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Southeast Missourian Gridiron Guide: Key matchups to look out for in Southeast Missourian's kickoff week
Wednesday, August 28, 2024
Jackson coach Ryan Nesbitt talks to his team following the Friday, August 2, 2024 Gatorade Game between the hosting Jackson Indians, Hayti Indians and New Madrid County Central Eagles at "The Pit" at Jackson High School in Jackson, Mo.
Tony Capobianco ~ tcapobianco@semoball.com
With the first week of high school football on the horizon, with Friday signaling the start of the 2024 season for most of our local teams, there’s lots of optimism for the Southeast Missourian coverage area once again.
Most of our local squads are opening up the year with some tough opponents, with many playing up in class size, such as both Perryville and St. Vincent.
The Perry County schools are teeing off with games against Fredericktown and Ste. Genevieve respectively, while Jackson opens up the year with a matchup against Class 5 No. 1 Cardinal Ritter on the road.
As we prepare for a thrilling first week of Friday Night Lights, we’ll take you through each of these matchups ahead of the long-awaited kickoff of an exciting new campaign.
The Southeast Missourian covers seven local varsity football teams: Cape Central, Chaffee, Jackson, Kelly, Perryville, Scott City, and St. Vincent.
Fredericktown at Perryville, 7 p.m. Thursday
Here’s a fun one: Perryville is dishing out the appetizers on Thursday night as it kicks off the season early against the Class 3 Fredericktown Blackcats.
In one of the tightest matchups in all of Week 1 action, these teams are anticipated to be separated by just a point-and-a-half, with Perryville entering as a narrow favorite.
Anticipated to be led by quarterback Kayd Luckey, with a slick arm and some quick legs, the quarterback carousel appears to be solved while retaining some sharp weapons on both ends.
Chase Richardet and Dominic Seiler each add options in the receiving game to help Luckey open up the passing game, while Kaleb Huber is looking to make a name for himself defensively.
Down the street, St. Vincent’s Drake Robinson just took home Semoball Defensive Player of the Year honors, and Huber’s big frame and quick wits give him a chance to do the same.
Finishing as a nominee for the same award in his junior season, the Perryville linebacker is the Pirates’ reigning defensive MVP, and he could play a big role in shutting down that Fredericktown offense.
In a battle of middle-class powers, the Pirates will look to kick off their season with a bang as this should be one of the top matchups of the opening week.
New Madrid County Central at Cape Central, 7 p.m. Friday
Opening up a new year that’s well-anticipated to add to the legacy of the past two years, it’s new air for the Cape Tigers as for the first time in nearly a decade, the Tigers are coming off back-to-back final fours.
After a deep run all the way into the semis, losing a heartbreaker to Cardinal Ritter, there’s more excitement for the Tigers than ever entering the 2024 season, and this is the perfect way to start it.
The Tigers open up as 43.5-point favorites over New Madrid County Central, with the Eagles having lost the bulk of its offensive production from the 2023 season that made them such a titan.
With the departure of Jadis Jones at wideout, B.J. Williamson at quarterback and Kayden Minner at running back, there’s so much uncertain about the Eagles in the new year.
Across the pond, looking at Cape, there’s so much that’s positively certain about the Tigers as they return both running backs while returning the quarterback prospect in Deklin Pittman that they value so highly.
Week 1’s matchup with the Eagles should tell us a lot about the Tigers, and their six-score favoring over the Eagles should come as no surprise ahead of what could be a generational run.
Chaffee at Grandview, 7 p.m. Friday
It’s easy to look at what’s lost for Chaffee.
In what was its first .500 year since the 2017 season, the Red Devils have already lost so much of what made them so special a year ago, but there’s still some optimism in Week 1.
Heading north to Hillsboro, Missouri, to take on the Grandview Eagles, the spread is just 3.5 points, with the visiting Red Devils entering as the underdogs.
Led by senior running back Logan Horton, Chaffee will look to recover from some big losses on both sides of the ball with a powerful running attack.
With some tall and talented receivers lining up both inside and outside the numbers, we’ll see an opportunity for Chaffee to spread the game out this fall, starting on Friday against the Eagles.
Though it’s a building year for Jack Altermatt and his new-look Devils, their first game of the 2024 season is certainly a winnable one.
Jackson at Cardinal Ritter, 7 p.m. Friday
What’s become a tradition for the Indians, the 2024 season starts with a team that’s going to give Jackson some serious trouble, traveling north to St. Louis.
Facing off against the back-to-back state champions, winners of 28 straight games in Cardinal Ritter, Jackson’s got its work cut out if it wants to start the new year hot, entering as 13.5-point underdogs.
Though Jackson’s all-time record against the Lions is an impressive 3-0, marking the dominance of the early 2020s Indians without intent to diminish those Lions of the same era, it’s a new day.
Cardinal Ritter’s led by three high-FBS recruits on offense in quarterback Carson Boyd, running back Jamarion Parker and wideout Dejerrian Miller.
I’ve beat it into the ground, and I’ll continue to do so: This Jackson defense is young, and it’s going to make lots of mistakes early on.
But in doing so, those guys will also turn those heads. These kids are explosive, strong and are more liable to get a pick than just about any Jackson defense you’ve watched before.
If the Indians can create some problems for the Ritter offense, and respond with their own explosive offense, Jackson could have a serious bid for the upset in its season opener.
Charleston at Kelly, 7 p.m. Friday
In a battle of what should be two of the more improved teams in the area this season, it feels like a new-school vs. old-school matchup as Charleston and Kelly clash in Week 1.
The Hawks will come out with one of the top quarterbacks in the region in Skyler Still, returning a good chunk of his receiving talent that made last year’s Kelly offense quite dangerous.
Adding a year of experience, we’re expecting the 16.5-point favorite Hawks to do some damage in the season opener, but not without a response from the Blue Jays.
Charleston’s added a lot of talent over the offseason, including a booster shot of transfer talent from Sikeston amidst the changing of hands that brought in coach Jim May to its arch-rival.
What should be a dynamic and fast-paced Charleston offense could pose a problem for a Kelly defense that often struggled to stop powerful opponents in the 2023 campaign.
With both squads looking to take a big step forward this season, Kelly enters as a decent favorite, but don’t write Charleston off just yet.
Scott City at East Prairie, 7 p.m. Friday
It’s a battle of some of the biggest names in the 2024 coaching carousel, and this one could be a doozy.
Scott City emerged as one of the 2023 season’s top small-school powerhouses, while East Prairie was a lackluster underperformer.
The difference is that one school lost its coach, while another gained its coach. Scott City parted ways with Jim May, who redefined the program, while coach Ian Penrod returned to his alma mater in East Prairie.
Hired in 2020 to coach the Bulldogs of Portageville, Penrod turned them into a powerhouse after just a few short years, helping Jamarion Smith on his rise to stardom and into a spot at Southeast Missouri State.
Now leading the squad at his old stomping grounds, Penrod’s looking to turn the Eagles into a contender once again, but it’s a long process.
There’s been quite a bit of turnover at Scott City, and the roster is quite slim in the new era under what should be a great ball coach in Brian Beaubien, but even so, the Rams are still fighting in the new year.
The Rams enter this Week 1 contest as 17.5-point favorites over East Prairie, led by Jackson Gloth’s newfound skills at quarterback with some contributions from some familiar names from last year’s squad.
Under new leadership on both sidelines, this battle should be a great look into what the future holds for two of our biggest storylines in the Bootheel this fall.
Ste. Genevieve at St. Vincent, 7 p.m. Friday
A showdown between Saints on the first Friday night will bring together two powers from neighboring counties for a season-opening brawl.
Ste. Genevieve, with a reputation for being one of the top middle-class powers on this side of the state, comes to Perry County for a battle against the nearby St. Vincent Indians.
Fresh off a trip to the semifinals in what was their best season in nearly two decades, the Indians are still looking for power under head coach Tim Schumer.
Reloading the offense after losing dual-threat quarterback Christian Schaaf to graduation, a quarterback battle is still underway as the Indians approach Week 1.
Though the offense looks a little different, besides Semoball Defensive Player of the Year Drake Robinson, the St. Vincent defense retains 10 of its 11 starters heading into a big prove-it year.
Against the mighty dragons of Ste. Genevieve, St. Vincent enters as a 1.5-point underdog for a matchup that should tell a lot about our local powers to the north.
And, of course, as the battle for the Mayor’s Cup heats up ahead of Perryville and St. Vincent’s Week 3 clash, it’ll be a great opportunity to prep for one of the area’s top rivalry games.