ST. VINCENT PLAYS FOR 1A TITLE IN DOME; PASS-HAPPY NORTH PLATTE TO TEST 13-0 INDIANS

It's a tale of two offensive philosophies.

St. Vincent High of Perryville favors ground delivery. North Platte of Dearborn prefers air mail.

The teams, and their contrasting modes of operation, will clash today in the Class 1A state championship football game. Kickoff is set for noon in the Trans World Dome in St. Louis.

St. Vincent brings in a 13-0 record and is ranked No. 4 in the state while North Platte's mark is 11-2, good for No. 6 in the state.

St. Vincent's hopes likely will ride on the cleats of 1,400-yard rusher Bryan Meyer and his backfield mates.

"From looking at them (North Platte) on film, we feel pretty confident that we can run the football," St. Vincent coach Paul Sauer said. "But we've thought that the last three teams we've played, and they tend to change their defenses around a little bit whenever they play us."

North Platte quarterback J.D. Bierman, a 6-foot-6, 215-pounder, has passed for 2,800 yards with a 60-percent completion rate out of a pro-style offense. Bierman's preferred targets have been Jake Denny, a first-team all-stater last year who has caught 60 passes for 1,600 yards, and Darren Krug, who has caught 40 passes for 800 yards.

"We throw the ball about 30 times a game," North Platte coach Lance Johnston said. "A key for us is to make sure we throw the ball the way we want to."

Sauer said the closest thing his team has seen to pass-inclined North Platte is St. Pius, which threw about 20 times a game. So an added burden will be shouldered by St. Vincent's defensive backs, but not by them alone.

"The defensive line has the same amount of pressure" as the defensive backs, Sauer said. "They need to come out and try to put some pressure on them.

"But yeah, a big part of the game is going to be how well our linebackers and defensive backs play pass. Trent Sauer and Dusty Cattoor and Justin Amschler are going to have to have a big game for us."

Both teams enter today's game on the heels of wins over higher-ranked opponents. St. Vincent beat No. 3 Adrian Saturday in the semfinal round. Joey Ponder's 23-yard pass to Cattoor with 53 seconds remaining lifted the Indians to victory, 17-14. Ponder had completed only one of six passes before completing five of six in the game-winning drive.

"Going into a big game like this," Sauer said, "that's exactly what you'd want: to have a talented quarterback who now has the confidence in himself."

North Platte beat No. 1 and defending state champion Salisbury 28-22 in the semifinal contest. North Platte's two losses came against Lathrop and Lawson, both of whom were ranked in Class 2A at the time. North Platte's roster featured five Class 2A teams.

Today marks both teams' first championship game appearance. Before this season, St. Vincent had never won a playoff game. North Platte reached the quarterfinals in 1995.

MISSOURI STATE FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Today's games

Class 1A

St. Vincent (13-) vs. North Platte (11-2), noon

Class 3A

California (13-0) vs. Booneville (12-1), 3:15 p.m.

Class 5A

Riverview Gardens (12-1) vs. Jefferson City (11-2), 7 p.m.

Saturday

Class 2A

Monroe City (12-0) vs. St. Pius X 11-2, noon

Class 4A

Jefferson City Helias (11-2) vs. Ozark (12-1), 3:15 p.m.