ST. VINCENT, GREENFIELD SET FOR 1A QUARTERFINAL MATCHUP

PERRYVILLE -- Forget Y2K.When the clock strikes 7 tonight, St. Vincent will have to deal with I2K, as in the "I" formation and a 2,000-yard running back.

To get to their second straight state championship game, the Indians will have to stop Greenfield -- more specifically running back Joseph Brown -- when the two state-ranked teams hook up in a Class 1A quarterfinal clash at St. Vincent.

Brown, a 6-foot-3, 210-pound tailback, has rushed for more than 2,200 yards this season for the sixth-ranked Wildcats (10-1)."He's a pretty good athlete," said Greenfield coach Mike Brown of his best player and son. "He's not blazing fast but he has good speed for his size and he runs it pretty hard.""We've seen him on film and he does an outstanding job," said St. Vincent coach Paul Sauer, whose 10-1 squad is ranked second in the state. "He's a big kid and he runs hard and they've got a pretty good offensive line in front of him. And we can't forget about some of their other backs because they can hurt you too."But we've seen a lot of good backs this year. We've seen backs as big as he is and bigger."It is unlikely that Greenfield's bruising running back will enjoy the same amount of success that he has seen throughout this season.

St. Vincent's defense has dominated all season long, including Wednesday's sectional game when it held Lutheran-St. Charles to just 46 yards of total offense."I've seen (St. Vincent) once in person and they're just real consistent and disciplined," Mike Brown said. "They play the game like it's supposed to be played."St. Vincent's second or third units have allowed at least three of the 12 touchdowns this season. "I think these kids take a lot of pride in their defensive effort," Sauer said. "They come out to play and make adjustments when they need to."St. Vincent linebackers Josh Robinson, Nathan Thomas and Josh Meyer have been solid all year and will face a tough task against Joseph Brown."They seem to be looking forward to that," Sauer said.

While St. Vincent's defense will have its hands full, the Indians' offense has had the hot hand lately.

Jonathan Paulus had a near perfect night at quarterback Wednesday night.

He completed 10 of 12 passes for 101 yards and four touchdowns."I was impressed with their quarterback," Mike Brown said. "He has the ability to run and pass the ball."If Paulus and the Indians offense clicks like it has in recent weeks, it will take a lot of pressure off the defense."If we can execute to near perfection like we did Wednesday night, even if the defense doesn't shut them down, the offense will be able to score," Sauer said.

Perhaps the most impressive thing about St. Vincent is that it has not just beat up on fellow 1A schools.

The Indians shut out a much-improved Fredericktown team, beat Park Hills 36-6, and barely lost to Herculaneum. Those are all Class 3A schools.

When the Indians got the to the district portion of its schedule, they started putting up some huge numbers.

Against five Class 1A schools from Missouri, St. Vincent has outscored its opponents 232-40.