SCOTT CITY, ST. VINCENT EYE QUARTERFINALS; RAMS TAKE ON LUTHERAN NORTH IN 2A MATCHUP

If four first-rate days of practice are any indication, Scott City High's football team is poised to short-circuit Lutheran North's unlikely playoff run in tonight's Class 2A quarterfinal game in St. Louis."This week has been our best week of practice all season, by far the best week," said Scott City coach Terry Flannigan. "The kids were really locked in. We feel good."As do scores of Scott City partisans."The fans are excited," Flannigan said. "There's a lot of electricity flowing through Scott City right now.'An eight-bus caravan ferrying players, parents, students and other fans will rumble north today on Interstate 55 to Webster Groves High School's Moss Field for the 7 p.m. meeting.

Scott City, 10-1 and ranked No. 4 in Class 2A, is favored to win the game. But as Lutheran North coach Jim Manion noted, "You never know what's going to happen."After Lutheran North (9-2 and unranked) lost its district opener to Principia, Manion didn't know whether his team would even venture beyond its district. But victories over John Burroughs and Berkeley, and a 24-18 win Wednesday over St. Pius in the sectional round, propelled the Crusaders into the quarterfinals."We've kind of gotten a second wind and a chance to see what we can do," Manion said.

The Crusaders' offense is led by running back Mike Irving, who has gained 1,052 yards, and quarterback Aaron Mueller has passed for more than 1,000 yards."We've played a couple of option teams already this year," Flannigan said. "They run a little bit of the outside veer and a little inside option. We've worked on that all week, and as long as everybody does as they're coached, we should be all right."Scott City's defense has ratcheted up its effort in the past two games. The Rams shut out Charleston 34-0 in the district championship game before blanking Malden 21-0 Wednesday in sectional play.

On offense, the Rams feature junior tailback Matt Underwood, who has gained a southeast Missouri-best 1,787 yards.

Quarterback Lance Amick suffered an injury to the thumb on his throwing (right) hand a week ago -- Flannigan said he didn't know whether it was a severe sprain or a broken bone -- but Amick "probably threw the ball better than he did all year" during practice Sunday and complained only of slight stiffness in the knuckle.

Scott City has more heft on the lines but the Crusaders may possess a little more speed, Manion said. But, he added, "I feel like it's going to be a busy night."