Jackson, Central enter second district games hopeful, winless

Jackson (0-8) at Rockwood Summit (2-6)

Last week: Eureka 7, Jackson 0; Rockwood Summit 31, Central 10

Last year: Jackson 27, Rockwood Summit 3

Outlook: Jackson is 0-8 for the first time since going 0-8 in 1942. The Indians are averaging 7.75 points a game while their opponents have averaged 28.4 points a game. Jackson has topped 200 yards of total offense once this season. But for all their problems this season, the Indians still control their playoff destiny. "We win this one and the next one, and we play at home the following Wednesday," Jackson coach Van Hitt said. "It's hard to believe, but that's the world we live in with Missouri football these days." Getting away from The Pit may help the Jackson offense this week. The Indians mounted just six points on the field in the last two games, which were both played under wet and muddy conditions.

While Summit has struggled this season, it has topped 30 points on three occasions, including last week against Central. Summit's win last week broke a six-game losing streak. "They are a pretty solid football team," Hitt said. "They have two good running backs." Senior Dominic Bonagurio rushed for 137 yards and two touchdowns against Central on 21 carries. Andrew Beisel added 95 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries. The Falcons had 308 yards rushing overall despite the absence of D'Shawn Adams, who sat out last week's game with a suspension. Adams had 293 yards rushing in a three-point loss to Farmington earlier this season. Jackson also had its best offensive game this season against Farmington, losing by 10 points to the Knights.

Defensively, Summit yielded more than 4 yards a carry to Central, which had 147 yards on the ground against the Falcons. Junior quarterback Myles Robinson averages just under 100 yards passing a game and has completed less than 50 percent of his attempts. Robinson is the son of former Jackson football player Doug Robinson. Beisel and Jermon Watson each have more than 200 yards receiving. Jackson will try to get its offense on track against a solid defense. Josh Gray, a 6-foot-4, 290-pound senior, leads a strong defensive front for Summit, which also features Beisel and Lance Drew at linebacker. "There's no giving up," Hitt said. "We're always fighting for a victory, and hopefully it comes this week."

Central (0-8) at Eureka (3-4)

Last week: Rockwood Summit 31, Central 10; Eureka 7, Jackson 0

Last year: Eureka 49, Central 14

Outlook: At 0-8, the Tigers are having their worst season since the 1983 squad went 0-10. Central can still make the playoffs with a win tonight and a victory next week against rival Jackson. "We need to get this one so the one next week is meaningful," Central coach Rich Payne said.

The Tigers gave Christian Cavaness his first start at quarterback last week and Payne said he will start the sophomore again tonight. Brandon Pickens has been the Tigers' top rusher this season, but was held to 62 yards last week on 21 carries against Summit. Ray Woldtvedt led the Tigers with 71 yards on two carries. "We're going to do some things different, but have to have some answers," Payne said. "They probably saw last week's game against Summit, and they're going to be coming at us. They'll probably try some of the same things Summit did to slow us down."

Eureka's top three rushers -- seniors Cole Toti, Walter Williams and junior Chase Bollinger -- have combined for more than 800 yards rushing and average 4.4 yards a carry. Bollinger, the team's quarterback, rushed for a team-high 80 yards on 24 carries last week against Jackson, while Williams scored the Wildcats' lone touchdown. Eureka uses a spread offense, along with some I and wildcat formations. Sophomore receiver Aaron Schnurbusch had a big first half against Jackson with six receptions for 99 yards. "They have a good athlete at wide receiver and quarterback is dangerous," Payne said. "They're maybe not as athletic as last year, but they're solid."

Chaffee (1-6) at Hayti (5-3)

Last week: St. Vincent 40, Chaffee 12; Hayti 26, Portageville 20 (OT)

Last year: Hayti 26, Chaffee 0

Outlook: Chaffee lost its sixth straight game since a season-opening win against Grandview. Hayti has won three of its last four games, including a 32-0 rout of Scott City, which owns a win over the Red Devils. The Indians also have defeated Chaffee 10 straight times, including four by shutout.

Hayti's top offensive threats are running back Keenan Williams and receiver Byron Norris. Junior lineman Darnell Clay leads a defense that has posted two shutouts. "They're typical Hayti with a lot of speed," Chaffee coach Charlie Vickery said. "They've had a little more problems scoring, but they're dangerous as always because of their speed." Vickery said the Indians threw 45 times in a recent 23-6 loss to Lake County (Tenn.), but they also run quite a bit out of their spread offense. "They've kind of gone back and fourth," Vickery said. "I'm sure against us they'll try to run the ball."

Sophomore quarterback Jordan Yahn leads the Red Devils with 345 yards rushing on 76 carries. He's thrown for 617 yards, with junior Mike Rutherford leading the receiving corps with 30 catches for 425 yards. "We're going to come out and play hard," Vickery said. "Our kids are not going to lay down or quit. I think we'll come out and be ready to play."

Perryville (1-7) at Dexter (2-5)

Last week: Perryville 9, Kennett 6; New Madrid County Central 48, Dexter 14

Last year: Perryville 28, Dexter 6

Outlook: The Pirates made the most of their fresh district start with their first win of the season. Perryville also revived its season last year as it snapped a six-game losing streak with successive wins against Kennett and Dexter, qualifying for the playoffs with a 3-7 record.

The Pirates' offense didn't exactly cure its season-long problems last Friday, but its nine points were a season-high. Before Kennett, the Pirates had been shut out in three of their previous games and had totaled 27 points. Perryville mounted just 139 yards of total offense against Kennett, with 29 coming on a game-deciding touchdown run by Garrett Flentge midway through the fourth quarter. Flentge led Perryville with 66 yards rushing on 15 carries. The Pirates went to a wishbone attack against Kennett, departing from their mix of spread formations and power-I.

Dexter has won two of its last three games after dropping its first four games. Wesley McCollough leads Dexter's ground attack. Quarterback Ben Mills directs the offense, with Ryan Windham and Gary Summers among his top receivers.

Portageville (3-5) at St. Vincent (3-5)

Last week: Hayti 26, Portageville 20 (OT); St. Vincent 40, Chaffee 12

Last year: St. Vincent 13, Portageville 0

Outlook: St. Vincent has won three of its last four games and averaged 34 points in the process. The Indians opened the season against tougher competition and averaged 12 points in an 0-4 start. St. Vincent has outscored its last two opponents -- Grandview and Chaffee -- 77-12. The Indians compiled 440 yards of offense against Chaffee. St. Vincent senior running back C.J. Pavlovsky continued his strong running with 138 yards on 21 carries. He has 698 yards over the last four games. For the season, Pavlovsky has 958 yards on 181 carries. He's scored nine touchdowns.

St. Vincent showed it had more to its running game against Chaffee with 23 other carries going for an average of 7.6 yards, including sophomore quarterback Tim Schumer running seven times for 90 yards. On the downside, Schumer threw four interceptions. Schumer has completed 40 percent of his passes on the season, with the bulk of his 706 passing yards going to senior receiver Kyle Rollet, who has six touchdown catches in the last four games. Rollet has seven touchdowns on the season and has 22 receptions for 485 yards.

"We've come a long way," St. Vincent coach Paul Sauer said. "We've gotten better each week. It's another challenge this week and we'll see if can step up and improve a little more."

Portageville, which broke a 32-game losing streak in Week 2 against Scott City and went on to win its next two against Charleston and Malden, has lost its last four games. The Bulldogs have been competitive through the stretch with 15 points the biggest differential in losses to Kennett, Caruthersville, East Prairie and Hayti. Portageville quarterback Caden Robbins is 6 foot 5 and weighs 205 pounds. "He runs real well and throws pretty well, too," Sauer said. "We'll have to make sure we account for him."

Scott City (2-6) at Crystal City (4-4)

Last week: Grandview 34, Scott City 33; Crystal City 54, St. Pius 14

Last year: Scott City 36, Crystal City 14

Outlook: The Rams have lost their last two games. Crystal City has scored at least 14 points every game this season, and its 54 points last week were a season high. Scott City and Crystal City have one common opponent in Chaffee, with similar results. Crystal City beat the Red Devils by 20, while Scott City topped their archrival by 21.

The Rams are coming off their best offensive game of the season, both on the scoreboard and statistically. Scott City sophomore quarterback Jamie Scholz had a breakout game against Grandview with a career-high 259 yards passing and four touchdown tosses. Brandon DeProw led the receiving corps with three touchdown receptions and four reception for 127 yards. Scott City junior running back Garett Schaefer turned in what has become a typical game as he ran for 180 yards on 19 carries. He has six 100-yard games this season and has 905 yards overall on 155 caries. However, the one-point loss has the Rams in a do-or-die situation this week. "We can't look back," Scott City coach Jim May said. "We painted ourselves into a corner and we have to come out fighting."

Crystal City quarterback Neil Slabby has had a big junior season, completing 65 percent of his passes and throwing 15 touchdowns to just two interceptions. He has thrown for more than 1,800 yards and rushed for more than 200. Sophomore receiver Stacy Thorton has been the primary target with 10 TD receptions and 47 catches for 737 yards. Senior receiver Jacob Duncan has 40 catches for 411 yards, and senior running back Ryan Jurkowski is the team's top rusher with 347 yards. Duncan leads the defense with six interceptions. "They have a good team and they have some speed and spread out and use it against you," May said. "We'll have our work cut out trying to slow them down." May said.

May said Rams safety/punter Wyatt Martin is probably out for the season with a hip injury. The Rams lost cornerback Austin Atchley three weeks ago with a broken thumb, leaving the Rams with three freshmen starting on defense. "That bodes well for the future," May said, "but we have to win now."

-- Jeff Breer