Conference play gets into full swing this week.
Before we look ahead, let’s look back at Week 2.
See the Top Plays of Week 2 in the video above.
Team of the Week: Camdenton Lakers
Laker fans, on behalf of the O-Zone, I apologize. All eight O-Zone of the O-Zone staff picked the Zizzers to win this game. Camdenton got into a shootout and came out on top thanks to an explosive offense. West Plains shut out Waynesville in Week 1, but yielded 54 in the 13-point loss to the Lakers. That is the most points hung on the Zizzers by a team not named Glendale since Camdenton scored the same amount on them back in Week 6 of 2011.
The Lakers tallied up 521 total yards with 311 on the ground and 210 through the air. Jay Griffin led the way with 26 carries for 169 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Dyllan Decker was 6-for-11 for 168 yards and three touchdowns through the air. All three of those touchdowns landed in Parker Stidham's hands as he caught four balls for 141 yards. Camdenton was efficient on third down going 9-for-14. Defensively, the Lakers gave up 444 yards but did create three turnovers.
This week is the Highway 5 rivalry with Lebanon coming to Camdenton. See more on that game below.
TOP 100 PHOTOS OF WEEK 2 – CLICK HERE
Five others that stood out.
Carthage – The Tigers took down Webb City 34-21 to hand the Cardinals their second loss to start the season and third in a row dating back to last year. The Tigers rolled up 233 yards on 46 carries. Trey Collins led the way with 12 carries for 86 yards and two touchdowns. Defensively, Carthage created four turnovers with three fumble recoveries and an interception. This included a goal-line stand to close the half and keep Webb City from gaining momentum.
Diamond – If there was any doubt about Diamond’s chances to win the SRVC, they are gone after dismantling Jasper 32-6. The Wildcats were balanced throwing for 273 yards and rushing for 204. Carter Prewitt threw for all of those yards with three touchdowns. He also rushed for 20 yards and another touchdown. Blake Drake was his top target hauling in 11 balls for 150 yards and a touchdown. Triston Shepherd carried the ball 17 times for 94 yards and a touchdown. Defensively, Jasper mustered just 64 yards on 32 carries and 41 yards through the air.
Fair Grove – The Eagles crushed defending Mid-Lakes champion Skyline 50-14 letting the conference know there is a new top dog. The Eagles had 325 yards on the ground and 132 through the air. Austin Fodge had 104 of those yards rushing.
Lamar – Lamar did what Lamar does in another shut-out win. The Tigers ran just 13 offensive plays and had three one-play scoring drives averaging 3.7 points per play. Lamar last gave up a point 18 quarters ago in the Class 2 Quarterfinal game against MV-BT/Liberty.
Willard – The Tigers struggled to close out the game in a Week 1 loss to Nixa, but the Tigers showed resolve in a 48-42 win over Bolivar. Willard only mustered 288 yards of total offense to Bolivar’s 416, but the Tigers were opportunistic with four turnovers including three interceptions. Kenny Chambers took one of those interceptions back for a touchdown. He also hauled in two balls for two touchdowns and 81 yards.
PICTURES: BEST FANS OF WEEK 2 – CLICK HERE
Player of the Week: Bryce Murphy, Neosho
To say Neosho is happy to have Bryce Murphy back would be an understatement. He opened the 25-20 win over Ozark by taking the kickoff 90 yards back to the house. The speed he displays on the run is unreal.
CLICK HERE TO SEE MURPHY’S 90-YARD KICKOFF RETURN
He also hauled in seven balls for almost 180 yards and two touchdowns which both came from outside of 30 yards.
10 others who stood out:
Rayquion Weston, Carl Junction: I saw the first quarter of this game in person and left impressed with the sophomore running back. He had 32 carries for 192 yards and four touchdowns in the win over Republic, but the way he got those yards might have impressed me more than the numbers. Weston can’t be brought down by just one tackler. He is an extremely physical runner that was just as good between the tackles as outside.
His vision is off the charts too. Click the link below and go to the 1:27 mark. Republic does a good job getting a push, but Weston bounces out and turns what should have been a minimal gain into 17 yards and a first down at the two-yard line.
CLICK HERE TO SEE RAYQUION WESTON’S HIGHLIGHTS AGAINST REPUBLIC
Nicos Oropeza, Nixa: Oropeza rushed for 227 yards and two touchdowns on 34 carries as the Eagles held off Branson for a win. The senior back is another physical and elusive runner. Click the link below and go to the 40-second mark. Six Pirates have a shot at him before he gets brought down after a big 27-yard gain.
CLICK HERE TO SEE NIXA’S HIGHLIGHTS AGAINST BRANSON
Chris Lawson, Kickapoo: There hasn’t been a more efficient quarterback than Lawson. On Friday, Lawson was 12-for-16 for 120 yards and four touchdowns in a win over Rolla. Through two games he has six touchdowns and just 10 incompletions.
River Phelps, Cassville: Phelps got it going for Cassville in a rout of Reeds Spring with 13 carries for 195 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. He added three receptions for 73 yards and a touchdown.
Latham Melton-Farmer, Mountain Grove: The big guys up front don’t get enough love, but they make things go, especially for teams that rely on the run like Mountain Grove. The Panthers rushed for 348 yards and six touchdowns as a team in a win over Strafford and a lot of that running goes right behind No. 70. On defense, he had four tackles and two for a loss.
On special teams, he had this monster block to help spring Trystan Short for a big gain.
Kyle Cooley, Buffalo: Buffalo routed Pleasant Hope in a 56-12 win, and Cooley was a big reason why. He only completed 10 passes, but made them count with five of them going for touchdowns. Cooley had 216 total yards through the air.
JJ McGowan, Salem: Salem moved to 2-0 with a 37-6 win over Sumner. McGowan was a beast on both sides of the ball. Defensively, he had seven total tackles including three for a loss. He also added two sacks and a forced fumble. On offense, he caught three balls for 105 yards and a touchdown.
Michael Branch, Monett: Branch did it through the air and on the ground in a shutout win over Rogersville with two receiving and two rushing touchdowns. He scored on 7 and 11-yard receptions to go with 23 and 63-yard rushes.
Kelly McDonald, Ava: McDonald carried the ball 10 times for 147 yards and a touchdown in a 42-0 win over Lighthouse Christian. He also recorded 11 total tackles defensively.
Jackson Bekemeier, Hollister: The Tigers are 2-0 for the first time since 2010 after beating Cabool 39-16. Bekemeier was 18-for-24 passing for 204 yards and four touchdowns in the win. He also caught one pass for 15 yards and a touchdown.
VIDEO: IN THE ZONE – WEEK 2 RECAP
What did Glendale do?
We enter the second week of what Glendale did.
The Falcons rolled by Hillcrest showing off a strong defense to go with that vaunted offense in a 53-8 win. Defensively, Kyle Doran (15 total tackles) and Max Penney (11 total tackles) led the way.
Alex Huston was 25-for-31 for 475 yards and seven touchdowns in the win. He also rushed six times for 42 yards. He now stands at 1,032 passing yards and 11 touchdowns in two games through the air.
Luke Montgomery was the top receiver with five catches for 137 yards and two touchdowns. That included this 63-yard touchdown that was all of 63 yards after the catch.
Nader Leali caught two balls for 92 yards and a touchdown. Freshman Shivell Crosby also had two catches and a touchdown with 90 yards. Jeremy Almeida secured two touchdowns on four catches for 85 yards.
Up next is a showdown with West Plains at home.
Week 2 Picks Recap
It wasn't a good week for the O-Zone Staff picking games with nobody being better than seven misses. Below are the Week 2 records with teams picked wrong after each name.
Chad Plein (25-12): Mount Vernon, Camdenton, Joplin, Neosho, Carthage, Willard, Cassville, Ash Grove, Pierce City, Buffalo, Hollister, Appleton City
Mike Scott (29-8): Mount Vernon, Camdenton, Carthage, Cassville, Ash Grove, Willow Springs, Appleton City, Thayer
Justin Sampson (25-12): Mount Vernon, Camdenton, Joplin, Carthage, Willard, Cassville, Pierce City, Ava, Willow Springs, Osage, Miller, Pembroke
Bobby Oler (29-8): Camdenton, Neosho, Carthage, Willard, Cassville, Ash Grove, Appleton City, Pembroke
Kai Raymer (30-7): Camdenton, Carthage, Willard, Cassville, Ash Grove, Appleton City, Miller
Matt Turer (24-13): Camdenton, Joplin, Carthage, Nixa, Willard, Cassville, Diamond, Willow Springs, Osage, Appleton City, Miller, Pembroke, Thayer
Riley Bean (29-8): Camdenton, Carthage, Willard, Cassville, Pierce City, Willow Springs, Appleton City, St. James
Chris Parker (27-10): Camdenton, Joplin, Carthage, Cassville, Ash Grove, Hollister, Osage, Appleton City, Pembroke, Thayer
Overall standings after two weeks:
1. Kai Raymer (60-12)
2. Mike Scott (59-13)
T-3. Bobby Oler (55-17)
T-3. Chris Parker (55-17)
5. Riley Bean (53-19)
T-6. Chad Plein (51-21)
T-6. Matt Turer (51-21)
T-6. Justin Sampson (51-21)
Games of the Week
Lebanon at Camdenton
The Highway 5 Rivalry is the KY3 Game of the Week as both teams roll in 2-0. Camdenton can score; there is no disputing that after rolling up 93 total points in the first two weeks. The Lakers have averaged 447 yards per game (290 rushing, 157 passing), but have yielded 414 yards per game and an average of 37 points per game.
Jay Griffin has tallied 397 yards and six touchdowns through two games thus far.
On the flip side, Lebanon hasn’t been challenged opening with two teams (Rolla and Waynesville) that project to finish in the bottom three of the conference. The Yellowjackets have averaged 291.5 yards per game on the ground so far. Camdenton is going to have to find a way to stop the run if they are to win this one.
The Yellowjackets too have been susceptible to the run by giving up almost 200 yards on the ground to Rolla in Week 1. And make no mistake; Lebanon hasn’t seen a back like Camdenton’s Jay Griffin.
West Plains at Glendale
This one is the KSPR Game of the Week featuring one team we know about and another that is a bit of a mystery.
Glendale is a known commodity. They are going to score and score at a high rate (see What Did Glendale Do above). The offense won’t be held down, but this year the defense has appeared to have caught up. In 23 games under Mike Mauk, the Falcon defense has only held opponents at 31 points or less three times. Two of those instances have occurred in the first two games of this season. Last week’s eight-point effort by the defense was a 20-point best in the Mauk era at Glendale.
The mystery for me is West Plains.
Week 1, the Zizzers were dominant in a shut out 42-0 win over Waynesville with all of the points coming in the first half. Week 2 was a disaster defensively as the Zizzers gave up 521 total yards and 54 points in a 54-41 loss to Camdenton. Offensively, West Plains will be fine behind Keegan Hoopes. The senior back has rushed for 495 yards and eight touchdowns so far this year.
Last year, the final score of this game was 71-58 in favor of the Zizzers.
Republic at Webb City
The first loss for Webb City was surprising. The second was shocking. For the second game in a row, Webb City couldn’t avoid turnovers. The Cardinals lost three fumbles and threw an interception to bring their season total to 11 turnovers in two games. They moved the ball against Carthage with 264 yards on the ground.
Republic played Carl Junction well on the road in a 38-20 loss. The Tigers showed some grit after getting down 14-0 on the game’s first two possessions.
Webb City can’t lose again and will need some help if they hope to have any shot to climb back to their perch atop the COC Large standings.
Willard at Neosho
I wasn’t sure what to expect out of Neosho in the post-Devin Hames era, but the answer has been an explosive aerial attack with Coleman Scott to Bryce Murphy being nearly unstoppable. The Wildcats have other very solid pieces with Payton Kiler at running back and Ethan Siler as well.
Neosho is one of only three undefeated COC Large teams remaining. Neither win so far has been easy as the Wildcats hit the road to face Willard in its first home game.
For Willard, Quintin Batson continues to get more comfortable in the Willard offense as his chemistry with Kenny Chambers grows.
Last week, Willard beat a Bolivar team that also likes to air it out and secured the win thanks to forcing four turnovers including three interceptions. Chambers took one of those picks to the house.
Willard will need a similar performance from its secondary to pick up its second win and first conference win of the year.
Mountain Grove at Ava
This one is for both SCA pride and district seeding. The clock may not stop in this one.
Mountain Grove has run the ball 103 times and thrown it 10 times through two games. The Panthers have gained 636 yards on those 103 attempts.
Ava has run the ball 81 times against 11 passes through two games. The Bears have turned those 81 carries into 574 yards.
The Panthers have beaten Ava in five consecutive tries with an average margin of victory of 22 points
