SHS hosts jamboree

SIKESTON - Friday night marked the first time high school football teams could square off against someone wearing a different jersey as East Prairie, New Madrid County Central and Perryville visited Sikeston Public Schools Stadium for a jamboree scrimmage.

Each team ran approximately 12 plays on offense and defense against each other in the full contact event.

On the day, East Prairie had the most success as far as touchdowns scored and allowed. The Eagles didn't allow a touchdown the entire night and they scored seven touchdowns.

Sikeston scored four touchdowns and allowed three. Perryville scored two touchdowns and allowed six. NMCC scored two touchdowns and allowed five.

In the first scrimmage, Sikeston squared off with Perryville. The Bulldogs had the ball first and was able to score on their seventh play, a 10-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Chase Ferrell to Gerald Winfield. Michael Geralds ran in the two-point conversion.

East Prairie quarterback Mitchell Winchester rolls out.

East Prairie quarterback Mitchell Winchester rolls out.

The play was set up on a nice catch while keeping his feet in bounds on the sideline by Austin Williams.

The Bulldogs only ran 10 plays during their first scrimmage.

"There was good and bad like all things like this," said Sikeston coach Jerry Dement. "We thought we had some bright spots and we thought we had some kids that did some good things and made some plays. We've got a lot to work on. But we're pleased with our effort. We're going to grade the film and see how we did."

Perryville then switched over to the offensive side as they eventually punched in a touchdown on a 2-yard run by Travis Brown on their 13th play. It was the only score the Pirates would get out of 15 total plays against the Bulldogs.

At the same time on the south side of the field, NMCC was taking on East Prairie.

East Prairie had the ball first and scored on its 10th play, a 19-yard touchdown pass to Randy Woods. Two plays later, running back Dez Johnson scored on a 40-yard scamper.

NMCC didn't score in 13 plays against East Prairie.

In the second scrimmage, Sikeston took on East Prairie.

The Eagles scored back-to-back touchdowns on their first two plays. Fullback Paris Tipler rumbled in from 40 yards out and sophomore wideout Tony Jones hauled in a 40-yard pass for a score.

Sikeston didn't score in 12 plays against the Eagles.

"We're rough in a lot of spots," said Dement. "We've got a lot of coaching to do and the kids have got a lot of learning to do. But that's what these things are for. We'll use this as an experience for our kids because we're an inexperienced team. I think we'll get a little better each week."

On the other side of the field, Perryville scored on its sixth play against NMCC on a 14-yard run by Brown.

NMCC was able to crack the end zone on its seventh play on a 4-yard plunge by Antonio McIntosh.

"Conditioning is a concern for us right now," said NMCC coach Arlen Pixley. "We got tired out there, had a few holding penalties. It's early and we've battled the heat just like everybody else has. We're not trying to wear anybody out physically. Our offensive line play is a concern. Defensively we gave up a couple easy pokes. We're still a week away."

In the third scrimmage, NMCC scored on its first play as quarterback Jordan Kimball hooked up with Printice Willis for a 40-yard touchdown.

Sikeston scored on its seventh play when Ferrell hit junior wide receiver Julian Beard for 35-yard touchdown. The Bulldogs scored on their very next play as 240-pound fullback Adrian Douglas rambled in from 40 yards out.

"We evaluated two or three different positions," said Pixley. "Pretty much right now we know who's going to be there next Friday night. We're looking at a couple wide receivers still. Hopefully we'll get a better look at them by next week."

On the other side of the field, East Prairie tacked on three scores against Perryville. Johnson had TD runs of 8 and 2 yards. Their third touchdown came on a 23-yard run by freshman M.C. Williams.

The Eagles blanked Perryville while on defense.

"I'm not going to get too excited over a jamboree," said East Prairie coach Corey Adkisson. "This doesn't mean anything. We could come out and score 40 touchdowns and not allow any. All that matters is next week and we've got a tough game ahead of us. I think there were some positives that we can take out of this, but also there's some things we need to improve on.

"I think showing the film to the guys will help out a lot. I think overall it was a good effort tonight, I just wish we could've got our No. 1's a few more reps. A lot of our jayvee guys got some reps."

One area of concern for Sikeston was the play at the quarterback position between Ferrell and Joey Williams.

Dement said he couldn't name a starter until he further evaluated the tape from Friday.

"We'll watch the film, grade everybody out and see where we are," said Dement. "We'll have a two-deep depth chart by Monday. I thought both quarterbacks had good points and they both had bad spots. We're starting to get there."

Sikeston will open the regular season next Friday when they host Caruthersville at 7 p.m. NMCC will host Farmington and East Prairie will host Hayti. Perryville opens the season at Windsor.