Host and MAFC member North County lost to Hannibal 42-26 in the Class 4 semifinals. The Pirates (13-0) earned a trip to Columbia on Friday to play Smithville (12-0) at Mizzou’s Memorial Stadium for the Show-Me Bowl state championship. The Raiders’ only trip to a state final was in 1997, losing to state powerhouse Webb City at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis.
North County (12-2) shut out Hillsboro 24-0 to win the District 1 championship and then beat Vashon 49-24 in the quarterfinals. The only other loss for the Raiders this fall was to the Hawks (9-2), who won the MAFC Red title and had lost only once, to defending Class 5 state champion Jackson, going into the district final. But Hillsboro buckled to North County with five turnovers.
A year after winning the district crown in A.J. Ofodile’s first season as head coach, Festus (6-5) had talent on par with Hillsboro and North County, but lost twice to the Hawks – once in the regular season, once in districts – by a combined 11 points. The Tigers led the host Raiders 28-21 at halftime before falling 41-35. The five Festus losses were by a combined 30 points.
Windsor (3-7) and De Soto (0-10) both played under first-year head coaches. Jeff Funston’s Owls beat Herculaneum on opening night in Imperial and were 3-2 before dropping their final five games. It took the Dragons a month to score their first points of the season with Keith Woodside at the helm, but a switch at quarterback helped the team be more competitive.
It’s fitting that Festus senior quarterback Cole Rickermann and Hillsboro junior linebacker/running back Austin Romaine earned the conference offensive and defensive player of the year honors. The two met head-on inside the Hawk 5-yard line at the end of their regular-season meeting on Sept. 24. Romaine’s hit forced a fumble that was recovered by sophomore Harrison Voyles and the Hawks hung on for a 34-29 win. Romaine was named by the MAFC Red coaches as the league MVP.
Rickermann, the Festus starting QB since midway through his sophomore year, was the first-team quarterback after passing for 2,651 yards and 27 touchdowns. Mobile and accurate from the pocket or on the run, Rickermann completed 68 percent of his passes (125 for 184), with only three interceptions. He set the school single-season record for passing yardage and is the Tigers’ all-time passing leader with 5,461 yards and 61 TDs.
From the weight room to the gridiron, Ofodile said Rickermann surpassed every measurable in the last year. The lanky signal-caller weighed 143 pounds at the start of the 2020 season and packed on muscle to reach 170 this fall.
“Well deserved,” Ofodile said of Rickermann’s honors. “He’s meticulous in how he prepares. He’s one of our strongest players, a consummate leader and was the catalyst of our offense.”
Rickermann starts at guard during basketball season. The Tiger cagers practiced Saturday morning in anticipation of their season-opener against Northwest on Tuesday night. Rickermann said without Ofodile’s guidance, he probably wouldn’t be playing football anymore.
“Thanks for the coaches who voted for me,” Rickermann said. “Hard work paid off in the weight room and on the field.”
Rickermann’s father, Mike, is 6-5. At 6-2, Cole said he’s not through growing yet and doctors have told him to expect to be as tall as his dad by the time he’s finished.
“My shoulders haven’t completely broadened yet.”
Rickermann said the difference between last year and this season was the bounce of the ball.
“With the way our season went last year, everything went our way,” he said. “In the first North County game last year, the ball bounced our way five times and we had a blocked punt against Hillsboro. We never do that. This year, we were about 10 plays away from being in the same spot as North County.”
After injuring his ankle in the first game of the season against Northwest, Romaine didn’t play running back against Jackson the next week. He did man his middle linebacker spot against the Indians and had a sack and nine tackles. Romaine recovered from his injury and was a first-team selection at linebacker, fullback and punter.
Romaine broke the 1,000-yard rushing barrier this year with 1,140 to go with 11 touchdowns. He also caught 16 passes for 172 yards and three TDs. He has 2,118 career rushing yards with another season to go.
A hulking sideline-to-sideline defender, Romaine caught 22 ball carriers behind the line of scrimmage and had 100 tackles and eight sacks on the season. NCAA Division I football is becoming more likely every time Romaine makes a jarring tackle or stiff-arms a defender while running the ball.
“Studying film lets me make quick reads,” Romaine said. “It lets me know when a certain play is coming. I watch the (opposing offense) and the different motions they use and how they come up to the line of scrimmage.
“I was hoping we could get it done this year (in district). It stings bad.”
Hillsboro head coach Bill Sucharski, voted by his peers as the coach of the year after guiding the Hawks to the conference title, said Romaine has Division I ability and drive.
“He’s got a lot of wiggle for a big kid,” Sucharski said. “He does play sideline to sideline. He’d be a good player at several positions offensively, (but) he’ll make a living at the next level defensively. He studies a lot of film and that adds to the ability he has.
“First and foremost, you have to have stats for that (Division I) level. You have to produce on the field and his production speaks for itself. Other coaches watch film and have to game-plan around him. That’s what sets these kids apart.”
Here’s a look at the local first-team all-conference players on offense and defense.
HILLSBORO
Running, hitting and sweating every step of the way alongside Romaine since their freshman year is junior Jaxin Patterson, the swag to his partner’s swack.
Patterson was named first-team running back after he rushed for 1,449 yards and 17 touchdowns. He has rushed for 1,000 yards all three seasons and has 4,060 for his career. Like Romaine, Patterson plays with ferocity and has had his share of injuries. After a 37-carry, 289-yard performance against Poplar Bluff in the last game before districts, Patterson carried the ball 34 times for 76 yards in the two district games.
If Patterson and Romaine stay healthy for their senior season and junior quarterback Griffin Ray – who had six rushing and seven passing touchdowns – continues to master the offense, the Hawks could go as far next year as North County did this fall.
“Every year Jaxin has gotten a step faster,” Sucharski said. “He doesn’t shy away from contact to get those tough yards. He trusts in his blockers.”
If any conference player personified the “slash” or hybrid position it was
Hillsboro senior Tyler Watson, who had 479 yards rushing and receiving and scored six TDs.
“He’s a very special high-level player,” Sucharski said. “The wing in our offense doesn’t get as many carries but they have to be a solid blocker and really get their hands dirty as a running back, then be versatile enough to run (pass) routes. He fits that mold.”
Seniors Jordan Jarvis, Greg Sanders and Tucker Vuylsteke all were named to the first team offensive line. Jarvis, also a first-teamer on the D-line, was good at blocking on the edge on sweeps. Sanders, a three-year starter, was strong enough to move larger defensive tackles. Vuylsteke used the weight room to mold himself into a formidable blocker.
“They showed up every day and went about their business,” Sucharski said. “Jordan plays as hard in games as he does in practice. You never had to worry about him in that way. (Sanders), you look at him and think he’s undersized, but he’s quick off the ball and a fun-loving kid you love to be around every day.”
Sophomore kicker Nick Marchetti loaned himself out from the Hawk soccer team and booted 27 extra points to earn first-team honors. Sucharski said that relieved Romaine, already busy enough, of the kicking duties.
Along with Romaine and Jarvis, lineman Alex Medina and defensive backs Voyles and Cody Bishop were the Hawks’ first-team defensive selections. Medina had four sacks and 10 tackles for a loss, and Bishop, a safety, was responsible for calling Hillsboro’s coverages. He was in on 54 tackles and had one interception. Voyles, a cornerback with 31 stops, one pickoff and that key fumble recovery in the win over Festus, separated himself from the pack with relentless work in the offseason, Sucharski said.
FESTUS
Rickermann had some highly talented weapons to snare his passes; the first-team wide receivers and tight end are all Tigers.
Senior Eric Ruess made the first team at tight end and linebacker. The 6-4, 225-pounder presented matchup problems whether he was running a route on offense or marauding around on defense. He caught 26 passes for 347 yards and five touchdowns. On defense, he had 67 tackles, three sacks and a fumble recovery that he returned 55 yards for a TD against Hillsboro in district play. Ruess has committed to play for Murray State University in Kentucky.
“For us, (Ruess) had great work ethic and leadership and he never came off the field,” Ofodile said. “He was the total package. He’s got great hands and route-running ability. He’s fast for his size and is explosive. He was a reliable red-zone target.”
In senior Isaac Stucke and junior Arhmad Branch, Rickermann had two of the most explosive wide receivers in the St. Louis area. In the last two seasons, Stucke compiled 1,064 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. Branch joined the football team this year at the behest of Rickermann, his partner in the Festus basketball backcourt. All Branch did was catch 34 passes for 1,034 yards and 10 scores.
“I’d love to take credit for persuading (Branch) to play football, but he showed up and I was excited,” Ofodile said. “I had him in class and he was great. Once he was out (for the team), it was apparent he would be special. I’ve coached multiple Division I receivers and none of them were this effortless right out of the gate. He has special physical traits. He’s played point guard in packed gyms. He knows how to handle big moments.
“When you look at (Branch and Stucke), Arhmad averaged 30 yards a catch and Isaac 23. The nature of what we do in the passing game allows guys to get downfield.”
Senior center Connor Holt was named to the first-team offensive line. Ofodile said a good center has to have a high level of intangibles “because there’s no glory in it.” Connor is the consummate offensive lineman who works hard in the weight room. He was a late-bloomer who got bigger and bigger and steadily became a more productive player.
“I don’t know if he had a bad snap all year and we ran the (shotgun formation) the whole time.”
Senior safety Dalten Yates earned first-team recognition at defensive back after leading the Tigers with four interceptions.
“(Yates) was like a quarterback for us on defense,” Ofodile said. “He was our most experienced guy back there. He was really good with the ball in his hands. He had a big game against Pacific (a 35-32 win).”
WINDSOR
Clay Scott plays football in the fall, wrestles in the winter and is a catcher and first baseman for the Windsor baseball team in the spring.
The versatile junior was one of two Owls selected to the MAFC Red first team, along with sophomore defensive back A.J. Patrick.
Scott (5-11, 250) was a run-stuffing tackle in Windsor’s 3-4 defense this season. He plans to wrestle at 285 this winter.
“He did a good job of slanting and played on the other side of the line of scrimmage (right guard) a lot,” Funston said. “He plugged up the middle on third-down runs.
“He put in a great offseason and that’s where every first-teamer starts. Clay was a weight room animal. He’s starting to develop that motor so he can get around the field. He rarely came off the field (and) was relentless.”
The Owls, who seldom go to man-to-man pass coverage, asked Patrick to lock down a receiver based on what they were doing up front.
“He played a lot of zone as a safety last year,” Funston said. “We moved him to cornerback and we asked him to do different things and he stepped up and met the challenge.”
Playing wide receiver on offense, Patrick led the team in receptions with 27 and was second in yards (275) to Windsor senior Conner Begeman (371).
Mississippi Area Football Conference Red Division
DEFENSE
First team
Line: Jordan Jarvis, Hillsboro; Alex Medina, Hillsboro; Clay Scott, Windsor; Bryan Brewster, North County
Ends: Payden Allen, North County; Joe Ortmann, North County
Linebackers: Austin Romaine, Hillsboro; Eric Ruess, Festus; Nolan Reed, North County
Backs: Cody Bishop, Hillsboro; Harrison Voyles, Hillsboro; Dalten Yates, Festus; A.J. Patrick, Windsor
Punter: Austin Romaine, Hillsboro
Second team
Line: Justin Kirkpatrick, Windsor; Stephen Woelich, De Soto
Ends: Colin Carter, Windsor; Isaac Foeller, De Soto
Linebackers: Jaxin Patterson, Hillsboro; Tyler Watson, Hillsboro; Eli Ortmann, Festus; Clayton Chandler, North County
Backs: Landen Yates, Festus; Kooper Kekec, North County
Punter: Nolan Reed, North County
Honorable mention
Linebackers: Bradley Hunt, De Soto; Caleb Coleman, De Soto; Carter Cupp, Festus; Payton Brown, Hillsboro; Canyon Stout, Hillsboro; Andrew Civey, North County
Defensive Player of the Year: Austin Romaine, Hillsboro
OFFENSE
First team
Quarterback: Cole Rickermann, Festus
Fullback: Austin Romaine, Hillsboro
Running back: Jaxin Patterson, Hillsboro; Jobe Smith, North County
Slash: Tyler Watson, Hillsboro
Tight end: Eric Ruess, Festus
Receivers: Ahrmad Branch, Festus; Isaac Stucke, Festus
Line: Jordan Jarvis, Hillsboro; Greg Sanders, Hillsboro; Tucker Vuylsteke, Hillsboro; Connor Holt, Festus; Mason Lay, North County; Blaine Holmes, North County
Special teams: Jobe Smith, North County
Kicker: Nick Marchetti, Hillsboro
Second team
Quarterback: Nolan Reed, North County
Fullback: Clayton Chandler, North County
Running backs: Kaian Roberts-Day, Festus; Caleb Coleman, De Soto
Receivers: Landen Yates, Festus; Conner Begeman, Windsor; Cody Petty, De Soto
Line: Wyatt Huskey, Hillsboro; Wyatt Yaeger, Hillsboro; Stephen Woelich, De Soto; Tim Harmon, De Soto; Keegan Thompson, Festus; Jackson Nash, North County
Special teams: Bradan McCoy, Windsor
Kicker: Grant Mullins, North County
Honorable mention
Quarterback: Nolan Hirth, Windsor
Running back: Landen Bradshaw, Festus; Jordan Foster, Windsor
Line: Isaac Gaugel, North County
Offensive Player of the Year: Cole Rickermann, Festus
Most valuable player: Austin Romaine, Hillsboro
Coach of the Year: Bill Sucharski, Hillsboro