JACKSON LOOKS FOR 3-0 START AT PERRYVILLE

In football, there is a place for the razzle-dazzle -- the double reverses, flea flickers, hooks-and-ladders, half-back passes and fumblerooskies.

But in the end, football comes down to one thing: kicking you-know-what at the line of scrimmage.

Jackson coach Carl Gross knows that and that is why he said the play of his offensive and defensive linemen will be the key tonight when the Indians travel to Perryville. The kickoff is at 7:30.

"The big thing is that our line of scrimmage people will have to step up," said Gross. "They (The Pirates) are so big and physical. We'll have to stay down and play like we've been taught. We can't let them create seams and openings."

If Perryville does create seams, Pirates running back Shawn Statler has proven that he knows how to use them.

In the Pirates' 25-22 loss to perennial power Ste. Genevieve last week, Statler rushed for 217 yards on 17 carries. In the season opener -- a 38-19 setback to Farmington -- he ran for 146 yards on 22 carries.

"He broke a couple of long ones last week," Gross said. "He's a good back. Ste. Gen has some speed and he broke a couple where they couldn't catch him. He'll pound and pound and pound, then he'll pop to the outside on you and he's gone."

As far as Perryville is concerned, the Pirates are coming off two tough losses.

In the opener against Farmington, penalties -- including four late-hit infractions -- killed Perryville, while last week a couple of special-teams letdowns cost it the game.

So coach Jerry Tucker and his team are thirsty for a win. But it will have to draw from a deep well to get it.

"They don't get any easier," Tucker said. "But that's what football is about. You just keep taking on the challenges.

"Jackson is a good football team. They're big and strong and have some real good skill players. They're a little more balanced this year (between the run and the pass) than they have been."

Tucker is right.

Last week, Tory Meyr had more yards from scrimmage than any other Jackson player -- and he's a receiver.

Meyr had a phenomenal game in Jackson's thrilling 31-30 win over Sumner, hauling in five passes for 104 yards, three touchdowns and a two-point conversion. He also intercepted a pass as a safety.

In Week 1 at Sikeston, sophomore running back Mario Whitney was the star, running for 139 yards on 13 carries. Whitney didn't fare as well against a more physical Sumner defense, but he still had a huge impact, running a fourth-quarter kickoff back for an 85-yard touchdown.

"We'll have to run it when they think we'll throw and throw when they think we'll run," Gross said. "We'll have to take advantage of our skill people because I think we have some excellent skill people. At this point, we can't just line up and run over people like we used to."