No. 9 Bulldogs 'settle in,' easily throttle Wildcats

South Callaway will host Hermann in District 5 semis

South Callaway sophomore free safety Peyton Leeper (15), junior linebacker Landon Horstman
(13) and senior defensive end Darrell Risch (68) team up to tackle a Montgomery County
ball carrier Friday night, Oct. 21, 2016 in a Class 2, District 5 first-round matchup in Mokane. The ninth-ranked Bulldogs breezed to a 60-12 blitz of the Wildcats.
South Callaway sophomore free safety Peyton Leeper (15), junior linebacker Landon Horstman (13) and senior defensive end Darrell Risch (68) team up to tackle a Montgomery County ball carrier Friday night, Oct. 21, 2016 in a Class 2, District 5 first-round matchup in Mokane. The ninth-ranked Bulldogs breezed to a 60-12 blitz of the Wildcats.

MOKANE, Mo. - The state-ranked South Callaway Bulldogs emphatically silenced the conversation.

Unbeaten South Callaway removed any question about the eventual outcome by scoring on each of its first nine possessions as the No. 2 seed Bulldogs plowed past No. 7 Montgomery County 60-12 in Class 2, District 5 first-round play Friday night.

South Callaway (10-0) - ranked No. 9 in Class 2 - took a blow torch and incinerated any memory of last year's district-opening debacle when the Bulldogs, then a third seed, were eliminated in stunning fashion by No. 6 Cole Camp.

"There's been a lot of attention on the fact that we didn't win the first round last year," South Callaway head coach Zack Hess said. "So to kind of get past that now is nice and we can kind of settle in and get focused up for next week.

"I'm very proud of the way the boys played and they handled just the idea that people had been talking about that (last year), and we wanted to come out and perform well tonight, and I think they did."

The Bulldogs can take satisfaction in the thought that they will be home again for this week's District 5 semifinal showdown against No. 3 seed Hermann (7-3). The Bearcats easily handled No. 6 seed Hallsville 42-7 on Friday night.

"It will be a great challenge - they're doing a great job, having a great season, they've got some really good athletes," Hess said. "We're going to have our hands full and we'll have to be ready to go.

"You feel good about tonight, but you can't celebrate too long. You've got to start getting ready for next week if you want to keep going."

South Callaway scored whenever and however it wanted Friday night, collecting 394 yards of total offense without committing any turnovers. Junior quarterback Landon Horstman threw two touchdown passes and also ran for a score, while senior running back Bennett Hager and junior running back Kaden Helsel both accounted for a pair of touchdowns.

Horstman scored from 2 yards out with 6 minutes, 18 seconds left in the first quarter to put the Bulldogs up 13-0. He then partnered with junior wide receiver Jarrett Livengood on two nice touchdown throws on consecutive series midway through the second quarter.

Livengood outleaped a Montgomery County defender in man coverage in the end zone and plucked a heave from Horstman out of the air for a 16-yard touchdown with 5:54 to go. South Callaway quickly got the ball back on the following kickoff when it recovered a fumble by the Wildcats at Montgomery County's 42-yard line.

Four plays later, Horstman snapped off a dart to Livengood along the Wildcats' sideline for a 47-yard score at the 4:29 mark. After a three-and-out by the Wildcats, a 46-yard gain by sophomore wingback Peyton Leeper on first down set up senior fullback Harley Kight's 2-yard touchdown run with 2:59 remaining.

Senior kicker Dakota Kraft's extra point sent the Bulldogs into halftime with a cushy 53-6 edge.

Hager closed out South Callaway's scoring rampage when he busted off a 38-yard touchdown run down the Bulldogs' sideline with 8:20 to play in the third quarter. He was also responsible for South Callaway's first score on a 4-yard touchdown burst at the 10:56 mark of the first quarter.

Helsel's 8-yard touchdown run off a reverse extended the Bulldogs' advantage to 26-0 with 3:03 left. He followed that up by barreling his way into the end zone from 1 yard out with 10:56 to go in the second quarter.

Junior running back Dalton Stone accounted for South Callaway's other score on a 5-yard touchdown run with 4:35 remaining in the first quarter.

Leeper tallied 104 yards rushing on just five touches as the Bulldogs carved out 334 yards on the ground. Helsel was next with 97 yards, also coming on only five carries, while Hager had 56 yards in just four attempts.

Horstman completed 5-of-7 passes for 114 yards and Leeper was 2-of-2 for 57 yards. Livengood finished with three catches for 82 yards.

"Just that fact right there, the efficiency, we talked about not wasting any opportunities when they had the ball - especially when you play a ball-control offense (like Montgomery County), you just never know," Hess said. " It was a good, all-around effort from all of the position groups and the coaching."

South Callaway's defense recovered three fumbles - two setting up scores - and also forced a turnover on downs and four three-and-outs by Montgomery County.

"We talk about winning on first down and setting up second-and-longs, third-and-longs - you know, situational football - and not giving them the third- and fourth-and-shorts, where it would be easier for them to get a first down," Hess said. "They did a great job with that."

Top-seeded Brentwood (8-1) will host No. 5 Father Tolton (5-5) in this week's other District 5 semifinal. Brentwood pounded No. 8 seed Principia 54-7 on Friday night, while Tolton toppled No. 4 North Callaway 31-14.