Central, St. Charles West football teams meet again on bigger stage

The St. Charles West Warriors have won 11 straight games to reach the Class 4 semifinals.

Their last loss came on the road on Aug. 29, when the Central Tigers scored 21 unanswered points in the second half en route to a 41-21 win.

The two teams will meet again at 7 p.m. today at St. Charles West High School in St. Charles, Missouri, with much larger implications on the line. The winner will take a trip next week to the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis, where the state's top teams in each class will vie for state crowns.

"We're totally focused on St. Charles West, but you use the next game as a motivator more than any time in the year," said Central coach Nathan Norman, who has led the Tigers to the semifinals for the second consecutive year. "I don't know if that's looking ahead. I think it's just using that as motivation."

Central junior Al Young racked up 278 yards from scrimmage and five touchdowns on 15 touches, while the Tigers responded from a one-point deficit at halftime to shut out St. Charles West in the second half of Central's Week 2 win over the Warriors.

But going up against an improved St. Charles West squad that's playing for a spot in the state final on its home field, Norman said he's trying to get his team to forget about that game.

"We're not talking much at all about that first game. We're moving on," Norman said. "This is a new opponent. It's semifinal week. We're playing St. Charles West. Here's what we've got to do to be successful, and that's what we've done to try and approach it."

The Warriors (11-2) closed out their regular season with a 33-24 win over Ladue Horton Watkins -- which has advanced to the Class 5 semifinals -- before steamrolling through their four playoff opponents by a combined score of 191-70.

St. Charles West ran for 300 yards in last week's 49-28 state quarterfinal victory over Westminster Christian Academy. Drew Lauer led the Warriors' rushing attack with 142 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries.

"Both offensive lines for St. Charles West and Cape Central have improved. That's why we've both had so much success," Norman said. "... Both teams are saying the same thing. In the playoffs, it really helps if you can establish the running game. Both of us are able to do that, and we're both going to hang our hat on it Friday night. There are no secrets going into this game. We both know what we have to do to be successful."

The Tigers (11-2) relied on the stellar play of senior running back Braion Owens in last week's quarterfinal victory against Affton. Owens carried the ball 21 times for 209 yards as Central came away with a 34-14 road win.

Owens leads the Tigers in rushing with 180 carries for 1,429 yards and 18 touchdowns this season.

Central also has done well protecting the football this postseason. The Tigers have a plus-7 turnover differential in their four playoff games.

"Ball security in the playoffs and special teams in the playoffs will win games for you, and we've won games because of those reasons," Norman said. "We had a special teams play against Hillsboro that people might say was the difference-maker in the game with the onside kick. Ball security on offense has been huge."

Young leads Central with 24 offensive touchdowns and is averaging 12.4 yards per touch this season, while senior quarterback Peyton Montgomery is 47 of 76 passing for 957 yards, 16 touchdowns and only four interceptions.

"These kids have a lot of energy, which is good right now," Norman said. "They're excited to play. Obviously they're confident, and they've got a lot of energy. That's really a positive. I'm glad to see it. I don't have to pull teeth at practice. They're out there running around having fun, sometimes too much fun, but I'd rather see that than hanging their heads and dragging around."

Lauer, a 5-foot-10, 185-pound senior, leads St. Charles West's ground game with 1,741 yards and 30 scores on 172 rushes. His 10.1 yards per carry is bested by only junior Dre Kelly (11.4 ypc), who has 843 yards and 12 touchdowns on 74 carries.

Norman said St. Charles West is an entirely different team this time around.

"They had a lot of kids playing both ways early in the year," he said. "They didn't have the depth that we had at some skill positions. In the first game, we were able to rotate backs a lot and keep our skill kids fresh. That helped in the second half. Not to take anything away from them, but I think they were a little bit out of shape for a game-type of situation. There's no way to get in football shape when you're playing both ways other than playing games, and they've been able to do that now.

"They're a better team, but so are we. Cape Central's better. ... We've proved that all year, and that's what it's about, getting better. We're looking at this as an opportunity to play a new team."

The winner of tonight's game will face either Kearney or defending state champion Webb City in the Class 4 title game next Saturday.

Norman said the key to preparing his team continues with the fundamentals.

"We're trying to be focused in on technique, assignments, the little things," he said. "Let's take care of the little things, and everything else will fall into place."