Sikeston Bulldogs at Festus Tigers
By tradition, Mississippi Magazine only takes a single paragraph at a time to preview individual Q-Final games, since everyone’s got 10 weeks of TGG’s nonsense to digest before Friday’s elimination battles begin. Expounding on Midmeadow Lane’s defensive struggles in 2022 would make for one hell of a paragraph, but 1-7 Sikeston presents an opportunity for a gainful host shut-out after scoring no meaningful TDs against Farmington, Cape Girardeau, or PBHS. If Sikeston’s offense is awoken by the “FHS Defense 2-Hr Energy Supplement,” and manufactures 21+ points before the scrum turns lopsided, then regretfully, we’ll know the Tigers are officially doomed as a District championship hopeful. PREDICTION: TIGERS 44, SIKESTON 12
Grandview Eagles at St. Pius Lancers
There are several lopsided Week 10 match-ups that would bore readers to tears if The Geek dove into the deep-end on them, and SPX vs Grandview is among those. However, that’s not due to any cliff-dive on the part of the Birds of Prey in 2022, but rather a reflection of the favorite getting healthier while the underdog continues to labor with a patch-work lineup. Grandview’s fine recruiting classes mean that the Eagles will potentially earn more playoff Ws as early as 2023. PREDICTION: LANCERS 41, EAGLES 7
Bayless Bronchos at Herculaneum Blackcats
Mark Patton of Bayless High is still running hard enough to have torn-off an 80-yard TD against St. Pius, and the Bronchos finally put substantial points on the board in a romp over DuBourg last weekend. Bayless also gave up 21 non-garbage time points – including about 300 passing yards (eep!) – to the weak-as-wallpaper Cavaliers in an outcome that betrays a very vulnerable defense. QB Jackson Dearing should have a field day, or at least a Smokestack Night. PREDICTION: BLACKCATS 38, BAYLESS 6
Windsor Owls at Gateway Tech Jaguars
In a running theme this week, the Windsor Owls have taken great strides since facing Gateway Tech last … and the Jaguars have been spinning their (well-engineered) wheels. PREDICTION: ALBINO BIRDS 34, GATEWAY 27
John Burroughs Bombers at Jefferson Blue Jays
TGG would love to overhear the John Burroughs kids tonight as the Bombers’ bus pulls away from the bright lights of downtown St. Louis (and Festus), heads around a darkening I-55 highway bend to Exit 170, and crosses over the Plattin Creek bridge to find a rowdy, packed stadium hidden in a forest. Jokes aside, Jefferson’s slow-starting trajectory hasn’t yet gained enough altitude to make Burroughs a total push-over, but the athletic Bombers are nearly as porous as Jefferson’s lower-tier conference rivals on defense as of late, losing to the 3-6 Jennings Warriors and later falling to 4-5 despite an easy October schedule. PREDICTION: BLUE JAYS 34, JOHN BURROUGHS 22
Northwest Lions at Marquette Mustangs
There’s always been an argument that #8 MSHSAA seeds should play each other for a token prize instead of walking-the-plank against #1 seeded schools in Week 10. Even that rule wouldn’t help Northwest in 2022, as the Lions will be 0-10 and preparing for basketball tryouts within 72 hours. It will be interesting to watch whether Cedar Hill rejects its new wide-open playbook after 1 year, as Jefferson did following the abject disaster of 2013, or commits to a long-term strategy of gaining an edge by using the same plays as 20,000 other teams. PREDICTION: MARQUETTE = 56, NCAA PLAYBOOK #20,001 = 7
Louisiana Bulldogs at Crystal City Hornets
Why is this prediction so far down in the “Big Game Totem Pole” this Friday when there are so many one-sided battles previewed above on scroll? Is it because Louisiana played over its head in Week 2, when the Varsity Bulldogs lost 34-14 at Crystal City? Nope. Is it because HC Dan Fox’s task of scouting LHS again has proven impossible, thanks to EVERY SINGLE GOOGLE SEARCH for Louisiana prep football going right to the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns? Nada. Herculaneum fell to Crystal City by 3 touchdowns largely because the Hornets enjoyed an extra week of rest and preparation while the ‘Cats fought with Perryville. Another sneaky pure-athleticism factor could make a difference in helping CCHS run away with Week 10’s elimination bout, and win the first postseason game of the era at Sunken Place. Put simply, freshmen and sophomores don’t quit growing from July through November. The LHS roster is more-or-less where it was in size/strength headed into the Q-Finals, but a youthful team gains an advantage of upgraded stamina as the playoffs arrive. Louisiana High’s brawn and experience may prove to be a lesser match for the ’22 Hornets than it was in September, when the Hornets’ amazing frosh brigade was still as green as the grass. PREDICTION: HORNETS 28, LOUISIANA 6
Fox Warriors at Poplar Bluff Mules
The Geek worries that this will be a classic Flexbone loss, in which underdog Fox rushes for 347 yards and 30:00 of ball possession, but the entire scrum turns on a Poplar Bluff scoop-6 on a busted option play at the end of a long Arnold drive. BALL S-E-C-U-R-I-T-Y, Warriors! PREDICTION: PBHS 24, WARRIORS 14
SLUH Junior Billikens at Seckman Jaguars
Saint Louis U. High hasn’t played any teams with as aggressive and prolific of a ground game as what Seckman’s offensive line is producing in 2022. That’s an inconvenience when trying to predict a winner, but also a tactical advantage for Nick Baer’s team, as the Billiken defense might spend an entire half of pigskin just trying to figure the Jags out. PREDICTION: JAGUARS 35, SLUH 14
DeSoto Dragons at North County Raiders
Football’s entertainment value could become less of a polarizing subject in Bonne Terre, and the NCHS Raiders would still cause a traffic jam in the 2nd half for a different reason tonight … unless everyone’s real keen on scouting the JV. PREDICTION: NORTH COUNTY 54, DRAGONS 0