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Week 2 football preview: St. Vincent Indians, Scott City Rams to clash Friday night
Despite falling 40-0 in its season opener, St. Vincent coach Tim Schumer is just excited for his team to have another opportunity to step on the field.
The Indians may have their hands full, however, as they travel to Scott City Friday night to take on the 1-0 Rams.
“We’re feeling good,” Schumer said. “I mean, we’re getting another chance to play, so we’ll be excited and ready to go. We’ve had a good week in practice and can’t wait to get started.”
St. Vincent is a young team this year, according to Schumer, but the Indians’ coach is looking forward to seeing how his team improves heading into this week.
“I’ve relayed the message that we’re a younger team, but we’ve definitely had some younger guys step up in different areas last week,” Schumer said. “You see a lot of difference in teams between Weeks 1 and 2. You get your first taste of competition and kind of see where your strengths and weaknesses are. You can kind of play to them and see a big improvement from Week 1 to Week 2.”
A big part of St. Vincent’s game plan involves stopping Scott City sophomore Mark Panagos — who scored twice on the ground and once through the air for the Rams last week in a 27-6 win against Dexter — on offense.
“I think they have a very good player in Mark Panagos,” Schumer said. “They like to get him involved in multiple ways. He’s definitely one of those guys where you’ve just got to make sure you know where he is on the field at all times and just kind of know what they like to do with him in different situations and try to contain it.”
Schumer’s Indians faced a tough Week 1 opponent in Park Hills Central, but Scott City coach Jim May isn’t fooled by St. Vincent’s performance last week.
“I’m a little worried,” May said. “Every year St. Vincent plays a really good team Week 1. We know that they’re a lot better than the results they normally get in Week 1, and we know it’ll be all we want and more.”
May said playing a team in Week 2 that was routed in Week 1 makes scouting a bit difficult for the coaching staff.
“I was so happy when they stopped playing Valle Catholic in Week 1 because we wouldn’t hardly get anything out of the film,” May said. “Now they’re playing Park Hills Central. They always start off with a really tough game and that doesn’t always give you the best film, but it’s not like they didn’t go up there and try to do their best. You get to see what’s going on for the most part.”
Despite his team picking up the win in its first game, May wasn’t satisfied with his team’s performance in Week 1.
“It wasn’t something that you’d be real happy about,” May said. “Dexter made several mistakes that really helped us. We never really got into an offensive flow at all. Part of it was our fault and part of it was just the way the game went.
“Defensively, it really felt like we missed too many tackles and had some missed assignments, especially in the first half. We corrected some of that in the second half and played a little better, but we never could find any offensive rhythm at all and we’ve got to be able to put some more points on the board.”
St. Vincent’s playstyle is much different than what May’s Rams prepared for against Dexter last week.
“They’re a lot more multiple on offense than Dexter was, and they throw the ball a lot more,” May said. “That changes some things. They have a decent running game and they can also really throw it. You’ve got to be able to send both facets of it. They’ve shown both a four and a three front on defense, so we’re going to have to be able to handle whatever they try to throw at us.”
The Rams (1-0) and Indians (0-1) face off at 7 p.m. today at Scott City High School.
Jackson (1-0) at Hillsboro (1-0), 7 p.m.
Jackson senior quarterback Cameron Marchi didn’t get to show off his skills too much in the Indians’ opening matchup against Roosevelt, playing four series and throwing the ball just three times in an 80-6 win.
This week could be different, as coach Brent Eckley expects a much bigger challenge on the road against Hillsboro than his team got last week.
The Indians and Hawks will meet at 7 p.m. today at Hillsboro High School.
Last season: Jackson 55, Hillsboro 14
Chaffee (1-0) at Charleston (0-1), 7 p.m.
The Chaffee Red Devils won a tight contest last week against Crystal City, overcoming a 14-0 halftime deficit to win 20-14.
This week is likely to be much more difficult for third-year coach Will Daffron’s squad.
Charleston lost to East Prairie in a shootout last week, 42-34. The Red Devils defense is going to have to step up in order to hold the Blue Jays in check.
The Red Devils are likely to lean on senior Isiah Fitzgerald who had 139 all-purpose yards on offense and intercepted the Hornets twice.
Last season: Charleston 52, Chaffee 6
Perryville (0-1) vs. Windsor (1-0), 7 p.m.
Perryville fell to Red Bud (Ill.) on short notice last week, 19-6. The Pirates remain at home this week to take on the visiting Windsor Owls, who beat Herculaneum 15-12 last Friday.
With a full week to prepare for its opponent, Perryville could have an opportunity to even its record with a victory to night.
Pirates quarterback Aiden McGarvey leads the Southeast Missourian coverage area in passing yards, and it’s possible coach Brent Roth could lean on his signal-caller this week.
Last season: Perryville 38, Windsor 18