Semoball

High School Football Forum: Official Sideline Starter Top Five--09/23/12

*
Posted by sideline starter on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 1:54 AM:

What a week around the area as we had action packed, closely contested contests from schools large and small. Jackson and Cape put on a show while Portageville continued to assert their offensive will. The Sikeston defense chalked up another gem while Caruthersville proved that plugging seemingly any athlete behind their offensive line proves positive results. For the top teams, whether they won or lost, it was quite a showcase this week. With that, let's get on to the list.

1) Jackson-The Indians (5-0) get their signature win to this point of the season downing archrival Cape Central in the centennial year of their rivalry. Overcoming five turnovers on offense, Jackson held tough in a back and forth game by getting the last big play. Minds have to be wiped clean and focused quickly as the Sikeston Bulldogs patiently wait for their opportunity to take back the spotlight. (Last week: 1)

2) Sikeston-The Bulldogs (5-0) methodical and opportunistic defense continues to lead the way and proved their dominance pitching another shutout, this time against Class 5 Poplar Bluff (the only touchdown for the Mules came on a Sikeston fumble in the endzone). As this was my first chance this season to see the Bulldogs in person, I came away impressed by just how well everyone on that defense understood their role. It is a machine firing on all cylinders. On offense, the line continues to be the biggest concern but the unit appears to be back at full strength this week and will need to be with Jackson in town. QB Kyland Gross is developing as a passer more and more each week and isn't afraid to chuck the ball meaning the Jackson defense won't be able to just load the box like teams could earlier this year. Could he be a darkhorse Carr trophy candidate? (Last week: 2)

3) Cape Central-Obviously, the top four teams in the area have distinguished themselves as being on another tier from the rest but I continue to struggle when deciding where the Tigers (2-3) fall in the rankings. Their losses are to two very good teams and a third large school opponent. After hanging so tough with Jackson and being in position to win very late in the game, I had to give Cape the benefit of the doubt and move them back past Caruthersville. The Tigers are next in line to get revenge on Farmington this week just as Sikeston and Jackson have already done. Look for them to take out what frustrations they have from this week's loss on the struggling defending district champion. (Last week: 4)

4) Caruthersville-I really like this Tigers (4-1) team when at full strength. Heck, they were able to blast New Madrid this week with a guy who I don't believe had ever started a varsity game at running back. The secret is that they may just have the best offensive line in the area. Without Darrell Monroe, it is tough to really gauge how good Caruthersville is. They get a bye week this week to finally get some recovery for their multitude of injured players. Hopefully they will come back stronger than they have been all season. (Last week: 3)

5) Poplar Bluff-I know Portageville is unbeaten and I know the Mules (2-3) have dropped three straight, but I think this is a team that has just played a tough slate of games. Poplar Bluff showed me a lot in their game with Sikeston Friday. I think they are a sneaky good team that hit two high powered offenses and this week a defense up there if not better than those offenses. They will have to beat Northwest this week to maintain though. No more excuses. They have completed their toughest tests and must use what they have learned or Portageville will take this spot. (Last week: 5)

I got good feedback for the small school top five so it is going to continue to be a feature of the weekly post. All teams in this list are either Class 1 or 2.

1) Caruthersville (4-1)-Great offensive line anchors team even with absence of Monroe. (Last week: 1)

2) Portageville (5-0)-Bulldogs pass one of their toughest tests, close to clinching one seed in district. (Last week: 2)

3) Malden (3-2)-Green Wave beat up on East Prairie in preparation for Hayti (Last week: 3)

4) Charleston (3-2) Blue Jays look to continue success against Kennett Friday. (Last week: 4)

5) Scott City (4-1)-Rams take spot from Hayti due to great start and hope to end Portageville's run. (Last week: Not Ranked)

I decided this week that Scott City deserved some love for such a great start. Expect big changes in 2-5 next week though with two great small school games between Scott City and Portageville as well as Malden and Hayti.

We conclude the week with the weekly predictions of who is in the running for the district finals featuring SEMO teams in each class.

Class 5: Jackson vs Rockwood Summit

Class 4: Sikeston vs Cape Central

Class 3: Ste. Genevieve vs Park Hills Central vs Fredericktown (Triple Threat Match)

Class 2: Caruthersville vs Take Your Pick (Charleston, Malden, Scott City)

Class 1: Portageville vs Valle (Other potential teams: Thayer, Hayti)

Thank you so much for reading the Top Five and all the other musings this week. As always, please give me feedback whether it be questions, comments, compliments, complaints, verbal attacks for Crader to delete, spam for NFL jerseys or whatever. I wouldn't do this if I didn't have the support that I get from the Semoball community. As a sidenote, be sure to head over to the basketball forums to check out the newly released basketball districts for the upcoming seasons and leave a few comments. You'll be glad you did. See you next week.

Replies (32)

  • This is really good info sideline starter and were those rankings in state or in districts

    -- Posted by Semopost13 on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 8:13 AM
  • *

    I think Caruthersville should have kept their 3 spot on the list, they lost to the #3 ranked class 2 first game of the season. Cape lost to Jackson but they get the nod above Caruthersville. I am just anxious how this list will look after Fridays games.

    -- Posted by wheresthebeef on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 8:57 AM
  • *

    Sideline: Jamal is our best receiver and he started all last year. He hasn't played much this year he was short on practice's I think. He had a shoulder injury earlier in the year as well. Jamal is a very good athlete and he really excells in basketball. I do agree, our O-Line and D-Line is VERY good. The only thing that concerns me is depth. We have guys to plug in there on the line but it's a big drop-off of talent once you get out of the starting 5 lineman. I think the SG game will be a very good test of our depth. I know our starting 5 will handle their own but it's what we do when they are resting that worries me. We definitely needed this week off. I would LOVE to see what this team can do at full strength. Going to be special!

    -- Posted by Cheesehead. on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 9:37 AM
  • *

    If you look back at the beginning of the year when Sikeston squeaked wins out against Charleston and New Madrid alot of the reasoning behind that is because your RB's were not healthy. Caruthersville has won handily the last few games without our first or second string RB and the other night using a guy that never played the position. I think they should be 3 simply because of their versatility. You take Gross from Sikeston out and you will see where I am coming from. If anything you could of had a tie for the 3 spot not drop C-ville because Cape played Jackson close they still lost the game.

    -- Posted by wheresthebeef on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 9:50 AM
  • *

    Beef, I just felt like Cape had to move up considering that they only lost to Jackson by extra points. They played them as their equal. I understand the logic about Sikeston not having their running backs but remember that I wasn't doing the list yet this season when those games occurred. In both the large and small school lists, next week will decide a lot of things. If Jackson beats Sikeston bad, don't be shocked if Sikeston drops all the way to four. If Sikeston beats Jackson bad, don't be shocked if Sikeston takes one and Caruthersville moves to two. For the time being, all we know for sure is that Cape is almost as good as Jackson. Thanks for the feedback.

    -- Posted by sideline starter on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 10:27 AM
  • Another good list, Sideline, but I have to go with Beef on this one. I think Caruthersville should have held on to the #3 slot. True, Cape played Jackson tough, but they still lost. I just have trouble ranking a 2-3 team above a 4-1 team, even if Cape has played a tougher schedule. I think you have to give Caruthersville credit for their versatility in overcoming all those injuries and still finding a way to win handily.

    I also think you're giving Poplar Bluff too much love in keeping them in the Top 5 after 3 bad losses in a row. (Though admitedly that may be my Dexter bias showing!) I think Portageville has earned the #5 spot after a 5-0 start while winning every game by at least 2 TD's. After all, if we drop Hayti from the Small School Top 5 for going 2-3, shouldn't the same reasoning apply to Bluff?

    So my Top 5 would be: 1. Jackson 2. Sikeston 3. Caruthersville 4. Cape Central 5. Portageville.

    If we include the schools just to the north of the Semoball area, my Top 10 would be: 1. Jackson 2. Sikeston 3. Ste. Genevieve 4. Caruthersville 5. Park Hills Central 6. Cape Central 7. Valle Catholic 8. Fredericktown 9. Portageville 10. Potosi.

    No quarrel at all with your Small School Top 5. I also agree with your district championship previews. Thanks for the good work you put into these threads, Sideline! I really enjoy reading them every Sunday.

    -- Posted by Preacher Man Fan on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 1:01 PM
  • *

    I can agree with the logic Preach. It is really a transition week. A lot of things are in flux after Friday's games and we almost need next week for the sake of clarity. That's part of the reason why I considered waiting until every third week to do the list but I appreciate the feedback. I feel like 2-6 in the small schools are really close to each other as are the three Semoball North teams in Class 3. I'm really psyched up for this Friday as a Sikeston fan and think that game as well as Hayti-Malden and Portageville-Scott City could all be classics.

    -- Posted by sideline starter on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 1:07 PM
  • Bluffs loss to sikeston wasn't bad preacher, you take out sikestons 3 touchdowns, sikeston only has 144 yards of total offense, and bluff has potential to be a good football team, their offense just needs to get going

    -- Posted by Tigers2638 on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 1:08 PM
  • *

    I guess Caruthersville will prolly stay at that position to, since they don't play this week. Something dramatic would have to happen.

    -- Posted by BuckMajor on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 1:14 PM
  • The problem Tigers2638 is that you can't take Sikeston's three TD's out! I could make the same argument about Dexter's game with Sikeston and conclude they didn't really beat us that bad after all! Just take their 5 TD's out and it was a close game after all! The truth is that Sikeston's defense dominated the game and PB would've lost 26-7 if not for a questionable flag that negated the Bulldog's 4th TD.

    -- Posted by Preacher Man Fan on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 1:30 PM
  • Sure, if you take away three big plays from Sikeston, of course the yardage would be much less. But by that same token, you can assume that perhaps they drive the field and still pick up the yardage. That argument holds no water.

    -- Posted by semohoops on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 4:29 PM
  • True dat preacher

    -- Posted by Tigers2638 on Sun, Sep 23, 2012, at 7:03 PM
  • Came down and watched Jackson- Cape game both teams are very mediocre for their classes as we seen when Burroughs beat up on Central but Id watch Jackson in next few years they have really good coach. Imo Sikeston best team in semo, but thats not saying too much unfortunately.

    -- Posted by stlscott on Mon, Sep 24, 2012, at 8:48 AM
  • debbie downer^^^

    -- Posted by Perrywinkle on Mon, Sep 24, 2012, at 4:14 PM
  • *

    Stlscott is always down on Semo teams. He also said Charleston wasn't good enough to win state last year in basketball. You see how that turned out. However, No team from Semo should be able to compete with John Burroughs. Hard to compete with teams that can hand pick who plays for them. It's just the way it is.

    -- Posted by Cheesehead. on Mon, Sep 24, 2012, at 4:17 PM
  • JBS is arguably the best team in the state right now, not just Class 3. So to say no team in Semo can compete with them, therefore Semo teams are all just average is wrong reasoning. If you check JBS's record, no one has played them close yet and Cape played them just as well as anybody else.

    -- Posted by Preacher Man Fan on Mon, Sep 24, 2012, at 4:32 PM
  • *

    I wouldn't say they're the best team in the state but they are definitely really good

    -- Posted by Sonic-The-Hedgehog on Mon, Sep 24, 2012, at 4:40 PM
  • I know this will swell a certain persons head, but Maplewood got beat by a certain Ozark Hills team and Maplewood was ranked #1 in a certain city newspaper poll over the vaunted JBS Bombers. And Maplewood plays the Bombers in week 9. Just sayin'....

    -- Posted by mojo3 on Mon, Sep 24, 2012, at 7:23 PM
  • and it's kinda hard for teams down this way to get former NFL players to coach for em too! JB MIGHT and i stress MIGHT be overrated because of all the hype with the RB and coach. heck mojo is right. they were ranked BELOW MRH a few weeks ago and tha hillz beat em. so anything is possible! nobody thought little ole cassville would come out from a second place in districts to win state in '08 either!

    -- Posted by Perrywinkle on Mon, Sep 24, 2012, at 8:28 PM
  • CBC is best team i the state partner, by far.And I am totally not down on semo squads, it is what it is. And cheese I saw your team play Liberty, wasn't even close talent wise or especially depth.

    -- Posted by stlscott on Tue, Sep 25, 2012, at 4:10 AM
  • *

    I would think it wouldn't be close to depth or talent. We had to replace some darn good players from last year, and Liberty returned pretty much their whole team. We had a couple game's to where we needed to put guys in the right spot and them learn a few things. This team is a lot better now than they were Week 1. Having to play without Darrell, we found more weapons and I can promise you this. If we were to play Liberty again, game would be MUCH closer. Not saying we would win but we would definitely hang with them. I hope we get to play them again but this time, in Caruthersville. Let them make that 4 hour drive. We still have to get past Maplewood though, which they have beat us the last few years.

    -- Posted by Cheesehead. on Tue, Sep 25, 2012, at 7:53 AM
  • Stlscott, to absolutely state that CBC is the best team in the state "by far" is tenuous at best. It's that kind of dogmatism that gets you in trouble, my friend. I said that JBS is "arguably" the best team in the state. When you consider their talent, record, coaching staff, rankings, strength of schedule, and how they have dominated the competition, you can make the argument that JBS may just be the best team in the state. But you can't dogmatically assert it because this is one area in which absolute proof is not possible.

    As for Caruthersville, Cheesehead is right, they have improved tremendously on their OL, defense, and passing game. They will be a very dangerous team come play-off time and if they could play Liberty now, it would be a different story IMO.

    -- Posted by Preacher Man Fan on Tue, Sep 25, 2012, at 10:24 AM
  • i'm almost saying screw watching the freddy/noco game in week 10 and going to watch the SG/c'ville game. it will probably be a whole heck of alot better. you guys have gotten me all jacked up on c'ville right now! WOOOOOOOO!

    -- Posted by Perrywinkle on Tue, Sep 25, 2012, at 11:21 AM
  • Ric Flair fan, Daddy? Or was he before your time?

    -- Posted by Preacher Man Fan on Tue, Sep 25, 2012, at 11:31 AM
  • I do agree about the 4 hour drive, that is rough, and trust me I am a Monroe fan. I think he is one of best athletes in the state that I have seen. I just based what I have seen so far in Semo and I really dont think Cape or Jackson is going to make any noise, I like Sikeston this week.

    -- Posted by stlscott on Tue, Sep 25, 2012, at 2:55 PM
  • And Preacherman have you seen CBC? Loaded

    -- Posted by stlscott on Tue, Sep 25, 2012, at 2:56 PM
  • *

    Burroughs is very good and is by far the favorite in Class 3 but I don't see them being on the same level as Blue Springs, Rockhurst, Lee's Summit West, CBC, Kirkwood, Ft. Osage, or Webb City. They don't have the depth nor the line play those other schools do.

    -- Posted by sideline starter on Tue, Sep 25, 2012, at 3:17 PM
  • i remember ric flair! the bulk of his career was before my time though. "to be the man, you gotta beat the man! WOOO!" i was a youngern then though. speaking of nature boy, wasn't there a nature boy on here at one point? and i think that JB is probably about as good as hillcrest. got to see them last week and they remind me of the JB team last year. JUST GOING OFF OF THAT, i think they are comparable. i've seen CBC on FSMW a few weeks ago and they are pretty darn good. LOTS of depth. i saw them subbing in and out like an nfl team.

    -- Posted by Perrywinkle on Tue, Sep 25, 2012, at 4:35 PM
  • They really are deep Daddy, and they are big and fast they would put a beating on John Burroughs and you Sikeston guys have a pretty good squad this year if the play a mistake free football they should beat Jackson IMO.

    -- Posted by stlscott on Wed, Sep 26, 2012, at 5:22 AM
  • i really hope you aren't referring to me as "you sikeston guys". i wouldn't really say they would "put a beating on john burroughs" either they would win, but i dont think it would be by more than 2-3 tds. it would be close until they figured out how to stop that stud JB has.

    -- Posted by Perrywinkle on Wed, Sep 26, 2012, at 1:07 PM
  • *

    ^by being in the backfield every play...I't's not that difficult to stop a running back when you dominate the line of scrimmage... Ask Steven Jackson

    -- Posted by Sonic-The-Hedgehog on Wed, Sep 26, 2012, at 1:21 PM
  • *

    I'll take just about any 6A district Champ against JB

    -- Posted by Sonic-The-Hedgehog on Wed, Sep 26, 2012, at 1:27 PM

Respond to this thread

Posting a comment requires free registration: