#1 – Festus Tigers
The Gridiron Geek never thought he would see the day. Sure, you hear that a lot in sports hype, but come on … did anyone imagine in their wildest whim that Jefferson County could have TWELVE OUT OF TWELVE promising football teams? Our lowest-ranked schools are recent postseason winners. The middle tier of the Jefferson County Power Poll is filled with lethal squads like Jefferson High and Northwest Cedar-Hill ’25. Heck, the Grandview Eagles, who’ve been trying like mad to get back into “single digit” territory in Mississippi Magazine’s rankings, look like a blue-chip pick for a top District seed.
Remember the 2010s, when JeffCo wondered if we could develop three or four decent Friday Night Lights teams? We watched exactly 3/12 of the Dirty Dozen make it past Week 10 in 2019, each to fall in defeat as underdogs in the District Semifinals. Since then, four of Mississippi Magazine’s teams have reached the State Semifinal round, two of them (Hillsboro and Festus) going to the Big Dance. There’s a golden age of quarterbacks happening between the Meramec and Big River. Sensational seasons may be on the way from QBs Parker Perry, Cooper Frisk, Cohenn Stark, Chandler Price and others.
The Festus Tigers are worthy #1 representatives of our new hotbed. Black & Gold is off to its best “Hangover Cure” start in a generation, having fallen back following many of Midmeadow Lane’s state-playoff runs of the 1990s and 2000s. Former head coach Bob Hollmann’s run to a MSHSAA semifinal was replaced by a late-1990s team so hapless that Herky scored three times on its first six plays against Festus in ’97. The success of 2018’s sophomore group was replaced by the junior-year blues (and injuries) in 2019. A.J. Ofodile’s 2021 team had a hangover of sorts – but they’ve learned from that one. This year’s hot 2-0 start has been buoyed by new names on the FHS depth chart, but they’re “quiet” additions (for now) that help in just the right spots.
Parker Perry’s backfield is like a “Rich Man’s Crystal City Hornets” because the overflow of fine tailbacks is giving Festus new options at receiver. Kamden Yates can split out next to David Russell, putting the Tigers’ fastest and most-agile weapons on the boundary at once. FHS finally has some STLToday statistics out on Perry’s season so far, including a marvelous 32-of-40 passing mark. His “8-for-32” rush stats undersell his scrambling.
As per usual, Ofodile reached into his bag of tricks and convinced a couple of Heavyweight grapplers – or incoming transfers? – to block and tackle and provide depth alongside a crew of Connor Rush, Mason Weinhaus, Antonio Pinkston, and other standout bruisers who have had no understudies to speak of in the 250-pound range. With senior Cedric Drown and sophomore Rashad Bryant, plus Eli Tilley’s long reach helping the sophomore in promotion from the frosh team, the Tigers suddenly look comparable to 2024’s amazing band in the trenches, at least in the depth department.
Is there a weakness in the Varsity Tigers’ armor? The Geek thinks it’s in the lack of pure speed in the defensive backfield, and in the stubbornness of the Black & Gold’s coaches to play lots of aggressive man-on-man coverage no matter what. (If “Lutheran North 29, Tigers 0” in Q2 doesn’t get the message across, then we’re sticking with an aggressive defense, just like Coach Norman Dale told the Hickory Barber Shop.) But what if 2025’s Festus offense is such a fine-tuned weapon that our best bet against the Lutheran North-s of the world is to score touchdowns, then sit back in a Cover-2 and dare an opponent to play perfect football to keep up? We’ll see if the Tigers adjust to their talent and prevent Yates from growing too tired on double-duty.
#2 – Seckman Jaguars
We’ve heard it said that Seckman football is different this year. Pray tell, what’s so different about it? Seckman is right back where it usually is – in a good way – defeating the Fox Warriors come hell or high water. The Jaguars struggled to stop an opponent’s potent passing in Week 1. What else is new?
What’s new is that the Jags are being tested far earlier and more often than in previous Suburban League years. This weekend will test the #2 ranked Seckman Jaguars’ patience, for we’ve got a hunch that Cohenn Stark and the Northwest Lions aren’t going to take a week off from scoring TDs. But the Lions are still thin enough on defense that the Jaguars can still win handily – if they’re patient. If they turn the ball over anxiously, that’s another story.
If Northwest is the third really tough Seckman opponent this season, that’s not the 1-1 Jaguars’ fault either. Fans have to wrap our heads around the idea that a 7-2 Seckman record could prove more impressive than a “typical” 9-0 or 8-1 against a weaker set of Suburban League teams. Newcomers to SHS and Mississippi Magazine alike should be aware that Seckman has essentially no out-of-conference games to play in a standard regular season anymore. The Suburban League is a like a computer program that grew out of control, but the Jaguars’ big win shows that its byte is just fine.
#3 (T) – Fox Warriors
How does Class 5, District 1 set up for the Fox Warriors? It’s going to be better than any MSHSAA bracket with DeSmet, Jackson, and/or CBC hanging around, though there could still be trouble for QB Chandler Price’s troops as early as Week 11 if the Warriors don’t race to a nice seeding. We’re not buying that 2-0 Farmington is a world-beater just yet – the Black Knights are playing on adrenaline with a notable new head coach to show off for, but eventually, a team is going to POP and FIZZZZ out that fancy hurry-up offense and set Farmington reeling. That team could be Fox this November.
#3 (T) – Hillsboro Hawks
We don’t rank teams down to #4 for losing to the Metro Catholic. It’s hard to say Hillsboro would defeat Fox in head-to-head combat at this moment, though, making it necessary to tie the two schools at #3. The Geek does not like how many ties are in the Power Poll this Week 3. There’s just no getting past the discrepancy between Hillsboro’s playoff success and Fox’s postseason bids, although Arnold’s looks like the superior lineup after last Friday. It’s early, and if Leon Hall is back to mimicking its Lee Freeman days, that means the Hawks will get harder and harder to beat as more leaves start to fall.
#5 (T) – Northwest Lions
MSHSAA thinks it’s made Class 6 (and Class 1) more winnable due to reducing the number of teams. Perhaps it’s impossible to balance out the number of schools in each classification, but the five-team District idea helps Class 6’s aristocrats while leaving potential Cinderellas like Northwest in the cold.
Northwest’s obvious goal this fall is to host and win at least one playoff game. It would be a watershed that students at Northwest-CH and elsewhere took notice of, which would get more kids from NHS’s wide campus to join Cohenn Stark’s football team before he graduates in 2027. Then we would be looking at a real powerhouse before you know it. But it would help that cause a lot if Northwest hadn’t been jammed in a 60% full District again.
Class 6, District 1 is like a TV wrestling lineup with the “Jobbers” taken out. Who’s going to lose a match? Jackson and Seckman aren’t likely candidates, not in the opening round of play anyway. Oakville is off to a flying start, even if the Lindbergh Flyers aren’t. If Northwest could vie for a normal District’s #3 seed behind the Indians and Jaguars, the Lions would be poised to meet an average Class 6 opponent in a Week 10 quarterfinal in Cedar Hill. With the 2025 bracket, the Lions can seed a noble #3 and it just means that they have to visit a powerhouse (the #2 seed) in their first postseason appearance.
It might be best if the Northwest Lions finish #4 in C6D1. (The 2-0 Lions are very unlikely to finish #5.) That would produce a quarterfinal against Oakville or Lindbergh once all is said and done. It’s a solid consolation if Seckman happens to deal Northwest its first defeat of the season this Friday. If the upstart Lions hand the host Jaguars an upset in Week 3, that would give Northwest a practical guarantee on hosting a rematch come Week 11.
#5 (T) – Jefferson Blue Jays
Jefferson tying Park Hills Central in 48:00 is a bigger deal this year than it would have been last season. The CHS Rebels look ready to make last year’s state championship hangover a thing of the past, putting close to 30 upperclassmen on the gridiron in 2025. The Jefferson Blue Jays had to scratch and claw for offense in the “21-20” defensive battle with a deceptive final score due to the 13 points scored in OT. But the R-7 defense was fire when the schools came out of halftime, picking off opposing QB Brody Pigg twice in the 3rd quarter. Logan Vandeven took his INT straight to the house after junior defensive back Evan Botkin nearly scored on his own crafty interception. Park Hills would have been better off running up the middle for no gain and punting instead of letting the JHS defense wreak so much havoc. The Geek still thinks that this Friday’s key matchup is Jefferson’s offense versus Herculaneum’s defense, but that’s partially because Jefferson’s defense slowing Herky’s offense down in Week 3 is a foregone conclusion.
#7 – DeSoto Dragons
DeSoto deserves to be ranked in the Dirty Dozen’s top half after whipping Perryville 31-14. TGG suspects that Russ Schmidt’s 1-1 lineup would have one heck of a barnburner with the Jefferson Blue Jays, and probably a pretty good game with the Northwest Lions as well. It’s merely what we’ve been talking about for a while now – more and more Jefferson County teams are getting better all the time. A program has to improve a lot just to stay in place in the rankings! Not that the Dragons didn’t make great leaps-and-bounds in Week 2. DeSoto can ramp up its momentum with a win over NCHS this week.
#8 – Windsor Owls
The Gridiron Geek – egads! – is forced to become a regular old Smilin’ Jack sports reporter for rung #8 of the Jefferson County Power Poll. There is no real room – zip, zero, and zilch – between the remaining five teams at the “bottom.” They’re not bottom feeders in any stretch of the imagination. TGG counts no less than THREE potential District champions among the five final (not “bottom”) teams, and none of those three possible trophy-lifters are even ranked at #8! But if you put them all in one of FIFA’s North America 2026 qualification pools (and you let them play American Football instead of soccer) everybody’s record would trend toward .500.
Windsor takes the mantle of #8 for a couple of very St. Louis Post-Dispatch-y reasons. Windsor, unlike anyone ranked beneath the Owls, is 2-0 on the young season, and it hails from Class 4, not a Small Schools division. Coach Freeman’s team also has a head-to-head win over Herky, one of the five in our fictional “CONCACAF” group without a Saint Kitts & Nevis for everyone to kick around.
#9 (T) – Grandview Eagles
Forget “2-0 overall.” Grandview could be on its way to a 2-0 conference record with its favorable home game against Cuba slated for Week 3. The lively Cuba Wildcats offense that bedeviled Grandview and Herky on road trips last season seems to have vanished as of early September. There’s always the chance that an injury brought on the 1-1 Wildcats’ scoreless collapse vs Clever High School after winning again to begin the campaign, but if it’s the QB or his receivers, or both, ‘Bonners Ferry’ could be up a creek for now.
Meanwhile, Isaac Walker’s fine 7.1 YPC mark is being surpassed by two GHS rushers (we’re sure that’s temporary!) in the Iron Man athlete Christian Volner and 2024’s Mississippi Magazine award-winning speedster Brock Poole. QB Brendan Martin hasn’t thrown any picks in spite of beginning his year with a start against Godzilla. What a blessing this balance will be if the Eagles keep it up.
#9 (T) – St. Pius Lancers
There are issues with Hill Valley’s backfield that are holding the St. Pius running game at bay. RBs like Cody Shaver are theoretically looking at more daylight than before thanks to a bigger, stronger offensive line. But the Lancers don’t seem confident in enough of their skill players to distribute the bean in the ground game. If STLToday’s stats are accurate through two contests, then right now the Lancers’ running game is all Shaver, with an occasional scramble upfield from sophomore QB Evan Eckrich. Other RBs have accumulated a grand total of six yards on six carries. Sophomore WR Harrison Ray is second on the team in total yards.
If some of 2024’s effective rushers are still around, why aren’t they getting any touches? Brody Ervin looked solid as a backup RB last year, but he’s been converted to a late-down receiver. Danny Degeare raced for 572 yards and 8 touchdowns last autumn and could have been moved to running back or fullback as a 225-pound Iron Man contributor, but he also seems to be missing from the new backfield. You can’t make the excuse that Degeare is “focused one way” with Shaver also making 10 tackles a game on D.
St. Pius is coming out in wide formations with one back, trying to “matriculate” drives downfield with precise execution and a balance of runs and passes. It might be better to add Degeare and Ervin to an “App State” formation and let Eckrich start making fakes to more than one guy. That would get the quarterback’s rushing attempts into double-digits and take some pressure off Shaver.
#11 – Herculaneum Blackcats
Congratulations to 1-1 Herky for climbing off the bottom rung of the Power Poll for the first time in a calendar year. It may seem like we’re holding the Felines out of the Top 10 due to recent history, or because Herculaneum is about to run into tough sledding against Jefferson R-7 and St. Vincent in Weeks 3 and 4 respectively. That’s not Herky’s biggest upcoming challenge, though it runs a close second. First and foremost, the Varsity Blackcats have to prove – in whatever way – that they’re not going to fall into a familiar, inexorable pattern of looking pretty good in the summer followed by a long downturn.
We’d like to see Herky keep Jefferson from scoring on the first big plays it tries for, as was the case when the Blue Jays whipped the Ravens/Rebels of Priory in their debut. Show that the Blackcats are closer to that “Park Hills Central” level of pigskin that they experienced firsthand in November 2023, as opposed to Priory’s fading brand that hasn’t been the same since the 1990s.
What do you know, St. Vincent has begun the year 0-2 and it might not be the gold standard of Quad County Conference teams this season. Get through the Jefferson game without humiliation that hurts the Blackcats’ momentum, and a 2-2 month can still be had.
#12 – Crystal City Hornets
Readers know just how badly The Geek hates to do this. Crystal City hasn’t had to be the #12 ranked team in a Power Poll since the watershed of 2021-22. Let it be said that with 12 out of 12 promising teams in Jeff County for the very first time ever, Crystal City is not a symbol of our worst football but rather one of our many, many contenders. CCHS is just playing the worst games right now.
Indeed, the CCHS Hornets are one of the three potential champions The Geek alluded to in rungs #9 through #12. But in the undoubtedly wise words of Coach Craig Collins, the bad news is that Crystal has been worse than a “C” at everything.
Which out-of-county opponent would you trust Crystal City to beat in Week 3? Bayless will be a tough out for Bradley’s Farm in any case, because for once, the Hornets will be prone to make just as many sloppy errors as the undisciplined Bronchos do. If Cuba was visiting Crystal in Week 3, we would call the Varsity Hornets favorites, but TGG would expect plenty of painful episodes in the game anyway. When a team goes into Self-Destruction Mode there’s little you can do except wait for the storm to blow over. The 2025 Hornets can’t be ranked above anyone in the Power Poll because we’re not sure that they can get out of their own way.
It is way better than a “Rich Brooks” start with a new coach. St. Louis Rams Fan Club alumni can recall Rich Brooks showing up with a new playbook and a wild defense and “YIPPIE!” the Rams were instant contenders as a relocated team. St. Louis sanctimoniously shot out to something like 4-1 prior to a home game against the San Francisco 49ers. The Post-Dispatch ran a cartoon depicting pitiful and frail visitors in 49ers jerseys being devoured by a pack of Mountain Goats. People were skipping down the street.
Halftime: 49ers 42, Rams 0. It all went downhill from there. St. Louis didn’t even have a winning season, finishing 7-9.
Crystal City can’t afford a Rich Brooks syndrome this year, with its giddy start under a new regime followed by a long backslide into the cellar. There’s simply too much at stake. CCHS is finally in the kind of Missouri bracket we’ve been waiting for, placed in a District and next to companion Districts with no private school powerhouses in them. The path to a Final Four has never been wider open, although it’s hard to imagine the Hornets competing in one. It’ll be easier to picture it if CCHS has its patented uptick in October.