Quarterfinals preview
Of the St. Louis American
The Missouri Class 5 and 6 playoffs will have their quarterfinals games this weekend. The Class 1-4 winners played sectional games on Wednesday night with the winners advancing to the state quarterfinals next Monday night. Here is a preview of this weekend’s state quarterfinals.
Class 6
Kirkwood (8-1) at Oakville (6-4), Fri., 7 p.m. – This is a rematch of Suburban West Conference teams. Kirkwood won the first meeting 14-0 on Oct. 14. The Pioneers are hot after steamrolling through a talented District 2 field by a combined score of 132-41. Junior quarterback Marcus Harris, who missed the first meeting with an injury, has thrown for 812 yards and six touchdowns in district play. Oakville is led by quarterback Sam Kriegel, who has thrown for 931 yards and tailback Fred Walton (eight TDs). Oakville’s first-year head coach is former Lindbergh High and Purdue standout Arlee Conners.
Hazelwood Central (7-3) at Lafayette (6-4), Fri. 7 p.m. – Hazelwood Central was 3-3 at one time, but it has battled through a tough schedule to advance after knocking off district-rival Hazelwood East. The Hawks have a talented quarterback in junior Marvin McNutt, tailback Kelvin Austin (968 yards rushing, nine touchdowns), and a talented crew of receivers, led by senior Jeremy Rahman. The Lancers have one of the area’s most underrated players in senior Cartez Parker, who has 1,078 yards of total offense while scoring 18 touchdowns.
Columbia Rock Bridge (8-2) at DeSmet (8-2), Fri., 7 p.m. – DeSmet makes it second consecutive appearance in the state playoffs and they will face a power from the middle of the state. This year, the Spartans will face Rock Bridge, who knocked off defending state champion HIckman in the district playoffs. DeSmet will rely on senior tailback Munir Prince, who has rushed for 1,023 yards and 20 touchdowns. A pair of youngsters who have stepped forward are sophomore receiver Wesley Kemp (734 yards receiving, six touchdowns) and freshman linebacker Devin King, who leads the team in tackles. One Rock Bridge player to watch is talented junior quarterback Logan Gray.
Class 5
Webster Groves (9-0) at Eureka (8-2), Fri., 7 p.m. – This is a rematch of Suburban South Conference powers. Webster Groves won the first meeting 49-14 on Oct. 14. Eureka was without top two-way player Sam Johnson and standout tackle Reo Taylor for that game. Johnson is back with his 873 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns. The Statesmen dodged a bullet last week when they squeaked by Francis Howell 14-10 and barely won District 2. Webster Groves were without tailback Robert Swapshire (13 TDs) for the game, but he should be back along with the other talented weapons for the Statesmen.
McCluer North (7-2) at Roosevelt (7-3), Sat. 1:30 p.m. – After a 3-7 season a year ago, Roosevelt completed a great turnaround by winning District 3 and a share of the Public High League title under coach Sorrell Harvey. The Roughriders’ defense has given up only 18 points in the past four games. Gary Harden leads the team in tackles and has four interceptions. On offense, senior Darrell Robertson has 1,179 yards of total offense while quarterback Curtis Brown has thrown for 1,283 yards. The Stars won a thrilling overtime game over Hazelwood West to win District 3. The Stars have an excellent offense led by the junior trio of quarterback Ben Hendrix (1,218 yards passing, 10 TDs), tailback Quartize Jackson (804 yards, 11 TDs) and receiver Norris Johnson (720 yards, 10 TDs). The Stars were the Class 5 state runners-up a year ago.
Prep Notes:
*Kirkwood HIgh senior Willie Dyson gave a verbal commitment to attend Minnesota last week. The 6’3″ 230-pound defensive end currently has xx tackles and xx quarterback sacks for the Pioneers.
*Pattonville High senior Kierra Handley earned All-State honors by finishing 25th at the Missouri Class 4 cross country state championships.
*CBC senior Ron Franklin came off the bench to score two second-half goals to lead the Cadets past Parkway South 2-0 in the Class 4, District 5 championship game at Chaminade.
