St. Vincent has won more playoff games in the last two years than Van-Far has won this entire season.
So it should be safe to say that undefeated St. Vincent, ranked second in 1A, will be the favorite when it travels to Vandalia (4-5) tonight in a sectional game between two Indian teams.
But Van-Far is probably better than its record would indicate.
"We play a tough schedule and we've played in some tough games," said Van-Far coach Todd Cripe. "The kids have meshed and jelled in the last few weeks. We've had good practices and gave them some challenges."
Van-Far, a member of the Eastern Missouri Conference, has played 3A schools Warrenton, Bowling Green and Winfield as well as Class 2A power North Callaway.
"Our worst loss was 31-6 to North Callaway," Cripe said. "We've played well against the big schools. The rest of our losses were by two touchdowns or less."
Cripe knows, though, that his team is not supposed to win this game. "We just tell them that we're the small dog on the porch and to be the big dog, you have to eat the best," said Cripe. "Their No. 2 in the state and they're pretty gosh-darn good."
But St. Vincent has played some tough teams as well, including a couple of 3A schools. St. Vincent also played several 2A schools and beat a state-ranked 1A squad in Hayti last week in a 22-16 thriller.
Perhaps more important is St. Vincent's playoff history. The Indians made it to the state finals two years ago and to the state semifinals last year.
"We're hoping that will be an advantage for us," said St. Vincent coach Keith Winkler. "By now, we know the routine and how things go. We just need to go up there and play fundamental football and see if we can come away with a win."
Van-Far features a tailback that Winkler compares to Hayti standout Ortiz Banks.
Nay Douglas is a 5-foot-9, 170-pounder who has gained 1,450 yards on 208 carries for almost 7 yards per carry.
"He's a real solid back," Winkler said. "He has the same type of speed and acceleration. If you let him get the corner, he'll take it to the house."
St. Vincent relies on all phases of its team. The Indians don't have eye-popping offensive numbers, but their solid defense and stellar special teams allow St. Vincent to win the field-position war in most games.
The kicking leg of two-time all-stater Derek Kutz "puts more pressure on our defense," Cripes said. "If they get the ball inside the 35, they've got a chance to score. You have to try to keep them outside the 30 or 35."
Offensively, St. Vincent gets the ball into the hands of several players. Mark Gotto leads the team with 744 rushing yards on 159 carries. Quarterback Jonathan Paulus has combined for more than 800 yards by throwing and running.
"They've got speed," said Cripes of St. Vincent. "They're not overly big, but they take care of that with speed. Their offensive linemen block extremely well and they are very well coached."
Connect with the Southeast Missourian Newsroom:
For corrections to this story or other insights for the editor, click here. To submit a letter to the editor, click here. To learn about the Southeast Missourian’s AI Policy, click here.