By Jordan Burton (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
What were some of the biggest stories from Week 3 of the football season? Jordan Burton takes a look back at last night’s action with the things that stood out the most to him.
WEEK 3 FOOTBALL ROUNDUP – CLICK HERE
TOP 100 PHOTOS OF WEEK 3 – CLICK HERE
PHOTOS: BEST FANS OF WEEK 3 – CLICK HERE
Congrats to the King
John Roderique won his 300th game at Webb City on Friday night, a 56-20 win over Republic. His honors to this point are nearly unbelievable:
300-29 record (.911 winning percentage)
12 State Championships
19 Final Fours
92-game regular-season winning streak (2003-13)
10 Perfect Seasons
To our knowledge, just four coaches in Missouri history have exceeded 300 wins (Pete Atkins, Tony Severino and Robert Fairchild). Now, at the ripe age of 32 and with several decades of football preceding the internet, I’m sure we are missing a few. But, to put Coach Rod’s 300-29 record into perspective, the best example to look at is Jeff City legend Pete Adkins. Adkins finished his career with a 405-60-4 record in 43 seasons and was widely considered one of the best football coaches ever. If Rod, who is in his 25th season, was to coach 18 more at his current rate, he’d finish with a 435-50 record. I’m not sure he’ll stick around long enough to coach his grandchildren, but regardless his career is nothing short of brilliant. All of the wins and success is fantastic, but he got to do it coaching his sons and nephews, then getting the chance to even coach with some of them. He got to coach against and now with his son-in-law. His family gets to see every game and there are hundreds of little kids running around Webb City every Saturday dreaming of the day they’ll rock the colors. His legacy is measured in what he’s done, but also what all the young people he’s helped mentor will do over the next several decades. To measure his career in just wins and losses diminishes just what he’s meant to the community.
The statue they’ll build him when he retires has been well deserved.
3 and a Donut
Joplin has a pair of wins over Webb City and Nixa. Right now, they’re playing the best football of anyone in the Ozarks and the Eagles probably won’t be challenged until Week 7 when Carthage comes to Junge. Furthermore, the Always Wright hype has officially elevated to him being an early favorite for O-Zone Athlete of the Year. We already know he’s going to eat on the basketball court, but completing 17 of his 19 attempts for 444 yards and four touchdowns on Friday only adds to his case as a multi-sport D1 athlete… Carthage has an argument to the local throne, but their wins haven’t held the same quality as Joplin. With that being said, they’ve absolutely been dominant and replaced last year’s stars with a new group of stars… Glendale is just 2-0 due to COVID, but the Falcons have scored 104 points in two games and I continue to maintain they have the best top-end talent in the Ozarks aside from West Plains… Speaking of the Zizzers, no defense in the area has been more stingy, allowing just 19 points in three games. We won’t get to see a West Plains-Glendale matchup, which could be tricky should both run the table in the OC. Related note, Connor Lair is the best pure football player in the conference… Lebanon rallied in the second half, scoring 21 straight to take control in a 27-15 win over Bolivar. This comes on the heels of a pair of dominating performances to start the season. Lebanon has the toughest 3-game stretch in the Ozarks coming soon (at Glendale and hosting West Plains and Camdenton back-to-back)… Camdenton is back to being Camdenton and Friday’s 45-8 win over Parkview demonstrated that. The offense is back on track to last year and the defense has been stout, allowing just 29 points this season… I’m not sure anyone saw Nevada sitting at 3-0 at this point of the season. Even fewer expected the Tigers to have the area’s most explosive offensive (152 points) going 52-54-45 through three games. Nevada is averaging 400 rushing yards per game and junior Avious Steadman is a name you should get to know… Lamar has been exactly who we expected them to be, allowing just 20 points in three games. The 31-7 win over an extremely underrated McDonald County team was nothing but impressive. They’re still the favorites in Class 2 and the Big 8… Fair Grove held off a really good Skyline team in a 34-33 win on Friday night. Skyline scored late and could have kicked a PAT to tie the game, but went for two. The Eagles defense held firm and likely sealed yet another unbeaten season and Mid-Lakes Conference championship in the process… Ava is healthy and back on their grind. The Bears went to Kansas and reminded us why the Jayhawks won’t play Mizzou, hammering Humboldt 45-0 last week and then following that up with a very impressive 35-19 road win against a Mountain Grove team that is sneaky good. Ava will host Liberty next week and the Eagles have won five of the last six meetings… Sarcoxie is another surprising unbeaten team at this point with wins over Houston and Pierce City are definitely quality dubs. Four straight home games could see them extend the winning streak well into October when Marionville comes to town on Senior Night… Speaking of the Comets, there’s not much to say besides wow. They haven’t allowed a score since the third quarter of Week 1, shutting out Willow Springs and typical titan Westran. Friday’s 24-0 blanking of No. 7 Westran on a neutral feel reinforced Marionville’s standing as the top Class 1 team in the Ozarks this season. They’ve won 12 straight regular season games.
This and That
Nixa junior RB Ramone Green successfully underwent surgery for a broken collarbone. That’s the bad news. The good news is the recovery time is expected to be 6-12 weeks, meaning Green might not have played his last snap this season… Central snapped a 53-game losing streak on Friday with a 49-0 win over Agape. The Bulldogs hadn’t won a game since 2015… Houston also got over a major hump on Friday with a 20-13 win over Salem. We’re being told it’s the program’s first win over the Tigers in four decades… Skyline is the best 1-2 team in Missouri. One loss came to Class 3 power Valle Catholic and the other came against Class 2 Fair Grove. The Tigers are taking lumps now, just understand they’ll be right there in the thick of things come November…
Best of the Rest
Aurora held Rogersville to -24 rushing yards in a 40-14 win on Friday. We tabbed Aurora senior Ian Jackson as one of the area’s top linebackers, but the play of classmates Kyle Anderson and Aaron Fisher have been playing at an insane level on the defensive side of the ball. That’s why the Dawgs are sitting at 2-1 and are on the verge of putting together a major winning streak… Landen Atherton is one of the area’s most versatile pass-catching options and Curtis Jasper uses him the way the Chiefs use Travis Kelce; he’s at tight end, in the slot and even split out wide. He went for 7-127-3 on Friday night and continues to up his stock as a D2 tight end prospect… Cabool senior Braxton Davis is back and 200-yard games are becoming an expectation rather than an anomaly. He went for 216 yards and both touchdowns in Cabool’s 15-13 win over Willow Springs… Jasper’s Xander Metcalf was busy on Friday, rushing for four touchdowns on just 16 carriers. He also led Jasper with 10 tackles defensively, including a 57-yard pick-6… Carl Junction junior Ayden Bard has already proved he’s a big play waiting to happen. Through three games he’s already recorded at least one score via reception and return, also adding a 35-yard pick-6 on Friday… Glendale stud senior DE Cooper Roy has five sacks through two games, meaning he’s currently on pace to break the single-season state sack record established last year. Opposing quarterbacks can’t get away from Roy and he can’t get away from college coaches, as he continues to hear from D-line coaches at every level.
Top Week 4 Games
West Plains at Camdenton is one of the biggest games in Missouri with the loser likely removing itself from the Ozark Conference title race. I remember watching this game in 2014, the first time West Plains had ever beaten Camdenton. The two have met seven times since then with the Zizzers winning five. But, of those seven, three have been decided by a single point, and the 2019 tilt was decided by a field goal. These two don’t like each other and there’s no love lost.
Webb City at Carthage is yet another installment where both teams enter with top-10 rankings and state championship aspirations. The parallels are incredible. Both teams have inexperienced but dynamic senior quarterbacks, stud running backs and a ton of players trying to make their own legacy for the respective historic programs. But, here’s the deal, this rivalry can’t be a rivalry until Carthage starts winning more consistently. Webb City has won 12 of the last 13 with the Tigers’ lone win coming in 2016. Of Webb’s 12 wins, 10 have come by 20 or more points. You can bet Carthage is well aware of the history and is eager to rewrite it. A win for Webb City and they’re right back in the conference race. A loss and they’re out. A win for Carthage continues their outright COC title goals with Joplin and Nixa waiting.
Lamar at Nevada is one of two meetings of 3-0 teams on the 11-man side. The Battle for the Silver Tiger was reinstated in 2018 and Lamar has won all three in lopsided fashion (43-6, 42-0, 44-28). But this Nevada team has a little different swagger coming into this game. It also features Nevada’s explosive offensive attack (50 PPG) vs. Lamar’s ridiculously physical defense (6 PPG). Something’s gotta give.
Marshfield at Hollister is an intriguing matchup between a pair of 2-1 teams that could both win the Big 8 East. Right now four teams are tied at 2-1 and three of them were in the old COC-Small. In 2017, both these programs went 2-8. Now, they’re in a Week 4 battle that’ll have serious playoff implications. Marshfield’s lone loss came to Seneca in a game they led by double digits. Hollister lost to a really good Nevada team. Marshfield has won 9 of the last 11 in the series but three of the last four have been decided by five points or less, including last year’s 27-24 Hollister win.
