Missouri High School Football 4A State Championship Game Preview Kearney Bulldogs vs Webb City Cardinals

Written by Charlie Beuttel 
Twitter: @charlie_cds3 

It’s championship week in Missouri as two great teams, Kearney (13-1) and Webb City (14-0) have advanced through a tough bracket and are set to face off for the Missouri 4A state championship in St. Louis on Nov. 27th. Both teams won their semifinal game in convincing fashion as Kearney dominated Westminster, 35-16, and Webb City routed Central 35-14.

The championship game is in St. Louis and both schools will have to travel across the state for this matchup. Kearney, north of Kansas City, will be taking that long trek down I-70 east to St. Louis while Webb City is travelling from the southwest corner of the state.

Webb City has won five straight 4A titles and 43 games in a row overall so the Cardinals will look to continue their dominance. Kearney lost in the semifinals last year to Webb City and will be looking for revenge as they try to dethrone the defending champions.

The Bulldogs are in the state title game for the first time since 2009 when they were the last team besides Webb City to win a 4A title.

Kearney’s offense is scoring just under 45 points a game and will look to put on another offensive show on Friday night. Senior dual-threat quarterback Logan Hinck (6’0″, 170 pounds) is the leader of the offense. Hinck has thrown for 1,675 yards and 21 touchdowns and has ran for 1,056 more yards and 13 more scores. Senior running back Marcus Harris (5’8″, 168 pounds) is the leading rusher on the team with 1,508 yards and 27 rushing touchdowns.

The Bulldogs have only given up on average nine points a game but gave up 16 in their semifinal victory last week. This defensive unit is led by senior linebacker Cale Garrett (6’3″, 225 pounds), a Navy commit. Garrett has an incredible 142 total tackles this year including three sacks and one interception. Another player to watch on Kearney’s defense is senior linebacker Matthew Rule (5’8″, 185 pounds). Rule has 87 total tackles, six sacks, and one interception this year.

Webb City scores on average 38 points a game and have the talent to put on another offensive display Friday night in St. Louis. The Cardinals have been led all year by senior dual-threat quarterback Tyson Roderique (6’0″, 170 pounds). Roderique has the ability to make plays with his legs when the pocket breaks down around him. The leader of the offensive line is senior Trystan Castillo (6’4″, 280 pounds), a Missouri commit.

The Cardinals give up on average 11 points a game and have talented athletes all over the field. Two leaders of this unit are senior linebacker Kaden Roy (6’5″, 210 pounds) and senior free safety Kolesen Crane (6’0″, 200 pounds). Roy has 141 total tackles including six tackles for a loss and Crane has 74 total tackles including two sacks and four interceptions.

It will be exciting to see whether or not Kearney can upset the five-time defending champions or if Webb City can cement their dynasty by winning a sixth straight state title.

Photo credit: heraldwhig.com; Kearney QB Logan Hinck