Spoofhounds host Benton for Senior Night
By DAVID MERRILL Sports reporter
Maryville’s Bobby Bruckner finds some running room during Maryville’s 92-8 win over Cameron on Sept. 16. He had three carries for 54 yards and scored two touchdowns.
After getting the job done on the road in a big way in Week 5, the No. 1 Maryville football team returns home on Friday for its Senior Night game against Benton (2-3). The Spoofhounds have 22 seniors on their roster. While they have accomplished a lot on the field, Maryville (5-0) head coach Matt Webb is more proud of what kind of people they have become off of it.
“They’ve grown up in this program and it’s been fun watching them mature,” Webb said. “They’ve done a lot for this football program and each and every one of them is an outstanding person and they are going to be successful in life after they leave here. It’s been fun watching them grow up.”
Statistically, the seniors have played a big part in the Spoofhounds’ success this season. While quarterback Trey Oglesby’s stats are solid (44-for-65, 751 yards, 11 touchdowns), the stat that stands out is that he hasn’t thrown an interception this season. He is also averaging 25 more passing yards per contest than in 2015.
Running back Bobby Bruckner has a team-high 290 yards on 45 carries, while Elijah Green has 199 yards on 30 carries, and Oglesby has 196 yards on 30 carries. Maryville has six players averaging between 5.8 and 6.4 yards per carry. Of those six, Jacob Reuter is the only non-senior.
Senior John Zimmerman is the team’s leading receiver with 283 yards on 15 receptions. Of his 15 catches, six have gone for touchdowns.
Defensively, senior Tucker Tripp has a team-high 17.5 tackles and 3.5 sacks. He has eight total tackles for loss. Elijah Green, another senior, has 15 total tackles with four of them for loss.
Maryville is coming off a 92-8 win over Cameron, in which most of the seniors were sitting by the midway point of the third quarter. Benton is coming off a 46-37 road win over Savannah on Monday night.
Webb said Maryville’s secondary will be tested again as the Cardinals have a brother-to-brother combo at quarterback and wide receiver. Cooper Burton has been leading the Cardinals under center and has favored his brother Devon Burton when he drops back to pass.
“I think they are the best quarterback and wide receiver combination in the MEC,” Webb said. “The quarterback can run and the wide receiver is tall and athletic. We’re going to be in for a challenge with those two.”
In Monday night’s win over Savannah, Cooper threw five touchdown passes — the shortest of which was 36 yards — and three of them went to Devon. Cooper also scored two touchdowns on the ground.
Webb also said that Benton is the start of the toughest stretch of the schedule for his Spoofhounds as Maryville faces Class 4 opponents the rest of the way.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
By DAVID MERRILL Sports reporter
Maryville’s Tucker Tripp makes the tackle on Cameron quarterback Caleb Shanks during the Spoofhounds’ 92-8 win over the Dragons on Sept. 16. Tripp finished the game with three tackles.
