Round 1: WC v. Branson (again)

Yes, the playoffs are upon us and WC cruised through their round one game - a rematch with a surprising Branson. Perhaps my expectations are a little tough when I say that a 34-0 domination was a little bit of a snoozer. I mean really, what do I expect?

Weather was a factor in this game, but only temporarily. Cloud to ground lightning strikes in the area forced the game to be suspended for about 30 minutes. When play resumed, WC went about methodically dismantling Branson (again). Unlike their first match up where virtually everything went right for WC in the first half. Webb didn't have any pick-6s or returns for a touchdown. Instead, WC limited Branson to 11 yards of offense in the first half (82 yards for the game) and used their dominant ground game to put points on the board.

Webb put together a nice drive from their own 5 yard line with about 3:30 remaining in the first half, scoring as time expired. The drive included a couple of long runs, a nice pass by Patrick Drake (my brother-in-law) on 3rd & 11 to pick up a first down, and one of those plays the fans love - where the quarterback lowers his shoulder and turns a defender upside down.

Meanwhile, down in Neosho, Carthage's season was unraveling...quickly. The first half was back and forth and looked to be a real battle. But then the unthinkable for any Tiger fan happened. Trey Derryberry - Carthage's QB - went down with a concussion and was out for the night. My understanding is that their second string QB suffered an injury as well. Combine those injuries with a couple of turnovers and Carthage's season ended with a thud in a 39-13 loss.

Honestly, I really kind of wanted to play Carthage again, beating them is just fun. With that said, Neosho is a good football team and the Cards had better bring their A-game on Monday night or there'll be no Saturday game.

I won't be there Monday night - out of town - someone will have to fill me in later.

Ben, this is for you. My prediction for Monday night: Webb City 34 - Neosho 21.

I also predict someone will sit in my seat. That's fine as long as we all understand that I get it back whenever the next home game is. If anyone has any problems with that they'll have to beat me to it!