MOKANE, Mo. - South Callaway head football coach Zack Hess could see it coming and was curious how his Bulldogs would react.
When South Callaway fell behind Clopton/Elsberry 14-6 early in the second quarter of Friday night's Eastern Missouri Conference matchup, it was just the second time the Bulldogs had trailed this season. Hess had to be heartened by his squad's response as South Callaway unleashed a 29-point barrage in the quarter, 21 coming in a furious sequence in the final 1 minute, 41 seconds of the first half.
That outburst helped the Bulldogs remain perfect as they took charge in a 62-30 triumph over the IndianHawks. South Callaway - receiving 12 votes in last week's Class 2 state media rankings - improved to 8-0 on the season and 6-0 in the EMO.
"I told the (assistant) coaches before the game started that there was a good chance we would have to face some adversity," Hess said Saturday morning. "I'm not going to lie, especially early on, that I was a little anxious about when we would start playing better.
"Everybody remained calm and showed confidence, and to see that from the players and coaches was encouraging."
Clopton/Elsberry (6-2, 4-2) jumped out to a quick 8-0 lead behind a 58-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Stephen Talbert to junior wide receiver Blake Kendall with 7:04 to play in the first quarter. The Bulldogs came right back when junior quarterback Landon Horstman threw the first of his four touchdown passes, this one for 33 yards to junior running back Kaden Helsel at the 3:45 mark.
South Callaway still trailed by two points after failing on the two-point conversion attempt. The IndianHawks then extended their lead to 14-6 on Talbert's 7-yard touchdown pass with 8:19 remaining in the second quarter.
The Bulldogs then pulled even when Helsel scored on a 19-yard touchdown run and senior running back Bennett Hager supplied the two-point conversion with 4:54 to go in the first half. Sophomore Peyton Leeper - from his free-safety spot - then put South Callaway in front to stay when he intercepted a Talbert pass and returned it 45 yards for a touchdown at the 1:41 mark.
Junior Jarrett Livengood, a cornerback, quickly set up the Bulldogs' next score when he picked off Talbert on Clopton/Elsberry's following series. Livengood - moving to wide receiver on offense - then grabbed a 9-yard touchdown pass from Horstman with :10 left in the half.
South Callaway surprised the IndianHawks by recovering an onside kick and Horstman beat the clock by slinging a 42-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Austin Meyer with :01 to play, sending the Bulldogs to halftime with a 35-14 edge.
Helsel was responsible for another 19-yard touchdown run at the 10:18 mark of the third quarter. Horstman then made it 48-14 on a 5-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Brandon Ashley with 6:38 left in the quarter.
Leeper and Horstman had respective touchdown runs of 2 and 16 yards in the fourth quarter to wrap up South Callaway's scoring.
Horstman completed 8-of-14 passes for 202 yards and did not throw an interception. Meyer had two catches for 81 yards, Helsel also had two grabs for 58 yards and Ashley finished with two receptions for 43 yards.
"Landon showed an ability to connect with his receivers on the deep ball," Hess said. "He was able to stay in the pocket and didn't get rattled."
The Bulldogs amassed 502 yards of total offense, including 300 rushing. Leeper paced the Bulldogs with 87 yards on seven carries, followed by Horstman with 59 yards on seven touches. Helsel gained 54 yards in 10 attempts.
"We did a good job of keeping Clopton/Elsberry's defense off balance, where they were not expecting one thing or another," Hess said. "We were able to stretch the field vertically and that helped open up our running game."
South Callaway's defense - which intercepted Talbert five times and sacked him twice - surrendered 351 yards of total offense to the IndianHawks, who added 14 points in the fourth quarter.
"We had several breakdowns and gave up some big plays, moreso than what I would like to see," Hess said. "In the second half we had a lot of trouble getting off the field.
"It was not all doom and gloom - there were positives. It was just an inconsistent effort."
South Callaway finishes the regular season at home this week against EMO opponent Van-Far (2-6, 0-6). The Indians were manhandled by Mark Twain in a 42-9 conference home loss Friday night.
The Bulldogs continue to claim the top spot in the Class 2, District 5 standings with 48.89 points, just ahead of second-place Brentwood (6-1, 47.28) and third-place Hermann (6-2, 47.11).
"We'll have our own challenges this week not only playing Van-Far, but it's also our homecoming," Hess said. "There will be a lot of stuff going on and it will be a great atmosphere, but we can't let it be a distraction.
"We want to finish strong and try to get one of our (regular-) season goals (in being undefeated), then we'll worry about postseason play once we get there."