CBC advances to championship

One team from the St. Louis area has already clinched a spot in the Show-Me Bowl during Thanksgiving weekend, and three others will try to do the same as the state playoffs continue this weekend.

Defending Class 6 state champion CBC advanced to the state-championship game for the second consecutive year after defeating Springfield Kickapoo 35-14 last Friday night. The Cadets will face Blue Springs South, which defeated Kirkwood 41-17. CBC and Blue Springs South will meet for the state championship on Friday, Nov. 27 at 7:30 p.m. at the Edward Jones Dome. Both teams are currently 13-0. Blue Springs South defeated CBC for the Class 6 state championship during the 2011-12 season.

CBC ran its current winning streak to 27 games after shaking off a big challenge from Kickapoo. After battling to a 14-14 halftime stalemate, the Cadets outscored Kickapoo 21-0 in the second half to punch their ticket to the Dome. Standout tailback Tre Bryant rushed for 160 yards and three touchdowns to lead CBC while Kaleb Allen added 156 yards on the ground and another score.

Since both teams have a week off before the state-championship, we will preview the Class 6 state-championship game next week.

Also competing 

There are three other area teams that are competing in state semifinals contests this weekend.

Class 5: Carthage (11-1) at Chaminade (11-1), Friday, 7 p.m. – The Red Devils are one game away from making their first ever appearance in the Show-Me Bowl. Chaminade rode a stellar defensive effort in defeating Rockwood Summit 14-7 in last week’s quarterfinals. The Red Devils held a potent Summit offense to just 98 yards of total offense in what was a tremendous defensive display. The defense has been led by senior defensive back Roderick Campbell, a Northwestern recruit who has four interceptions. Luke Hanley has a team-high 77 tackles while Brandon Haberstroh and sophomore Trevor Trout have combined for nine sacks. On offense, the Red Devils have a number of weapons, led by quarterback Michael McGovern, who has thrown 14 touchdown passes. Junior wide receiver Reginald Crawford is the top target. There are a stable of talented backs, including Darius Daies, who leads with 799 yards and nine touchdowns. Andre Whitley, Damon Bonds, Jr. and Jabori Buchanan have combined to score 22 touchdowns.

Carthage comes with an 11-1 record, which includes last weekend’s thrilling 48-46 victory over Nixa in the quarterfinals. Carthage stopped Nixa on a two-point conversion in the closing seconds to take the victory and their first berth in the state semifinals since 1968. Carthage is led by talented quarterback Alex Derryberry, who enjoyed a huge game against NIxa. Derryberry had 399 yards of total offense and six touchdowns. He rushed for 229 yards and five touchdowns while passing for 170 yards and another score.

Class 4: Kearney (12-1) at Westminster Christian (13-0), Saturday, 1 p.m. – Westminster is making its first appearance in the semifinals after a 35-13 victory over University City last weekend. The Wildcats are the champions of the Metro League. They boast one of the area’s biggest offensive lines, which includes three players who are more than 300 pounds. Running behind that massive line is junior running back Steve Webb, who rushed for 239 yards and two touchdowns against University City. Webb has rushed for 1,806 yards and 26 touchdowns this season. Quarterback Evan Johnson has passed for 2,258 yards and 32 touchdowns. His favorite target is junior receiver Dyllan Conway, who has 48 receptions for 790 yards and 18 touchdowns.

Kearney has been one of the top Class 4 programs in the state of Missouri for many years. They defeated Hannibal 35-7 in the other quarterfinals game. Kearney displays a punishing ground attack, led by Marcus Harris, who rushed for 166 yards and a touchdown against Hannibal. Quarterback Logan Hinck rushed for 112 yards and another TD against Hannibal while Cole Garrett rushed for two touchdowns.

Class 3: Blair Oaks (13-0) at John Burroughs (12-1), Saturday, 1 p.m. – John Burroughs is making its sixth consecutive appearance in the state semifinals. The Bombers are seeking their fifth Show-Me Bowl appearance in that six-year span. The Bombers defeated Park Hills South 42-7 in the quarterfinals. John Burroughs has an explosive offense, led by sophomore quarterback Tyler Foote, who has passed for 1,965 yards and 35 touchdowns. Sophomore running back Jake Bain has rushed for 1,706 yards and 26 touchdowns. Seniors athletes Ronald Smith and Chris Booker are an explosive pair of two-way senior performers. Smith has 38 receptions for 562 yards and 18 touchdowns while Booker has 42 receptions for 836 yards and 18 touchdowns. 

Blair Oaks continued its impressive run in 2015 with a 51-26 victory over Centralia in last week’s quarterfinals. The Falcons boast a powerful offensive unit that averages 56 points a game. They feature a talented quarterback in Jordan Hair, who had 392 yards and four touchdowns against Centralia.

Tre Bryant commits to Nebraska 

Standout running back Tre Bryant of CBC gave a commitment to Nebraska last week. Bryant had originally committed to Kansas State during the summer, but changed his mind and re-opened his recruitment earlier this month. He took visits to Minnesota and Nebraska before finally settling on the Cornhuskers.

Early Basketball Showdown 

CBC will host SLUH on Friday night in a very early season showdown of Metro Catholic Conference powers on Friday night. Both teams should be among the best in the state of Missouri once again. CBC features three Division I signees in 5’9″ guard Jordan Barnes (Indiana State), 6’2″ Christian Willis (Arkansas State) and 6’7″ Duane Clark (UMKC). SLUH returns a strong nucleus of players from last year’s team that finished fourth in the Class 5 state tournament, including 6’2″ junior guard Brandon McKissic and 5’11” senior guard Matt Nester, who is headed to Washington University.