WEBB CITY, Mo. — Cade Wilson and the Webb City Cardinals entered Saturday’s matchup with the highly-touted Jackson Indians with a proverbial chip on their shoulders.
Whether it was on social media or on online message boards, not many people outside of Webb City were giving the Cardinals much of a chance against the undefeated and defending state champion Indians.
That was fine with Wilson and the Cardinals, who fully embraced the underdog role.
Faced with a win or go home situation against the state’s top-ranked squad, the Cardinals rose to the occasion and earned a statement victory.
Solid in all facets of the game, Webb City rode a stellar start to a 35-21 victory over Jackson in a Class 5 semifinal on a sunny Saturday afternoon at Cardinal Stadium.
“We wanted to beat them so bad because no one thought we had a chance…absolutely no one,” said Wilson, a senior running back. “We love the underdog role and playing with a chip on our shoulder. We had nothing to lose. They had all the pressure.
“I don’t know if they’ve played anyone like us…we’re just bulldogs,” Wilson added. “We put everything on the line and it paid off. We just came out and did our thing. No one thought we’d win. But look at us now. The whole community had our backs and this feels amazing.”
The Indians, who came to town with a 26-game winning streak, were allowing just 8.8 points per game this season while putting up 49 points per contest. Also, Jackson hadn’t had a close game all season.
None of that mattered on Saturday, as Webb City handed Jackson (12-1) its first loss since an overtime setback to Carthage in the 2019 championship game.
“I’m not sure how many people gave us a chance,” Webb City coach John Roderique said. “Honestly, as a coach, you don’t know how good they are or if you have a chance. I think having some success on that first drive gave our guys some confidence. It’s been a different year for us. We’ve been the underdog a few times. As I told our kids, it doesn’t matter what everyone else thinks. All that matters is what the guys on our sideline and in that locker room think. This is a real special day.”
Webb City (10-3) will meet Holt (13-0) at 7 p.m. next Friday in Columbia for the Class 5 championship. The Cardinals will attempt to claim the program’s 16th state title.
Roderique, who has remarkably led the Cardinals to 20 semifinal appearances in his 25 seasons in charge of the program, noted this year’s trip to the state title game may be as satisfying as any he’s had in recent memory.
“It’s meaningful because of the adversity we’ve overcome this year,” Roderique said, noting a 4-3 record on Oct. 8. “Just unbelievable effort. From where we started to where the season progressed…you keep reminding the kids to have faith, keep battling and anything can happen. And we’ve gotten a lot better. Hats off to our coaches for getting the kids in this position. And our kids…what great effort they’ve been playing with.”
The Cardinals, in the semifinals for the 13th time in 14 years, rode an impressive first half to a 28-6 halftime advantage.
Fourth-ranked Webb City struck first in the second half for a comfortable 35-6 lead. The hosts then held off Jackson’s late comeback attempt.
GAME RECAP
The Cardinals put together a nine-play, 80-yard scoring drive to open the game, as Wilson’s 35-yard touchdown run gave the hosts a 7-0 lead with 7:51 remaining in the first quarter.
After forcing the Indians into a three and out, the Cardinals marched 71 yards on eight plays. Wilson’s 2-yard plunge gave the Cardinals a 14-0 advantage with 4:09 left in the opening period.
The Indians got on the board on Cameron Marchi’s 3-yard QB keeper on the first play of the second quarter. But the PAT kick was blocked by Webb City’s Brentan Wilson, keeping the hosts in front 14-6.
The Cardinals answered on their next drive, as Wilson’s 2-yard TD run made it 21-6 with 6:57 left in the second period.
Jackson lost a fumble on their ensuing drive, with Billy Wolfe recovering.
Dupree Jackson’s 2-yard plunge gave Webb City a 28-6 cushion with just under two minutes to play in the first half.
“That was huge to get some points and get ahead early,” Roderique noted. “We knew how fast they can score. Our guys played like fire in that first half.”
The hosts took a commanding 35-6 lead at the 7:50 mark of the third quarter on Wilson’s fourth TD of the day, a 21-yard sprint.
The Indians kept coming. Marchi completed a 6-yard touchdown pass to Kannen Turley with 4:51 left in the third quarter. The Indians, who held Webb City scoreless in the final frame, trimmed their deficit to 35-21 with 8:55 left on Joshua Wehrenberg’s 9-yard TD run.
But the Webb City defense came up big late in the game, as the Cardinals forced a pair of turnover on downs in the fourth quarter, the last coming with 1:25 left.
NAMES & NUMBERS
Webb City finished with 392 yards of offense on 58 plays, with 264 rushing and 128 passing.
Wilson rushed for 138 yards on 19 carries with four scores, while senior QB Cohl Vaden ran 11 times for 60 yards and Dupree Jackson rushed for 58 yards and 13 carries.
Vaden completed 6 of 10 passes. Dante Washington had three receptions for 70 yards, while William Hayes, Cade Wilson and Jackson had one catch apiece.
Washington went 5-for-5 on PAT kicks. Cooper Crouch was credited with 10 tackles, while Lucas Ott and Wolfe had eight stops apiece and Brentan Wilson added seven tackles.
Jackson had 339 yards on 77 plays, 171 passing and 168 rushing.
Marchi completed 21 of 34 passes. Turley caught eight passes for 66 yards. Wehrenberg was Jackson’s leading rusher with 83 yards on 14 carries.
The 21 points were Jackson’s lowest scoring output of the season.
“The defense played fantastic,” Roderique said. “What an outstanding effort by our guys. Our defense has been unbelievable here late in the season.”
TITLE GAME IS FRIDAY
Holt defeated Fort Osage 31-14 in the other semifinal.
Friday’s title game between Webb City and Holt will be played at Mizzou’s Faurot Field. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.
CLASS 5 SEMIFINAL
WEBB CITY 35, JACKSON 21
Jackson 0 6 8 7—21
Webb City 14 14 7 0—35
SCORING SUMMARY
WC: Cade Wilson 35 run (Dante Washington kick)
WC: Wilson 2 run (Washington kick)
JACK: Cameron Marchi 3 run (Kick blocked)
WC: Wilson 2 run (Washington kick)
WC: Dupree Jackson 2 run (Washington kick)
WC: Wilson 21 run (Washington kick)
JACK: Kannen Turley 6 pass from Marchi (Isaiah Davis pass from Marchi)
JACK: Joshua Wehrenberg 9 run (Logan Bruns kick)
FULL STATS: Webb City School District – Stats View (stretchinternet.com)
