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Tigers clinch SEMO Central
DEXTER - All year long the Caruthersville football team had doubters.
But win after win, the Tigers continually answered all their critics.
After an impressive 32-20 win over Dexter at Charles Bland Stadium on Friday night, if there are any doubters left, they haven't seen the Tigers.
The victory capped an undefeated run through the SEMO Central to clinch the team's first conference title since 1994.
It's an impressive feat all the more noteworthy considering the Tigers went 3-7 last year.
Caruthersville, which improved to 6-1 on Friday, hasn't won more than four games since 1994.
"I can't say enough about our kids this year how they've turned the corner," said first year head coach David Gilmore. "They've adapted to our system. They believe in what we're doing and that's the big difference in us being 6-1 right now."
Another big difference has been the play of senior tailback Jimmy Jackson, who leads all of Southeast Missouri in rushing and scoring.
The 5-foot-8, 175-pounder continued his outstanding season on Friday with a 287-yard effort on 33 carries. He had three touchdown runs and had an acrobatic 13-yard reception for a touchdown.
He now has 1,658 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns on the season.
"He's a great athlete," said Dexter head coach Aaron Pixley. "You've got to wrap that kid up because he's so strong he'll break just arm tackles. We got our arms around him but he broke some. Their whole offense and defense played well. They just beat us."
Early on the Bearcats controlled the game and the tempo.
Dexter (4-3) stopped the Tigers inside the red zone on the opening possession of the game, forced a punt and intercepted a screen pass in the first quarter.
The interception by Tyler Christian set up a 7-play, 27-yard drive for the Bearcats. Alex Becker was able to score on 4th-and-goal on a 2-yard plunge with 10:36 left in the second quarter.
Dexter then forced another punt.
The Bearcats' Derek Roberts received the punt and returned it 20 yards down the right sideline, but not before Caruthersville's Adam Cecil delivered a bone-jarring hit on Roberts, which knocked the ball loose out of bounds.
The tackle sent the Caruthersville sideline into a frenzy and just like that, the momentum had shifted.
"Big plays like that do spark momentum changes and that was a big lift for us," said Gilmore. "Anytime you can see a lick like that and nobody gets hurt -- it's a good, clean football lick and our kids got fired up. The whole game shifted on that point right there in the first half."
Sure enough, the Tigers forced a three-and-out, including a 12-yard quarterback sack by Cecil.
And on the first play of the ensuing drive, Jackson broke free to the left sideline, then cut back across the field for a 71-yard touchdown to tie the game at 7-7 with 5:43 left in the half.
Three plays later, Caruthersville's 6-2, 275-pound linebacker Aleric Mullins intercepted a tipped pass and returned it to the Dexter 14.
An illegal block brought the run back to the 47, but it was still in scoring range for the Tigers.
Caruthersville scored in six plays on Rogers VanAusdall's 13-yard pass to Jackson with 2:01 left in the half. The extra point failed, leaving the Tigers with a 13-7 lead.
In the second half, Caruthersville forced a three-and-out to start things off.
On the ensuing drive, four Jackson runs covered 64 yards, capped by his 8-yard run. The two-point conversion pass failed, but the Tigers led 19-6 with 8:34 left in the third quarter.
The Bearcats got back in the game briefly in the fourth quarter when Kyle Espey found Levi Rawson on a 49-yard pass play to the 2-yard line. Two plays later Espey hit Derek Clark for a 5-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to 19-13 with 10:35 left in the game.
The Tigers answered right back with an 8-play, 66-yard drive capped by a Jackson 2-yard plunge with 6:48 left in the game. The two-point conversion failed, leaving the Tigers with a 25-13 lead.
On Dexter's very next play from scrimmage, Kyle Hubbard intercepted a pass and returned it 37 yards to the 1-yard line. Two plays later Mullins punched it in from the 3-yard line to extend the lead to 32-13.
Two possessions later, Dexter put together one last scoring drive. The Bearcats marched 83 yards in six plays. Espey had 36- and 33-yard passes to Roberts to set up a 1-yard run by Becker with 2:05 left to cut the lead to 32-20.
Dexter finished with just 22 yards rushing on 28 attempts. A bad snap in the shotgun and a sack skewed the total. Becker led the team with 41 yards on 20 carries.
Espey threw for 231 yards, completing 12-of-26 passes with two interceptions.
Caruthersville racked up 395 yards of offense. Using the no-huddle spread attack the entire night, each player was equipped with wristbands labeled with plays.
The Tigers only attempted 13 passes, completing eight for 71 yards.
"We can play a little smashmouth too out of the spread," said Gilmore. "Everybody thinks with the spread we're going to air it out 50 times a game, but that's not true. Our running back's probably number two in the state right now running the ball. I mean, we run the ball first."
But while the Tigers' offense stole the spotlight, it was their defense that probably won the game.
The Bearcats simply couldn't move the ball until desperation time in the fourth quarter as they only had 99 yards of offense entering the final frame.
"They're pretty impressive on film, but they're even more impressive up close and personal," said Pixley. "They're very, very fast everywhere and they're a very physical football team. That's a credit to their weight room. They got a new weight room there a couple years ago and it's really showing up for them right now. If they stay physical like that with that kind of speed, they're going to go a long way in Class 2."
Dexter will play at Kennett on Friday night at 7:30 to open Class 3, District 1 play. Caruthersville will host East Prairie to open Class 2, District 1 action.