2008, 2009 CHS State Football Champs inducted into Sports Hall of Fame
Shown above, left to right, at the Sports Hall of Fame luncheon in Springfield October 13 are Wildcat coaches Rick Lawson, Kyle Wood, David Large, Lance Parnell, Jay Rogers, Clay Weldy and Robbie Artherton. Photo by Mindi Artherton.
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Shown above, left to right, displaying the Sports Hall of Fame award on behalf of the state championship 2008 and 2009 Wildcat football teams at the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame luncheon on October 13 are former players Trevor Tanner, Scott Marshall, Brent Elkins, Josh Lewright, Cody Pierson, Ethan Couch, Trevor Shumaker and Adam Prier. Photo by Mindi Artherton.
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October 20, 2021
The 2008 and 2009 Cassville Wildcat football teams were inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame during a special luncheon held Wednesday, October 13, at the Ozark Empire Fairgrounds.
The following words were spoken at the luncheon in reference to the 2008 and 2009 Cassville High School football teams:
In southwest Missouri, in a Barry County community called Cassville, the locals will be talking about the 2008 and 2009 local football teams for years.
To hear them tell the story, it’s worth the drive. Out of Joplin, head east on I-44 and then drop south on Highway 37 at the Sarcoxie exit. Out of Springfield, travel west to Monett on Highway 60 and catch 37.
“Something that really stuck in my mind going into that summer (of 2008) was Cody Pearson,’ said then-sophomore Josh Lewright, a starter the next three seasons. ‘He was a senior at the time and our cornerback, and every morning would say, ‘State, No Wait.’”
A program whose seasons of the early 2000s had ended after good playoff runs finally found the magic – and it’s why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame is proud to induct Cassville High School’s 2008 and 2009 State Championship Teams with the Class of 2021.
Coached by David Large, the 2008 and 2009 teams are the only football state titles in school history and, on a larger scale, notable for several reasons.
Mainly, the quarterfinal and semifinals of the Class 3 playoffs have long pitted rural high schools against one-high school towns that ring Kansas City, or private schools in St. Louis.
From 1982 — when MSHSAA expanded to five classifications – to the 2007 season, the Class 3 state title was won nine times by a metro private school and six times by a KC-area schools. The state runners-up in that stretch included five private schools and two near KC.
Specifically, between 2000 and 2007, the state champions were two Kansas City schools – Platte County and Harrisonville, or Mary Institute-Country Day of St. Louis.
In other words, it was a challenge to break through.
Coach Large, who had arrived in 2002 and would stay until 2012, remembers it too well. Cassville’s 2003 and 2005 playoff teams lost to eventual state champion Harrisonville. And the 2007 team was 9-1, with its only loss – in overtime – to Monett in the districts.
Yet Cassville had something going for it: a veer-style offense and attacking defense hungry to push through.
The 2008 Wildcats beat Cardinal Ritter 31-6 in the finals and finished 12-3. That team won its final seven games after back-to-back, mid-October losses.
Among the late-season wins were 28-14 against No. 2-ranked Monett in a rematch of one of those losses, plus 26-15 against Logan-Rogersville and a 14-13 semifinal victory against No. 1 and undefeated Chillicothe.
That season, the loss to Monett in districts meant Cassville had to beat Seneca – and did, in overtime – to qualify as the second district team. Against Chillicothe, the Wildcats led 14-7 at halftime and then sealed it with an interception with 20 seconds left after Chillicothe reached the Cassville 20-yard line.
“We had a good group of seniors going into the year, but we also ended up starting several sophomores that year,” Large said. “The seniors were very good leaders for this young group, which helped us improve as the year went on.”
The 2009 team toppled Bowling Green 24-7 in the finals and finished 14-1.
Its only loss was to Branson in the season-opener before the Wildcats won 13 of their next 14 games by an average of 25.6 points.
Its closest win was 21-20 against No. 1-ranked Logan-Rogersville in a match-up of 11-1 teams. The Wildcats blocked an extra point that left them trailing only 20-14 late in the second half. Soon, they authored an 86-yard touchdown drive, scoring with less than two minutes to play.
That season was just as special, considering Cassville had to replace several seniors from the 2008 team – including at quarterback, middle linebacker and kicker.
“We would have people waiting in line well before the gates opened,” Large said of crowds eager to cheer the Wildcats.
The rest of the coaching staff included defensive coordinator Lance Parnell, Jay Rogers, Rick Lawson, Kyle Wood and Clay Weldy – with Robbie Atherton joining the 2009 staff.
Asked what those seasons said about Cassville football, Large put it this way:
“More than anything that all the hard work had paid off,” he said. “From the teams before us that established a culture of being a disciplined and physical football team to the current players that had to grind through very long seasons to finish on top, we always felt like we had one of the best programs in the state. But this established us as one of the best programs.”
The event, which drew a crowd of over 800, also honored notable sports figures Kansas City Chiefs pass rusher, Tamba Hali; University of Missouri running back, Devin West; Kickapoo High School and University of Central Missouri quarterback, Scott Loveland; Salem High School coach, Bill Schuchardt; Lebanon radio broadcaster, Kevin Stubblefield; and the Harrisonville High School Football Program.
The Hall of Fame also honored the “Elite 11,” former high school and college standouts, or those who have made positive contributions to the game. They included: Brock Baker (Bolivar High School/Western Kentucky University), Blaise Bauer (Monett High School/Pittsburg State University), Joe Close (Parkview High School/University of Missouri), Lance Johnston (Branson High School/Northwest Missouri State University), Southwest Baptist University assistant coach Marcus Klund (Scott City & Cape Central High Schools/Lindenwood University), Drew Newhart (Cameron High School/Missouri Western State University), Jeff Portman (Buffalo High School/Drake University), Jack Randolph (Southwest Baptist University player/Marshfield & West Plains head coach), Casey Shadel (Lebanon High School/University of Central Missouri), Nathan Stokes (Ozark High School/Missouri State University) and Mac Whitehead (Seneca High School/Southwest Baptist University/Missouri Southern State University).
The staff at The Barry County Advertiser congratulates the teams on their Hall of Fame induction.
The 2008 and 2009 Cassville Wildcat football teams were inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame during a special luncheon held Wednesday, October 13, at the Ozark Empire Fairgrounds.
The following words were spoken at the luncheon in reference to the 2008 and 2009 Cassville High School football teams:
In southwest Missouri, in a Barry County community called Cassville, the locals will be talking about the 2008 and 2009 local football teams for years.
To hear them tell the story, it’s worth the drive. Out of Joplin, head east on I-44 and then drop south on Highway 37 at the Sarcoxie exit. Out of Springfield, travel west to Monett on Highway 60 and catch 37.
“Something that really stuck in my mind going into that summer (of 2008) was Cody Pearson,’ said then-sophomore Josh Lewright, a starter the next three seasons. ‘He was a senior at the time and our cornerback, and every morning would say, ‘State, No Wait.’”
A program whose seasons of the early 2000s had ended after good playoff runs finally found the magic – and it’s why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame is proud to induct Cassville High School’s 2008 and 2009 State Championship Teams with the Class of 2021.
Coached by David Large, the 2008 and 2009 teams are the only football state titles in school history and, on a larger scale, notable for several reasons.
Mainly, the quarterfinal and semifinals of the Class 3 playoffs have long pitted rural high schools against one-high school towns that ring Kansas City, or private schools in St. Louis.
From 1982 — when MSHSAA expanded to five classifications – to the 2007 season, the Class 3 state title was won nine times by a metro private school and six times by a KC-area schools. The state runners-up in that stretch included five private schools and two near KC.
Specifically, between 2000 and 2007, the state champions were two Kansas City schools – Platte County and Harrisonville, or Mary Institute-Country Day of St. Louis.
In other words, it was a challenge to break through.
Coach Large, who had arrived in 2002 and would stay until 2012, remembers it too well. Cassville’s 2003 and 2005 playoff teams lost to eventual state champion Harrisonville. And the 2007 team was 9-1, with its only loss – in overtime – to Monett in the districts.
Yet Cassville had something going for it: a veer-style offense and attacking defense hungry to push through.
The 2008 Wildcats beat Cardinal Ritter 31-6 in the finals and finished 12-3. That team won its final seven games after back-to-back, mid-October losses.
Among the late-season wins were 28-14 against No. 2-ranked Monett in a rematch of one of those losses, plus 26-15 against Logan-Rogersville and a 14-13 semifinal victory against No. 1 and undefeated Chillicothe.
That season, the loss to Monett in districts meant Cassville had to beat Seneca – and did, in overtime – to qualify as the second district team. Against Chillicothe, the Wildcats led 14-7 at halftime and then sealed it with an interception with 20 seconds left after Chillicothe reached the Cassville 20-yard line.
“We had a good group of seniors going into the year, but we also ended up starting several sophomores that year,” Large said. “The seniors were very good leaders for this young group, which helped us improve as the year went on.”
The 2009 team toppled Bowling Green 24-7 in the finals and finished 14-1.
Its only loss was to Branson in the season-opener before the Wildcats won 13 of their next 14 games by an average of 25.6 points.
Its closest win was 21-20 against No. 1-ranked Logan-Rogersville in a match-up of 11-1 teams. The Wildcats blocked an extra point that left them trailing only 20-14 late in the second half. Soon, they authored an 86-yard touchdown drive, scoring with less than two minutes to play.
That season was just as special, considering Cassville had to replace several seniors from the 2008 team – including at quarterback, middle linebacker and kicker.
“We would have people waiting in line well before the gates opened,” Large said of crowds eager to cheer the Wildcats.
The rest of the coaching staff included defensive coordinator Lance Parnell, Jay Rogers, Rick Lawson, Kyle Wood and Clay Weldy – with Robbie Atherton joining the 2009 staff.
Asked what those seasons said about Cassville football, Large put it this way:
“More than anything that all the hard work had paid off,” he said. “From the teams before us that established a culture of being a disciplined and physical football team to the current players that had to grind through very long seasons to finish on top, we always felt like we had one of the best programs in the state. But this established us as one of the best programs.”
The event, which drew a crowd of over 800, also honored notable sports figures Kansas City Chiefs pass rusher, Tamba Hali; University of Missouri running back, Devin West; Kickapoo High School and University of Central Missouri quarterback, Scott Loveland; Salem High School coach, Bill Schuchardt; Lebanon radio broadcaster, Kevin Stubblefield; and the Harrisonville High School Football Program.
The Hall of Fame also honored the “Elite 11,” former high school and college standouts, or those who have made positive contributions to the game. They included: Brock Baker (Bolivar High School/Western Kentucky University), Blaise Bauer (Monett High School/Pittsburg State University), Joe Close (Parkview High School/University of Missouri), Lance Johnston (Branson High School/Northwest Missouri State University), Southwest Baptist University assistant coach Marcus Klund (Scott City & Cape Central High Schools/Lindenwood University), Drew Newhart (Cameron High School/Missouri Western State University), Jeff Portman (Buffalo High School/Drake University), Jack Randolph (Southwest Baptist University player/Marshfield & West Plains head coach), Casey Shadel (Lebanon High School/University of Central Missouri), Nathan Stokes (Ozark High School/Missouri State University) and Mac Whitehead (Seneca High School/Southwest Baptist University/Missouri Southern State University).
The staff at The Barry County Advertiser congratulates the teams on their Hall of Fame induction.
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Shown above, front pages of The Barry County Advertiser reported the State Championship wins of the 2008 and 2009 Wildcat Football teams in consecutive years.
