By Kary Booher (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
WEBB CITY, Mo. – You knew he would be stewing, like a bull ticked off in a pen. But how could you blame him?
Nixa High School running back Ramone Green, Jr. missed most of last season after breaking a collarbone and, for opening night, was matched opposite mighty Webb City.
“Man, not playing for so long, I feel like I’ve been doubted, so I came out here and gave it my all,” Green said. “I have great teammates. They pushed me all summer to get to this point.”
What a show he put on Friday night. Green ran behind a technique-sound offensive line and rushed for 248 yards on 30 carries, scoring two rushing touchdowns and throwing for another. This as Class 6’s Nixa Eagles beat Class 5’s Webb City Cardinals 42-19 at Cardinal Stadium.
The victory came 10 months after Nixa beat Webb City for the first time in school history, with Nixa later reaching the state quarterfinals and Webb City going on to win the Class 5 state championship.
This time, Nixa was left dreaming of what could be, while Webb City was left wondering what might have been.
In essence, Nixa’s multi-talented offense could be something special – the Eagles won despite receiver Kael Combs hauling in only one catch – while a multitude of penalties hamstrung Webb City on three legitimate scoring chances inside the red zone.
Nowhere was that more pronounced than on the first two series of the game. Webb City took the opening possession to the Nixa 26, only to be flagged for 5-yard false start penalties on four of the next seven plays.
Green broke off a 46-yard touchdown run along the sideline three plays after Webb City punted, and the Eagles never let the Cardinals take the lead.
After Webb City’s Cole Cavitt scored on a 5-yard run to help forge a 7-7 tie late in the first quarter, Nixa grinded away to a 21-7 lead by the midway point of the second quarter.
Connor Knatcal connected with Wyatt Vincent on a 35-yard TD pass. Then, after Jordan Tyler’s interception on the next series, Green hit an uncovered Spencer Ward for a touchdown on a 4th-and-1 from the 14, with Nixa more in a goal-line formation. Green had rushed for 40 yards in that series alone.
“I thought Ramone was really impressive,” Webb City coach John Roderique said. “We couldn’t hardly get a clean hit on him.”
Part of that was arguably because of Nixa’s offensive line of senior center Garrett Davidson, senior left tackle Landon Holland, sophomore left guard Jacob Lile, junior right guard Ethan Cho and senior right tackle Landon Carson.
The Eagles’ footwork and textbook technique set up Green well. That was part of what Nixa’s coach described as a full offseason of readying for Webb City.
“I thought it was very good. We’ve been really on that group really hard and stayed on them about their first step and second step,” Nixa coach John Perry said. “I thought tonight they were the difference in the ballgame. (Webb City) tried to play man on the receivers and have a safety deep and eyeball Ramone. And we were able to run the ball behind the offensive line.”
Davidson noted the footwork and technique has developed.
“It’s been the best we had when we started practices,” Davidson said. “But it’s gotten so much better.”
Green added a 1-yard TD run early in the third quarter, and Dylan Rebura scored two late touchdowns.
For Webb City, it was a night of mixed emotions, with a starting lineup that didn’t see much playing time a year ago.
The Cardinals stayed within striking distance until midway through the second half, thanks in part to Omari Jackson rushing for 188 yards on 21 carries.
In fact, after Green’s TD pass, the Cardinals pulled to within 21-13 on its second, seven-play, 80-yard touchdown drive – this one capped by Cavitt’s 1-yard run late in the second quarter.
However, Webb City’s first series of the second half was a miss. The Cardinals reached the Nixa 1 after forcing a punt.
However, a false start on what would have been a Cavitt 1-yard touchdown run backed up Webb City, which didn’t reach the end zone. On 4th-and-goal at the 7, with quarterback Landon Johnson having limped to the sideline, Webb City asked Dante Washington to pass. His hurried throw was incomplete.
Nixa then drove 93 yards for its next score, with Green’s 1-yard run pushing the Eagles’ advantage to 28-13.
The Cardinals then took the next drive to the Nixa 9 before a holding penalty all but thwarted the series.
Webb City was flagged for 13 penalties for 100 yards.
“We could have kept it close. Our offense is made to not get behind the chains, not have penalties,” Roderique said. “You’ve got to give (Nixa) credit. They bowed up in the red zone. But at the same time we made a lot of mistakes, too. As soon as we got momentum, something bad would happen. That’s just a sign of a really inexperienced football team.”
