” of a second 24:00 at Duchesne might have been frustrating to watch, but Adam Sims knows that the Hornets are trending up again, and his cautious strategy was big-picture based.
It was all about taking zero chances, keeping the Game Clock going, and letting Duchesne bump into a Crystal City defense that played its toughest physical bout of the year against QB Sam Jost and a power-running opponent. Crystal did not want to overuse Ricardo Pastrana, either, since having the junior fullback back in the mix AND a 13+ point win over Class 3 feels like money in the bank. The Crystal City Hornets have clinched home-field in Week 11, and must only finish 1-1 to seal a favorable Round 1 matchup vs Malden or Chaffee, instead of running into Hayti or Charleston too early.
Northwest 35, Hazelwood West 14
BILLY BAROO! I KNEW YOU’D DO IT BILLY!
Oakville, currently the #4 seed in Class 6, District 1, has gone into a slump just as 3-4 Northwest snaps out of its midseason downturn with a 21-point win. Closing the season with 2 very winnable games against Parkway Central and (guess who) Oakville on the week to follow, Cedar Hill has a glorious chance to get to a #4 vs #5 quarterfinal, and maybe just maybe, vie to prevail in it. Northwest head coach Scott Gerling has made the decision he should have made 6 months ago, and bestowed every-down quarterback duty to the sophomore phenom Cohenn Stark. Stark rewarded his better-late-than-never coaching staff’s call by running the hottest Northwest offense we’ve seen all season, racking up 10+ YPC and 300+ combined yards in the 5 touchdown effort.
But what about Fox, the school that beat Northwest in 2024’s rivalry reboot, and that is not only rated #5 in the District above Northwest currently, but which can “jump” the Varsity Lions automatically in Week 10’s bracket seedings, due to the head-to-head win? Well, it’s a point of view that Northwest could go 1-1 or even an impressive 2-0 and still miss out on that well-matched quarterfinal. But we think that if Cedar Hill defeats Oakville to win-out, it will probably seed #4 without having to jump anybody, with either Fox or (hopefully) the weaker OHS Tigers slated to visit in the playoffs.
We also know the Fox Warriors aren’t going anywhere fast in the regular-season points race, because…
Lindbergh 31, Fox 13
In the objective, Week 7 was another sturdy performance by Fox High. Arnold fought right back after 2 early scoring drives from Lindbergh, and held opposing QB Sam Estrada to just 114 passing yards. But it’s hard to escape the notion that we’ve been recapping the same Fox Warriors performances, week after week, and season-on-season. With all due respect to yet another county Large School with fledgling QBs forced into a starting role, the Warriors are getting stuck in a rut after breaking through state-wide in 2020, and could use any kind of nice surprise on the gridiron going into Week 10.
Herculaneum 13, Bayless 9
It was Herculaneum’s husky defense that turned the season around in 2023, and Friday’s HUGE win for the Herky Blackcats may have been an example of the same thing happening this fall. Then again, Dunklin had itself a “Grandview in Week 7” turnaround on offense against the swift, talented Bayless Broncos in the 2nd half, scoring 2 hard-earned touchdowns while the same Iron Man kids went to town warding-off a Class 3 passing attack. Herculaneum seems bound for a Q-Final playoff at St. Genevieve, and has an outside chance at the upset if Braydon Mattingly heats up again.
Seckman 28, Parkway South 7 (Thursday)
Thursday’s score comes last because it probably goes last on Seckman’s mantle of victories, given Week 7’s pedestrian offense that petered-out in Parkway South territory just like Northwest’s humble offense did earlier in the year. The only difference was that the Jaguars’ struggle to score came in Quarter 1, not when it counted so very much, and there was of course 2024’s Seckman Blocks of Granite defense to hold things steady while SHS found its rushing legs again. Imperial quarterback Brody Kube had another sub-50% passing night to go with a hot-and-cold season, but Parkway South was so improved on defense that Kube didn’t get many favorable downs, making the Rubik’s Kube harder to solve. Seckman must whitewash 2 weaker teams to remain ranked JCPP #2 going into Week 10.