De Soto is 1-1 after having played its first two games at Freeburg, Ill., and Perryville.
The Dragons shook off the loss to the Midgets in week one and used a spark from their special teams to overwhelm the Pirates 31-14 on Sept. 5.
Despite Labor Day cutting the practice week short by a day, De Soto head coach Russ Schmidt said his squad prepared well for its second road trip of the season.
A 50-yard kickoff return by junior Trey Blair started the game and the Dragons scored a TD on their first play from scrimmage on a run by senior Brenton Drummond.
“Perryville wasn’t going to roll over by no means and they imposed their will on us at times, but our defense got key stops,” Schmidt said.
Senior RB Eli Thebeau is now
De Soto’s career rushing leader with 1,985 yards after he gained 62 yards on 16 carries against Perryville. Thebeau broke Landon Anderson’s mark of 1,929, set in 1999.
Junior RB Cory Flack scored a rushing TD from 10 yards and sophomore RB Damien Pogue had three carries for 70 yards and a TD.
“Four touchdowns from four different kids, but the true credit lies with the O-line,” Schmidt said. “Sustained blocks. Fundamentals.”
The De Soto Board of Education spent $1.7 million to upgrade the stadium at the high school. Fans who attend Friday’s Senior Night game against MAFC rival North County will sit in a new grandstand with specialized seating for some, being brightly lit by new LED lights, and watching and listening to the new scoreboard.
“The community has been looking forward to this game,” said Schmidt, who doubles as De Soto’s activities director.
The game against the Raiders has more than just conference implications. Both teams are in Class 4 District 1, so there are seeding points to be gained. De Soto’s last win against North County was in 2019.
Eagles get first win under new coach
After a 50-6 loss in Illinois to Quincy, Grandview traveled to St. Louis to play Bayless and open its Quad County Conference schedule.
Backed by 497 yards of total offense – 380 on the ground – Grandview evened its record to 1-1 with a 35-12 victory. Junior RB Brock Poole led the Eagles with 130 yards on 10 carries while senior teammate Isaac Walker had 127 yards on 15 totes.
“It was a great effort,” said Cory Hanger, Grandview’s new head coach. “We knew Quincy ND was good and they put it to us, so it was good for our kids to bounce back. We thought we had the advantage on the offensive and defensive lines.”
Walker scored three TDs; his last one from 70 yards with 4:30 to play sealed the game. In his first varsity start, junior Christian Volner rushed for 85 yards and had a TD. Senior QB Brendan Martin scored the other Eagle TD and completed 6 of 12 passes for 101 yards.
“Defensively, we know Bayless has a great run game and we knew their QB could run, too,” Hanger said. “We knew we had to get 11 guys to the ball and swarm and we did an excellent job. They had two big plays that led to touchdowns, but we stopped them otherwise.”
Grandview has a chance to improve to 2-0 in the QCC in its home opener against winless Cuba (0-2) on Friday night at 7.
“It’s going to be awesome to have our first home game,” Hanger said. “We’ve gotten a lot of support from the community. Our guys are excited to bring a win back. Cuba is a little bit down from last year, but even looking at last week’s score, they are scrappy and get after it. That’s what they did last year and they got us.”
Blue Jays fall in OT
After Jefferson QB Cooper Frisk scored on a 3-yard run in overtime, the Blue Jays (1-1) didn’t make their two-point conversion but still led visiting Park Hills Central, 20-14. The Rebels improved to 2-0 Sept. 5 when they scored a TD on their OT possession and kicked the extra point to win, 21-20.
Central led 6-0 after the first quarter when Frisk tied the game on a 5-yard run; Jefferson failed on the two-point try. The Blue Jays led 14-6 in the third after Logan Vandeven returned an interception 38 yards for a TD and this time they converted for 2 points. The Rebels tied the game in the fourth on a 1-yard TD.
Frisk had 25 carries for 95 yards and completed 10-of-23 passes for 119 yards. Noah Buehler made four catches for 79 yards and Vandeven had four for 30 yards.
On defense, Parker Taylor had 12 solo and 15 total tackles, two for a loss, and a fumble recovery. Tyler Crader, Brandon Crader, Aiden Usery and Holden Green each had 10 or more total tackles. Troy Jefferson had a sack.
Jefferson hosts Herculaneum (1-1) in the QCC opener for both teams Friday night.