State champ rematches
Plus, undefeated vs. undefeated
Of the St. Louis American
This weekend’s prep football schedule is highlighted by two games featuring four teams that played for the state championships a year ago. A conference battle between undefeated teams is also on the schedule.
Hazelwood East (3-0) at McCluer North (3-0), Saturday, 1 p.m. – For the second consecutive week, two Suburban North Conference powers hook up in a big showdown of undefeated teams. McCluer North defeated Hazelwood Central last week to remain undefeated, but they must now take on the talented Spartans. North played for the Class 5 state title while East advanced to the Class 6 state title game. Both teams have the talent to make similar runs. North quarterback Ben Hendrix has passed for 469 yards and four touchdowns. His favorite target has been junior Norris Johnson, who is averaging 34 yards a reception with four touchdowns. Tailbacks Todd Washington and Quartize Jackson split the duty with a combined 465 yards rushing and six touchdowns. The Spartans have some excellent weapons as well with senior quarterback Carl Word (429 yards passing, six touchdowns), tailback Thomas Merriweather (377 yards rushing, seven touchdowns) and big-play receiver Gerald Fulton (four touchdowns, 22 yards per reception).
Clayton (3-0) at MICDS (3-0), Saturday, 1 p.m. – A nonconference showdown between Clayton, the Class 4 state champions and MICDS, who won the Class 3 state title. MICDS won a memorable 24-21 contest at CBC last season. Both teams suffered heavy graduation losses from last year’s state championship team, but that hasn’t stopped them from fielding strong units once again. For Clayton, senior quarterback Carter Sapp has stepped into the shoes of graduated star Jairus Byrd. Sapp has rushed for four touchdowns and thrown for three. His main target is 6’4″ senior receiver Cameron Hicks. The defense is led by junior linebacker Doug Williams, who is a three-year standout. The Rams feature running back Ted Watt, who has scored six touchdowns and quarterbacks John Engler and DiMarcus Wilson. Senior linebacker Kevin Maher has recorded five quarterback sacks.
Parkway Central (3-0) at Eureka (3-0), Friday, 7 p.m. – An excellent Suburban South showdown between undefeated area powers. Both teams have gone different routes to their current undefeated status. Eureka has posted three consecutive shutouts while outscoring its three opponents 121-0. Meanwhile, Parkway Central has won two of its three games with dramatic last-second comebacks. Eureka is led by senior Sam Johnson, who has rushed for 382 yards on six touchdowns. He is also the leader of the Wildcats stingy defense from his linebacker position. Johnson is supported on defense by defensive end Eric Chole (six sacks), Nathan Souder (five interceptions) and Darrell Cain (three interceptions). The Colts are led by senior quarterback Joey Hoffman (387 yards, three touchdowns) and receiver Antonio Brown, who made a spectaluar catch in the Colts’ 20-19 victory against Summit last Friday. The Colts were a Class 5 semifinalist a year ago.
Alton (2-2) at East St. Louis (3-1), Friday, 7 p.m. – An important Southwestern Conference game between the high-scoring Flyers and the grind-it-out Alton Redbirds. Which style will win out? East Side’s powerful offense is averaging 56 points a game. In last week’s victory over Granite City, senior tailback Jaious Singleton rushed for 284 yards and four touchdowns. Quarterback Derek Johnson has passed for 14 touchdowns while junior receiver Jerrell McDaneil has 11 TD receptions. The Redbirds feature a powerful running attack led by seniors Marcus Clemmons and Joe Hook. Fellow seniors Eric Snipes and John Steen have to come up big on defense if the Redbirds are to slow down the Flyers.
Stewart to Northern
O’Fallon High standout Justin Stewart recently gave an oral commitment to attend Northern Illinois University next fall. The 6’1″ 185-pound Stewart has been a three-year standout for the Panthers at running back and safety. He is playing quarterback as a senior this year. As a junior, he rushed for 1,275 yards and 17 touchdowns in helping the Panthers to a 11-1 record and the Southwestern Conference title. He also had four interceptions on defense. Through four games this season, Stewart has rushed for 169 yards and passed for 189 yards with 35 tackles on defense.
TD’s for E.J.
Edwardsville High senior E.J. Jones continued his hot scoring pace with four more rushing touchdowns in the Tigers’ 35-0 victory over Collinsville last Friday. Jones has scored 12 touchdowns for the Tigers, who are now 4-0. Edwardsville finished 4-5 last season.
Go, Jennings
Jennings is off to a excellent 3-0 start under new coach Ryan Wallace. The Warriors have a couple of talented underclassmen in junior Robert Williams and sophomore Darryl Grady. Jennings has an interesting matchup with Westminster on Saturday in a battle of good small-school teams trying to establish themselves. Westminster is also 3-0 and scoring a lot of points.
Snake-bitten Falcons
The Rockwood Summit Falcons are a talented team, but they have been snake-bitten in their 0-3 start. The Falcons lost to Lindbergh in overtime, Washington 20-18 and Parkway Central 20-19 on a last-second fourth and 28 pass play for a touchdown.
