SCOTT CITY PLACES UNBEATEN RECORD ON LINE AT PARK HILLS

There are several regional high school football games this week that appear to be good matchups.

Scott City, Chaffee, Perryville and Fredericktown all seem to have winnable games, but they will all have their hands full.

Scott City at Park Hills

Park Hills brings in a 2-3 record, but some of its close losses -- like a 22-19 loss to St. Vincent -- have been as impressive as its wins.

The game will start at 7 p.m.

"We're expecting a good ballgame," said Scott City coach Stephen O'Brien. "We know we'll have to play one of our best games. They may be the best team we've played so far this year. I know that Malden's improved since we played them, but they're physical up front and have some good speed in the backfield and their receivers have good hands."

Those receivers scare O'Brien worse than anything.

Scott City, ranked fourth in 2A at 5-0, has given up some points this year, but teams have had more success throwing the ball than running against the Rams.

"Mainly, teams haven't been able to run on us," O'Brien said. "They've moved the ball by throwing. We've been working on trying to stop the pass this week. Last week (in a 36-21 win over Chaffee) we had kids in the right position but they didn't make the play. We've been working on getting a better pass rush, too."

Chaffee at East Prairie

Chaffee beat East Prairie 20-0 last year, but the Eagles, despite their 1-3 record, are one of the most improved teams around.

The Eagles' offense was held to just 13 points the entire season last year, but they're averaging 14.3 points per contest this season. East Prairie's defense is giving up only 13.8 points.

In Week 3, East Prairie lost 7-6 to Scott City.

"It seems as if East Prairie is carrying themselves a little different this year," said Chaffee coach Allan Horrell. "They've won a game this year, so they've gotten a taste of it. They're hungry right now."

Chaffee, meanwhile, has won the games its supposed to win and stands at 2-3. The Red Devils are coming off a 36-21 loss to Scott City.

East Prairie fell to Dexter 28-8 last week.

East Prairie is led offensively by twin brothers Cody and Colby Archie. Colby has rushed for 370 yards on 65 carries and Cody has 305 yards on 42 attempts.

St. Vincent at Caruthersville

The second-ranked Indians look to improve to 6-0 this week when they take on Caruthersville (2-3) in a Saturday game.

"They're young, but they've got some good speed and size and they really swarm to the ball," said St. Vincent coach Keith Winkler. "Caruthersville had a lot of intestinal fortitude and really came back on Hayti."

St. Vincent, a 1A school which has played mostly 2A and 3A schools, has outscored its opponents 175-62 so far this season.

Fredericktown at Ste. Genevieve

The Blackcats defeated the Dragons for the first time since 1983 last year, 15-12.

But Ste. Genevieve's only loss this season was a 21-17 loss to state-ranked Farmington. The Dragons are riding the momentum of a 34-0 drubbing over previously unbeaten De Soto.

Fredericktown, meanwhile, is 3-2 after starting the year 2-0. The Blackcats have been competitive in all their games this year, but are coming off a 19-7 loss to Herculaneum.

Perryville at Hillsboro

The Pirates will finally play a team with a losing record when they travel to Hillsboro (1-4).

Perryville (0-5) has played a tough schedule in the early part of the season, but so has Hillsboro.

The Hawks' lone win was a 14-7 victory over Parkway Central. They lost 22-16 to state-ranked Farmington last week.

Perryville has been outscored 79-7 in the last two weeks. The Pirates fell 44-7 last Friday to North County.

Sikeston at New Madrid

The Bulldogs have struggled against faster teams this year and the Eagles will probably be the fastest team that Sikeston has played so far.

Sikeston (2-3) will have to figure out a way to contain New Madrid's running game, led by quarterback Byron Minner. The Bulldogs may have an advantage up front, especially in terms of depth, but Class 3A's fifth-ranked Eagles (5-0) have by far more speed.

Columbia Hickman at Poplar Bluff

This one could be a shootout.

The Kewpies -- the third-ranked team in 5A -- defeated fifth-ranked Pattonville 63-56 last week in a game which the two schools combined for 1,063 yards.

The Mules (4-1), also known for their offense, were stymied by Sikeston last week and barely managed a 6-3 win. Poplar Bluff's only touchdown came on a kickoff return.

The Southeast Missouri News Service contributed to this story.