MOKANE, Mo. - It's all about timing right now for the state-ranked South Callaway Bulldogs.
With an eye toward the start of district play in a week, South Callaway ends the regular season tonight with a trip to Van-Far for an Eastern Missouri Conference matchup with the Indians. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.
The Bulldogs (7-1, 5-1 EMO) - sitting at No. 10 in the Class 2 Missouri Media Rankings for a second week in a row - own a four-game winning streak after breezing to a 63-6 EMO win at Clopton/Elsberry last week.
"Again, I think it's the same message that we've been sending the last three or four weeks - concentrating on our attention to detail and our little things that we can continue to get better at and improve," South Callaway head coach Zack Hess said. "We want to be hitting our stride, being at our peak by next week."
While the Bulldogs are surging, Van-Far appears to be fading. The Indians (4-4, 2-4 EMO) have dropped four of their last five after a 3-0 start, falling at Mark Twain in a 35-14 conference loss last week.
Van-Far - which is averaging just 19.6 points per game during its recent slide - runs a "hybrid" double-wing, double-tight end offense, according to Hess, that utilizes two quarterbacks at the same time."They do the same things, different directions," Hess said. "Both pass the ball, both run the ball, so that's a challenge. It's just different, it's a unique thing that we have to prepare for this week."
South Callaway's defense dogged Clopton/Elsberry last week, surrendering just 167 yards of total offense to the IndianHawks and forcing three turnovers, all fumbles.
Being in the correct spot will be critical for the Bulldogs tonight in defending two QBs simultaneously, Hess explained.
"I think getting lined up properly, just getting set, getting our reads, relaxing and trusting our reads, I think, is going to be important," Hess said.
South Callaway will surely be eager to face a Van-Far defense - shifting between 3-4 and 3-5 looks - that is giving up an average of 36 points during the past five games. Hess, though, noted he was impressed by the physical play of the Indians' defensive line.
"They have some guys up front that can really push the line of scrimmage, push the pocket," Hess said. "Just watching film, it doesn't seem like they take a lot of plays off and they have some guys that can get that leverage real well.
"For us, our offensive line's not that big, so that could be a challenge. We're going to have to play with great technique."
The Bulldogs were only forced to punt once last week in piling up 397 yards of total offense, including 315 yards rushing. Senior tailback Kaden Helsel led the way by gaining 93 yards on only four carries, scoring on runs of 29, 25 and 46 yards, while also catching a 15-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Landon Horstman.
Horstman also connected with senior wide receiver Jarrett Livengood on a 10-yard touchdown pass and finished 5-of-6 for 59 yards. Junior tailback Peyton Leeper added a 10-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Dylan Paschang, while rushing for 85 yards and bolting 33 yards for a score.
Junior fullback Bradyn Belcher provided 51 yards rushing and had an 11-yard touchdown run.
Hess emphasized South Callaway will continue to push for the maximum on every possession.
"Offensively, that has to be your objective," Hess said. "I think you've just got to stay out of your way a little bit - not creating holes with a penalty, or a missed assignment, or something like that.
"If you can do that, get those first downs if you need to, but hopefully a big play or two will happen. That's kind of where we're at right now."
Related media:
South Callaway Bulldogs Football Podcast [Van-Far preview, Oct. 13, 2017]