Welcome to the first of a series of all-conference stories that will run over the next month in the Leader. The goal of these stories is to highlight the local cream of the crop of each fall sport and focus on what makes these athletes special. For some of them, this could be the last time they see their name in print. For others, it might be the first, such as the football linemen who are often lost in the shuffle of game coverage. So sit back, grab your favorite beverage, and enjoy learning more about the best athletes Jefferson County has to offer.
This year’s all-conference selections for the Mississippi Area Football Conference Red Division, as chosen by the league’s coaches, include strong representation from De Soto, Festus and Hillsboro on the offensive and defensive first teams.
Quarterback: De Soto senior Zach Smith started at QB as a freshman and took his licks. But he persevered to become one of the most consistent quarterbacks in the county. Smith’s two wide receivers, Lamont Allen and Caleb Keim, were both selected for the first team. The trio accounted for big plays all season. In a challenging road environment at North County (Bonne Terre), Smith had his best game passing with 261 yards and four touchdowns.
“It was a long time coming for Zach,” De Soto head coach Chris Johnson said. “Last year we didn’t put a lot on him to make the checks or reads. When things are going bad, he has to be the one to stay calm. The last two years he made huge strides in understanding his role as a leader. This is a reward for him working so hard in the offseason.”
Running backs: Hillsboro junior Micheal Keller was one of three backs in the county to surpass 2,000 yards (2,016) this fall. An injured hip kept him out of the district championship against Cape Central. Hillsboro head coach Lee Freeman said increasing Keller’s workload next year will require a lot of work in the weight room during the offseason.
“I don’t want to give the ball to a kid 30 times in a game if I don’t have to,” Freeman said. “That’s going to wear a kid down. When Micheal’s not hurt, he’s an outstanding player. And we’ve got to work on that. We have to figure out ways to keep him from getting hit so often.”
Windsor senior Brandon Fouts rushed for 2,115 yards this season, the second-most ever for an Owl back, behind Blane Boss’ 2,325 yards in 2003. For his career, Fouts piled up 3,569 yards to move into second on the school’s all-time list (again behind Boss, who had 5,136). He rushed for 343 yards against Festus and 433 against Cuba.
Windsor head coach Greg Westermayer said Fouts will be a good example to follow for future running backs at the school.
“There are a lot of good running backs in our conference, but what I think made him stand out was he physically could carry the ball as many times as we asked him,” Westermayer said. “He’s a strong, tough kid. Midway through the year he learned how to protect himself and break tackles.”
Fullback: Festus senior Tyler Sexton broke the will of opposing defenses a few times this fall. Defenders on the receiving end of a Sexton stiff-arm felt like they were taking a jab from a boxer. Festus head coach Russ Schmidt said on a couple of occasions referees asked him to take Sexton out of games because of the punishment he delivered as a runner and blocker.
Sexton finished with 1,007 yards and 17 touchdowns. The pinnacle of his season was a six-touchdown game against De Soto, which was undefeated at the time.
“He worked hard on his foot speed and lateral and vertical movement,” Schmidt said. “When we made the decision to not play him both ways after the Hillsboro game, our offense took off.”
Wide receivers: Keim and Allen were the perfect receiving complement. Allen, a three-time state medalist in the high jump, could outleap most defensive backs for a Smith pass, while Keim as a slot receiver found holes over the middle to snag catches. Keim finished with 44 receptions for 740 yards and nine TDs. Allen had 28 catches for 414 yards and eight scores.
“We had a lot of good stuff available at slot receiver,” Johnson said. “(Keim) made those hard catches over the middle when the defense had a safety over the top. For this offense to go, we needed that inside threat at receiver. Caleb really took advantage of that.
“What people need to understand about Lamont is (that) without him out there, things don’t open up for the other offensive skill players. Because of his ability to draw tight coverage, it opened things up for other receivers and our running game too.”
At 6-2, 205 pounds, Festus senior Elijah Richeson had the physical edge over most defensive backs. In a shootout win against Windsor, his 44-yard touchdown reception with 38 seconds left in the first half gave the Tigers a seven-point lead and they never looked back. Richeson finished with 20 catches for 408 yards.
“He’s a big-play kid,” Schmidt said. “When we needed a big play we went to him and he never disappointed us. He communicated with our offensive coordinator to see what coverage he was seeing. And the coaches would try to dial something up.”
Tight end: Windsor senior Jake Baker is a prep coach’s dream at the position. He caught 10 touchdowns this season and was as good a blocker as he was a receiver, Westermayer said.
“He had the knack of coming up with a good catch when we needed it,” Westermayer said. “In our offensive scheme he’s asked to block down on defensive linemen, or on our option game to get out and block a linebacker or somebody in the secondary.”
Offensive line: Three-fifths of the first team wore Hillsboro blue. Seniors Jacob McNees, Shawn Armstrong and Kane Cochran played together through injuries and illnesses for 23 straight games, almost unheard of at the prep level. The trio kept the unit loose with their sense of humor. Freeman, a former lineman himself, said when you’re asked to do a dirty job and rarely get any of the credit for team success, it’s important to find the silver lining in blocking.
“Overall, what a great group of guys and what a fun bunch of kids to coach,” Freeman said. “When you don’t have to worry about discipline issues, grades or whether or not they’re getting along, you can be a lot more productive during the hours of practice, instead of putting out fires. Our coaches take pride in the fact we try to make good people out of them.”
Festus senior Tyler Sides played hard every down, Schmidt said, noting that Sides always blocked to the whistle and sometimes a little past it. He’s the kind of gritty player Schmidt loves.
“I’d have refs tell me he was about to cross the line, so I’d send some of his teammates out to calm him down, but I’m proud of him with what he’s done for us,” Schmidt said.
Defensive ends: McNees didn’t start playing football until his freshman year. He became a regular on the varsity as a sophomore. Freeman said McNees’ work ethic and attitude were unwavering.
“I don’t think he ever has a bad day,” Freeman said. “He’s constantly got a smile on his face.”
De Soto senior Johnny Williamson had five sacks and 79 tackles. Johnson said Williamson is difficult to move at the point of attack and blossomed after being moved from linebacker. An accomplished wrestler, Williamson has superb hand-to-hand skills to overcome blockers.
“Once he was locked in at defensive end, he was a force to be reckoned with,” Johnson said. “He did a good job of making it difficult to run at him and he was very difficult to hook.”
Defensive line: Cochran played several positions for the Hawks, but really found his niche when he moved to nose guard his junior year. One of the stronger players on the team, Cochran has an explosive first step, and Freeman said he frequently played despite jammed fingers and sprained ankles.
“He has a dry sense of humor and what a great kid,” Freeman said. “He’s probably one of the funnier kids on our team, but I don’t think a lot of people know that. He’ll say something extremely funny, but he’s so dry and the expression on his face isn’t what you’re expecting, so I’m not sure if his teammates always get the joke.”
Linebackers: Senior Alex Warren was thrust into the offensive backfield as a sophomore in a district semifinal game when the starting fullback was injured. When Luke Skaggs took over at fullback this year, Warren settled in at linebacker, where he had 66 tackles.
“Alex doesn’t miss a day in the weight room,” Freeman said.
Festus junior Logan Uding had more tackles (111) than any other player in the county. Those stops included three sacks and nine tackles for loss.
“We’ll expect more out of him next year and in the offseason,” Schmidt said. “This year he used his athleticism, but he needs to work on shedding blocks. Mechanically, he has room for improvement.”
At 5-10, 185, De Soto senior Garrett Young doesn’t have prototypical size to play middle linebacker, but he nonetheless finished with 64 tackles, a sack and interception.
“He’s always done what he’s asked, and was always in a good mood,” Johnson said. “We told him it was his job to lose and to go out there and ball out. He did that and didn’t look back.”
Defensive backs: Keller, Keim, Richeson and Allen were all first-team selections on both sides of the ball. Johnson said Allen, who had three interceptions, combined great cover skills with solid run support. Richeson excelled when he moved from safety to cornerback this season. He picked off eight passes as a sophomore and two more this year.
As for Allen, “one of the things that was underappreciated about (him) was how he was willing to take on any running back,” Johnson said. And Schmidt noted, “After his sophomore year, people stopped throwing the ball to his side of the field.”
Special teams: De Soto junior Mayson DeRousse has the potential to continue his placekicking career in college, after one more year at the prep level. But he also showed big-play ability and athleticism this fall with a couple of long touchdown returns. The former soccer player doesn’t rattle easily.
“You don’t appreciate a kicker until you don’t have one,” Johnson said. “I’ve been down that road. It makes for a long season because you have to do things you don’t want to do. For one more year, I will sleep well knowing Mayson is kicking.”
It’s hard to snap the ball over the punter’s head when he’s 6-3, like Festus senior Logan Byerley. His average of 37 yards per punt was down slightly from last year, but Schmidt said he often flipped the field for the defense.
“We’re blessed to have him back there punting,” Schmidt said.
Schmidt called Festus junior Jordan Fiedler the best-kept secret in the conference. Just 5-6 and 160 pounds, Fiedler could line up at wingback, outside linebacker and special teams.
“I tried to put him in position on special teams not to take a lot of contact but to cause lot of conflict for our opponents,” Schmidt said. “When we pop-kicked, he was hustling and recovering balls.”