SBLive Missouri Power 25 Week 7 High School Football Rankings: St. Mary's moves up

By Chris Geinosky

Week 7 of the Missouri high school football season included plenty of action with games on Friday and Saturday.

Two weeks ago, the St. Louis Archdiocese announced its plan to shut down St. Mary’s after this school year. The defending state champion Dragons have not allowed that adversity to bother them one bit, and now they move into the top three in the state.

Jackson, a fixture in the rankings last year, has been absent from the SBLive Missouri Power 25 since starting this season 0-2 – until rejoining the mix this week. Rock Bridge and Union make their debuts in the Top 25.

This week’s schedule features two key matchups between ranked teams: No. 7 Carthage vs. No. 11 Joplin and No. 10 Lebanon vs. No. 14 Camdenton.

• PREVIOUS RANKINGS: PRESEASON | WEEK 1 | WEEK 2 | WEEK 3 | WEEK 4 | WEEK 5 | WEEK 6

SBLIVE MISSOURI POWER 25 FOOTBALL RANKINGS:

Oct. 11, 2022

1. Christian Brothers College (6-1)

Last week: 1

Next game: Oct. 14 vs. Warren Central (Ind.) (4-4)

Ranking rationale: The reigning Class 6 state champions completed their regular-season tour against Missouri opposition last week with a 64-6 thumping of Vianney, which officially clinched the Metro Catholic Conference title. CBC defeated its four league rivals – St. Louis University High, Chaminade, De Smet Jesuit and Vianney – by a combined point total of 224-76. The Cadets will play out-of-state opponents the next two weeks, starting with a Warren Central (Ind.) program that is only a few years removed from its state championship season in 2018.

2. Liberty North (7-0)

Last week: 2

Next game: Oct. 14 at Raymore-Peculiar (5-2)

Ranking rationale: Seven. Seven. Seven. Fourteen. Fourteen. Ten. Seven. Those are the number of points surrendered by the Eagles’ defense in their seven games this season. That’s a total of only 66, which averages out to 9.4 points per game. And that doesn’t even take into consideration the team’s three defensive touchdowns on the season. That defense will be put to the test once again this week when Liberty North travels to Raymore-Peculiar, a team that has scored at least 33 points in every game but one this fall.

3. St. Mary’s (6-1)

Last week: 4

Next game: Oct. 14 at Trinity (4-4)

Ranking rationale: Over the past two seasons, the Dragons have proved time and again that they can play with anyone in Missouri. Look no further than last week’s 45-14 convincing victory against De Smet Jesuit, a top-end Class 6 team that is barely removed from back-to-back state championship game appearances in 2019 and 2020. St. Mary’s has another big test this week against Trinity (Ky.), who are 27-time state champions from Louisville – the most recent coming in 2020.

4. Lee’s Summit North (6-1)

Last week: 3

Next game: Oct. 14 at Lee’s Summit West (2-5)

Ranking rationale: Back at the beginning of the season, it appeared the Broncos had a starting quarterback battle on their hands. As it has turned out, to this point anyway, using two signal callers (Maxxwell Ford and Elijah Leonard) has worked out just fine. Since a 17-7 season-opening loss, Lee’s Summit North has averaged 37.3 points per game over the past six games – all victories. The offense will have an opportunity to keep things rolling the next two weeks as they take on defensive-challenged Lee’s Summit West and Park Hill.

5. Nixa (7-0)

Last week: 5

Next game: Oct. 14 Republic (4-3)

Ranking rationale: Is the Nixa offense ever going to slow down? It doesn’t appear so, at least not during the regular season anyway. The Eagles have scored 353 points in seven games, an average of 50.4 per contest, for one of the highest totals across the entire state. Led by senior running back Ramone Green Jr., who has been sensational in his return from a collarbone injury that wiped out most of his junior campaign, the Eagles will likely keep piling up the points the next two weeks.

6. Francis Howell (7-0)

Last week: 6

Next game: Oct. 14 vs. Francis Howell Central (3-4)

Ranking rationale: Speaking of offense, don’t forget about the Vikings, who have been incredibly consistent all season long. Francis Howell has scored at least five touchdowns in every game this season, reaching the 40-point plateau six times in seven tries and reaching the 50-point mark on two of those occasions. All that scoring helped four-year starter Josh Deal break the all-time state record for career points by a kicker last week.

7. Carthage (6-1)

Last week: 7

Next game: Oct. 14 vs. Joplin (6-1)

Ranking rationale: Coming into the season, it looked like this Week 8 showdown between Carthage and Joplin would likely go a long way in determining the Central Ozark Conference champion, just as this matchup did last year when Carthage captured the league crown. However, the winner of this year’s high-profile meeting of ranked teams will have to settle for conference runner-up honors.

8. Cardinal Ritter (7-0)

Last week: 9

Next game: Oct. 14 at Hillsboro (7-0)

Ranking rationale: The streak lives on. In impressive fashion, the Cardinal Ritter defense has recorded three consecutive shutout victories. Include a second-half shutout against Helias Catholic in Week 4, and the Lions have not surrendered a single point in the past 14 quarters. The streak will be put on the line this week against an undefeated Hillsboro team that has scored at least 31 points in every game this season.

9. Lebanon (7-0)

Last week: 10

Next game: Oct. 14 at Camdenton (7-0)

Ranking rationale: After turning in five running-clock victories in the first weeks of the season (and the other game was a three-touchdown winning margin), the Yellowjackets faced a much different challenge in Week 7 when they had to rally from an early deficit and pull out a wild 45-42 win at West Plains. That experience should have Lebanon more battle tested in preparation for this week’s Ozark Conference showdown of unbeaten teams at Camdenton.

10. Kearney (7-0)

Last week: 11

Next game: Oct. 14 vs. Grandview (5-2)

Ranking rationale: Kearney’s march through the regular season has been as impressive as it has been surprising. In the preseason, Kearney was an afterthought when it came to the state rankings, and now the Bulldogs find themselves in the Top 10. Since knocking off defending Class 4 state champion Smithville 20-19 in Week 3, Kearney has won its last four games by a cumulative score of 208-26.

Vote now: Who should be SBLive's Missouri High School Athlete of the Week (Oct. 3-8)?

Photos: Carson Boyd throws five TD passes to lead Cardinal Ritter past Lift For Life

Photos: St. Mary's downs De Smet in Top 10 showdown

11. Joplin (6-1)

Last week: 12

Next game: Oct. 14 at Carthage (6-1)

Ranking rationale: The last time Joplin defeated Carthage (in 2019), the Eagles came out on top of a memorable 56-55 shootout, but this week’s matchup of one-loss teams should feature more defense than that one. But most importantly, both teams are trying to continue their momentum into the final stage of the regular season.

12. Smithville (6-1)

Last week: 13

Next game: Oct. 14 at Pittsburg (Kan.) (5-1)

Ranking rationale: In their past four games, the Warriors have outscored their opponents 208-14. Seven different Warriors scored touchdowns (five rushing and two receiving) and two quarterbacks also threw touchdowns in a balanced team attack in last week’s 63-0 blowout of winless Winnetonka.

13. Troy Buchanan (5-2)

Last week: 15

Next game: Oct. 14 Ft. Zumwalt West (3-4)

Ranking rationale: According to reports, four key starters were suspended by Troy Buchanan coach Ryan Nesbitt for undisclosed disciplinary reasons and missed last week’s game, but they would be returning for the final home game of the regular season this week. The Trojans have won four of their past five games, the only loss coming against Francis Howell.

14. Camdenton (7-0)

Last week: 18

Next game: Oct. 14 vs. Lebanon (7-0)

Ranking rationale: Regular-season games do not get much more important than this one. No. 9 Lebanon vs. No. 14 Camdenton. League rivals. Both undefeated. Conference championship on the line. Oh, and the No. 1 district seed and home-field advantage at stake. Yeah, this one’s a biggie.

15. Blair Oaks (7-0)

Last week: 16

Next game: Oct. 14 vs. Hallsville (4-3)

Ranking rationale: Hopefully someone bought replacement lights for the Blair Oaks scoreboard because they might need them soon. After producing a season-high 76 points last week at Eldon, the Falcons have scored 390 points for the season (55.8 per game), which is one of the top totals in the state.

16. MICDS (6-1)

Last week: 17

Next game: Oct. 14 at St. Dominic (3-4)

Ranking rationale: MICDS bounced back from the first loss of the season in a big way. After stubbing their toe in a Week 6 loss against Lutheran North, the Rams rebounded with a 54-13 victory against Lutheran South – the team’s sixth blowout and fifth running-clock win of the year.

17. Valle Catholic (7-0)

Last week: 19

Next game: Oct. 14 vs. Vianney (0-7)

Ranking rationale: No team has been able to slow down the Warriors. Valle Catholic has scored at least 40 points in every game this season and has cracked the 60-point mark four times. All told, the Warriors have scored 406 points on the year (58.0 per contest), which is believed to be tops in the state.

18. Holt (6-1)

Last week: 22

Next game: Oct. 14 vs. Jackson (5-2)

Ranking rationale: This game between Class 5 powers was circled on the schedule before the season started. Both teams started the year with losses but have built momentum since then. Holt comes into this week riding a six-game win streak while Jackson has won five in a row.

19. De Smet (3-4)

Last week: 8

Next game: Oct. 14 at Thornwood (Ill.) (2-5)

Ranking rationale: Yes, the Spartans have a losing record. But it’s more telling about their schedule, not an indictment of their play. De Smet closes out the regular season with a pair of games against teams from Illinois — Thornwood this week and powerhouse East St. Louis next week.

20. Jackson (5-2)

Last week: NR

Next game: Oct. 14 at Holt (6-1)

Ranking rationale: Welcome back Jackson. A team that saw its 39-game regular-season win streak snapped earlier this season with an 0-2 start to the season, the Indians have rattled off five consecutive wins since and have rejoined the conversation of the top-end teams in the state.

21. Seneca (7-0)

Last week: 23

Next game: Oct. 14 at McDonald County (4-3)

Ranking rationale: It was another big week for the Indians’ offense as they racked up 56 points in a big win against East Newton, giving them 361 for the season. Seneca has scored at least 55 points in three straight games, but it will be a tougher test this week at McDonald County.

22. Lamar (6-1)

Last week: 24

Next game: Oct. 14 at Cassville (4-3)

Ranking rationale: The Tigers appear to be back on track and hitting their stride at the right time. An annual title contender in Class 2, Lamar stepped up two levels and knocked off Class 4 opponents McDonald County (54-14) and Nevada (47-26) the past two weeks.

23. Lutheran North (5-2)

Last week: 25

Next game: Oct. 14 at Lutheran St. Charles (4-3)

Ranking rationale: A team that lacked an identity earlier in the season, the Crusaders have found one amidst a four-game winning streak. The most recent victory was a memorable one as Jonathan Vanhook blocked a potential field goal, and Vance Gross scooped up the loose ball and returned it for the game-winning touchdown in a 36-29 win against Maryville.

24. Rock Bridge (6-1)

Last week: NR

Next game: Oct. 14 vs. Hickman (1-6)

Ranking rationale: Rock Bridge makes its debut appearance in the SBLive Power 25. Since starting the season with a road loss at Park Hill South, the Bruins have rattled off six consecutive victories, which includes wins against previously ranked teams Helias Catholic and Lutheran St. Charles in Weeks 5 and 6.

25. Union (7-0)

Last week: NR

Next game: Oct. 14 vs. St. James (2-5)

Ranking rationale: The Wildcats crack the SBLive Power 25 for the first time ever, joining Rock Bridge in that category. Union, which reached the Class 4 semifinals in 2020, posted a 10-1 record last year and have started this season with seven wins in a row.