By Jared Lankford
There is an
old saying that there are only two things for certain in this life, death and
taxes.
The Big 8
football Conference is pushing to add a third staple to this cliché. For the fourth
consecutive year, a team from the legendary conference claimed a state championship.
Last season
produced several memorable games: Lamar’s wild win in the state title and
Monett’s thrilling win over Cassville for a district crown, just to name a
couple.
Before every season,
sports fans and experts pour over notes, rosters and off-the-record
conversations in order to predict how teams will hold up over the course of the
grueling season.
While it is
impossible to accurately predict every twist and turn a single team will
undergo, let alone an entire conference, I have given my best effort in
predicting how I think the conference will finish.
The Big 8
Conference has established itself as one of the premier football conferences in
Missouri. Six of its eight members have state championship banners hanging on
their wall.
Lamar reached
the title peak last season for the second consecutive year. It is not unthinkable
that the Tigers will advance to the Class 2 title tilt again this season.
Monett shocked
the entire state when they reached the Class 3 semifinals to end the 2013
campaign.
Seneca,
Cassville, Aurora, Mt. Vernon, East Newton and Monett will duke it out in the
district playoffs again this season. Whoever emerges from that district will
have a great opportunity to reach the semifinals again.
The 2013-14
Big 8 Conference schedule is as tough as ever. Each member has reasons to hope
for success and reasons to be concerned.
I believe the
conference can be broken down into three tiers. That is not to say that a team
in the second or third tier is overly inferior to the top schools but merely
has more obstacles to overcome to reach the top of this sports editor’s list.
• Tier one: Lamar,
Cassville and Seneca.
• Tier two: Carl
Junction, Monett and Aurora.
• Tier three: Mt.
Vernon and East Newton.
Lamar
Claiming a
second state title last year was only a small step in the right direction for
this Tigers’ program. Coach Scott Bailey and his staff are trying to develop a
sustained tradition and culture of success at Lamar.
The Tigers’ have
grown into a “Brotherhood.” Several Big 8 coaches will be happy to see the
Bailey brothers (Sam and Ben) graduate.
Reason for hope: Depth is a huge
strength for this year’s Tigers squad with 18 returning full-time and five
part-time starters that garnered 38 All-Conference, All-District and All-State
awards. It is their conference title to lose. They have a deadly combination of
size with speed.
Reason for concern: Lamar could very
easily be the conference champion this season.
However, the
Tigers had two conference blemishes last season: A lopsided loss to Cassville
and a turnover plagued defeat against Seneca. This season, Lamar hosts
Cassville in the third week of the season. It should be a barnburner.
Cassville
The Wildcats finished the season
with an 11-1 record and notched another conference and finished second in the
district playoffs.
Cassville,
although the defending Big 8 Conference champs, lost a tremendous amount of
leadership to graduation.
Year in and
year out the Wildcats find ways to win football games. Until proven otherwise
they will hover at the top of the Big 8 standings.
Reason for hope: The Wildcats return
nine total starters. Don’t let Wildcat coach Lance Parnell’s charm fool you. He
knows how to prepare the Black and Gold and put them in positions to win
games.
Reasons for concern: The Wildcats lost
a lot of beef on the offensive and defensive lines to graduation.
It is hard for
your skill position speedsters to wreak havoc with limited blocking.
Seneca
The Indians are
poised for a breakout season. They are one of the scariest offensive teams in
the conference.
With 12
returning starters, including the nucleus of their potent offense, the Indians
could challenge for a conference title.
Reason for hope: With two full years of
the Dan Scheible coaching system under their belt and a large number of key returning
starters, the Indians will be dangerous.
The Indians
scored 40 or more points in five contests last year.
Seneca also
has one of the best two-way linemen in the Big 8 in Mac Yust.
Reason for concern: Seneca has
a small roster, and football is a numbers game. As injuries take their toll,
the Indians will be hard pressed to find replacements to fill in for the
starters.
Carl
Junction
The Bulldogs
are one of the hardest teams to predict in the conference.
Carl Junction
has the intangibles (size, speed and numbers) to walk over any team in this
conference. Yet the Red and Black has struggled being the biggest fish in the
Big 8 pond.
Reason for hope: With the largest
enrollment in the Big 8, Carl Junction can continue to try to wear down teams
with two platoons each game to secure victory.
They have the
size and speed to match up with anyone in the conference.
Reason for concern: The
Bulldogs are short on success. Murphy’s Law seems to doom this team in most
conference tilts.
Monett
The Cubs
reached the Class 3 semifinals last season when no one outside of Chad Depée’s
clubhouse thought they could.
Monett has
several question marks at the offensive skill positions. But they have a
talented junior class that could surprise several teams.
Reason for hope: Coach Depée and his
staff have pulled rabbits out of their collective hats for three consecutive
years. With an extra month of practice from last season’s playoff push and the
raw talent the Cubs posses, Monett will not be a push over.
Reason for concern: The Cubs are still
thin on the offensive and defensive lines. Speed and skill can’t help your team
if there is not any blocking. Monett’s has to gel as a collective unit for them
to be successful
Aurora
The Aurora
Houn’ Dawgs are turning to their youth to help lift this team into the upper tier
of the Big 8.
Despite taking
a small step backwards last season with a 3-7 record the Dawgs are looking to
climb the conference power ranking.
Aurora is
young at the skill positions but well coached.
Reason for hope: The
Houn’ Dawgs are going to be big and physical and control the line of scrimmage.
They have one of the biggest offensive and defensive lines in the Big 8.
If the Houn’
Dawg trench men gel as a unit the team could skyrocket up this list.
Reason for concern: Aurora is very
inexperienced at the skill positions. They may be a year or two away from
ruling the conference.
Mt.
Vernon
The
Mountaineers are a big question mark in the Big 8 this year and not for the
reason you would think.
Second year
coach Ozzie Riley has brought a new energy and excitement to the proud program.
Mt. Vernon
hopes that Riley’s energy translates onto the field.
Reason for hope: Quarterback
Alex Hausman is healthy. He is a versatile athlete that keeps plays alive and
makes good decisions with the ball.
Everyone knows
exactly what Riley expects this season and they are working hard to be
successful.
Reason for concern: The
Mountaineers lost a tremendous amount of talent to graduation.
Last year’s
seniors were involved in 90 percent of all of the Green and White’s plays. If
the youth doesn’t step up, it may be a long season for Mt. Vernon.
East
Newton
The Patriots
went 0-10 last year and have fallen on hard times. Size, numbers and coaching
changes have hurt East Newton’s ability to return to the success of the 1990s.
However, Seth
Johnson, in his second year at the helm, is building a solid foundation of
talent in Granby.
Reason for hope: Johnson has his team
buying into what he wants to establish in the program. He makes things fun his
players and they never quit.
Reason
for concern: East Newton will hang around for two to three quarters in
every game. However, fatigue and lack of enough players will spell trouble for
this Red, White and Blue team.
