C2D1 FB: Caruthersville shows 'swagger' with rout of East Prairie

Caruthersville High School sophomore Chazmon Thomas (10) makes a tackle of an East Prairie runner on Friday in the MSHSAA Class 2 District 1 game at Hopke Field in Caruthersville.

Tom Davis ~ Tdavis@semoball.com

CARUTHERSVILLE – Third-year Caruthersville High School football coach Dom Guglielmo has preached to his team this season that he wants “fast starts” on both sides of the ball, but the Tigers haven’t always been able to do that.

In Friday’s MSHSAA Class 2 District 1 semifinal win over East Prairie at Hopke Field, that wasn’t an issue.

Tiger senior Jermonte Alexander tore off on a 55-yard touchdown run less than three minutes into the game, and the rout was on, as Caruthersville prevailed easily 41-6.

“(Our players) buy into the fact that there is always going to be more left in their tank,” Guglielmo said following the victory. “They buy into the fact that they are representing Caruthersville on the football field, and they have a swagger about them.”

As the Tigers should.

Friday’s win was the 10th in 11 games this season, and Caruthersville has yet to play in a close game. The Tigers’ lone defeat was a 30-point loss at Valle Catholic in September (more on that in a minute).

The 10 victories are the most since the Class 2 District 1 championship squad also won 10 games in 2018.

“In (2022),” Guglielmo said of his first season with the program, “we were working on winning games. In (2023), we were working in survival mode but trying to win football games as best as we could.

“This year, we have a swagger about us, and we’re just going to go in there, do our job, and win.”

That was evident on Friday, as less than a minute after Alexander’s score, sophomore defensive lineman Ryland Harris scooped up a fumble by Eagle quarterback Connor Marcum after he was sacked and ran it back for a score from 39 yards out, giving the hosts a 13-0 margin.

The Tiger defense, which has been the best in the program since 2009, continued its stellar play with a fourth down stop of the Eagles (8-3) at the Tiger 11-yard line late in the opening quarter.

A couple of plays later, Alexander sped away from the East Prairie defenders for a 78-yard score and a 20-0 lead.

“It’s a mentality that we have developed,” Guglielmo said of his team’s confidence, “and it is a mentality that has been around Caruthersville football long before I was even here.”

Before halftime, Alexander, on his fourth carry of the game, scored for the third time, this time from 54 yards away.

Following halftime, Caruthersville junior runner Sammy Bryant took over and scored on a long run just 12 seconds into the second half for a 35-0 advantage.

Bryant added a final Tiger score seconds into the fourth quarter on a 15-yard run.

East Prairie, which improved from three wins to eight wins this season, got on the scoreboard midway through the final period when Marcum hooked up with senior Ty Wallace for a 27-yard scoring pass.

“These kids played their butts off,” first-year East Prairie coach Ian Penrod said of his team’s spectacular turnaround. “There is really no way to put it.”

Alexander finished with 192 yards on the ground in just six carries.

Bryant added 124 yards rushing while freshman Donzell Foster added 44 yards gained on five carries.

Tiger senior linebacker Oscar Dominguez helped his team with 14 tackles while sophomore Tre-Sean Mays had one fumble recovery, one sack, and seven tackles.

Caruthersville also got 17 tackles from junior linebacker Jackson Napier while sophomore Chazmon Thomas added nine tackles, three being for a loss.

Harris not only had the scoop-and-score, but also chipped in nine tackles while senior Emaurion Truss (seven tackles), Jermaine Caruthers (14 tackles, three for a loss), Kenyon Bogan (seven tackles), and Keiston Clowers (eight tackles and a pass deflection) were also productive.

The Caruthersville win sets up a Class 2 District 1 championship game on Friday at Valle Catholic (9-1) at 7 p.m. The Warriors are the defending C2D1 champions.