A look at area football leaders after Week 1

Five questions heading into Week 2 of the high school football season:

1. Was Jackson's one-point loss Friday a fluke? Its opponent, Riverview Gardens, was a woeful 1-9 last season and not expected to do much this year either, but the hosts blistered Jackson on offense behind quarterback Joe Williams (355 passing yards, 128 rushing yards). Jackson, ranked No. 4 in Southeast Missouri, goes back to St. Louis this week to face Parkway South.

2. Will Sikeston and Charleston play a game for the ages to celebrate their 100th year of football? The 100th game in the series came more than 20 years ago, but because the teams played twice a year early in the series, Friday's rivalry marks 100 calendar years of competition. Both teams are 0-1 after losses last week.

3. Will Kory Faulkner and Michael Greminger completely light up the scoreboard with big passing games Friday? The Ste. Genevieve and Valle quarterbacks combined for more than 600 yards with mixed results last week (Ste. Genevieve defeated Dexter, but Valle lost to Herculaneum). The Dragons have won the past 10 games in the series.

4. Will anybody on the Thayer or Mountain Grove sidelines have to be reminded their teams are state-ranked heading into Friday's game? Thayer is No. 2 in Class 2, and Mountain Grove is No. 4 in Class 1. The winner gets a huge shot of confidence heading into the final eight weeks of the regular season.

5. Is Poplar Bluff really a contender? The Mules looked good against New Madrid County Central, but it's a whole new challenge Friday at Union, the state's No. 4-ranked Class 4 team. Poplar Bluff QB Todd Bullington knows the challenge that awaits him — Union sacked Summit's quarterback seven times and intercepted him twice Friday.


• After one week of games, three names have risen to the top of offensive charts — Faulkner at Ste. Genevieve, Brandon Bourbon at Potosi, and Jarvis Finley at Kennett. The leaders in passing, rushing and receiving, based on statistics reported so far:

PASSING

Kory Faulkner, Ste. Genevieve — 31-40, 415 yards
Ben Mills, Dexter — 17-28, 275 yards
Blake Parr, Kennett — 13-31, 274 yards
Michael Greminger, Valle — 24-40, 230 yards
Charlie Bohannon, Sikeston, 4-6, 103 yards

RUSHING

Brandon Bourbon, Potosi — 21-252
Tony Martin, Park Hills Central — 26-243
Malcolm Smith, Herculaneum — 30-238
Joey Lewondowski, Fredericktown — 27-183
Josh Huckabee, Thayer — 20-171

RECEIVING

Jarvis Finley, Kennett — 7-179
Josh Meyer, Ste. Genevieve — 10-131
Dustin Noll, Ste. Genevieve — 10-106
Cody Schmelzle, Ste. Genevieve — 4-104
Seth McBride, Dexter — 5-86