Football

CHAFFEE, Mo. — The Chaffee football team, players and coaches alike, converged at the 40-yard line, jumping into each other's arms, knocking one another over in delight. In euphoria, a Red Devils coach discarded his headset, leaving it in the grass along the sideline...

FARMINGTON -- Cooper Callis picked apart an exhausted Farmington defense throughout the second half, as the Jackson football team kept the Knights winless in SEMO Conference North play Friday night. The standout Indians quarterback completed 20-of-31 passes for 297 yards, and accounted for six total touchdowns in a 77-42 victory that featured just one inconsequential punt...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- A 22-point victory still didn't sit well with Perryville coach Blane Boss. The Pirates produced 588 yards on the ground and its highest point total of the season, but a second-half surge from St. Vincent kept things closer than Boss had anticipated. In the end, Perryville did what it needed to do against its cross-town foe and held on for a 48-26 victory at St. Vincent High School...

PARAGOULD, Ark. - The Kennett Indians varsity football team calculated a pair of touchdowns in each half but it wasn’t near enough to keep pace with the Greene County Tech offense and their standout running back Kobe Brown. Greene County Tech rallied from a 12-6 deficit at the end of the first quarter to move ahead 27-12 by halftime and hung on to beat Kennett 48-26...

Terry Flannigan has seen both sides of the Chaffee-Scott City rivalry. The first-year Chaffee football coach was the head man at Scott City for two separate stints, in the 1990s and 2000s. Now Flannigan leads the Red Devils into a matchup against the visiting Rams at 7 p.m. today...

Garrett Dobbelare made a winning debut, throwing four touchdown passes as St. Vincent football picked up its first win of the season with a 32-6 victory over host Herculaneum on Friday in Herculaneum, Missouri. Dobbelare missed the first the first three games of the season with mono...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Cape Central football coach Arlen Pixley headed into Friday's game with a goal: not to give Sikeston any extra possessions. One play in and that plan was ruined. Sikeston opened the game by recovering an onside kick. Pixley and his staff had practiced that scenario hundreds of times this week, rolling balls at players to simulate an onside kick...

It became clear from the opening kickoff -- an onside kick -- that this football game was going to be a little different. What it turned out to be was a game of offensive chicken. In a contest that featured 14 onside or squib kicks, 14 fourth-down attempts, 150 offensive snaps and 915 combined yards of offense, Jackson figured out a way to swing the game in the second half, scoring 21 straight points to rally and defeat Marion (Ark.) 49-42 in a high-flying track meet of a football game at The Pit in Jackson, Missouri.. ...

FARMINGTON, Mo. — Logan Bell ran for four touchdowns and threw for two more as Poplar Bluff football opened SEMO Conference North play with a 50-21 win at Farmington on Friday night. Bell threw for a career-high 247 yards, completing 7 of 11 passes, ran for 43 yards and had a 61-yard kickoff return for the Mules (4-0, 1-0 SEMO North)...

BENTON, Mo. — Scoring in quick bursts has become second nature for the Malden football team again. The Green Wave scored on their first five possessions for a second straight week, this time needing just 12 seconds to go ahead for good, as the defense and special teams set the tone early in a 50-0 win against SEMO Conference East foe Kelly...

Last year, Cape Central football entered a Week 4 matchup against Sikeston fresh off a close win over Farmington. Last week, the Tigers once again squeaked by Farmington and improved to 3-0, but this time they hope the Week 4 result plays out differently...

Aaron Harris didn't expect the football. After all, he hadn't had a catch all game and he wasn't the first option on the play. But when the ball ended up in his hands he knew what to do. With Cape Girardeau Central football down by one and time running out, the Tigers' star running back snagged a pass along the left sideline, shook off a would-be tackler and rumbled down the field for a game-winning, 41-yard touchdown with four seconds left...

An improved offensive performance powered the Perryville football team as it exceeded last year's win total three games into this season. The Pirates rushed for 279 yards and defeated visiting Fredericktown 28-7 in Perryville, Missouri, on Friday in the MAFC White Division Conference opener for both teams. In the first two games, Perryville scored 21 points...

KENNETT, Mo. - The Kennett Indians football team waisted little time building its lead against the Carnahan Cougars Saturday afternoon at Metz Cherry Stadium. Kennett calculated touchdowns in five of its first six offensive possessions. The Kennett defense took care of the rest by limiting Carnahan's offense to just one first down in the first half...

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. — Tyson Cox caught four passes, one for a 41-yard touchdown, and two on defense while the Mules ran for four touchdowns Friday night as the Poplar Bluff football team beat St. Charles 45-7 on Friday night. Isaiah Johnson ran for a career-high 130 yards and scored, RaShawn McCain added 90 yards rushing on eight carries with a touchdown and quarterback Logan Bell ran for one touchdown and threw for two more...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Kelly football coach Lance Powers summed things up as he walked off the field at St. Vincent on Friday night. "It's a good night to be a Hawk." The fourth-year program has already shown signs of growth early in the season but, just a week removed from snapping a 15-game losing skid, it downright dominated St. Vincent, scoring on the second play of the game, controlling the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and rolling to a 38-6 victory in Perryville, Missouri...

Coming off a 26-point loss, Jackson football got back to the basics in practice this week. The Indians focused on the basic tenants of football, such as blocking and tackling, as they prepared for their home and SEMO Conference North opener against Sikeston at 7 p.m. Friday...

Ryan Napoli joined the Southeast Missouri State football program to help build a winning culture. He came from a perennial Football Championship Subdivision powerhouse, North Dakota State. During his six years with the Bison, the football team won five national championships...

The Kelly football team went on the road Friday and came home with a 27-6 victory over Crystal City, picking up its first victory since 2015 and snapping a 15-game losing streak. The Hawks (1-1) controlled the game via their rushing attack, namely with the performance of freshman running back Evan Urhahn, who carried the ball 20 times for 232 yards and all four of Kelly's touchdowns...

It's becoming a tradition for Scott City football, winning the Green Up game. And senior Chance McKinley doesn't see that changing anytime soon. "We've never lost a Green Up game, and we don't plan on losing one anytime soon," McKinley said after the Rams cruised to a 21-3 win over St. Vincent on Friday at Scott City High School in matchup of Class 1 District 1 foes...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Perryville football coach Blane Boss found himself in an awkward situation following Friday night's game against St. Pius X. On one hand, he couldn't have been more pleased with the performance from his defense, which produced four takeaways and completely shut down the visitors' running game. However, on the other hand, the Pirates' offense left plenty to be desired...

KENNETT, Mo. - The Kennett Indians football team carried a 30-14 lead into the fourth quarter but was unable to survive a late surge by the Sikeston Bulldogs Friday night in its home opener at Metz Cherry Stadium. Sikeston calculated two touchdowns and a pair of two-point conversions in the fourth quarter to tie things up at 30-30 and force overtime. ...

The Scott City and St. Vincent football teams share the same colors -- yellow and blue, which adorn their primary jerseys -- but when it comes to offenses, the similarities end. The Rams of Scott City rely on a ground attack bolstered by a smash-mouth style of play, running the ball 48 times for 308 yards in their season opener last week. The Indians, on the other hand, put their quarterback in the shotgun, spread a defense out and try to pick it apart through the air...

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. — Chris Barker recovered a pair of fumbles within a span of 70 seconds as the Poplar Bluff football team took advantage of miscues by Riverview Gardens for a 34-14 season-opening win Friday night. Barker set up a 10-yard touchdown run by Brett Barousse to give the Mules (1-0) the lead for good with 8:28 left in the first half...

The Chaffee football team began its season with an explosive win, traveling to Crystal City and walking away with a 48-0 victory under its belt on Friday. The decisive result was spearheaded by junior quarterback Landon Tenkhoff, who ran for 142 yards and four touchdowns on 13 carries. He also completed 2 of 3 passes for 41 yards and a touchdown, all of which went to Dalton Wilson...

NEW MADRID, Mo – Kevin Collier’s return as head coach of the Malden Green Wave got off to strong start on Friday when they opened the season against host New Madrid County Central. Malden scored on each of their first five offensive drives, scoring 36 straight points to open the game, before rolling to a 50-12 final...

With minutes to go until halftime, Cape Girardeau Central football was locked in a dogfight. It was tie game, and Liberty (Mountain View) had just picked off a pass in Central territory. Then, on a second-and-15, Central senior Matt Nussbaum stepped in front of a pass and charged down the left sideline to the Liberty 2-yard line. ...

BENTON, Mo. – A new season often breeds new hope. And for one drive the Kelly Hawks were full of optimism. The team that scored 13 points during a winless campaign last season, methodically drove downfield and crossed the goal line on their very first drive of the year...

SIKESTON — The historic Sikeston-Charleston football rivalry has lost some of its luster in recent years after a string of blowout victories and just sheer dominance by the Bulldogs over the Bluejays. There was even some discussion a few years back of ending the series, which is considered the longest ongoing rivalry west of the Mississippi River in terms of number of games played...

FREDERICKTOWN, Mo. - The Kennett Indians football team ended its season opener on a high note Friday night at Blackcat Football Stadium in Fredericktown. Kennett calculated the final 35 points and did not allow a score after the first quarter on its way to a comfortable 50-14 victory at Fredericktown...

We discuss what to expect and what to watch for on the high school gridiron in 2017.

Cape Central football coach Arlen Pixley knows everyone loves a good cakewalk. But that might not be the best way to prepare his team. The good news, if you approach things with that mindset, is that the Tigers will have no cakewalk tonight in their season opener...

Coming off an 8-3 season and with numerous key contributors returning, including a quarterback who threw for nearly 3,000 yards, the theme for the Jackson football team is pretty self-explanatory: continuous improvement. The Indians will look to build off a year in which they claimed their first conference title since 2013, with a 4-0 run in the SEMO North, and advanced to the Class 5 District 1 final, before falling to eventual state champion Vianney, 49-14...

Growing up, Cooper Callis often tossed the football around with his dad, just another father and his son playing catch in the yard. But that's where the similarities end. Because if Callis threw the football too high or too far to the right or left and his dad couldn't catch it, Callis had to go retrieve it...

There's a new boss leading Perryville football this season -- Blane Boss. The first-year coach was an all-state running back at Windsor in the early 2000s and an offensive coordinator at his alma mater for the past three seasons before Perryville hired him in March, following Mike Wojtczuk's resignation in January. He takes over a team coming off a 2-8 season...

For Cape Central football coach Arlen Pixley, the questions surrounding this year's team bear an eerie resemblance to last season's question marks. How do you replace a Division I-level talent? Last year, the Tigers had to fill the void left by Al Young, now a sophomore for Southeast Missouri State football and a Carr Trophy winner. ...

The St. Vincent football team did some good things last year, putting together a 6-4 record to make 2016 its winningest season since 2008. But it's not 2016 anymore. Now the Indians will have to prove that the high mark is also a building block because many of the players upon which last year was constructed are gone...

After a 7-4 campaign last season steered the Scott City football program forward, the Rams have no intention of looking back. Scott City enters its ninth season under the direction of coach Jim May, and the challenge of establishing a winning culture is beginning to evolve. Now it's more about finding a way to uphold that culture...

Everything has a silver lining, right? It's hard to put lipstick on a winless season, but after the Kelly football team went 0-10 a year ago, the good news for the program is that it returns nearly everyone from a young, inexperienced squad that is now less young and inexperienced, and with some tough lessons to chew on and learn from...

Terry Flannigan understands the kind of football team he's inherited at Chaffee, and his expectations fall in line with a program that has made steady progress over the past two seasons. Flannigan takes over for his friend and former coach, Charlie Vickery, who guided the program for 16 seasons and led it to multiple milestones. ...

It's all about the cadence, the rhythm. This time of year seems to take on the qualities of a good snap count -- the rise and fall, the waiting and firing off. Regardless of when you consider it to "officially" be football season -- whether it's the start of practice, the jamborees that took place on Friday (they look a lot like football, even if they're only a vague likeness of the real deal) or this upcoming week's high school regular-season openers -- it's impossible to deny that it is now here.. ...

As Chance McKinley jogged off the field, a Scott City assistant football coach made sure to let him know the substitution had nothing to do with his play. "Chance, I'm just getting him reps. Good job," the coach yelled, his voice booming across the field...

KENNETT, Mo. - Kennett hosted its annual Gatorade Game Thursday night at Metz Cherry Stadium. The Kennett football team, volleyball team, girls tennis team, cross country team, cheerleaders, flags and twirlers were introduced by their head coaches at the event...

The pieces appear in place for another big year for the Malden Green Wave football program. Malden returns a slew of starters off of last season’s squad that finished 11-1 and advanced to the Class 2 state quarterfinals before falling to Trinity Catholic...

The Semoball Cup ended up being a battle of the Bulldogs that needed overtime to decide. Megan Heisserer's golden goal to lift Notre Dame to the Class 2 soccer title also happened to clinch the Cup. In the closest finish in the early history of the award, Notre Dame edged Van Buren by 4.79 points in the standings that determine which area school had the most athletically successful school year...

From across Southeast Missouri, people descended upon Cape Girardeau on Saturday night for the region's premier sports awards show. More than 150 student-athletes from 57 area high schools were on hand for the Fourth Annual Semoball Awards presented by SoutheastHEALTH at the Donald C. Bedell Performance Hall on Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus, as awards were handed out in 25 sports categories...

Jim Lohr, who coached football at his alma maters Poplar Bluff High School and Southeast Missouri State University, died Saturday. A member of the Poplar Bluff Sports Hall of Fame, Lohr was an all-state tackle for the Mules in 1951 before helping Southeast to an undefeated season four years later as a player. He went on to coach at both schools...

The Chaffee football program knew it was going to have a fresh face leading the way for the first time in more than a decade and a half. Now it has a name to attach to that face. Terry Flannigan will helm the Red Devils, the school announced Thursday, two weeks after the new coach's hire was made official...

Blane Boss was an all-state running back at Windsor High School in the early 2000s, even rushing for over 500 yards in one game. So it's probably not a surprise the new Perryville head football coach favors a ground-and-pound offense. "The type of kids they have, I definitely want to try to establish the run and make that our bread and butter," Boss said. ...

HATYI, Mo. -- Head football coach Neal Cruce didn't tout his constantly improving record or the accolades he's earned during his time with Hayti High School. The thing that mattered the most and what made his decision to leave the school after four seasons a difficult one was having to say goodbye to a part of his family...