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Week 1 Football Rewind

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The first week of the football season is in the books and there were many big performances and interesting developments.

Below are some of the things that stood out to me.

FIVE TEAMS THAT STOOD OUT

There are many teams that had great starts. I am picking five to focus on here. This week there is a theme of second-year head coaches and their programs getting off to strong starts.

Ozark

Ozark entered the second season under head coach Jeremy Cordell with a dominant 55-13 win over Willard. The win snapped a nine-game home losing streak that dated back to Oct. 22, 2021 and a 38-16 win over Carl Junction. The 55 points are the most Ozark has scored since scoring 55 against Glendale in the playoffs on Oct. 27, 2017.

The Tigers got it done with big plays and strong defense. Ozark returned two kickoffs for touchdowns. Parker Elliott led the defense with 9.5 tackles, two tackles for a loss and a sack. Next up is a tough test on the road at Carthage.

Clever

Friday was a big night for Clever football with the Blue Jays beating Miller 23-12 for the program’s first win since Oct. 22, 2021 snapping a 21-game losing streak. This is Clever’s second season under head coach Willie Howard. Miller got an early 6-0 lead on Clever, but new quarterback Rex Deters answered with two touchdown passes to give Clever a lead for good. Travis Lemmers iced the game with his own touchdown run. Deters threw for 113 yards and two touchdowns in his first action in a Clever uniform after transferring from Glendale. The second touchdown was a beautiful 55-yard strike over the middle to Lucas Peebles.

Clever will look to keep the momentum going with a road trip to Cuba this season.

Hillcrest

Explosive plays and a dominant defense helped Hillcrest start the second season under head coach Keenan Ganz right. The Hornets beat Central 30-0 to pick up the win to open the season. Big plays were the difference for the offense with Ethan Weaver throwing for 145 of his 283 yards on just three completions. Aiden Myers and Jude Cochran had the biggest plays with 50-yard and 46-yard touchdowns, respectively. Jordan Tindle showed his ability in space taking a screen pass 49 yards deep into Central territory.

Camdenton

It was a tough night for many of the former Ozark Conference schools with 10 combining for a 2-8 Week 1 record. Camdenton, entering the second season under head coach Par Pitts, picked up one of those two wins by a 53-28 margin over a Jefferson City team that went 9-5 and won a district title last season. The Lakers threw for 407 yards in the game and intercepted five (5!) passes on defense. The Lakers were 6-for-13 on third down and held the Jays to just 3-for-14 on third down. Camdenton makes the drive from Lake of the Ozarks to Table Rock Lake this week to face Branson.

Forsyth

Forsyth at Father Tolton Catholic was one of the games I was watching closely heading into Week 1. The Panthers have been looking for a breakout season with a string of four consecutive six-win or better seasons. Last season, Forsyth won a program-record eight games. They opened with a Tolton Catholic team which went 11-1 last season. The Panthers were dominant winning the game 30-0 behind a rushing attack that tallied up 342 yards. They host defending Class 1 state champion Marionville and its 15-game winning streak this Friday.

PLAYS THAT STOOD OUT

Strafford has the Play of the Night (Year?)

Strafford might have locked up the award for Play of the Year in week one. The box score will say Jourdyn Edelstein hit Cody Voysey for a 26-yard touchdown to give Strafford a 31-22 lead over Liberty. The tape shows that an assist goes to a well-timed kick.

Branson’s Dane Efird shows off his leg

The Branson-Harrison game was one of the more peculiar of the night. The weather forced a delay at halftime, and the game itself was not able to be finished until Saturday evening. Branson turned a 7-3 deficit into a 23-7 win. One of the most impressive parts of the game was this warm-up kick from Branson kicker Dane Efird where he nails a 60-yard field goal. For the game, Efird was 3-for-3 on field goals from 47, 42 and 29 yards also going 2-for-2 on PATs and 5-for-6 on touchbacks.

Joplin’s Davin Thomas has a night

Davin Thomas had one of the biggest receiving nights in the area hauling in six catches for 126 yards and a touchdown. You can watch the touchdown below where quarterback Daniel Rose creates time with his legs to give Thomas time to get open and then drag a defender into the endzone the last five yards for a score

FIVE GAMES TO WATCH THIS WEEK

Nixa at Webb City

These are two of the teams who picked up the most impressive Week 1 wins in the entire area. Nixa welcomed in the defending state runner-up Republic Tigers and came away with a 49-14 win. Webb City traveled to Lebanon, waited until 9 pm for the rain to clear and then rolled to a 35-13 win. Nixa has won three straight in this rivalry with last season’s game being decided by a single touchdown. The atmosphere should be incredible on Friday night. Webb City enters the game ranked No. 2 in Class 5 with Nixa at No. 6 in Class 6.

Marionville at Forsyth

Both of these teams were impressive in Week 1. Forsyth I covered above. Marionville dominated a good Stockton team 36-14. Last season’s matchup between Marionville and Stockton was a 12-7 decision and the Tigers return a lot of talent from that team. Both teams will look to run the ball. In Week 1, according to stats on Hudl, Forsyth rushed for 342 yards while Marionville rushed for 256.

Mt. Vernon at Seneca

This one is a Top 5 matchup in Class 3. Seneca, No. 2 in Class 3, looked great in a 55-16 win over Cassville. Mt. Vernon, No. 5 in Class 3, grinded out a 7-6 win over Aurora to extend its winning streak to three over the rival Houn’ Dawgs. The last four meetings between these two programs have come in the playoffs with Seneca winning three of the four including the district title game last season. This could be the first of two meetings this season, as they would meet in the state quarterfinal round if both win district titles.

Ozark at Carthage

Both of these teams are coming dominant wins while scoring 50 or more points. Carthage is looking like a state championship contender once again starting the season ranked No. 6 in Class 5. Ozark is looking to take a big step forward in Jeremy Cordell’s second season as head coach. Last season, Ozark lost by 14 to Carthage. I will be very interested to see how this one unfolds.

Camdenton at Branson

Lake of the Ozarks vs. Table Rock Lake. Aerial assault vs. ground attack. Stylistically, this is one of the more interesting matchups this week. Branson may not throw the ball while Camdenton may not have a designed run all night. This will also be the one chance for area football fans to see Camdenton this season, as the Lakers don’t come south of Camdenton the rest of the season.

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