Missouri teams from the Kansas City area will battle for a head start to the top ranking in Class 5.
Video: Top 10 Games of the WeekFort Osage (Independence, Mo.) at Staley (Kansas City, Mo.)
Friday, 7 p.m. Central timeWhy it's big: This is a showdown of the top two teams on the Missouri side of the Kansas City metro area. The winner will be a heavy favorite to carry on and win the Suburban Conference White championship and be top-ranked in the Class 5 state rankings when the postseason begins.
Fort Osage (4-0) has won three in a row against Staley after losing the first three games of the series, which began in 2010. The Indians are riding a 28-game winning streak in the regular season, but were disappointing round-one losers in the playoffs each of the last two seasons.
Staley has manhandled its first four opponents by a combined margin of 131-24. Led by talented 6-foot-3, 220-pound junior linebacker
Eli Ross, the Falcons' first-team defense hasn't allowed a point all season.
Names to watch: Fort Osage quarterback
Skylar Thompson is a third-year starter and reached the semifinals of the Nike Elite 11 quarterback competition this summer. The Kansas State commit has 4,662 passing yards and 50 touchdowns for his career.
Staley was dealt a big blow when running
Faizol Bouchard suffered a season-ending knee injury two weeks ago. The senior had rushed for over 100 yards in each of the first three games. Expected to pick up the slack in the running game is junior
Julian Ross, a member of Staley's state-qualifying 4x100- and 4x200-meter relay teams.
Staley coach Fred Bouchard has a big challenge this week against Fort Osage.
File photo by Sam Soliday
