Bluff-Cape Central football

UPDATE: You can read more about the game here.

The Mules ran out of quarterbacks Friday night. They lost starting quarterback Josh Freeman with a knee injury in the second quarter and he may miss the next two weeks. Also, they lost two starters for the season in Williams Whitfield (broken leg) and Nick Shrum (knee). The Mules did not have a quarterback in the second half, which is why Pete Bryant and Kendric McCain took snaps. Poplar Bluff's two other quarterbacks were unavailable before the game and the line was also mixed up with a starter out.

A 10-second span early in the game set the tone when Mike Reeder picked off a Freeman pass 1:24 into the game and Keilon Moore slipped a tackle and scored 37 yards later on the next play.

After seeing three of the four Class 4 District 1 teams I can say one very good team will be at home come playoff time.

Farmington has a tough defense and a balanced offensive, Cape Central has a great line on both sides leading the way while Sikeston has lots of team speed and the momentum of last year's playoff run.

You can debate all you want about which team is better but save your time. High school football comes down to who makes the fewest mistakes. Central coach Rich Payne put it perfectly last night when he said, "Missed assignments and missed alignments will get you beat more often than mismatches."

On a night when Poplar Bluff will dedicate the field at Morrow Stadium for Derland Moore, the Mules will play their longest running rival who enters the game undefeated and state ranked.

Moore will be honored starting at 6:30 p.m. Friday before the Mules host Cape Central in a SEMO North battle.

"It's great that they're naming the field after him after all the things he's accomplished," Mules coach Shane Kearbey said. "He's very respected around here."

Kearbey remembers his senior year in 1990 when Moore talked to the team and hopes it will motivate the current Mules to see someone who walked the same halls and played on the same field to go on and play in the NFL for 14 years.

Moore's storybook tale as a walk-on at Oklahoma becoming an All-American drafted by the New Orleans Saints as the 29th pick in 1973 is one that anybody can learn from, Kearbey said. Moore played for the Mules between 1966-68 and was a second-team all-conference player as a 16-year-old senior.

"You just can't ever give up on yourself and you've got to understand how to work hard and do the right things and good things can happen," Kearbey added

That's the story for these Mules (1-5, 0-2 SEMO), who are coming off the programs's most lop-sided loss since Calvin Coolidge was in the White House.

Cape Central is 6-0 and has yet to trail in a game this season.

Following an 0-10 season, the Tigers are off to their best start since 1972 and ranked ninth in the latest Class 4 poll coming off a 47-0 win over St. Charles West.

Poplar Bluff and Cape Central will meet for the 85th time Friday night having played each year since 1930. The Tigers hold an all-time series lead of 46-33-5 but the last decade has been split after a 1998 triple-overtime game.

History lesson No. 1: The last time one of the teams came into the matchup with no losses, the unbeaten team lost by 21 points.

History lesson No. 2: Three of the last five meetings have been decided by three points or less.

"In our situation, even though we've done some good things this year, you can't overlook anybody," Central coach Rich Payne told the Southeast Missourian. "I guarantee you the kids haven't, and we reinforce that with them."

Last year the Mules won 51-12 but Central's running back James Poindexter ran for 216 yards on 26 carries, scoring once.

Poindexter, a 5-foot-4, 140-pound senior, and 5-9, 195-pound senior Keilon Moore have combined to run for 1,120 yards already this season. Moore leads the team in attempts (53), yards (574) and touchdowns (12) while Poindexter is averaging 11.1 yards per carry.

Central is averaging 338.8 rushing yards per game this season.

"They've got a pretty good line," Kearbey said. "They've got to really good guards in (Kevin Flesher) and (Zach Horrell). Those kids really like to pull and they get out there and get after you."

Poplar Bluff's offense has turned the ball over 17 times this season, including nine in the last two games, while the Mules have forced just one turnover over the last 16 quarters.

A minus-11 turnover ratio and a 16 percent third-down conversion rate have bogged down the Mules, who have fought through injuries since the start of the two-a-days.

"They're still a pretty good ballclub," Payne said. "They're maybe not as athletic as last year, but they're fundamentally sound. We better be ready to play. It's not going to be a walk in the park."

Here are three keys for tonight's game:

* Can the Mules hold onto the ball? Turnovers and short drives by the offense has put Poplar Bluff's defense on the field for 94 more snaps and nearly a half-hour longer this season. But the defense has forced just six turnovers all year including just one interception.

* Will the Tigers overlook Poplar Bluff? It's a valid question considering last week's 70-7 loss by the Mules to Farmington. Next week is the start of district play with the Tigers traveling to Farmington. Then again, it's hard to overlook a team that won 51-12 last year and is a conference rival.

* Do the Mules believe they can win? Central is off to their best start since 1972 but Poplar Bluff kept the Tigers from a 6-0 start in 1973 (see below). That team believed they could win but can these Mules have a short memory and put last week's loss behind them? Can they overcome the injuries in which they may not have leading rusher Pete Bryant (game-time decision but probably out)? Will having Derland Moore at the game help fire up the Mules?

SHADES OF '73 Last night at the Poplar Bluff Sports Hall of Fame banquet a member of Poplar Bluff's 1973 football team was inducted in Clifford Wicks.

In '73, Poplar Bluff ended Central's 28-game conference winning streak. That year the slogan in the halls of PBHS was "No 29" and the Mules won 29-28 and ended up taking the SEMO North title.

"That was a monster game," recalled Wicks, who was an all-conference offensive and defensive lineman. "That was a game we had to come together. That's all we preached all year.

"That was a team effort. We came together, we banded together and we did it."

REBOUNDING MULES Poplar Bluff's 70-7 loss broke the team record for points allowed in a game last week. The 1924 team that lost 69-0, however, won the following game.

IF YOU GO The dedication of Derland Moore Field will start at 6:30. I'll provide updates during the game on Twitter and Facebook.