Republic welcomes Webb City to town tonight, renewing a rivalry that’s taken on new meaning in recent years.
The Tigers (4-1) enter the game with momentum after last week’s 49-38 shootout win at Joplin. Webb City (2-3) enters the game with a losing record but is coming off a last-minute victory over Neosho.
This year’s Cardinals haven’t started out as the juggernaut of years past. They’ve struggled with injuries, losing seven or eight starters at one point. But coach Ryan Cornelsen says they’re getting healthy and looking more like themselves.
“If you look at them against Lebanon (in Week 1), they played really well. They look like what I thought they would look like with a veteran group,” Cornelsen said. “They’ve got a lot of guys that played against us in the playoffs.”
Webb City’s offense revolves around its dual-threat quarterback, Jackson Lucas, a converted wide receiver.
“He’s probably the best dual-threat quarterback we’ve seen,” Cornelsen said. “I’ve been impressed watching him on film, how he reads the midline and the outside veer and some of those things and then steps up and throws really good balls.”
Two tall, fast receivers give Webb City big-play potential in the passing game. Cornelsen called them “really dominant.”
Defensively, the Cardinals rely on an experienced secondary.
“It’s the best secondary we’ve seen with guys that can come up and play the run and be physical with it,” Cornelsen said.
Republic counters with an offense that’s found its groove. Quarterback Preston McCracken had his best game of the season at Joplin, repeatedly gashing the Eagles on read-option keepers because they were focused so heavily on the fullback.
“There was a lot more times that we called the plays that we were reading, basically because it worked,” Cornelsen said. “If you watch our offense, one week somebody’s pretty good and people try to take that away.”
Despite Webb City’s record, Cornelsen expects a dogfight. He compared Webb City’s situation to one he faced as a coach at Hutchinson, Kansas.
“My first year at Hutch, we lost a bunch of guys, (including) our starting quarterback. We ended up on our number-three quarterback. We lost our good linebacker, and we were 2-4. And then we played for a state title.”
The Cardinals will have plenty of added motivation as they come to Republic for the third time in 13 months. Republic has ended Webb City’s season in the playoffs two years running, including in the state semifinals last season.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.