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Southeast Missourian Football Player of the Year: Cameron Marchi earns POTY honors following 2,600 yard, 40 TD season
For three years, Cameron Marchi sat behind his cousin — one of the most prolific quarterbacks in Missouri high school football history Cael Welker.
In 2021, his senior year, Marchi got his turn.
And he delivered.
The senior quarterback led the Jackson Indians to a 12-1 record and a third straight state semifinal berth after throwing 2,693 yards, 40 touchdowns and just four interceptions, earning him Southeast Missourian Football Player of the Year honors.
"I thought that I exceeded my expectations," Marchi said. "As we came into the season I was going to have to fill Cael's shoes, and those are pretty big shoes. Before the season we talked about how the offense is run through the quarterback, so it was kind of on me on how to play. I played pretty good in some of the big games, but overall, we didn't get our season-end goal. But I thought it was a pretty good season for me."
Going into the Indians' bye week in the first round of the Class 5 district tournament, Marchi's numbers were solid. The senior was 100-of-145 for 1,557 yards, 24 touchdowns and had already thrown all four picks.
After the bye week, he apparently flipped a switch.
Throughout the district tournament and in the playoffs, Marchi nearly doubled his regular-season production by throwing for another 1,136 yards and 16 touchdowns in just four games.
In the Indians' first district game against Mehlville, Marchi went 13-for-14 through the air with 156 yards and three touchdowns. He followed that performance up with a 264-yard game where he threw for six scores in the district title game against Seckman.
After producing what many would consider a career game, Marchi dazzled Jackson fans with his best performance of the season. The senior signal-caller was on fire in the sectional round against then-undefeated Rockwood Summit, torching the Falcons for 515 yards and another six touchdowns.
"Cameron was elite this year. He was flat out elite," Jackson coach Brent Eckley said. "He took care of the football, he took ownership over ball security for the team. He made plays, he scrambled well, he threw the ball deep and he threw the ball accurately. He's got a really strong arm, he ran physically and he got us set in the right formations.
"He just grew so much from his sophomore year through his junior year and up to his senior year. He just really owned it."
In addition to his strong passing numbers, Marchi also ran for 313 yards and nine touchdowns.
Eckley praised Marchi's character and the fact that he stuck with football despite having to play behind Welker for three seasons.
"I think what happens is guys grow the most when they think they've got a chance to be the guy. They don't leave any stone unturned," Eckley said. "When Cameron knew that his cousin was the best quarterback in Class 5, he's not quite as focused on doing the job. It's just like in the NFL, you look at the backup quarterbacks. Those backups have got to be unbelievably disciplined to know their job and be able to do their job. As soon as the guy has an injury they have to step in. Well, you're talking about a 15-16-year-old kid trying to prepare like they're the starter when they're not getting reps. It's difficult, and like I said, it's a huge testament to his character to be mentally tough and be able to work his way through that."
Marchi admitted to feeling some nervousness in his first outing but said it went away quickly once the game began.
"Honestly, before the first game I was a little nervous," Marchi said. "90% of the time our practices are more intense and more demanding than the actual game, so having to go out every day in the summer and then in the fall and produce against the defense that we had, it was harder than most of the defenses we played all year.
"Obviously, going in your first game, you're nervous, but honestly, after you snap it and get the ball in your hands on the first play, it's just muscle memory and you forget all about your nerves."
Marchi has a few opportunities to play college football as well as college baseball, although the senior quarterback/pitcher hasn't quite decided where he wants to go.
At the end of the day, Marchi recognized his stellar senior season wouldn't have been possible without the players surrounding him, and he made sure to give credit where it was due.
"I don't think I could get this award without all my teammates, especially the O-line and the receivers always being there for me before the season and during the games," Marchi said. "The O-line, they do not get enough credit for what they do. Ashton, Liam and all of them, they never got their names called for a touchdown. It was always me to Kannen or me to Tony. We get our names called and they're really doing the hard work, so I want to make sure that they get the recognition."