A look at first week of district football

Eureka (2-4) at Jackson (0-7)

Last week: Parkway Central 21, Eureka 7; Poplar Bluff 25, Jackson 6

Last year: (District) Eureka 17, Jackson 10; (quarterfinals) Jackson 10, Eureka 7

Outlook: Jackson is 0-7 for the second time in school history -- the Indians went 0-7 in 1942 -- but the Indians have a legitimate shot of advancing from a district that features four teams with a combined 3-24 record entering district play. Eureka has the best record of the group at 2-4, while Rockwood Summit is 2-6 after a 31-10 win against Central on Thursday.

Jackson and Eureka have built a nice rivalry since being assigned to Class 5 District 1 in 2004.

"It's really been a fun game for everyone," Jackson coach Van Hitt said. "It gets intense. It's been fun for our fans and for their fans."

Eureka is 4-1 against Jackson in district play since that time, but the Indians avenged last year's district loss with a 10-7 win against the Wildcats in the Class 5 quarterfinals. The Indians won last year's quarterfinal rematch with a 20-yard field goal by Morgan Johnson in the closing seconds.

"I'm sure coach [Farrell] Shelton will remind them of last year's game here," Hitt said.

Jackson has scaled back its spread offense, which has struggled the entire season. The Indians ran much of their offense out of an I last week with junior Ethan Ruch the featured back. Ruch had 75 yards rushing against Poplar Bluff and has more than 200 yards over the last two games. "We will be in the I some and in the spread some, and we will pass or run out of either one," Hitt said.

Middle linebacker Cole Rodgers is expected to return to defensive action tonight after missing four games with a deep knee bruise. Rodgers, who also was seeing time on offense, was the Indians' leading tackler at the time of his injury. The Indians gave up 300 yards rushing to Poplar Bluff last week, and have been susceptible to big plays and high-yardage games most of the season.

"Hopefully he'll give us a spark to play better on defense," Hitt said.

Eureka's two wins this season are nothing notable. It routed an 0-7 Roosevelt team 51-6 in the second week of the season and eked out a 31-30 win against a 2-5 University City squad in Week 5. Its four losses are to teams with winning records, including unbeaten Webster Groves.

"They will be one of the most physical teams we play this year," Hitt said. "Hazelwood Central and Sikeston were physical, and they'll be the same. They play hard. They come at you on offense and defense every snap."

Eureka's top three rushers -- seniors Cole Toti, Walter Williams and junior Chase Bollinger -- have combined for 699 yards rushing and average 4.4 yards a carry. Junior quarterback Sean Strehl has completed only 41 percent of his passes for 366 yards. Elijah Jackson, a senior, leads the receivers with 17 catches for 201 yards. The Wildcats run a power running game out of a spread offense.

"We're very comparable to them offensively," Hitt said.

St. Vincent (2-5) at Chaffee (1-5)

Last week: St. Vincent 37, Grandview 0; Malden 7, Chaffee 6

Last year: St. Vincent 28, Chaffee 20

Outlook: St. Vincent has picked up momentum with victories in two of its last three games, while Chaffee enters on a five-game losing streak. While the Red Devils have not won since their season opener against Grandview, they did end a string of blowout losses with a one-point loss to Malden. Chaffee's previous four losses came by a combined 156-26.

The Red Devils have not fared well against St. Vincent, which has won 14 of the last 15 meetings. Chaffee's only victory against the Indians since 1994 was a 13-10 triumph in 2007. Other teams in Class 1 District 1 are Hayti (4-3) and Portageville (3-4).

Chaffee is 4-5 in district play over the last three seasons after an 0-21 stretch the previous seven seasons. However, the Red Devils are looking for their first playoff appearance since winning the Class 1A state championship in 1983.

The Red Devils rolled up a season-high 294 yards of offense in last week's loss to Malden. Chaffee pushed inside the Malden 15 on four occasions but scored just once. Sophomore quarterback Jordan Yahn led a 220-yard rushing attack with 103 yards on 15 carries.

"We played one of our better games for sure," Chaffee coach Charlie Vickery said, also noting a strong defensive effort.

St. Vincent senior running back C.J. Pavlovsky has led the Indians' recent resurgence on offense with his third straight 100-yard rushing game. He has 560 yards during the stretch. He rushed for three touchdowns last week and also scored on an interception return.

"He's a really good downhill runner and a guy we definitely have to be concerned with," Vickery said.

Vickery also noted Kyle Rollet, a 6-foot-4 receiver who has four touchdown receptions in St. Vincent's last three games.

The Indians' defense had its best game of the season as it held a struggling Grandview team to less than 100 yards of offense. The shutout was the first of the season for St. Vincent, which came into the game allowing 34.5 points a contest.

Grandview (1-6) at Scott City (2-5)

Last week: St. Vincent 37, Grandview 0; Hayti 32, Scott City 0

Last year: Scott City 50, Grandview 14

Outlook: Scott City saw its modest two-game winning streak snapped in a shutout loss last week. However, the Rams have a chance to re-establish momentum against a reeling Grandview team. While all four teams in this district have losing records, the Eagles appear to be in a class of their own. Grandview broke a 37-game losing streak earlier this season against Missouri Military Academy, but has since built a four-game skid in which it's been outscored 181-22.

The other teams in the district are St. Pius (1-6) and Crystal City (3-4).

"We're all 0-0 and I think we have three teams pretty well evenly matched in talent," Scott City coach Jim May said. "I think Crystal City would probably have to be the favorite. But if we play well these next three games, I think we'll have a chance to continue our season."

Scott City has played Grandview the past 17 seasons and is a perfect 17-0. All but two of those wins came in district play. The series has been as lopsided as ever the the past three seasons with the Rams winning by a combined 161-26. That's after a slim 20-19 victory by the Rams in 2005.

Grandview lost by six points to both Chaffee and East Prairie. Chaffee lost by 21 points to Scott City, while East Prairie beat the Rams by 22.

"They've been down for a while," May said. "They played East Prairie really close and Chaffee close; both had to score late to beat them. I know they've got some talent. We'll have to play well."

Scott City's loss last week was a sloppy one, played in mud and the Rams committing four turnovers. Junior running back Garett Schaefer was slowed by Hayti, the conditions and an injury as his string of 100-yard rushing games ended at five with a 15-yard night on nine carries. Schaefer did not play in the second half against Hayti due to an injury, but May expects him to play tonight. The Rams' kicker/safety Wyatt Martin also is expected to return after missing two games with a hip-pointer.

Kennett (3-4) at Perryville (0-7)

Last week: Sikeston 39, Kennett 0; Herculaneum 42, Perryville 0

Last year: Perryville 31, Kennett 12

Outlook: Perryville has been shut out its last two games and three times this season. The Pirates have been outscored 242-27 this season. Kennett has been fairly steady, if not predictable, in putting together its 3-4 record.

The Indians' three wins have come against teams that currently have losing records, while its four losses have been to teams with winning records. David Taylor and Cameron Wallace lead a Kennett attack that sticks close to the ground. Adam Grantham is Kennett's quarterback.

-- Jeff Breer