By Chris Parker
Nixa was one of the state’s best football teams in 2022 posting a 10-2 record and advancing to the district title game against Lee’s Summit North. The Eagles fell 24-10 to the eventual state runner-up Broncos.
That 10-2 record was powered largely by a deep senior class featuring 11 all-conference selections including seven first-team all-conference players.
“They (the Class of 2023) were awesome,” said Nixa Head Coach John Perry. “They were the first group that when I got here just really bought into everything that we were doing. They spent a lot of time on all the aspects of the things that we want them to; everything that we teach as far as our core values and the reason why we play football. Everything that we preached to them, they went out there and displayed on Friday nights. They were fantastic. They were a group that was very close. I think they played the game for the right reason. We went out on Fridays and tried to make our city, our school and our families proud. And that’s the way they attacked the game of football. They had so many things that they did that were very positive, and I will think highly of them for forever because of that.”
Nixa will be reloading behind a strong defense led by one of the state’s top players in senior Spencer Ward.
“I think he (Ward) is the best football player in the state of Missouri. I don’t know if there’s one better. If you remember his tenth-grade year, he had to fill in at running back and rushed for 1,000 yards and didn’t start doing that until halfway through the year. Then Ramone (Green) comes back, and he (Ward) doesn’t play running back very much last year, and he goes back to defense and leads the state in tackles. He’s a phenomenal human being. He’s a straight A student. He has never made a B in his life. Everything he does; he does in a way to be elite. It really doesn’t matter if it’s making his bed at the house, if it’s making a good grade on the English test, or if it’s being the best safety in the state of Missouri; he’s going to give you everything he has. And then on top of that, he’s super talented. When you have kids that are super talented plus superhuman as far as the type of person they are, you just get something special. He’s a very special kid.”
Ward earned Class 6 First-Team All-State honors at defensive back after he put up 151 total tackles and two interceptions. This year, Ward will see time at both safety and linebacker as he looks to draw interest at the next level.
“I think he (Ward) will sign a Division I scholarship,” Perry said. “The knock against him will be that he is 5-foot-9. He is 5’9, 190 pounds but he is a legitimate 4.48 (to) 4.50 (40-yard dash) kid that can be faster than he is right now. The positive is that he can do so many things. He can play safety. He could come down and play outside linebacker and force the run because he’s very physical. He could go play corner and play man coverage. He could flip over the offense and play slot receiver. He’s got the best hands of anybody on our team. He can go back and play running back, which he will do some for us this year. I don’t think you can go wrong signing the kid because you can do so many things with him. I think the good Lord made him and put him on this Earth to be what Alabama would call their star position. It is their outside linebacker that is athletic enough to play man so he can force the run in the box, but he can also turn and play man coverage like a defensive back. He can do both. I think that’s what someone will get when they sign him. They’re just going to have to overlook 5’9 or 5’10 because it is what it is. The best player I’ve ever coached in my life signed with Ole Miss at five-foot-six-and-a-half, but he was a great football player and Spencer Ward is every bit as good as that kid.”
Broden Mabe also returns to the defense after earning second-team all-conference honors as a defensive back in his junior year. He had 44 total tackles last season. This season, he will also play both at safety and linebacker.
“Broden Mabe is special,” Perry said. “He’s a really good baseball player. He’s very athletic and comes from an athletic family. He played corner for us last year. This year we’re probably going to move him a little closer to the ball because he’s a kid that’s really hard-nosed. He’s really tough. He is right now sliding between that star position or at safety. He’s a utility guy in that he could play so many things, so right now we’re in the process of figuring out where he fits in best. He is going to be phenomenal.”
Junior Parker Mann is the third player who will see time at safety and linebacker. He had 18 tackles in limited action as a sophomore.
“Parker Mann is also a big-time baseball player, but last year was just behind good football players. This year (he) is going to be an absolute star,” Perry said.
The trio of Ward, Mabe and Mann give Nixa a versatile core to lean on.
“Those three guys between the two safety positions and an outside linebacker position are completely interchangeable, and all three of them are really good,” Perry said.
Eli Frazier, Anthony Ramey and Colton Hale are in the mix for reps at linebacker as well. Frazier is also the team’s long snapper.
Junior McCoy Sullivan could have a breakout year at cornerback after a strong offseason.
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“This kid (Sullivan) at the end of football season last year was maybe 130 pounds, but he is a kid that wants to play football and wants to do everything in his power to be the very best that he can,” Perry said. “He weighed in the other day at 162 pounds and has just turned himself into what is going to be a really good football player.”
Up front, Jayden Antonelli returns to his defensive end spot after earning first-team all-conference honors last season. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound senior had 79 total tackles and a team-high eight sacks last season.
“He (Antonelli) is so athletic and so fast. He’s a kid that can do just about anything. He runs like a defensive back, but he plays defensive end, so keeping him out of the backfield is really hard. Now he’s a senior, his technique has gotten better, and his first step has gotten better. He will have a fantastic year. He is an awesome athlete that when you drop down and put his hand on the ground, he’s just so much faster than all those people that try to block him they just can’t catch up to him.”
Aiden Sigman, a 6-foot-1, 260-pound junior will also be on the defensive line.
Athleticism and versatility will be strengths for the Nixa defense.
“We are not going to be overly big but going to be really athletic and going to be able to be very versatile. Kids are going to be able to play multiple positions and move around. I do think that will be a strong suit of our defense,” Perry said.
Offensively, Nixa has a lot of production to replace with the graduation of quarterback Connor Knactal, running back Ramone Green, wide receiver Kael Combs and tight end Gavin Krans. All four were first-team all-conference selections with Green earning first-team all-state honors.
The offensive line also lost a key player to graduation in Garrett Davidson. He also earned first-team all-state honors.
Perry expects the offensive line to be a strength despite Davidson’s graduation.
“This (the offensive line) is the strong suit of our team. Those guys up front I think could come together and be the best offensive line that I have ever coached,” Perry said.
At the head of the offensive line are junior Jacob Lile and star sophomore Jackson Cantwell. Lile earned third-team all-conference honors as a sophomore.
“Jacob is the best offensive lineman we have. Jackson is going to be eventually, but right now Jacob Lile is the man. He is a six-one, six-two 270-pound offensive lineman that is an offensive line coach’s dream,” Perry said. “He is a nasty offensive lineman that is very good. He has had an outstanding summer and we are pumped to have him.”
Cantwell saw starting action as a freshman and has only continued to improve heading into his sophomore season. The sophomore has numerous offers from FBS football programs including most recently from Georgia and Alabama.
“Jackson Cantwell is a big part of (the offensive line) because he is so big, strong and athletic. He will absolutely give folks fits. He is going to get nothing but better and better,” Perry said.
Oakly White, Ethan Cho, Timothy Eckert and Payton Ewing will round out the offensive line. White will be at center. Cho will be a guard. Eckert will slot in at tackle.
There is a deep group of players who are vying for the right to run behind the stout offensive line.
“That (running back) is a position some people think we are going to be slim at because Ramone Green is gone, but we have a bunch of guys who are really good,” Perry said.
Junior Dylan Rebura is the top returning ball carrier. He took 54 carries for 485 yards and nine touchdowns as a sophomore.
“Dylan does what we do really well,” Perry said. “He is a gap scheme runner that can explode through gaps. He is kind of short in stature, so his balance is awesome. He is kind of like a cat (because) you can hit him, but he is always going to land on his feet.”
Kevon Lewis, Malachi Rider and Afton Hopkins will also be in the mix for carries out of the backfield.
Out on the edges, Nixa returns some good talent in wide receivers Rylan Michel and Wyatt Vincent.
Michel, a senior, led the Eagles in both receptions (39) and yards (621) last season with four touchdowns.
“Rylan is one of the more athletic kids that I have ever been around,” Perry said. “He can do so many things. He is kind of like a Swiss Army knife. He is a phenomenal athlete. He had a fantastic year last year, so we just look for him to be that much better.”
Vincent turned 13 catches into 200 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore. His game-breaking speed will be utilized heavily this year.
“Wyatt is just fast,” Perry said. “He just runs away from everybody. He is probably the fastest kid in the school. He is a kid that works as hard as anybody that lives in this area code. He is going to give folks fits just because he can run so fast. He can get behind (defenses) really fast.”
Keivon Flint will flip over from corner back to wide receiver this year.
Ward will also be in the mix for touches on offense both out of the backfield and as a receiver.
Clayton Pruitt and Lane Meltabarger will look to make an impact at tight end.
Replacing Knatcal and his 2,195 yards passing will fall to seniors Drew Blevins and Nate Uber.
“They are both fantastic,” Perry said. “We are going into the football season with two (quarterbacks) that we think are similar but they both have different strengths. One throws the most beautiful deep ball you have ever seen. One can anticipate things a little bit better. Right now, they are both playing the position at a really high level.”
Nixa also graduated all-state kicker Kaleb James. Braden Kahmke will take over the kicking duties this season.
Nixa will jamboree at Ozark with the host Tigers and Kickapoo on Aug. 18. The Eagles open the regular season on Aug. 25 at home against Webb City.
It is the start of a journey Nixa hopes ends up with them hoisting a state championship trophy.
“I want them to be outstanding people. I want them to play the game hard. I want them to make our city proud,” Perry said. “I want to get into the playoffs and be able to play Lee’s Summit North again. We played them last year in the third round and they beat us. It was 17-10 with eight minutes to go. We felt like we had a chance, and we didn’t do everything just right. We would love the opportunity to get into the playoffs and run into them again. Winning a state championship is the ultimate goal. Somebody is going to have to beat Lee’s Summit North because they will be the team to beat this year. That is something we have talked about all off-season. We want to win a state championship. We want to win one right now with this group we have right here. To do that, we are going to have to play the game the way it is meant to be played. That is as hard and as tough and as smart as we can play it. If we do that we have a chance to win a bunch of games and be successful.”
