Talent-deep Central takes care of Poplar Bluff

Central entered its home opener against Poplar without top running back Mikey Jones and facing one of the best runners in Southeast Missouri in the Mules' Bi Nguyen.

Central senior quarterback Dennis Vinson, a handful of young talented skill players and a sturdy Tigers defense more than compensated for any apparent inequity heading into the night.

Central collected its first win of the season with a 34-13 victory over previously unbeaten Poplar Bluff as a result. It was the fourth consecutive victory for Central in the SEMO Northern Conference matchup.

Vinson, who had passed for 131 yards total in the Tigers' losses against John Burroughs and St. Charles West, completed 6 of 10 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns and one interception.

"Dennis stepped up and showed just how much talent he has," senior center Scottie Thomas said. "He was consistent all night. He did a great job."

Vinson, who completed a 46-yard touchdown pass to junior Jalen Reddin in the first quarter on his first pass of the night and finished with a 12-yard toss to junior Braion Owens in the fourth quarter, was noting others who stepped up.

"We still have Braion, Al [Young] and Jalen," Vinson said. "They're great receivers. We're really deep athletically."

The Tigers (1-2) got a pair of 15-yard TD runs from Young, a sophomore who also had three receptions for a team-high 88 yards.

The Tigers' season-best passing night came in the absence of Jones, a senior who was out with a knee injury.

"Tonight we had to switch it up," Central coach Nathan Norman said. "We tried to run the ball, but we knew we were going to have to open it up with some passes, and we were successful with that."

Vinson put his left arm on display, showing both power and accuracy.

"Dennis has a strong arm," said Owens, who finished with a team-high 63 yards rushing that included a 10-yard TD run. "You're never too far out for him. He can get it to you know matter where you're at. They were looking for us to run, and we came out throwing."

Central forced a 30-yard field goal by Collin Jones, after halting a game-opening 10-play drive by Poplar Bluff.

Central needed just three offensive plays to take the lead. Vinson's first pass attempt hit Reddin in stride down the middle behind the Mules' defense for a 46-yard scoring strike.

Central running back Braion Owens looks for a path against Poplar Bluff during the second quarter on Friday at Cape Girardeau Central High School. (Fred Lynch)

"It helped a lot to get off to a great start," Vinson said. "We got up early. That's what we needed. It was confidence-booster for everybody."

The PAT failed, but Central led 6-3 with 6 minutes, 58 seconds left in the first quarter.

Nguyen gave Poplar Bluff (2-1) a 10-6 lead with a 3-yard TD run at the 5:36 mark of the second quarter, but the Tigers contained him at other crucial times.

He ran for 34 yards on his first carry of the night, but it was his largest gain. Nguyen, who ran for a school-record 320 yards in the Mules' season-opening win against Union, was limited to 136 yards on 24 carries.

Central retook the lead on its following possession, which started at the Poplar Bluff 48 after a 33-yard kickoff return from freshman Kway'chon Chisom and a facemask penalty.

Central stayed on the ground the entire drive and faced a fourth-and 3 at the Poplar Bluff 15. Vinson handed off to Young, who picked up the first-down yardage and then slipped the grasp of a Mules defender at the 9 on his way to the end zone.

Matt Chism's PAT gave Central a 13-10 lead with 1:06 left in the half.

The Tigers turned in big plays on offense and defense in the second half to stay out front.

Central put together a 13-play scoring drive to start the half. Young ignited the drive, which started at the 5, making a juggling reception between defenders near midfield.

"Whenever you've got guys like Al and Braion out there, all you have to do is get it close to them and they'll go up and get it," Thomas said.

Owens capped the drive in similar entertaining fashion on a 10-yard scoring run. Owens dropped the ball after taking the handoff, but it bounced right back into his arms and he went into the end zone for a 20-10 lead.

Meanwhile, Central's defense limited Poplar Bluff to 98 yards offense and one field goal in the second half.

"That's huge for us," Norman said. "Our defense really stepped up. They had a couple of bad outings the last two weeks."

Two Central seniors turned in notable plays in the half. Defensive lineman Martez Carter forced a fumble and a loss of 17 yards on Poplar Bluff's first possession of the half when he got to quarterback Kameron Misner before he could make the handoff to Nguyen. The series ended in a punt.

Senior defensive back Eleazar Edwards broke up a potential TD pass on Bluff's following possession, dislodging the ball from Jones at the goal line on third down. The Mules settled for a 23-yard field goal from Jones on the next play to draw to within 20-13 with 9:38 left in the game.

"For them to make a couple of stops at the goal line and hold them to field goals, that was big for us," Vinson said.

Central responded on the ensuing possession, using an eye-popping reception from Owens to keep the drive alive.

Owens made a finger-tip catch on a deep pass down the middle on a third-and-8 play from the Tiger 25.

"I thought I overthrew him, but he sped up and caught it," Vinson said. "He's really fast. That was a great catch. He really saved me."

Added Owens, "I thought I was going to have to dive for it at first, actually. Then I sped up and caught the ball."

He kept his balance and his zig-zagging run ultimately ended at the Mules 15. Young covered the remaining distance with a run over the left side on the next play for a 27-13 lead with 7:41 left.

Owens sealed the win when he pulled it a 12-yard scoring pass that was deflected by a Mules defender for a 34-13 lead.

"We knew we had to step up coming back home in front of our home crowd," Owens said. "We knew we were going to have to play better on the plays that we didn't execute last week. We had to execute this week, and we did."

Central finished the night with 346 yards offense, while Poplar Bluff netted 298 yards.

"It was a toss up tonight on the line-of-scrimmage, but the difference was our skill," Norman said. "We beat them with speed, and we beat them with athleticism, and we're lucky we have those kids to do that. And we were disciplined enough to run some plays and catch the ball like we're supposed to."

Poplar Bluff did not have an effective passing game to fall back on when it fell behind.

"We ran the ball well enough to keep it honest, but we've got to make plays in the passing game when we throw," Poplar Bluff coach Mark Barousse said. "Otherwise they've got seven guys stacked in the box to stop the run, we've got to be able to throw the ball."

Misner finished just 8 of 24 passing for 127 yards.

"Their kids made plays, and we didn't make plays, and that's what it came down to," Barousse said.

Central will host Fort Zumwalt East on Friday.

Poplar Bluff 3 7 3 0 -- 13

Central 6 7 7 14 -- 34

First Quarter

PB -- Collin Jones 30 FG, 8:06

C -- Jalen Reddin 46 pass from Dennis Vinson (kick failed), 6:58

Second Quarter

PB -- Bi Nguyen 3 run (Jones kick), 5:36

C -- Al Young 15 run (Matt Chism kick), 1:06

Third Quarter

C -- Braion Owens 10 run (Chism kick), 6:31

Fourth Quarter

PB -- Jones 23 FG, 9:38

C -- Young 15 run (Chism kick), 7:41

C -- Owens 12 pass from Vinson (Chism kick), 3:15

PB C

First downs 12 13

Rushes-yards 37-171 40-142

Passing yards 127 206

Passes 8-24-0 6-10-1

Punts 2-36.5 1-37

Fumbles-Lost 2-1 1-0

Penalties-Yards 6-56 7-63

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING -- Poplar Bluff, Nguyen 24-136, Jake Pulliam 4-6, Kameron Mismer 5-13, Daniel Francisco 1-11, Alex Lewis 2-17, Team (-12); Central, Owens 19-63, Young 4-28, Vinson 9-16, Bailey Keller 1-9, Chase Eubank 1-4, Reddin 3-15, Kway'chon Chisom 1-0, Khane Booker 2-7.

PASSING -- Poplar Bluff, Mismer 8-24-0-127; Central, Vinson 6-9-0-206

RECEIVING -- Poplar Bluff, Jones 4-55, Austin Jefferson 1-6, Paul Rose 1-8, Tristen Francisco 1-9; Central, Reddin 1-46, Young 3-88, Owens 2-72.