Month: October 2023

 

  Blandy Burrell owns every passing record possible at Reeds Spring high school and continues to add those totals each week.  The senior quarterback has added another honor to his resume.  The Big 8 East Coaches have selected him as the Offensive Player of the Year.  Its the second consecutive year the Burrell has received the award.

Wolves and Tigers named All-Conference

REEDS SPRING

Blandy Burrell  1st Team Quarterback

James Dowdy  1st Team Receiver and 1st Team Defensive Back

Sebastian Michaud 1st Team Tackle and 2nd Team Linebacker

Spencer Michaud 1st Team Defensive Tackle and 2nd Team Guard

Lucas Wattenbarger 1st Team Defensive End HM Tackle

Chris Daniels 2nd Team Running Back

Miguel Campos 2nd Team Kicker

Dan Fliflet  2nd Team Tight End 2nd Team Linebacker

Jaden Turner HM Center

Nathan Mitchell  HM receiver

Jace Bolin  HM Running Back

Zach Preston HM Defensive Back

HOLLISTER

Noah Richardson 1st Team Tight End 1st Team Defensive Tackle

Tyler Carpenter HM Guard

Zech Honey HM Running Back

Johan Charlton HM Linebacker

Bryson Whitman HM Defensive Back HM Returner

    Wolves and Tigers will enter District Playoffs this Friday Night.  Reeds Spring will host East Newton while Hollister will travel to Mt Vernon.

    What a crazy few weeks it has been.  Now that the final shoe has dropped and the formation of the Ozark Mountain Conference has been announced I feel I can finally comment.  I will always error on the side of caution and “be late” reporting things if I learn them in confidence or in my role of being on the school board.  

   But, things will certain look different on the areas Sports Scene next year.  Reeds Spring and Hollister will be joined by Springfield Catholic as new members of the Mid-Lakes Conference.  That league currently consists of Forsyth, Fair Grove, Strafford, Clever, and Skyline.  This will be an extremely competitive league for both the Wolves and Tigers and will cut down on travel significantly.  As I stated in the original press release:

“The Mid-Lakes Conference offers an athletic environment that will challenge our athletes, showcase their talents, and provide valuable life lessons on and off the field,” said Reeds Spring School Board President Perry Phillips. “This will also reduce our travel time to and from games, which benefits our students and their families. We have enjoyed our time in the Big 8 Conference and the relationships we have developed.  Though we may no longer be in the same league, we hope some of those connections will continue for years.”

  The rest of the puzzle was made public this morning as the Ozark Mountain Conference announced its founding members would include: Branson, Bolivar, Logan-Rogersville, Marshfield, West Plains, and Carl Junction.   The Piratres, Liberators, Wildcats, and Blue Jays were all members of the Central Ozark Conference for years.  Log-Rog and Marshfield have most recently been part of the Big 8 East.

  For now it looks like the Big 8 will go back to a single division and have 9 teams.

   One of the things to look forward to locally is that the already intense rivalry between Forsyth and Hollister will now be taken up a notch, now that they are in the same league.  And, they will have a chance to meet on the Football field for the first time.  That will be a hot ticket.

  I personally look forward to some of the matchups we will see in the new league…  It will be a very competitive football league, baseball will be extremely solid.  You wont find a better girls basketball conference anywhere, and boys basketball is stacked with quality programs.  I could go on, but you get the idea, there are some exciting challenges ahead.