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 File photo by Mike Buhler Kennett's Jimmy Gooden (left) is brought down by a New Madrid County Central defender in last year's matchup between the two schools. Gooden and the Tribe will be seeking to defeat NMCC for the first time in five years on Friday night. [Click to enlarge] |
The Eagles have won four straight games against Kennett in dominating fashion, winning those games by an average score of 40-10 and rolling 64-7 last fall to eliminate the Indians from postseason contention.
One year later, the Tribe (3-5) finds itself in a similar position as it was last year entering Week Nine of the season: coming off of an unexpected loss in the district opener and needing some help to make the postseason.
 Staff photo by Mike Buhler Kennett running back Kameron Jackson (right) has given the Tribe a boost on offense since becoming eligible after transferring up from Blytheville, Ark. [Click to enlarge] |
"We have had a very, very tough schedule across the board," NMCC coach Arlen Pixley said. "(One of) the only winless teams to compete against us is Cape Central. If you drop them to Class 3, they (could) be undefeated."
The Eagles' attack is led by junior quarterback G'Darius Stevenson, who made the switch from running back to taking snaps when senior Dontre Jenkins was lost for the season with a broken foot.
Stevenson has responded admirably, rushing for 1,399 yards and 22 touchdowns on 150 carries and completing 30-of-57 passes for 532 yards with six TDs and just two interceptions to emerge as a contender for the Carr Trophy, given to the best football player in the SEMO Conference after each season.
"He is singlehandedly the best player in southeast Missouri, bar none," Pixley said. "Any coach in the area would love to have him. ... He's very difficult to defend (because) he is a tailback by nature who just happens to be a quarterback by trade."
Stevenson's abilities will pose a stiff challenge for Kennett's 10-1 defense, possibly the Tribe's toughest challenge to date.
"I don't believe they've seen the offenses that we've seen ..." Pixley said. "What it comes down to is (how we do) Friday night and stopping the gap pressure."
Meanwhile, the Eagles' defense is led by senior Kony Ealy, who has been offered scholarships by such schools as Nebraska, Georgia Tech, Missouri, Arkansas, Ole Miss and Illinois.
Pixley knows that Ealy and the NMCC defense will have to contain Kennett signal-caller Adam Grantham and receiver Jimmy Gooden. Grantham has passed for 583 yards and five touchdowns as a sophomore, and has hooked up wit Gooden 21 times for 398 yards.
"(Grantham and Gooden are) two we've got to obviously think about," Pixley said. "Cameron Wallace obviously is a special player for them. He's special when you get the ball in his hands early."
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Metz Cherry Stadium.
Opponents: Last week the Tribe's opponents were 6-4 and are 40-40 on the season. Here's how they did:
Charleston (0-8) lost to East Prairie, 10-6
Caruthersville (6-2) def. Malden, 26-6
Hayti (5-3) def. Portageville, 26-20 (OT)
East Prairie (7-1) def. Charleston, 10-6
Portageville (3-5) lost to Hayti, 26-20 (OT)
Malden (2-6) lost to Caruthersville, 26-6
Sikeston (8-0) def. West Plains, 44-6
Perryville (1-7) def. Kennett, 9-6
NMCC (5-3) def. Dexter, 48-14
Dexter (3-5) lost to NMCC, 48-14
Weather: The National Weather Service is calling for mostly cloudy skies and a slight chance of rain and a kickoff temperature in the mid 50s, dropping into the lower to mid 50s by the end of the game. Winds will be eight miles per hour out of the west. However, Kennett is forecast to receive up to three inches of rain by the end of tonight, so look for the field to be wet if not soaked.