The kids are alright: Platte County records scrimmage shutouts of St. Pius X, Excelsior Springs

Bill Utz historically uses preseason jamboree snaps to take a look at a wide variety of players across mostly scripted opportunities.

On Friday, Platte County’s veteran coach needed all of the 72 plays against Excelsior Springs and St. Pius X for a lot of reasons. The Pirates were minus a pair of projected starters, and a youth-oriented roster either received a first true varsity look or stepped into much larger roles ahead of next week’s season-opener at rival Kearney.

Now, Platte County must balance celebrating the positives of four total touchdowns while pitching a shutout with knowing bigger tests await for a speedy, talented group ready to quickly move past last year’s 5-6 campaign.

“New faces are working well for us. Things are coming together for us,” said Platte County senior Gage Fulk, who returned to start at right tackle nine months after suffering a torn ACL in a game against Oak Park last fall.

Platte County opened without expected sophomore right tackle Quinn Lightle (knee) and senior Dawsen Mizell, the top returning pass catcher.

Fulk shifted over from defensive line to right tackle, continuing to show his flexibility having played up front on both sides of the ball last year before his injury. The Pirates also had seniors Muyonta Maxwell (left tackle) and Becker Grego (center), while juniors Drew Doll (left guard) and Riley Hixson (right guard) were first-time starters up front.

The recently reformatted line blocked for sophomore quarterback Rocco Marriott and reinstalled junior running back Dayton Doll, who oscillated between the backfield and wide receiver last year. Marriott connected with fellow sophomore wide receiver Braiden Stevens for a long touchdown against St. Pius X, while sophomore running back Adam Gisler scored on a short touchdown run with the first team in the opener against Excelsior Springs.

With the second and third team also seeing snaps, Platte County junior reserve quarterback Brady Davis threw a touchdown to sophomore wide receiver Grant Fadler late against Excelsior Springs, while junior running back Isaiah Seymour busted out on a 57-yard run for a second long touchdown to cap the shutout of St. Pius X.

“We have so much talent there on offense,” Fulk said. “We’ve got weapons everywhere.”

Platte County’s defense displayed a multitude of looks with versatile pieces, and junior safety Montez Clemons and junior linebacker Trevor Hay both came up with interceptions, while junior defensive end Archie Wesley and sophomore defensive lineman Cooper Hammontree both recorded sacks. The Pirates barely let Excelsior Springs’ run-heavy offense more the ball and came up with a goal-line stand on St. Pius X’s first set of nine offensive plays to pass the biggest test.

In addition to the turnovers and sacks, Platte County senior linebacker Seth Martin, Hay, senior defensive lineman Tucker McDowell and sophomore reserve linebacker KJ Stallings also produced flash plays. The Pirates expect junior linebackers Cobe Pollard and Darrell Smith to anchor the defense but needed others to step up in wake of heavy losses to graduation.

Martin moves into a starting role in defensive formations that should include more true three- and four-linebacker looks after transferring from Northland Christian. McDowell spent much of last season dealing with nagging injuries, while Hay looks have a bigger role as a safety/linebacker hybrid.

“We have a lot of new things coming on the defense … a lot of guys ready to make plays,” Fulk said.

Marriott takes over as starting quarterback after receiving brief cameos last year, and he immediately showed his elusiveness and ability to throw in and out of the pocket. penalty negated much of a long catch-and-run on a quick throw to sophomore wide receiver Tres Baskerville, only for Dayton Doll to immediately rip off his longest run on the next play to put Platte County in the red zone. A few plays later, Gisler plunged in from 2 yards out.

After not gaining a first down on the opening nine plays of the scrimmage, Excelsior Springs came up with just one first down on the final nine offensive snaps, and Clemons finished the series with an interception. Turnovers were dead balls and there were no special teams plays. Davis quarterbacked the nine plays, completing four straight passes to start — two to sophomore Kylar Howren — before a drop and an illegal formation penalty that negated a touchdown completion to Howren.

Davis came back to complete a scrambling 6-yarder to Fadler in the back of the end zone.

Platte County opened on offense against St. Pius X, and Marriott hit Stevens behind the defense for a 59-yard touchdown early. The two just missed on a similar connection against Excelsior Springs when Marriott overthrew his speedy fellow sophomore. Seymour went 57 yards around right end for the second touchdown. In between, Wesley came up with a sack, and the Pirates made a stop from inside the 5 on St. Pius X’s ninth play to end that series.

Hammontree had his sack and Hay his interception to close out the shutout.

“It’s a long summer of just hitting against your own guys,” Fulk said. “So when it comes out here to the jamboree, it always feels nice just to see some new faces.”

Overall, the platitudes and cliches rule the day, but Platte County now looks to navigate a difficult opening two weeks with Kearney and Smithville while integrating a lot of sophomores and juniors into the rotation. The Pirates will look to build confidence and show the youth is ready to realize potential on the big stage.