Cape Central football team falls to state-ranked Liberty in Pixley's debut

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Mo. -- No one really ever knows what to expect from the season opener, and for the Cape Girardeau Central football team, that was the case Friday night.

Buried deep in the Ozarks more than two hours away from home, Central found itself ahead late in the third quarter against a state-ranked Liberty team beginning its season with high hopes.

The host Eagles took advantage of several Tiger miscues, and starting quarterback Josh Pruett scored four touchdowns on the ground and two through the air in Liberty's 39-20 victory over the Tigers.

"I'm going to give them a lot of credit. They did everything they're supposed to do when things happen," said Central coach Arlen Pixley, who was unable to get a win in his first game with the program. "I felt like we gave them more opportunities than they needed. ... They maintained an even mode of operation, which they do because they're a pretty experienced squad, and we were like riding waves tonight. It was high. It was low.

"A lot of that happens when you've got a new group of seniors that have not established that kind of leadership that you need in your locker room. They've yet to learn what kind of tempo to set in practice. They've yet to learn what kind of precedence to set in the locker room, and you can only do so much of that as a coach. That comes down to them."

Cape Central's Matt Nussbaum, left, and Christian Mitchell combine to tackle Liberty's Josh Pruett on Friday, Aug. 19, 2016 in Mountain View, Missouri.Trent Singer

It was a particularly big win for the Eagles, who entered the game ranked No. 2 in the Class 2 media rankings. Liberty coach Darin Acklin said his team leaned on its previous experiences, having "been through the fire before."

"You have to use your playoff experience that you have," Acklin said. "They've watched it as little boys. They've watched it as players on the sideline, and now they're playing in those games. ... We go to team camps, and we play big schools. We play big schools on purpose, and we want to know where we're at during the summer to see what we need to work on."

Facing a 21-20 deficit late in the third quarter, Central (0-1) began coming undone when sophomore running back Aaron Harris coughed up the ball after picking up a first down across midfield. The turnover led to a seven-play, 65-yard drive that was capped by a 21-yard touchdown run by Pruett, giving the Eagles a 28-20 lead with 0.9 seconds left in the period.

The Tigers had plenty of hiccups after inclement weather forced the cancellation of last week's jamboree in Hillsboro, Missouri, and Pixley said his team showed the absence of those live reps.

"We fumbled once early this week in practice, and I made a note to our coaches and said, 'That's the first ball that we've put on the turf since July.' We don't fumble in practice. We didn't fumble in the contact camp," Pixley said. "We haven't been fumbling. It's just something that's going to happen."

Central was unable to sustain a drive on the ensuing possession, and after the Tigers turned the ball over on downs at the Liberty 35-yard line, Brenton Bush broke free past the Tigers' secondary and hauled in a 65-yard pass from Pruett to put the Eagles ahead by two possessions with 9:35 left in the game.

Cape Central's Aaron Harris scores a touchdown past Liberty's Koel Orchard on Friday, Aug. 19, 2016 in Mountain View, Missouri.Trent Singer

Pruett sealed the scoring line later when he recordded his fourth rushing touchdown of the game from 3 yards out with 2:17 remaining. He finished 13-of-20 passing for 235 yards with two TDs and one interception, while Bush had seven receptions for a game-high 158 yards. Pruett also added 46 yards on 12 carries.

"I put a lot of pressure on him," Acklin said about Pruett, who was an all-state quarterback a year ago. "He's a gamer, but as far as those guys executing, they've been playing since they were little kids. ... He's got a lot of natural ability. You could sort of see that red eye inside of him, that desire that he wasn't going to be tackled."

Liberty (1-0) got on the board at the 5:10 mark of the first quarter when Koel Orchard hauled in a 23-yard touchdown pass from Pruett, who also booted the PAT to give the Eagles a 7-0 advantage.

The Tigers responded with a long drive that was extended by a roughing the kicker penalty on a punt attempt. Harris capped the 22-play, 81-yard drive by bulldozing his way into the end zone from 12 yards out. However, the extra point was no good, as Central trailed 7-6 with 3:42 to go in the half. The Tigers' defense forced a three-and-out but were unable to score after getting inside the 10-yard line just before halftime.

A 3-yard TD run by Pruett on the Eagles' first possession of the second half, which resulted from a drive that was extended by a 38-yard completion on a fake punt, allowed Liberty to build a 14-6 lead, but the Tigers answered in three plays to pull within 14-12.

Senior quarterback Kway'Chon Chisom threw a quick pass to junior wide receiver Austin Parker, who dashed down the right sideline for a 54-yard touchdown reception. The Tigers' two-point try failed, but after forcing another three-and-out, Central put together a 70-yard drive that was capped by a 1-yard run by senior Trent Leimer. Harris added two points on a conversion run, and the Tigers took their only lead of the night, 20-14, with 3:06 left in the quarter.

"Austin's got to get more involved in the offense," Pixley said. "... They put two guys on him and kind of took him out of the game, so that opened some things up for Aaron and opened up some things for Blake [Harris].

"Other guys are getting looked at and getting open. We've got to do a better job of finding them."

Cape Central's Joe Baker carries the ball against Liberty on Friday, Aug. 19, 2016 in Mountain View, Missouri.Trent Singer

Central freshman Tyrus Reddin was forced to start at cornerback and quickly made his presence known late in the opening period. The 5-foot-6 Reddin outleaped an Eagle receiver and hauled in an interception that set the Tigers up at their own 19. The drive, which began after Liberty recovered an onside kick, resulted in Harris' 12-yard TD run.

"It was good for him," Pixley said about Reddin. "He doesn't care who's on the field or how big they are. We put him in contact camp and put him at tailback. We ran the ball with him, and he took it for like 34 yards on his first carry ever in a varsity scrimmage.

"He's going to be a special player for us. He needs a lot more time to grow and develop and mature."

Harris had 20 rushes and accounted for a game-high 104 of Central's 238 yards rushing, while Chisom added 94 on the ground. Chisom completed 7 of his 12 attempts for 130 yards with a touchdown and an interception. His top target was senior wideout Blake Harris, who had five receptions for 64 yards.

The Tigers will look to bounce back next week when they take on St. Charles West in their home opener, and Pixley knows there is plenty of work to be done.

"This, I felt like, was kind of done at our own hands," Pixley said. "They did a few nice things, but I think when we go back and roll the film, we're going to see a bunch of mistakes. ... This team has a lot of experience playing, but two years ago, that senior bunch was very good in leadership qualities. And last year's bunch was good as well.

"This bunch here that's been rotating playing kind of rode their shirt tails. They need to develop their own identity. All I've heard coming into Cape is, 'Al Young this. Al Young that.' Well, that's gone. We've got to get on the next page and quit relying on something just to happen."

Cape Central 0 6 14 0 -- 20

Liberty 7 0 20 12 -- 39

First quarter

L -- Koel Orchard 23 pass from Josh Pruett (Pruett kick), 5:10

Second quarter

CC -- Aaron Harris 12 run (kick failed), 3:42

Third quarter

L -- Pruett 3 run (Pruett kick), 10:05

CC -- Austin Parker 54 pass from Kway'Chon Chisom (conversion run failed), 8:40

CC -- Trent Leimer 1 run (Harris conversion run), 3:06

L -- Pruett 1 run (Pruett kick), 2:18

L -- Pruett 21 run (kick failed), 0.9

Fourth quarter

L -- Brenton Bush 65 pass from Pruett (kick failed), 9:35

L -- Pruett 3 run (kick failed), 2:17

TEAM STATISTICS

CC L

First downs 21 10

Rushes-yards 53-238 21-100

Passing yards 130 235

Passes 7-12-1 13-20-1

Punts-average 0-0 2-32.5

Fumbles-lost 2-2 0-0

Penalties-yards 7-60 14-131

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING -- Cape Central, Aaron Harris 20-104, Kway'Chon Chisom 20-94, Joe Baker 4-20, Trent Leimer 4-13, Christian Mitchell 3-6, Blake Harris 2-1; Liberty, Koel Orchard 6-49, Josh Pruett 12-46, Marcos Rodriguez 3-5.

PASSING -- Cape Central, Chisom 7-12-130-1; Liberty, Pruett 13-20-235-1.

RECEIVING -- Cape Central, B. Harris 5-64, Parker 1-54, A. Harris 1-12; Liberty, Brenton Bush 7-158, Orchard 4-57, Jackson Conner 1-17, Andrew Holden 1-3.