Tribe faces biggest game of year Friday

SEMO News Service photo by Josh Mills
Dwight Usry (left) and the Kennett Indians will be seeking their first district football win in almost four years when they travel to Perryville Friday night to take on the winless Pirates.

[Click to enlarge]

It didn't happen. The Pirates ran off 24 straight points to upset Kennett 31-12, propelling Perryville to a playoff berth and handing the Tribe a loss it never recovered from.

Kennett coach Kenneth "Red" Riedinger is aware of last year's lesson as his team opens Class 3, District 1 play Friday night at Perryville, who enters with an 0-7 record.

"Perryville isn't going to give us anything," Riedinger said. "If we want it, we've got to take it and it won't be easy."

A victory on Friday night puts Kennett in a prime position to secure its first playoff berth since 1986 and would set up the likelihood of the Tribe playing a meaningful game to close the regular season for the first time in over a decade.

"There is no doubt this week is huge for us,"said Riedinger. "With a win we control our own destiny, but a loss will put us in a bad spot. Bottom line it is a must-win -- we know the magnitude of this game."

The Pirates are led on offense by quarterback Garrett Flentge, who took over as the starter last season and led Perryville to the playoffs after a 1-6 start to the year. Against Kennett last season, Flentge was 4-for-7 for 79 yards and threw a touchdown pass.

"He is a wonderful competitor and keeps his plays alive with his legs," Riedinger said. "He has a clock in his head that tells him when to go and does a great job avoiding the rush. He has a chemistry with (receiver Andrew Martin), who catches the ball well.

Meanwhile, the Tribe is coming off of its worst loss of the season, a 39-0 loss at undefeated Sikeston. The Bulldogs racked up 459 yards of offense, including over 300 in the second half as they pulled away after leading 7-0 at the intermission.

"Our kids played their hearts out against Sikeston but in the end they wore us down and executed -- and we didn't," Riedinger said. "We are hungry and focused. We felt like the second half of Sikeston was an embarrassment to our defense and we plan on fixing it.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

More on the Pirates: The Pirates have scored just 27 points all year and have been shut out in their last two games. Perryville has also struggled with the turnover bug, committing five each against Pacific and Potosi. The Pirates have also beaten Kennett three years in a row, the closest margin being 31-20 at Perryville two years ago. However, the Tribe's last district win was at Perryville in 2005. Since then, the Indians have lost 10 straight district games.

More district news: This week's other District 1 game between Dexter and New Madrid County Central has been moved from New Madrid to Dexter's Charles Bland Stadium, The Daily Statesman reported Wednesday.

Dexter athletics director Corey Mouser said Wednesday that school officials and representatives of MSHSAA football officiating agreed that it would be best to move the game to a drier field.

NMCC enters the game with a 4-3 record, while Dexter stands at 3-4.

Directions: To get to the stadium, take Intersate 55 north to exit 123 (the Biehle exit). Turn right on Highway B and travel 6.8 miles into Perryville. Turn right onto Campus Drive and go 0.2 mile, then turn right onto College Street. The high school is on the left.

Opponents: Last week the Tribe's opponents were 5-5 and are 34-36 on the season. Here's how they did:

Charleston (0-7) lost to Fredericktown, 14-8 (OT)
Caruthersville (5-2) lost to Dexter, 20-13
Hayti (4-3) def. Scott City, 32-0
East Prairie (6-1) def. Portageville, 35-21
Portageville (3-4) lost to East Prairie, 35-21
Malden (2-5) def. Chaffee, 7-6
Sikeston (7-0) def. Kennett, 39-0
Perryville (0-7) lost to Herculaneum, 42-0
NMCC (4-3) lost to Park Hills Central, 38-28
Dexter (3-4) def. Caruthersville, 20-13

Weather: The National Weather Service is calling for mostly cloudy skies and a slight chance of rain with a gametime temperature in the mid 40s. Winds will be out of the north at 3-5 miles per hour.