2023 TOP 10: Jackson finishes on top, grades for each team's season

The season is finally over for the Semoball area. After 14 weeks of games, Cape Central and St. Vincent went on the road and lost as the final two remaining teams in the area.

With our final edition of the rankings for 2023, we’re going to run back through each team’s season and grade how they performed with the talent that they brought into the season.

For the last time until next August, here are Semoball Area Football Top 10 Rankings.

__No. 1: Jackson (10-2, LW No. 1)__

Jackson gets a solid A for the season. Ryan Nesbitt didn’t have any large amount of college talent on paper like many of the Jackson teams in the past, but after a season-opening loss to Edwardsville, a team that ended up having a run of its own, the Indians went on the go undefeated through conference play, the rest of the regular season, and all the way up until a tough loss to Christian Brothers in a state quarterfinal. The Indians return a lot of offensive talent but lose most of the defensive corps that made the run possible. They’ll rebuild over the offseason, and we’ll look to see some important new faces next fall.

__No. 2: Cape Central (10-4, LW No. 2)__

For all practical purposes, Cape Central’s season is worthy of an A. The Tigers went into the season unsure of where they stood as a team but throughout the season’s quarterback change, defensive rise and putting together an eight-game winning streak, they rolled all the way to a semifinal berth and a No. 44 ranking in the state. Most important for the Tigers is that their offense remains largely intact entering the 2024 season. Where their defense changes is still up in the air, but expect big things from the Tigers next year.

__No. 3: Portageville (10-2, LW No. 3)__

After a long season and a tough end with a loss to Marionville, Portageville deserves an A+ for the incredible run it put together. Jamarion Smith’s senior season ended with a 17-14 loss to Marionville, a team that’s seemingly a shoo-in to win Class 1 after swarming St. Vincent, but there’s truly nothing to hang the Bulldogs’ heads about. A dominant win against rival New Madrid County Central, an undefeated run in the SEMO South and a winning percentage north of 80, Portageville had a season to remember that could have ended in a state championship but firmly stands as a dominant season.

__No. 4: Poplar Bluff (5-5, LW No. 4)__

Poplar Bluff entered the season as one of the most talented teams in southeast Missouri, but it just didn’t pan out that way in the end. The season is worthy of a B rating after dominating SEMO North play but faltering against Farmington in the district tournament and dropping all sorts of games to teams that were talented but within distance of a big win for the Mules. They’ll look to pick up the pieces once again next fall in the always-talented SEMO North.

__No. 5: Scott City (9-3, LW No. 6)__

Scott City came into the season with lofty expectations. While some panned out, others didn’t. At the end of the year, Scott City proved that it had bigger aspirations than some losses to Dexter and Portageville, but a win over New Madrid County Central and a long seven-game winning streak to end the year made waves for the Rams. I’m going to go with an A- rating for the Rams in 2023.

__No. 6: St. Vincent (9-4, LW No. 5)__

The Indians battled expectations all season, and it resulted in some unkind losses. For the 2023 season, I’m rolling with an A- for the Indians. Dropping games at Thayer and Scott City earlier in the year, the Indians put together a lot of wins but not often against the strongest competition. Wins against Jefferson, Herculaneum, Crystal City and Van-Far all pushed for a solid letter grade for the Indians, but the departure of Christian Schaaf and a few other key pieces will force them to reload.

__No. 7: New Madrid County Central (9-2, LW No. 7)__

The Eagles set the bar very high early on with a dominant regular season, running the table all the way up until a 43-0 loss at home against Portageville. Reality set in for a New Madrid County Central team that lost its backfield and its momentum, and now will lose two-way star Jadis Jones to graduation in May. For a campaign that felt like a “last dance” type of season for the Eagles, it gets a B+ for a phenomenal start but lost a little bit of notoriety as the wheels fell off at the end.

__No. 8: Dexter (7-3, LW No. 8)__

Dexter’s breakout 2023 season resulted in an A- letter grade after going 7-3 with a pretty tough slate of games. However, this team got its season going with a win against Scott City and then couldn’t pick off any of the tougher teams that it played. Losing games to New Madrid County Central by 11 points and then a big 34-point loss to Park Hills Central, the Bearcats played well within their comfort zone with big wins against Caruthersville and Kennett but lost in their first game of the postseason against a very beatable Ste. Genevieve team at home. The good news for Dexter, however, is that it’ll return a lot of talent for a tell-all 2024 season.

__No. 9: Caruthersville (7-4, LW No. 9)__

It’s an A- season for Caruthersville in 2023. The expectations for these Tigers were high going into the season, and they stayed rather par to the course throughout the season. But the only signature win that Caruthersville marked in 2023 was a Week 4 win against Kennett. The Tigers had a phenomenal season, but could never quite take that next step. A win against Kelly in the playoff opener, however, moved the Tigers up a letter grade and into the As.

__No. 10: Kennett (4-6, LW No. 10)__

Of the 19 teams in southeast Missouri, Kennett ranks 10th in our final ranking after a rather disappointing season but taking care of business in the easy part of its schedule. After starting the season 4-1, Kennett lost its final five games of the season, including losses to Caruthersville, Dexter, Herculaneum and a 35-point loss to Poplar Bluff. Kennett started the season with slightly higher projections and slooped to a losing record in 2023. Kennett gets a B- rating for an important win going away against Sikeston in Week 3 and blowing out Hayti, Doniphan and putting away East Prairie.