High school football: Week 9

FRIDAY'S GAMES

Central (2-6) at West Plains (4-4), 7 p.m.

* Last week's games: Central 31, Poplar Bluff 28; West Plains 49, Sikeston 7

Last year's meeting: West Plains 35, Central 14

Notes: Central will make the long road trip to West Plains facing a similar situation to last year's Week 9 meeting: Both teams are 1-0 in the district heading. Last year, West Plains all but wrapped up the district with a win at Houck Stadium. The Tigers last week nearly doubled their season-scoring total by putting up 31 points at Poplar Bluff. Junior running back Hykeem Hammonds returned a kickoff for a touchdown and rushed for more than 100 yards in the win. Blake Slattery made his second consecutive start at quarterback and scored a pair of rushing touchdowns. Central kicker Andy Billmeyer's first field goal of the season -- a 31-yard kick in the fourth quarter -- proved to be the difference in the game. The Zizzers, meanwhile, racked up 412 yards of offense at Sikeston to move to .500 overall. West Plains quarterback Tyler Schmitt had three touchdown runs and threw a touchdown pass.

Eureka (6-2) at Jackson (5-3), 7 p.m.

* Last week's games: Rockwood Summit 30, Jackson 6, Eureka 41, Seckman 0

Last year's meeting: Eureka 27, Jackson 0

Notes: Jackson's offense failed to get anything going in a road loss at Rockwood Summit. The Indians were held to less than 40 yards of offense in the opening half, falling behind 23-0 at the break. After going nearly turnover-free during a four-game winning streak, two first-quarter turnovers led to a pair of Summit scores. Sam Johnson leads Eureka with 689 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns, and he has something to prove after Ole Miss recently pulled its scholarship offer. Mike Nowiki has rushed for 563 yards, and quarterback Brett Allen has 309 yards rushing along with 424 yards passing. Both of Eureka's losses have come to undefeated teams.

Scott City (3-5) at Crystal City (6-2)

* Last week's games: Scott City 20, Grandview 19; Crystal City 14, Charleston 8

Last year's meeting: Scott City 19, Crystal City 6

Notes: Sophomore running back Cody Carlyle rushed for 146 yards on 21 carries in Scott City's win at Grandview. Carlyle has rushed for more than 600 yards this season, taking over lead back duties from senior Jonathan Barr after Barr was hurt in practice several weeks ago. Cody DeRousse leads Crystal City with 740 yards rushing on just 73 carries. The Hornets have five players with at least 100 yards rushing, and quarterback Dominique Hall has attempted just 30 passes this season. Michael Schembre has caught 10 of Hall's 16 completions.

Chaffee (0-8) at Hayti (5-2)

* Last week's games: St. Vincent 42, Chaffee 8; Valle 29, Hayti 8

Last year's meeting: Hayti 51, Chaffee 6

Notes: Chaffee lost its 20th straight district game in a home rout against defending Class 1 state champion St. Vincent. The Red Devils are on the verge of a third straight winless season. Hayti needs to win by more than 13 points and have St. Vincent beat Valle in order to stay alive in the district race. Hayti outgained Valle in its district-opening loss, but was plagued by turnovers.

Valle (6-2) at St. Vincent (6-2)

* Last week's games: St. Vincent 42, Chaffee 8; Valle 29, Hayti 8

Last year's meeting: St. Vincent 24, Valle 3

Notes: St. Vincent and Valle come in with identical records and nearly identical roads to six-win marks. Both teams are 4-0 in Mississippi Area Conference Blue Division play. The Indians' defense will need to step up, after having allowed 21 or more points in three games this season. St. Vincent did not allow a single opponent to score more than 17 points last season, and has held just three teams under 10 points this season. Waylon Richardet ran for a pair of scores and the Indians returned two interceptions for scores in their win over Chaffee. Valle also had a pair of interception returns for scores in its win over Hayti. Valle was actually outgained offensively in the game 244 to 214.

Kennett (3-5) at Perryville (0-8)

* Last week's games: NMCC 34, Perryville 14; Dexter 46, Kennett 0

Last year's meeting: Perryville 41, Kennett 0

Notes: Perryville will try to get in the win column in its final home game of the season. The Pirates were likely eliminated from the district hunt with a home loss to New Madrid County last week. Perryvillle won the district last season with a thrilling triple overtime victory over Dexter in Week 10. Kennett will be looking to rebound after being shut out at home against Dexter in its district opener. A win for the Indians would double their win total from last year.

-- Jeremy Joffray