Tri-City readers of Mississippi Magazine are still wrung-out from the “5-0-1” Crystal City Hornets’ episode in Week 6, and our local pigskin bloggers (ahem) might be feeling the hangover too. In addition, The Geek knows from experience that Monday-after recaps don’t draw quite as many readers, at least not when there’s no big inside-story to look forward to, like DeSoto upsetting Hillsboro in 2018.
Today’s post needs something to spice things up. So, instead of focusing on about half-of-a-dozen remaining Week 6 games (most of which turned-out exactly the way we expected) only, we’ll use the “meh” Monday recapping to look forward a little, predicting what each of our 12 teams can expect to face in the final 3 weeks.
North County 30, Festus 20
It was painful to watch the Festus Tigers lose their 5th game in 7 scrums on Friday. Not only did a halftime lead over North County slip away, so did the prospect of watching the ’22 Black & Gold win a pivotal game at Tiger Stadium. Senior Night supporters knew losing to NCHS – no matter what happens against Farmington in Week 8 – limits Festus R-6 to hosting just 1 playoff game this autumn, failing a surprise run to the state-playoff bracket, and that match will be lopsided against a non-contending C4 team like Perryville or DeSoto (4 years is a long time ago).
But it wasn’t as hard to watch the Festus Tigers on Friday. For the first time all season, A.J. Ofodile’s squad showed flashes of the formula that could start to win a LOT of football games before you know it. The offense was taking home-run shots and just missing, but the good news is that QBs Cunningham and Smith are working on solid internal-clocks as pocket passers, and intuitively know that it’s better to step-up and fire downfield than it is to stop and think twice when piloting Coach O’s attack. Both FHS signal-callers must continue to develop the subtle skill-sets of winning upperclassmen; each could benefit, for instance, from not calling-up the opposing safety on the phone and informing him that there’s about to be a check-down pass, i.e. don’t reset your feet and rotate your shoulders to the swing-pass alternative without taking so much as a token-glance downfield first. But those are very mendable issues for an offense – not limitations on future success.
Meanwhile, the defense – stop the presses – tackled Jobe Smith. In fact, the FHS defense successfully stunted North County’s powerful OL in the opening half, and stifled Smith and other dangerous rushers on the 2nd-level, which turns over a brand-new leaf for the suddenly more-elusive ’22 Tigers before most of October’s leaves can begin to turn. (If a character from The Last Picture Show yells “When are you boys gon’ learn ta-TACKLE!?” now the Varsity kids can answer, “in our games against North County!”) At a point in the 2nd quarter, a Festus defensive back – probably Trey Lacey or 1 of the 2 Reese-es – took off after the scrambling QB Jack Moore of NCHS as if possessed by a wolf-hound, and passed-up a golden opportunity to strip the ball away in favor of a picture-perfect rugby tackle.
Some would call that a lost-chance at a turnover. The Gridiron Geek calls it progress. As Vince Lombardi said, “If a person is running down the street with everything you own, you won’t let them get away. That’s tackling.”
Finally – don’t look now – but the ’22 Festus Tigers are winning the line-of-scrimmage. They’re winning the LOS often enough, in fact, that an 8-yard-gain up the middle or a bowed-back edge on the hashes of a rival offense are becoming commonplace sights. That may not seem like a big deal now, but it could be a VERY big deal once the Black & Gold gets the other details down pat.
Now about that schedule – if Coach O wants a step-ladder of opposition for the team to hit “reset” against, he’s got it, and better than you could order from a catalogue. Week 7’s road trip takes the boys to Pacific, where the Indians are smarting after 6 consecutive (mostly) non-Turbo Clock losses to a schedule no Meramec team with a mid-tier enrollment should be forced to endure, made exponentially worse by rival Sullivan turning in a fast, flashy team. Week 5 epitomized what Pacific’s whole season has been like, as Sullivan High School could only get a single RB going worth a “kiss my a**” (to quote The Last Picture Show again) but won 30-0 as Pacific just couldn’t score. In other words, Pacific’s vulnerable team can be beaten by 50 points – but FHS could also lose an ugly scrum on a bunch of short-field possessions. It’s the perfect “watch your Ps and Qs” kind of kickoff for a team that’s been lacking in clean execution most of all.
Week 8 says “goodbye to all that” (to quote the U.S. Marines) with a man-the-trenches scrum against Farmington, a rival which has lost in some upsets in 2022, but has gotten over some “tree-falling” bugaboos too, like whipping the heck out of Potosi for once. Finally, Week 9 takes Festus to Jackson High for the Indians’ Senior Night, and let’s just say Jackson has been looking kind of shaky on the field compared to last year…which makes R-6 “only” about a 44-point underdog.
Hillsboro 67, Windsor 13
HHS and WHS almost pulled off the “Valle vs St. Genevieve” score The Geek had predicted, though TGG realized later that he had reduced Mississippi Magazine’s score forecast from something like “71 to 26” for a reason that wasn’t even conscious at the time. The unbeaten Hawks stay in-bounds and the Windsor Owls aren’t exactly the Texas Tech Raiders either, leaving less time on the game clock for Windsor to score “bothering” points in the 1st half or “mop-up” TDs in the latter half. Not-so-incidentally, the fact that we’re not meme-ing the Keystone Cops following Hawks-Owls in 2022 is a sign of terrific progress in Imperial.
Cardinal Ritter is the fascinating Leon Hall visitor in Week 8. But the Magazine is also intrigued by Poplar Bluff, a “rich man’s Pacific Indians” at 2-4 after fighting Jackson, Park Hills Central, and other powerhouses to the 4Q finish line with a stopping game-clock. It’s anyone’s guess as to whether the Mules can score enough touchdowns to beat Hillsboro this time around, but it’s refreshing to see Poplar Bluff build a solid defense after years of track-meet games at PBHS.
Oakville 62, Northwest 7
Lordy, lord. TGG is starting to wonder if there’s anyone in the Northwest skeddy that the Lions can beat. Oakville is the “Vanderbilt under James Franklin” of MSHSAA this year, a formerly sad-sack team that’s having a noble winning campaign. But with all due respect to the OHS Tigers, they’re not really a “62-7 whitewash” type of C5 brand in 2022. Northwest-CH has to take responsibility for that eye-popper.
Cedar Hill’s next opponent Parkway Central is 4-2 with a commanding win over the upstart Parkway South Patriots. Week 9 foe Parkway North (does the Suburban League ever run out of Parkways?) has looked vulnerable on defense, but the reasonably tough Vikings will be infinitely easier than whoever Northwest’s quarterfinal opponent in Week 10 is going to be.
Webster Groves is the only real potential victim in Week 8. The Geek went to college in Webster Groves. Who cares. This residence will be cheering for the Lions to win-bigly in Week 8 and put some gol’ darn points on the scoreboard. Susan Polgar’s chess team can come and kick every coach’s butt later on. It’s fine.
St. Pius 58, Cuba 6
Forget what Mississippi Magazine said about there being 43 “I-55 Conference Championship” games this season. The St. Pius Lancers out-lasted Jefferson, grazed Grandview for 5 TDs, and beat Herky in the 2022 Penalty Bowl. That produces a chance for SPX to win the I-55 title outright against St. Vincent.
As for Weeks 8 and 9, the Lancers must contend with a pair of improved, but underdog sides from the conference, “high pressure” bouts indeed, but also a challenge to execute rather than a grueling endurance test. That’s a perfect circumstance for preparing a team to win in the Q-Finals and beyond.
But when cheering for St. Pius to win by 13+ points and romp to the finish line, remember that the Lancers could find themselves in the same pitfall Crystal City is hoping to avoid – getting seeded #1 against a #4 seeded Duchesne and having the Lancers’ path to a District Final graced by an Alps-sized mountain in the Pioneers.
Poplar Bluff 28, Fox 7
Speaking of PBHS, they can play defense against the Flexbone too. Fox’s opponent this week, Hazelwood West, is having a nightmare season, and should serve as the Warriors’ only cupcake prior to 2 more underdog-bookings against Ladue and Parkway South.
Herculaneum 46, Grandview 0
Not to overlook the HHS Blackcats, who stamped a statement win on a suddenly ailing Grandview side last weekend. The Felines may face a slightly-less-steep “stepladder” of their own over the next few Fridays, with dates in-order against vulnerable Bayless, upstart Perryville, and then swift cross-town rival CCHS.
Grandview’s chances of beating St. Vincent again in Week 8 aren’t optimistic enough to stress over, but that game is sandwiched between kickoffs against Jefferson and Chaffee, whom TGG wouldn’t favor to collectively out-score Grandview (though it’s pretty clear which school could score more.)
Jefferson 20, Perryville 7
The JHS defense came up with an outstanding night against rising Perryville, and could potentially allow less than 2 touchdowns again at Winchester Avenue this Friday. St. Vincent could also fall to the Blue Jays in a tight Week 9 scrum.
But there won’t be any defeating St. Genevieve “20-7” in Week 8. Jefferson will need to score 5 or 6 times, or at least control the pigskin for 30 minutes or more, to have any winning chances against QB Aiden Boyer’s high-powered Dragons.
Seckman 50, Parkway South 6
Cole Ruble’s team netted a truly impressive Turbo Clock win over a resurgent large-school program in Week 6, but also mounts what could be a stiffer challenge this Friday. Pattonville is smarting from a loss to titanic Eureka, but has convincing victories over Ritenour and Lindbergh, and what’s worse, the Varsity Pirates responded like mad last time they took a loss (to Kirkwood) in Week 2.
Seckman should win the LOS against Oakville in Week 8, and as for opposing Webster Groves in Week 9? All the top-rated Grandmasters in the world won’t save the Statesmen from falling to a Scholar’s Mate in a few moves, or at least having a monster truck run right over the pieces on Seckman’s Senior Night.
Fredericktown 21, DeSoto 14
Friday’s game was among the best DeSoto performances in a while, and it’s really bad luck that the Green Gang has to face an excruciating slate of Hillsboro, Cape Central, and Orchard Farm before bowing-out in the playoffs.
The Gridiron Geek recaps Crystal City’s controversial Week 6 finish and remaining schedule here.