For one night, Herculaneum head coach Blane Boss had a front-row seat to witness St. Mary’s destroying everything in its path to last season’s Class 3 state championship.
The Dragons, from St. Louis, outscored their playoff opponents 272-36 for their first state title. Herky was the first victim, falling 55-6 in the district semifinals.
Boss enters his second season as Herculaneum’s head coach. The Blackcats finished 5-6 overall and 1-4 in the I-55 Conference last year. A 30-12 win over Roosevelt in the first round of district was the Blackcats’ fourth in a row after starting 1-5.
But they were no match for St. Mary’s.
“They had everything. Every single position was loaded,” Boss said. “They’re probably the best team I’ve seen since I’ve been coaching. They made everybody they played in the playoffs look kind of silly. We were happy with how we played them; they were just that special.”
Not only did the Blackcats embrace Boss last year, they also juggled quarterbacks when Jackson Dearing returned from an injury and replaced Lucas Bahr midway through the schedule. Dearing completed more than 50 percent of his passes for 782 yards and seven touchdowns, good enough for an honorable mention all-I-55 Conference selection. Bahr, meanwhile, shifted to running back and finished second on the team with 514 yards and seven touchdowns, also earning honorable mention notice.
Bahr’s best game was against Bayless when he rushed for 164 yards and three TDs. Dearing threw a season-high three touchdown passes against the Bronchos, an I-55 opponent. Boss said Dearing will start at QB this year with Bahr in the backfield, still available to back up Dearing at QB.
“I thought Lucas was going to be the guy last year, even before Jackson got hurt,” Boss said. “With how big he is, I thought Lucas would wear down (defenses) by the fourth quarter. Come to find out, he’d rather be a runner or receiver and he knows Jackson will be a good quarterback. Having Jackson there will be beneficial for the team overall, and Lucas can play all over. If something happens to Jackson, we can fall back to Lucas.
“Up front, our line just understood the scheme better and were more physical too. Our schedule last year was front-loaded with the more talented teams. The teams we played (later) were more toward our level.
“Now with all the coaches back, most of the kids back and a year under the system, I hope (we) make another step forward this year.”
They’ll have to do it without all-I-55 first-teamer D.J. Johnson, a 2022 graduate. He led Herculaneum in rushing yards (690), was second in receiving yards (239), scored a team-high 10 touchdowns and was the primary kick returner last year.
Sophomores Anthony Gallina and Brayden Mattingly and senior Mike Moloney join Bahr in the backfield. Moloney missed some games last year with an injury but has been a varsity starter all four years. Bahr also will line up at receiver, joined by seniors Dylan Jarvis and Luke Liles.
Junior Shea Eberhardt was second-team on the all-conference offensive line last season and returns as the unit’s leader. He was even better on defense, where he was a first-team honoree.
“He’s super-smart and helps the guy next to him (on the line),” Boss said.
Senior offensive lineman James Mouyassar is primed for an all-conference campaign.
“His potential is through the roof and I’m excited to see what he does this year because he’s worked hard this summer,” Boss said. “He’s lost a lot of weight and is faster and quicker. We need him to be a great battler this year.
“We have some battles on the line, with wide open competition. They’re all the same size and same speed. It’s going to come down to who learns the plays faster and who goes harder.”
Moloney and Jarvis will key the defense at linebacker; both were among the tackle leaders last year. Eberhardt, Mouyassar, seniors Jordan McMahon and Devin Hagan and juniors Zach Scurlock and Cameron Light give the Blackcats plenty of depth on the defensive line. The safeties are Dearing, Liles and Bahr. Cornerback jobs are up for grabs among sophomore Anthony Gallina, and seniors Logan Petri and Gage and Hunter Meyers, who are brothers.
Special teams positions were still to be assigned, but Jarvis, the son of Herculaneum boys basketball head coach and varsity football assistant Jason Jarvis, is the frontrunner to kick. The Blackcats didn’t make a single extra point last year.
“It’s not a big deal. Going for two points is almost better,” Boss said. “The stats favor the two-point try in high school. (But) it’s nice to have that automatic one point.”
Prior to coaching Herculaneum, Boss was the head coach at Perryville. The Pirates are the newest member of the I-55 Conference. Herculaneum beat Perryville 24-10 last year in a non-conference game and they will meet again at Perryville in Week 8, Oct. 15.
The Blackcats open the season hosting Windsor on Aug. 26. The Owls beat Herky 15-12 in last year’s opener at Imperial.
“I’d hope every conference game we play, we’ll compete well,” Boss said. “St. Pius is the front-runner. They won it last year. Looking at them on seven-on-seven (drills), they had some skill guys who looked impressive, so they’re the team to beat. St. Vincent is right there with them. With what Jefferson has done the last eight years or so, they’ll be tough too. They’ve got skill guys returning and their best lineman back.”
Herculaneum Blackcats (I-55 Conference)
2021: 5-6
Aug. 26 Windsor, 7 p.m.
Sept. 2 at Fredericktown, 7 p.m.
*Sept. 9 Jefferson, 7 p.m.
*Sept. 16 at St. Vincent,7 p.m.
*Sept. 23 at St. Pius X, 7 p.m.
*Sept. 30 Grandview, 7 p.m.
*Oct. 7 Bayless, 7 p.m.
*Oct. 15 at Perryville, 7 p.m.
Oct. 21 at Crystal City, 7 p.m.