Seven high school football teams were crowned champions of their respective classifications during last weekend's Show-Me Bowl championship football games at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis. Below is a look at each contest.
Class 6 – Hazelwood Central 35, Blue Springs 24
For the second straight season Hazelwood Central ignored all of the prognosticators and won Missouri’s big school football title over a school from Blue Springs. A year ago, the Hawks outscored Blue Springs South 25-20 for the Class 6 title. Friday, Blue Springs fell victim 35-24 to the Hawks. Hazelwood Central trailed the Kansas City-area squad 24-21 following Cody Best’s 30-yard field goal late in the third quarter. Alonzo Chappelle gave the Hawks their first lead of the contest with a 5-yard touchdown run with 10 minutes, 51 seconds remaining in the game.
Spencer Davis then returned a punt 76 yards for a score to secure the win. "I asked that No. 12 after the game what he ran a 40 in," Blue Springs punter Jared Lanpher told the Independence Examiner of Davis, "and he told me 4.2 (seconds). The way he blew by me on that punt, I couldn’t believe it. I had the angle and everything and I couldn’t come close to him. They were by far the fastest team we’ve faced this year."
Class 5 – Webster Groves 31, Fort Osage 14
Webster Groves rallied from a 14-10 deficit by scoring three straight touchdowns in the second half to earn its first class 5 title since 2002 with a 31-14 win over top-ranked Fort Osage. Desmond Brown’s 1-yard run gave the Statesmen the lead for good at 17-14. Then David Scanlon and Ryan Mack hauled in 21- and 19-yard touchdown strikes, respectively, to help the Statesmen pull away. 
Bret Gerstner (39), Helias
Photo by Dean Backes
Class 4 – Kearney 27, Jefferson City Helias 15
Defense staked Kearney to its first state title since winning back-to-back crowns in 2002 and 2003. After trailing 9-7 at intermission, the Bulldogs held Jefferson City-Helias to minus-30 yards rushing in the second half to rally for a 27-15 triumph. Shane Hartzler’s 1-yard touchdown run paired with a 4-yard scoring run by Ashton Hiatt allowed Kearney to rally to a 24-7 advantage. Conner White caught an 86-yard scoring strike from Jefferson City-Helias quarterback Clint Distler to pull the Crusaders closer. Helias earned runner-up honors for the second straight year.
Class 3 – Cassville 24, Bowling Green 7
Trailing 7-0, Cassville’s Trey Rose intercepted Ryan Cox’s pass in the end zone early in the Saturday’s state title tilt, allowing Cassville to stay close on the scoreboard. The Wildcats then went on to score 24 straight points to secure a second straight state title. Joseph Gouvion put Cassville on the scoreboard less than a minute into the second quarter with an 85-yard run to knot the score. The Wildcats took the lead for good following Trevor Tanner’s 1-yard run, which was set up when Tanner connected with Travis Northern for a 63-yard strike. Tanner then scored from 35 yards out and Matt Angel kicked a 38-yard field goal to secure the triumph.
Class 2 – Maryville 35, Brentwood 0
Maryville relied on a strong ground game to belt Brentwood 35-0 to win its second state title. The Spoofhounds also won the state title in 1982 and lost 10-7 to Clark County in last year’s state championship contest. Maryville ran for 237 yards on 47 carries in the contest and totaled 348 yards of offense, while holding Brentwood to 207 total yards. The Spoofhounds took a 14-0 first-quarter lead following Derek DeMott’s 3-yard run and a 1-yard burst from Marcus Grudzinski. Maryville also scored on a 2-yard run from Gavin Talmadge, an 8-yard pass play from Grudzinsky to Adam Thomson and a 1-yard run by DeMott.
Class 1 – Penney 21, Valle Catholic 17
After building a 14-0 halftime lead Penney found itself rallying late in the second half to secure its first state title with a 21-17 triumph over Valle Catholic. Trevor Dixon opened the scoring after he intercepted Michael Greminger’s pass and raced 66 yards for a 7-0 advantage. Hornet signal-caller Keagan Prather then found pay dirt from two yards out. The Warriors scored midway through the third quarter, when Greminger found the end zone from a yard out. Greminger then connected with Nathan Geile from 29 yards out to knot the score before Kevin Abts' 25-yard field goal gave the Warriors their only lead with less than eight minutes left in the game. Two minutes later, Prather scored from 7 yards away to secure the Hornet win.
Class 8-Man – Mound City 50, St. Joseph Christian 8
Mound City ran its collection of Missouri 8-man football championships to five by rumbling over St. Joseph Christian for the third time in a year Friday at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis. Mound City knocked off the Lions 48-16 in last year’s state title game and opened the 2009 campaign with a 34-0 shutout. The Panthers also won 8-man titles in 1999, 2003, 2005 and 2008. Gage Rosier began the drubbing by racing seven yards for a touchdown following a Lion fumble on the game’s second play. Rosier then scored on runs of 19, 51 and 6 yards as the Panthers earned a 34-0 halftime advantage. Stephen Gregory scored from 25 yards out with less than a minute remaining to avoid the shutout for St. Joseph Christian.
Missouri's top state championship performances
Rushing
Gage Rosier of Mound City rushed for 207 yards and 5 touchdowns on 26 carries in a 50-8 win over St. Joseph Christian…Blue Springs’ Darrian Miller rushed for 181 yards and a touchdown on 36 carries in a 35-24 loss to Hazelwood Central…Tra Brown of Hazelwood Central rushed for 138 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries in a 35-24 win over Blue Springs…Cassville’s Trevor Tanner rushed for 131 yards and 2 touchdowns on 22 carries in a 24-7 win over Bowling Green…Gavin Talmadge of Maryville rushed for 129 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries in a 35-0 win over Brentwood…Cassville’s Joseph Gouvion rushed for 123 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries in a 24-7 win over Bowling Green.
Passing
Michael Greminger of Valle Catholic completed 20-of-30 passes for 256 yards and a touchdown in a 21-17 loss to Penney…Fort Osage’s Edward Pearl completed 8-of-26 passes for 236 yards and a touchdown in a 31-14 loss to Webster Groves…Clint Distler of Jefferson City-Helias completed 17-of-31 passes for 226 yards and 2 touchdowns in a 27-15 loss to Kearney…Webster Groves’ Derrick Dilworth completed 13-of-20 passes for 208 yards and a pair of touchdowns in a 31-14 win over Fort Osage…Jared Lanpher of Blue Springs completed 22-of-46 passes for 161 yards in a 35-24 loss to Hazelwood Central…Bowling Green’s Ryan Cox completed 18-of-37 passes for 158 yards and a touchdown in a 24-7 loss to Cassville.
Receiving
Kamryn Tillmon of Fort Osage caught 5 passes for 126 yards in a 31-14 loss to Webster Groves…Cassville’s Travis Northern caught 3 passes for 112 yards in a 24-7 win over Bowling Green…Conner White of Jefferson City-Helias caught 4 passes for 110 yards and a touchdown in a 27-15 loss to Kearney…Fort Osage’s Garry Frisk caught 2 passes for 100 yards and a touchdown in a 31-14 loss to Webster Groves…Tyler Funk of Kearney caught 2 passes for 87 yards and a touchdown in a 27-15 win over Jefferson City-Helias…Valle Catholic’s Nathan Geile caught 5 passes for 80 yards and a touchdown in a 21-17 loss to Penney.
Missouri Top 10
1. Hazelwood Central (13-1) 444 148
2. Blue Springs (12-2) 566 210
3. Rockhurst (9-3) 358 224
4. DeSmet Jesuit (12-1) 569 128
5. Jefferson City (9-3) 425 195
6. Webster Groves (13-0) 435 185
7. Liberty (8-3) 376 203
8. Fort Osage (13-1) 421 130
9. Kearney (12-2) 624 100
10. Jefferson City-Helias (14-1) 578 182
Class 6
1. Hazelwood Central (13-1) 444 148 5
2. Blue Springs (12-2) 566 210 3
3. Rockhurst (9-3) 358 224 2
4. DeSmet Jesuit (12-1) 569 128 1
5. Jefferson City (9-3) 425 195 4
6. Liberty (8-3) 376 203 6
7. Oakville (9-4) 327 216 -
8. Christian Brothers College (8-3) 260 247 8
9. Lafayette (Wildwood) (8-4) 249 180 9
10. Fox (9-3) 398 232 -
Class 5
1. Webster Groves (13-0) 435 185 2
2. Fort Osage (13-1) 421 130 1
3. Parkway North (10-2) 398 117 4
4. Raytown South (10-4) 430 161 9
5. Park Hill (9-2) 312 153 3
6. Rolla (10-2) 406 202 6
7. Raymore-Peculiar (8-4) 318 264 7
8. Chaminade (9-4) 398 281 -
9. Nixa (9-4) 367 204 -
10. Parkway Central (10-3) 264 143 -
Class 4
1. Kearney (13-2) 624 100 4
2. Jefferson City-Helias (14-1) 578 182 3
3. Webb City (13-1) 569 219 1
4. Staley (11-1) 431 123 2
5. Harrisonville (11-2) 423 191 5
6. Sikeston (13-1) 498 124 6
7. Normandy (10-3) 366 217 -
8. Bolivar (11-2) 531 249 8
9. Hannibal (9-3) 404 171 10
10. Carthage (9-3) 405 259 9
Class 3
1. Cassville (14-1) 470 162 4
2. Bowling Green (14-1) 496 144 5
3. Logan-Rogersville (11-2) 398 150 3
4. O’Hara (12-2) 502 272 2
5. Potosi (11-1) 486 202 1
6. Priory (8-6) 395 305 -
7. Chillicothe (8-3) 321 162 7
8. Seneca (8-4) 312 205 -
9. Mountain Grove (9-3) 369 150 8
10. Savannah (8-4) 335 144 -
Class 2
1. Maryville (14-1) 462 171 3
2. Brentwood (12-2) 301 185 -
3. Hogan Prep (11-2) 458 197 6
4. Centralia (13-1) 681 105 1
5. Carrollton (10-2) 392 106 4
6. Lawson (10-2) 299 146 8
7. Clark County (12-1) 410 122 2
8. Lamar (7-7) 380 266 -
9. Lexington (8-3) 282 116 10
10. Caruthersville (11-3) 368 178 -
Class 1
1. Penney (14-0) 657 121 2
2. Valle Catholic (14-1) 661 160 4
3. Orrick (11-1) 488 114 1
4. Tipton (12-1) 432 172 3
5. Wellington-Napoleon (12-2) 485 222 5
6. Marceline (12-1) 442 137 6
7. Adrian (10-3) 397 125 9
8. Miller (10-3) 357 255 -
9. Greenfield (10-2) 474 123 7
10. Thayer (9-2) 432 217 8
8-Man
1. Mound City (11-1) 557 75
2. Stanberry (10-2) 508 172
3. Worth County (9-2) 535 292
4. St. Joseph Christian (10-3) 618 266
5. Miami (8-2) 470 180
