Missouri pigskin has fought off the scourge of football-first recruiting private schools killing its divisions. The great thing is that we did it in record time. The promotion system for MSHSAA private schools has balanced out the advantages that can be gained by even a strident private school that kids want to enroll and play for, while at least putting Lutheran North and Cardinal Ritter’s scrape-by-with-a-2.0 gridiron mercenaries in Class 4 and Class 5 where somebody in the bracket has a chance of beating them. Ritter can play for a state title 10 times in a row if Class 5’s field is thin enough, but they can’t win the Show-Me Bowl by a 55-0 final score against a Small School. Lutheran North trounced Festus in a championship clash last year, yet Hillsboro (and nearly Parkway North) has eliminated Lutheran North from the Class 4 playoffs in recent memory. Just imagine if LNHS (gulp) remained in Class 2! We’ve had tremendous Show-Me Bowl scrums, like Valle vs Lamar, due to MSHSAA’s promotion rule that was called “communist” when it originated.
If we can’t separate the student-athletes from the mercenaries, at least we’ve got a system that pits more well-matched athletes against one another on Fields of Friendly Strife. The blog has argued that all of Missouri’s sports teams should be subject to promotion-and-relegation, to be placed in a bracket that weighs their size and their recent quality. The goal is to have less lopsided games, which everyone agrees would be splendid. It’s not “punishing success” to move a team up with a promotion! Unless Sunderland A.F.C. is “punished” right now. The Valle Catholic Warriors of Class 3, District 2 have become beautiful blue-collar contenders in Class 3. But now, with some irony, the deck is stacked against them.
There’s a new “Phantom Menace” in MSHSAA that has zip, zero, and zilch to do with the private school debate … or maybe it does. Lift For Life is using its Charter School classification to work around the system for non-neighborhood teams, taking the field with obviously recruited lineups the caliber of Class 5’s state championship hopefuls while remaining in Class 3. (They can’t be promoted.) This season, Lift For Life followed up 2024’s state semifinal bid with a “5-4” record that is nonetheless scary to look at closely.
The Lift For Life Hawks’ best efforts have been losses. If you think that’s a Paul Finebaum fallacy, just take a gander at those losses! LFL lost to Kyren Eleby and the SLUH Junior Billikens 13-12, fell to Cape Girardeau Central by a similar 17-16 score, got defeated – GUUUUUULLLLLPPPP – 40-32 by THE BAYLOR RED RAIDERS OF TENNESSEE, and topped it all off by losing 45-28 versus Helias Catholic in another shootout. Lift For Life’s five wins include a victory over Country Day, another Show-Me Bowl semifinalist of 2024. Statistics don’t reveal any “5-Star” recruits scoring every touchdown at Lift For Life. The Hawks simply have a defense that’s way too big-boned and athletic to have come along naturally due to students enrolling for the Charter School’s curriculum. Its coaches are putting their teams together like a Minor League club does. Lift For Life has fallen apart in the postseason before, but the danger of a true division-killer lurks in Class 3, because C3D2’s #2 team doesn’t go up and down like Valle or St. Vincent. The #2 seeds are “up” every season. If they’re up for the 2025 playoffs, too, then you can probably wave bye to Valle making another state-playoff run … and we should pray that Herky avoids the matchup.
Good news is that Valle and Herculaneum would be destined to play each other, not Lift For Life in the second round, thanks to LFL’s mighty schedule holding the Hawks’ seed back. The Gridiron Geek decided to give Pete Schmidt of “Pete’s Predictions” the floor to forecast Class 3, District 2, hoping that someone who didn’t grow up in Herky can do a less emotional (and maybe less bitter) touting of a bracket that’s got Lift For Life ready to rig a romp over the Blackcats if necessary. But it feels guilty to hand off the Class 3 beat until “Rolynn Up the River” reveals Week 10’s final score picks, maybe because no one should be saddled with previewing familiar mascots against Lift For Life’s racket of a team.Â
Kudos to Pete for giving it a shot. Don’t look now, but our guest blogger does put Valle, Ste. Genevieve, and Herky’s squads in the same breath as Lift For Life when it comes to having a chance in District 2. It does The Geek good to read that another MSHSAA fan does not think Lift For Life is about to win three playoff games by a combined 439 points. Hopefully, there won’t be a rash of _dirty_ coaches who say, “Ooh! Missouri Charter Schools!!!” and turn this into a trend, or we’ll have to chart a new Promotion Rule for them.Â
Oh, and here’s a clip of Herky’s amazing hook-and-ladder that vanquished the Perryville Pirates, just in case we don’t find another spot for it.
Pete’s Predictions: A Four-Way Fight to Win District 2’s Championship
This district is full of tough-as-nails teams. The winner of District 2 will earn every yard and touchdown. Whoever comes out on top should remember this accomplishment for a long time. The Sainte Genevieve Dragons and Herculaneum Blackcats are very capable of spoiling the dual parochial programs’ hopes for easy early-round victories before heading to state, an aspiration of both Lift for Life and Valle Catholic.
Class 3, District 2 District Quarterfinal Seeds and Matchups
Week 10 District Quarterfinals (October 31):
#1 Valle Catholic Warriors (Bye)
#2 Lift for Life Hawks vs #7 Lutheran South Lancers
#3 Sainte Genevieve Dragons vs #6 Normandy Collaborative Vikings
#4 Herculaneum Blackcats vs #5 John Burroughs Bombers
Valle Catholic Warriors are undefeated at 9W-0L and have earned a first-round bye.
Lift for Life and Sainte Genevieve are talented teams who should easily progress to the next round.
(The Geek’s note: Herculaneum vs John Burroughs is a tricky prediction for Week 10. Stay tuned for a final score pick on “Rolynn Up the River.”)
Week 11 District Semifinals (November 7):
#1 Valle Warriors vs #4 Herculaneum Blackcats OR #5 John Burroughs
#2 Lift for Life or #7 Lutheran South vs #3 Ste Genevieve or #6 Normandy
I expect to see Valle Catholic and Lift for Life emerge victorious and proceed to Week 12’s district finals in Class 3.
Week 12 District Final (November 14): #2 Lift For Life at #1 Valle CatholicÂ
The Valle Catholic Warriors and Lift for Life Hawks have experience winning at the state playoff and district playoff level alike. However, after watching Lift for Life lose by one point to class six SLUH, win against MICDS, and the 28 points scored by the Hawks against Helias Catholic (the most scored by any Helias opponent this year) it’s hard not to like LFL.
Class 3 District 2 Championship Game (Pete’s Predictions)
Winner: Lift for Life Hawks
Runner Up: Valle Catholic Warriors
Photo Credit: Herculaneum High School Facebook