And after Saturday’s convincing 49-6 victory against the Mustangs, Monett made school history - reaching the state semifinals for the first time since 1977.
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Blamey and Hall each had two touchdowns and over 100 yards of total offense as Monett dominated from the start, leading 21-0 after the first quarter and 36-6 at halftime.
“You give them some open space and they do a good job,” said Monett coach Chad Depee. “They have the capability. It was nice to be able to hit some big plays with them early on. That kind of sets the tone for the game and allows you to be a little more comfortable with what you’re calling.”
After Eldon went 3 and out to start the game, Blamey took a toss sweep to the left on Monett’s third play from scrimmage and found daylight up the sideline for a 50-yard touchdown.
Eldon would fumble on its next drive, but Monett would miss a 27-yard field goal try. That would be one of the few Cub drives that didn’t end in points (Monett scored on 7 of 10 possessions).
After Eldon again went 3 and out, Monett went right back to the ground and got a 38-yard touchdown run from Hall. The Mustangs didn’t get a first down until their fifth drive of the game.
“Against Reeds Spring, they kind of ran the same thing as Eldon. Cassville was run-heavy, too. We knew (Eldon) was going to run at us a lot, so we spent all week preparing for that,” Blamey said.
But by the time Eldon got its initial first down of the contest, Monett was already leading 21-0 after a 50-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Kyle Woods to Blamey.
About the only thing Monett didn’t do well was catch the ball – on defense. The Cubs forced two takeaways in the first half (1 fumble, 1 interception), but dropped at least two more potential interceptions.
A couple of off-target Eldon passes went through the hands of Monett senior linebacker Matt Murphy, who admitted after the game he was still thinking about the missed opportunities.
“I don’t really have the best of hands… that’s why I’m a running back and not a receiver,” Murphy smiled.
A quick touchdown from Murphy to begin the second half started the turbo clock on Eldon.
“The guys made some big plays, even after contact,” Depee said. “I felt like up front, our kids did a very good job and got the ball rolling early by being physical.”
Monett will host John Burroughs next Saturday at 1:30. The winner plays either Maryville or California on Nov. 23 in the Class 3 state title game at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis.
Monett’s last state title was in 1977.
Monett 49, Eldon 6
Eldon 0 6 0 0---6
Monett 21 15 7 6---49
First quarter
Monett – Blamey 55 run (Aldrich kick)
Monett – Hall 38 run (kick failed)
Monett – Woods 50 pass to Blamey (Oganesyan catch)
Second quarter
Monett – Hall 18 run (Swearingen run)
Monett – Woods 1 run (Aldrich kick)
Eldon – Greenwalt 10 pass to Logan Shinn (run failed)Third quarter
Monett – Murphy 34 run (Aldrich kick)
Fourth quarter
Monett – Abramovitz 10 run (kick failed)
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