The rematch of the 2004 Class 5 Show-Me Bowl proved to be a lopsided affair, as Ray-Pec won its second straight championship over McCluer North with a 43-21 win. Junior running back Derrick Washington set a MSHSAA Show-Me Bowl record with four touchdowns for Ray-Pec—three of them were on the ground and one in the air. He rushed for 100 yards and caught five passes for 115 yards. Ray-Pec’s other dominant running back, Thomas Hodges rushed for 168 yards and a TD.
McCluer North got on the board first, when Ben Hendrix hit Norris Johnson with a 45 yard pass for a touchdown with 10:40 to go in the first quarter. Tom Latimore’s extra point was blocked and the Stars led 6-0.
Latimore redeemed himself with a 32-yard field goal with 1:53 remaining in the quarter, to make it 9-0.
The defending Class 5 champs got things rolling in the second quarter by scoring 23 points before heading to the locker room at half time. Down 9-0, Hodges rushed 76 yards to the Stars’ seven yard line on the first play of the drive. Washington scored the first of his three touchdowns in the quarter, when he dove in from a yard out on fourth and goal from the one.
Later in the quarter, the Panthers chewed up some more real estate with a five-play 83 yard drive, which was capped with Carson Coffman’s 48-yard touchdown pass to Washington. Ray-Peck converted on a two-point conversion to take a 15-9 lead.
Ray-Pec scored again, with 14 seconds to go in the half, thanks to Washington’s four-yard TD run. The Panthers used 1:07 to go 48 yards. They attempted another two-point conversion and succeeded again to take a 23-9 advantage into the locker room.
All three of Ray-Pec’s touchdown drives in the first half were quick, taking no more than 2:13 apiece. To start the second half, the Panthers took their sweet time on their opening drive. They went on a 12-play, 80 yard scoring march that lasted 5:21. Thomas Hodges sealed the deal with a 20-yard touchdown run. The extra point by Sean Middleton put the Panthers on top 30-9.
McCluer North added a couple of touchdowns, but they were counter-acted by two more Ray-Pec scores.
The Panthers finish the season 14-0 and have won 28 straight, while the Stars finished 9-3.
