Missouri Week 2 Friday Kansas City area standouts

Cody Thorn

September 6, 2021 @ 07:50 PM

Another Friday night is in the books and there were a number of standout performers throughout the Kansas City metro area. There were two notable performances up Interstate 29 in St. Joseph, while the Essex brothers helped Winnetonka debut a new football stadium with a convincing win. [player_tooltip player_id="199011" first="Johnell" last="Essex"], 5-9, 185, RB, Winnetonka, Class of 2022 The first-year starter added his name to a footnote in the history of Griffin Stadium, which opened with a 45-7 win over Truman. Essex averaged 8 yards per carry on 10 totes and scored the first touchdown on the new field. The school had spent its 51-year history sharing a stadium with North Kansas City and later the North Kansas City District Activities Complex. Essex is a smaller back, but used his strength to bulldoze over the Patriots defenders at the line of scrimmage. [player_tooltip player_id="96167" first="Jason" last="Essex"], 6-2, 205, WR, Winnetonka, Class of 2022 Essex joined his brother on the stat sheet with a touchdown, while hauling in seven catches for 56 yards. The Griffins held a turbo-clock 38-0 lead at halftime so the Iowa State commit didn’t see much action in the second half. The Griffins threw mostly bubble screens his way, but his touchdown was a jump-ball situation in the end zone and he easily went above the Truman defender to haul in a 22-yard score. [player_tooltip player_id="199015" first="Devin" last="Sontag"], 6-2, 195, QB, Winnetonka, Class of 2023 The Griffins made a change at quarterback after a Week 1 loss and turned to junior who was a wide receiver. He was effective at passing the ball, completing 9 of 12 passes for 123 yards and the touchdown pass to [player_tooltip player_id="96167" first="Jason" last="Essex"]. Sontag also showed off his arm with a deep throw in the closing seconds of the first half to Michael Lane, that covered 44 yards. That drive ended with Sontag scoring on a quarterback keeper. He ran the ball six times for 59 yards and had three touchdowns in his debut under center. [player_tooltip player_id="198122" first="Jaron" last="Saunders"], 6-1, 180, QB, St. Joseph Lafayette, Class of 2022 Saunders will soon see his name appear in the MSHSAA record books after a dazzling performance against Atchison (Kan.) in Week 2. The Fighting Irish signal caller completed 24 of 34 passes for 698 yards. Yes, 698 yards, breaking the 11-man record of 663 yards. He tossed six touchdown passes and ran for another in a 50-21 victory. He still finished three touchdowns shy of tying the 11-man record of nine passing TDs in a game. [player_tooltip player_id="198124" first="Kingston" last="Oliver"], 5-9, 160, WR, St. Joseph Lafayette, Class of 2022 Oliver was the top target for Saunders on the night and finished the night with 398 yards receiving and scored four touchdowns. The previous top mark was 376 yards set by Blaine Milburn of Princeton in 2016. Three of Oliver’s touchdowns were for 50, 60 and 80 yards. [player_tooltip player_id="199014" first="Cole" last="Rhoden"], 6-1, 170, WR, Platte County, Class of 2022 For the second week in a row, Rhoden hauled in a 90-plus yard touchdown for the Pirates. After catching a 93-yard score in Week 1, Rhoden tied a MSHSAA state record with a 99-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Jared Parsons against Kearney in a 35-3 win. He finished with seven catches for 132 yards, a big uptick after a two-catch, 103-yard showing in Week 1. [player_tooltip player_id="96149" first="Jace" last="Reynolds"], 5-8, 175, RB, Harrisonville, Class of 2022 The Wildcats’ standout back put up another impressive night in a 28-20 win over state-ranked Maryville. Reynolds had only one touchdown but rolled up 201 yards on 16 carries. He now has 559 yards in two games. [player_tooltip player_id="188585" first="Adepoju" last="Adebawore"], 6-4, 210, DE/LB, North Kansas City, Class of 2023 The junior was a defensive standout against the Indians, recording six tackles, 5 1/2 tackles for loss and four sacks. The Hornets defense allowed Central only 20 yards on the ground on 29 carries. Teammates [player_tooltip player_id="37534" first="Domonique" last="Orange"] and [player_tooltip player_id="99473" first="Edric" last="Hill"] each added 1 1/2 sacks to help NKC get the first win of the year. [player_tooltip player_id="96151" first="Blake" last="Heitman"], 6-0, 180, FB, Odessa, Class of 2022 Not often a fullback gets much attention, but Heitman plays for a run-first offense that can buzzsaw through most foes. Odessa has won 26 straight games and was the Class 3 champion in 2019 and likely could’ve repeated last year if a COVID-19 outbreak didn’t end the season after Week 9. Heitman ran for 161 yards on 16 carries and two scores as the Bulldogs beat Lansing (Kan.) to improve to 2-0. Heitman was an all-state running back last year that ran for 1,327 yards and 22 scores. [player_tooltip player_id="177888" first="Kendrick" last="Bell"], 6-3, 175, QB, Park Hill, Class of 2023 The first-year starting quarterback played a big role in the Trojans pulling off a 24-23 upset over state-ranked Rockhurst in overtime. Bell completed 17 of 28 passes for 163 yards and also had a key touchdown run. He threw for two touchdowns of 21 and 44 yards, both to TE Jake Powell. Bell is the little brother of Michigan WR Ronnie Bell. [player_tooltip player_id="199013" first="Chase" last="Fitch"], 6-0, 180, OLB, Park Hill South, Class of 2022 The Panthers defense almost outscored the offense thanks to three scores, all by Fitch. He ran back a fumble 51 yards for a score and his second TD was a 5-yard fumble recovery, picking up a bad pitch by the Grandview quarterback to running back. Fitch capped off the day with a pick six, getting a deflection, and running it back 20 yards. The Panthers won 40-0 and entered the Class 6 rankings this week. You can follow Cody Thorn on Twitter at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/FreelancingCT">@FreelancingCT</a>.