A pair of Tri-County Conference rivals that have had up-and-down seasons so far and trying to rebound from downers last week will collide tonight, as the Versailles Tigers travel to Osage Beach to take on School of the Osage.
It will be the Osage Indians' Homecoming Game (7 p.m. kickoff).
The host Indians come in 2-4 overall and 1-3 in the conference after being beaten by Southern Boone 40-7 last week. Versailles is 3-3 and 2-2 following last week's 42-14 loss to Boonville.
Osage was put in an immediate hole last week and trailed 40-0 before finally getting on the scoreboard. The Indians did show a new wrinkle on offense, as junior James Hutchcraft was moved from the offensive line to the backfield and rushed for 108 yards on 21 carries. Junior running back Jack Dulle added 59 rushing yards on 10 carries and Mason Clarke 57 on seven attempts. However, the Osage passing attack struggled, as senior quarterback Dalton Depee hit just 3-of-13 passes.
"We just didn't start the game very well," Osage coach Devin Johnson said of last week. "We gave up big plays defensively. We're trying to find some sort of momentum to build on. The third quarter we were able to move the ball pretty well; we just couldn't find points."
Meanwhile, the Tigers were no match for Boonville's junior running back Avian Thomas, who scorched them for 313 rushing yards on 26 carries and a school-record six touchdowns.
"Offensively we did some good things, we just couldn't sustain drives," Versailles coach Broc Silvers said of the Boonville game. "When we have lost this year, that's been the problem. But Boonville is very good. And the problem is they have a bunch of underclassmen and will be pretty good next year, too. They're a good addition to the conference. You knew with the size of their school they were going to be a quality opponent."
Johnson is hoping Hutchcraft's presence in the backfield will spark his offense. The Indians, highly explosive the past couple of seasons, have scored two or less touchdowns in five of their six games this fall.
"We've got to control the flow of the game," Johnson said. "Keeping the ball out of (Versailles' junior quarterback Coby Williams') hands is the key, and the best way to do that is keep it offensively."
Depee leads Osage in rushing with 373 yards on 67 carries and three touchdowns while completing 33-of-86 passes for 375 yards, five interceptions and three TDs.
Also for Osage Dulle has rushed for 235 yards on 59 carries, junior back Matt Hans 116 yards on 33 carries and senior back Hunter Neiman 114 yards on 24 attempts.
Junior tight end Luke Havner has caught 10 passes for 96 yards and senior wideout Garrett Sutherland eight for 148 to pace the Indian receiving group.
Depee, a safety, leads the Indian defense with 66 tackles while Hutchcraft, a linebacker, has 59 and junior linebacker Drew Edwards 51 tackles and three sacks.
"They're going through a transitional period," Silvers said of Osage. "Coach Johnson is a great coach and they've changed their offense to fit their personnel. They run the veer and some counter out of it. It will be interesting; it's the first time we've seen a split-back veer since Week 1. Depee is a great runner and Edwards looks good on film. Hutchcraft came in at running back last week and he was a load. He has added another dimension to their offense.
"Defensively they're transitioning as well. They're going more to a 4-2-5 look and run some cover-4."
Williams certainly will have Osage's attention as the hub of the Versailles offensive attack.
Williams has rushed for 510 yards on 113 attempts and nine touchdowns while connecting on 74-of-126 passes for 902 yards and eight TDs.
His top targets in the passing game have been senior wideout Wyatt Espinosa with 26 receptions for 335 yards and six TDs; junior wideout Dallas Waller with 20 catches for 199 yards, and junior wideout Brayden Morrison with 10 catches for 153 yards.
Senior running back Michael Trotter backs Williams in the ground game with 276 rushing yards on 62 carries.
Trotter, a linebacker, paces Versailles in tackles with 78, including 13 for loss and three sacks.
Senior safety Colbey Boicourt has 26 tackles and two interceptions while junior linebacker Brycen Reynolds has 20 tackles.
"Versailles is much better this year," Johnson said. "Coach Silvers has done a good job. They have a dynamic quarterback who can beat you with his feet or arm. He can extend plays and their receivers do a good job continually moving to keep plays alive. Also (Williams) is a big part of their running game. We've got to make sure all gaps are accounted for.
"Overall defensively they're more of a physical team than they have been. They run a 4-3 (front) this year and they're scrappy. They do a good job of forcing the issue and have two pretty good interior linebackers."