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November 9, 2009
It's a great time of year for High School football. It seems every 2 or 3 days, we can enjoy playoff football. Take a look..
Class 2....Powerhouses that rolled... Centralia (11-0) rambled over S. Calloway (6-5) 55-8. Centralia has Blair Oaks (9-2) this Monday. Each team is an established state-level power. The Panthers haven't permitted more than 13 points in any game so we're going with the unbeaten team.
Another defensive stalwart, the Clark County Indians (a Dome team last year) raised their record to 11-0 as they handled Mark Twain (6-5) by a 41-26 margin. Clark County tangles with S. Shelby (9-1) whose only loss was to Centralia. S. Shelby whipped Brookfield (8-3) by a score of 34-7 on Wednesday when Clark County edged Brookfield 8-6 in district. This should be a great game. We're thinking that the Indians may taste defeat for the first time on Monday !
Fair Grove (11-0) blasted Willow Springs (4-7) 42-12 in the first round. ON tap for the high flying Eagles, who have yet to score under 32 points in ANY game this year, is the Liberty-Mt. View Eagles(9-2). Prepcasts thinks that the Eagles will soar once again and move onto the Quarterfinals...oh yea...the Liberty-Mt View Eagles who have played several larger schools this year.
Another spectacular game will be the Lawson Cardinals and Maryville Spoofhounds. Each team is 10-1 entering the game. Tough to pick between these two outstanding programs but we'll go with the more experienced coach-Todd Dun (Lawson) who brings in a glittering 112-34 record into the game.
One unbeaten that fell...Warsaw (10-1) saw it's terrific season end suddenly as Pierce City (7-4) stunned them with a 14-12 win. Warsaw won the Tri-County conference and compiled a tremendous season as they beat Blair Oaks 62-41 in one of the wildest games of the year. Meanwhile, Pierce City faces Lamar (5-6) and now has aspirations of sailing on "quarterfinal" waters.
Class 3.... Best game of the night...reliving a game of 11 years ago, the O'Hara Celtics came from behind to nip the Chillicothe Hornets 32-29 late in the game. QB TJ White scrambled through 3 possible tacklers on a 4th down-7 yards situation - he struggled and fought for a 9 yard gain and a 1st down with only 15 seconds and 3 yards from the end zone. On the next play, White blasted over the goal line to give the Celts this thrilling win. O'Hara next faces the Savannah Savages (8-3). This game is a toss-up. We're thinking that O'Hara expended so much on Wed that it'll be tough to repeat. The Savages in a low scoring game.
upsets... Priory (6-5) coasted past Cardinal Ritter (9-2) 42-28. The Rebels led 42-14 until late in the game. QB Matt Jones scored two TD's and threw for two more scores in the win. Priory faces Imagine College Prep in their next game.
Imagine(6-5) won in exciting fashion as Allen Sales crossed the goal line with only 56 seconds left to push Imagine past Herculaneum (7-4) 25-21. This was the first lead of the game for Imagine.
Mexico (5-6) used an air-tight defense that snatched three INT's from the Sullivan Eagles (7-4) and held the Eagle to only 126 rushing yards in a 7-0 win. It was Mexico's first playoff win since 1995. Talk about a 2nd season...starting this year, the Bulldogs were 1-6!!
Mexico will have a rematch with the Fulton Hornets, who also moved down the road to the surprise of many experts. Fulton (6-5) topped the Salem Tigers (7-4) 14-3. Salem rushed for 390 yards (exceeding Fulton by close to 200 yards rushing) but lost three fumbles to the Hornets. This heart-breaking defeat for the Tigers came as Salem drove to the two yard line with 5 seconds remaining but missed the 21 yard FG attempt. Fulton knocked Salem off last year also. Sometimes, certain teams just have the "number" of other teams.
Class 4...many elite teams will tangle on Monday... Best game of this class on Wednesday... Carthage (9-2) fell behind in the last minute when Alex Wise (Neosho QB) hit Will McDaniel for a 28 YD TD strike to make it 36-32. Carthage Tigers responded! QB Derek Peterson hit on a couple down & outs for first downs. With time running out, Peterson hit Trevor Hole on a fade pattern. Hole dove, laid out flat and made an unforgettable reception with just 2 seconds left in the game. The PAT made the final 39-36.
Hannibal Pirates (9-2, #10 ranked) face battle tested Helias Crusaders (11-0, #2 ranked) in a premier game on Monday. Hannibal stuffed Ft Zumwalt East (8-3) 37-12. The Crusaders piled up 511 yards of offense in their easy 42-7 win over Warrenton. Helias went to the Dome last and we think that they'll do it again. We see a tight win over the Pirates.
Rematches in post season... U City (7-4) beat Normandy (9-2) in OT 19-13 just one week ago. U City knocked off perennial class 4 power, MICDS in impressive style 26-7. The Lions picked off 5 interceptions and used Darrion Petty for some explosive offensive plays. Normandy ran rough-shod over Westminster 50-7 to set up this rematch. U City has lost to top level class 5 teams like Webster Groves, Parkway North, Parkway Central and lost to Class 6 defending champ, Hazelwood Central. Their resume impresses Prepcasts, as well as their rally-win over Normandy last week- but we're going with the Vikings who should have an emotional edge. This game will be on www.prepcasts.com
Harrisonville (10-1) trampled Grandview (2-9..yes, 2-9 in playoffs) 50-8. Meanwhile, Grain Valley (9-2) used the G-Men to whip Hickman Mills (6-5) 51-34. Leading the way for the Eagles, Austin Gouldsmith (passed for 3 TD's, scored two) and Trace Goade rushed for 100 yards, including a touchdown. Harrisonville won 37-12 in the final game of the regular season. While the Eagles have a very strong team, this is a tough bracket for them -- we're going with Harrisonville.
Staley (11-0) crunched Lafayette (St. Joseph) 34-0 and will now face Kearney (9-2) again. The Falcons upended Bulldogs 21-7 in a KC Mid Six league game in mid year. We like Coach Fred Bouchard's team to go a long way and handle Kearney again.
Bolivar Liberators (10-1) outlasted Union (6-5) 60-29 and will face Hillcrest (7-4) who journeyed to the other side of the State to upset Pacific (8-3) 42-16. The Liberators beat Hillcrest easily and should do so again.
Class 5-- great games on docket.. Parkway North (8-1) will face the Rolla Bulldogs(10-1). This game may be heard on www.prepcasts.com
Raymore Peculiar (7-3), who stepped up to the Suburban Big 7 faces Winnetonka (8-3). Winner will likely see Ft Osage in next round.
Nixa Eagles (8-3) tangles with Camdenton (7-3) in a game featuring two of the top level Class 5 teams.
Timberland (9-1) hosts Parkway Central (9-2) after the Colts shut down McCluer (3-8) 15-6. Central's terrific ground game will be tough to stop in this one.
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NATIONAL FOOTBALL FOUNDATION&COLLEGE
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