DeSmet Ranked No. 2 In Local High School Football Poll

Ask anybody that was there that day representing the DeSmet High football team and they'll tell you, it still stings.

The Spartans were one win away from reaching the state championship game and had the lead going into the final minutes of the game.

But their archrivals from CBC pulled off a dramatic comeback for a 31-28 win that sent the Cadets to state and the Spartans home for the winter.

To this day, every member of last year's DeSmet team is still angry about not sealing the deal in the biggest game of the year. And this season, they are all motivated to get back to state, but this time to win it.

"We're shooting for (winning) state," quarterback Dillon Duff said. "There's no other end goal."

And many believe this year's Spartans, who bring back 15 starters from last year's team, are the top choice to win the state title this year. That's why they were ranked No. 2 in STLToday's Top 10 preseason poll.

STLToday has been naming the top 10 teams one-by-one, every day for the last week and a half. And on Wednesday, it announced that DeSmet was the No. 2-ranked large school team in the area.

The No. 1 team will be Illinois powerhouse, East St. Louis, which has made it to the Illinois state title game four years in a row. On the Missouri side though, most prep football experts believe DeSmet will be the team to beat.

STLToday.com Top 10 Preseason Prep Football Poll
1. East St. Louis
2. DeSmet
3. CBC
4. Edwardsville
5. Francis Howell
6. St. Dominic
7. Rockwood Summit
8. Hillsboro
9. Seckman
10. Marquette

"That group they have is tremendous," Terrance Williams, a scout from STLBigTimeSports.com said. "They've got at least 10 guys on that team that will be playing college ball next season. Several at big time schools. I won't say they'll go unbeaten, because they have a very tough schedule. But I would say, they'd be favored in every game they play this year, especially in games against other teams from Missouri. They're the best team in the state, in my opinion."

The Spartans will be led by Duff, a player considered one of the top high school dual-threat quarterbacks in the state. STLToday ranked him as the 10th best player in the area, heading into this season.

And he certainly looked it last year, in his first season as DeSmet's full-time starting quarterback. The 6-foot-2, 200-pounder threw for 1,863 yards and 15 touchdowns and also rushed for 595 yards and eight more scores.

Duff, who has already committed to play football at Kansas State, also led DeSmet to winning the state title in basketball last year. But this fall, the Spartans are all concentrating on football.

"No doubt in my mind, Dillion Duff is the best athlete in town," DeSmet head football coach John Merritt said. "He can do everything. He's effortless, he makes it look easy because he's so good."

DeSmet will also feature a strong offensive line and a potent 1-2 running back punch of junior Haden McCaster and senior Jason King. McCaster rushed for 611 yards and led the team with nine rushing touchdowns last year, while King added 137 yards and three touchdowns.

King's best position though, is linebacker, where he led the Spartans with 90 total tackles (49 solo) and 15 tackles for loss last year. He also added four quarterback sackes, an interception, and three fumble recoveries.

King has committed to play at Mizzou when his college days begin. This season though, he'll anchor a defense that also features stud defensive lineman Quincy Byas, who had 12 sacks and scored three defensive touchdowns last year, and junior lineback Titan Davis, who had 34 tackles and five sacks last year.

The Spartans will begin their season on Saturday, when they'll host Creighton Prep, a powerhouse team from Omaha, Neb., that was recently ranked No. 20 in that state's preseason high school football poll.

2024 DESMET SPARTANS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Aug. 31 vs. Creighton Prep (Neb.) – 1 pm
Sept. 7 at MICDS – 1 pm
Sept. 13 at SLUH – 6 pm
Sept. 20 vs. CBC – 6 pm
Sept. 27 vs. Vianney – 6 pm
Oct. 4 at Chaminade – 6 pm
Oct. 11 at Festus – 7 pm
Oct. 18 vs. Cardinal Ritter – 7 pm
Oct. 25 at Edwardsville (Ill.) – 7 pm