BY JASON PEAKE
Webb City kept its record unblemished and clinched at least a share of the Central Ozark Conference title with a dominant 42-0 victory at Ozark on Friday at Tiger Stadium.
"We didn't do everything perfect tonight, but we played a clean game," Webb City coach John Roderique said. "Playing a clean game big deal at this year. I'm real proud of our guys. We had a really good night. Our coaches did a great job of planning, and our kids went out and executed."
The Cardinals improved to 8-0 overall and in COC play, while Class 6 Ozark slipped to 1-7. Ranked first in Class 4 by the Missouri Media, Webb City can secure the conference crown outright with a win next week.
Friday's lopsided victory also kept the Cardinals on top of the Class 4 District 6 standings.
Webb City compiled 439 yards of total offense, with 410 on the ground and 29 through the air.
Sophomore Devrin Weathers ran 11 times for 185 yards with two touchdowns, and senior running back Durand Henderson added 125 yards on seven carries with two scores.
The Cardinals limited Ozark to 118 yards: 66 rushing and 52 passing.
Webb City scored 29 unanswered points in the first half.
"Sometimes you talk about a business trip ... getting in and taking care of business," Roderique said. "I felt like we did that tonight. We played clean and disciplined, and we didn't make a lot of mistakes."
The Cardinals went 67 yards on six plays on their first series of the night, capped by Henderson's 39-yard touchdown run.Finishing off a 10-play, 70-yard drive, senior quarterback Cade Beason completed a 5-yard touchdown pass to classmate Alex Gaskill on a fade pattern with five seconds left in the first period, with a two-point conversion giving the visitors a 15-0 cushion.
"We knew they would be blitzing on every play," Beason said. "All week in practice, we worked on picking up the blitz, and that really helped us with our schemes. We were prepared tonight."
On Webb City's first play of the second quarter, Weathers took a pitch from Beason and sprinted 70 yards past the defense all the way to the house. On the next possession, Henderson's 65-yard touchdown sprint gave the Cardinals a 29-point advantage.
"It's nice to know that whenever Durand or Devrin gets the ball in our veer offense they can do that," Beason said. "When they get to the outside, I'll take them one on one any day."
A 33-yard touchdown run by Weathers with 9:56 left in the third period made it 35-0 and resulted in a running clock. Kane Parks ran for a 42-yard touchdown with 5:15 left for the final margin.
Webb City ends the regular season at home next Friday against Nixa.
Joplin Globe 10/13/2018 (Used by permission)