Game Recap: Smithville vs. MICDS, Class 4 semifinal

In a game that went down to the final minute, No. 1-ranked Smithville picked up a 40-36 win over No. 2-ranked MICDS on Friday in a Class 4 semifinal. Smithville, playing on the road, scored three touchdowns in the final 8 minutes, 4 seconds to secure only the second trip to the state finals in the program’s history. The other was in 1969, when the Warriors lost the Class 1A championship game. Each team ran 61 plays in the contest and more than 800 yards of total offense was racked up. The MICDS slowed down the Smithville power rushing attack – held to only 114 yards – the second lowest total all season. Though, both the Warriors ran for three scores and passed for three in the come-from-behind win. <strong>MICDS (12-1)</strong> <strong>Players of the Game</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="96126" first="Reagan" last="Andrew"], QB, 2022 He did a little bit of everything for the Rams, running for three touchdowns and a pair of long touchdown passes. Andrew finished with 81 yards rushing and passed for 222. One of his more impressive plays was a 66-yard pass to Steven Hall, where he escaped two would-be-sacks and threw across the field to a wide open Hall. The junior running back then did the rest, showcasing his speed by running up the middle and sprinting past the Warriors’ defense. Andrew’s third touchdown run came on the opening drive of the third quarter as the Rams ate nearly 9 minutes off the clock. If all of that wasn’t enough, he recovered an onside kick in the fourth quarter. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Of all the amazing plays <a href="https://twitter.com/MICDSfootball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MICDSfootball</a> performed all season, this takes the cake. Outstanding by <a href="https://twitter.com/ReaganAndrew1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ReaganAndrew1</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/Hall9Steve?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Hall9Steve</a>. Fantastic year once again by the Rams. <a href="https://t.co/n8RkVU4Mdl">pic.twitter.com/n8RkVU4Mdl</a></p> — Gateway Sports Venue⚜️ (@GSV_STL) <a href="https://twitter.com/GSV_STL/status/1465008253566398483?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> [player_tooltip player_id="178524" first="PJ" last="Behan"], WR, 2022 Behan tied for the team lead in catches from Andrew with three with senior Oliver Rohan, who had three for 56 yards. Behan averaged 25 yards a catch and gave the Rams a 14-7 lead after a 58-yard pass. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound product that is also a lacrosse standout used his size to out jump the defender to pull down the catch and dash toward the end zone. He led the team with 53 catches for 1,063 yards and 14 touchdowns. Gus Baisch, LB, 2022 The middle linebacker had a team-high 13 tackles and finished the year by leading the team with 135 tackles, one more than junior linebacker Cortlin Dalton. He also led the team in tackles for loss (11), sacks (10) and tied for third in interceptions with two. <strong>Smithville (12-0)</strong> <strong>Players of the Game</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="179109" first="Andrew" last="Hedgecorth"], QB, 2023 A two-year starter, Hedgecorth had one of his best games of the year by passing for 372 yards and three touchdowns. He threw two of those in the fourth quarter and his 35-yard pass to Sam Calvert with 1:11 left capped off a 20-point rally. He guided an offense that was 6 for 11 on third- and fourth-down conversions – and the touchdown pass to Calvert came on 4th-and-7. He completed 30 of 41 passes and also led the team in rushing with 63 yards on four carries, including a 50-yard jaunt on the fourth play of the game. Sam Calvert, WR/DB, 2022 Calvert had 11 catches for 121 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter. The first was a 7-yard score and then the biggest was the 35-yarder late. He also came up big on the defensive side of the ball, when he got the only turnover of the game when he picked off an Andrew pass. That happened two plays after his touchdown that gave the Warriors the lead and then the pick sealed the win. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Warrior Football to State!! What a play on 4th and 7 to take the lead! Congrats <a href="https://twitter.com/SVille_Football?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SVille_Football</a> <a href="https://t.co/qJGgywAfP1">pic.twitter.com/qJGgywAfP1</a></p>&mdash; Justin Castleberry (@JustinCas17) <a href="https://twitter.com/JustinCas17/status/1464362693368987657?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 26, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> &nbsp; Gabe Talley, LB, 2022 The linebacker led the Warriors with 12 tackles, eight of them solo, during the win. He also shared a team-lead with three TFLs with senior DE [player_tooltip player_id="96231" first="Mason" last="Crim"] and junior DE Dawson Strickland. The defense held the Rams to 3-for-10 on third-down attempts. After giving up touchdowns on the Rams’ first five drives, Smithville forced two punts and then got the turnover to help in the rally.