St. Joseph Central Football
Connecting the past, Present, and future of indian football
2017 Highlight Video
2016 Highlight Video
Indians of the Week
CHS RECORD BREAKERS
The Indians had three big record breakers this year! Dawson Page (Sr.) set the single game passing record! Cade Musser (Jr.) broke the single game, single season and career receiving records, while Israel Smith (Sr.) broke the single game rushing record and career rushing yards record as well. This is an admirable feat when you take in account that football has been played at Central since 1893.
ISRAEL SMITH
CADE MUSSER
DAWSON PAGE
2016 SEASON SLIDESHOW
2017 SEASON SLIDESHOW
INDIANS WIN 3RD STRAIGHT GOING INTO PLAYOFFS
The Central Indians wanted to get a big win for the seniors on senior night at Noyes Field Friday night. Not only did the seniors get the win, they also did it in blow out fashion! The final score Friday (Oct. 14th) was 47-22 with huge scores from Israel Smith, Khalik Henderson, and Cade Musser. Israel Smith (Sr.) put on a show for the home fans with over 350 yards rushing and 4 touchdowns. "The offensive line had a great night." Smith said to reporters after setting a new school record for rushing yards in a game (351) and career touchdowns (61). Israel Smith's biggest run put Central up 34-0 midway through the 3rd quarter as well! Central will enjoy a first round bye and will play next week in the District Semi Finals rematch vs. Liberty High School.
CENTRAL BEATS RAYTOWN IN NAIL-BITTER
If you like close games then Central vs. Raytown was the game for you to watch. Big play after big play in the first half left the Indians going into halftime down. However, after an inspirational pep talk and Central's never quit attitude, the Indians were determined in the second half to get a victory. Dawson Page (Sr.) made big plays with his arm and feet throwing TDs to Cade Musser and also running for a score as well. The defense came up with big plays in the clutch as well. It looked like Raytown would throw for a long touchdown, but in a last ditch effort, Lawrence Wulu (Sr.) came up with a huge interception! The game ended with a monumental goal line stand. Seconds left, Raytown had the ball on the Indians' 10 yard line, down only 6 points. Raytown threw the ball up for their receiver in the end zone, but it was knocked down! The Indians Won 36-30!
INDIANS OVERPOWER LIBERTY NORTH
The Central Indians went into the game against Liberty North as the underdog on Friday. However, once the game reached halftime, it was clear who the dominant team was. The Indians came out and attacked the eagles early and never let up. The biggest highlight of the game was a huge touchdown catch by Jack Taber (Sr.) from the arm of Dawson Page. (Sr.) Another key note of the game was the excellent defensive play of the Indians. Central held Liberty North to only 12 points and had a huge turn-around from the previous week. The resilience and lack of quit seen from the Indians is proof that anything can happen when it comes to the playoffs next month.
INDIANS ROLL IN HOME OPENER VS. RUSKIN
The Central Indians Homecoming festivities were in full swing with a packed crowd at Noyes Field Friday. With thousands in attendance the Indians took out the competition to win 38-0. The game was never in question due to a stellar defensive performance.
JAMBOREE CHAMPS!
The Central Indians roll in the St. Joseph Jamboree and cruise to 3-0 mark vs. Lafayette, Benton, and Leblond. The Indians had a combined 42-6 score in the three preseason match ups and saw electrifying plays from Cade Musser, Israel Smith, Dawson Page, and Scott Hanson. Coach Pitts is happy with the progress the Indians have made this summer and the Indians are looking forward to their first opponent, the Liberty Blue Jays, on Friday August 19th.
COLLEGE BOUND
Two Central Indian seniors are going on to play at the next level this year! Jacob Olson and Jacob Hess will both be playing college football at Colleges in Missouri. We couldn't be more proud of these upstanding young men.
Jacob Olson will be going on to play at Missouri Western State University
Jacob Hess will be going on to play at William Jewell College
2015 DISTRICTS (ROUND 2)
The Indians went into the District Semi-final against the #1 state ranked Staley on a cold, blustery day in late October. One would think that the Indians would not have a chance against the Staley Falcons. However, in the pouring rain, the Indians came out with a powerful defensive performance. The Indians shut out the Falcons in the 1st quarter and put together a big drive down to the Staley 30 yardline. The Indians did not get into the endzone due to poor weather conditions hampering our offensive performance. The Indians fought hard, but in the end the Staley falcons pervaled and the Indians' football season came to an end. Central fans who attended the game know how hard the Central men played in the game and none of the Indian seniors should hang their heads in defeat. Despite four games decided by a touch down or less, the Indians never gave up on the season and fought to the very end. These Central football players deserve much praise for their hard work and dedication to this Central football program. Also, a big thanks goes out to the thousands of wonderful Central fans/crazies who came to cheer the Indians on this year.
​ 2015 DISTRICTS (ROUND 1)
The Indians headed into District play with a rematch against the Liberty Blue Jays. Liberty put up a huge fight in the previous game against the Central so the Indians did not take this game lightly. The Indians showed everyone what hard work and excellent coaching can do when you play a team for the second time around. The Indians jumped out to a commanding 1st half lead of 49-7 with the help of big touchdowns from Gage Stagner and Israel Smith. The defense was relentless, causing multiple three-and-outs and turnovers. The biggest plays from the game were on a Jake Hill fumble recovery for a touchdown and a huge forced fumble by Collin Walker. Cade Musser had a breath taking interception return and 310 lb Jacob Olson had a fumble recovery and pass break up to help seal the deal. The Indians went on to take the victory 49-14 against the Bluejays.
​ CHS VS. RUSKIN (HOMECOMING)
On October 2, 2015 the CHS Indians were ready to throttle the Ruskin Eagles and begin a long win streak. In front of a packed crowd at the historic Noyes Field, the Indians opened up with a commanding lead. Touchdowns from Cruse, Smith, K. Roderick, and Henderson helped give the Central Indians a 51-0 first half lead. Not only was the offense hitting on all cylinders, the defense gave up less than 30 yards in the first half. When the night was over, the indians had won the game 51-20. The sold out crowd of over 4000 got to see all the backup players dominate in the second half and the large student body got to celebrate a big homecoming victory. "This is the atmosphere that St. Joseph football should have each and every week!" (A CHS spectater)
On September 25, 2015 the Central Football team traveled down to Liberty High School to play the Blue Jays on their grass field. The game started well for the Indians and we went up three scores early. Give credit to the Blue Jays though who fought all the way back and took a seven point lead with less than two minutes remaining. With great poise and resilence, the Indians fought all the way down and scored six with just seconds remaining. But the big question still remained: Would Central choose to tie the game with an extra point or go for two for the win? Central coaches chose to go for two and now it was in the hands of the players. The Indians snapped the ball and it looked like a run play, but out of nowhere Israel Smith threw the ball to Collin Walker and he valiantly wrestled the ball away from the opponent for a two point conversion! After a huge interception by Lawrence Wulu, the Central Indians won the game by one point, 43-42!
​ CHS VS. LIBERTY
The Indians defeated Blue Springs by 18 points on September 11, 2015! Central started the season with two heartbreaking last-second losses, but they redeemed themselves by destroying the Class 6 powerhouse in week four. The game was never in question as the Indians took a commanding lead early and went up 28-10 at halftime. CHS did not faulter in the second half and put up a grand total of 49 points in their win against Blue Springs. Notable players in the game include Khalik Henderson with eight pass breakups, Israel Smith with 270 yards rushing, and Keith Roderick with 13 tackles. Most notably was the outstanding performance by the offensive and defensive lines. The Indians won by a final score of 49-31.
​ CHS VS. BLUE SPRINGS
​ CHS VS. PARK HILL
The Indians were on a two game winning streak when they went down to Kansas City to play Park Hill (7-1). Park Hill is a big team with many potential Division I talents and were celebrating their senior night. However, the Central Indians put a huge damper on the night by outplaying Park Hill throughout three quarters of the game. After big touchdowns by Gage Stagner and Remington Roderick, Central's kicker Austin Jackson kicked a 47 yard field goal to give the Indians a 24-17 halftime lead! With Jake Hill and Cade Musser going out with injuries, turnovers in the second half doomed the Indians late. However, Central is looking to bounce back with vengence next week as the Indians take on Park Hill South before heading into district play. "It is clear that CHS is a force to be reckoned with after almost knocking off state ranked Park Hill."
The 2015 Football Summer Camp was a huge success. On June 11, Central took 62 players Freshmen through Seniors to Columbia, Missouri to compete with the best schools in Missouri at MU Camp. After many victories and learning opportunities, the CHS football team came back home a better team then when they had left. The young Indian's hard work is beginning to pay off and we are looking forward to a highly successful team for the 2015 season.
​ 2015 MU Camp
2015 Football Awards
The Central Indians Football Team had their annual football banquet on November 20, 2015. It was a great turn out and many awards were handed out. Notable awards received included:
The John Gibson Award: Harrison Coulter
Offensive MVP: Israel Smith and Jacob Hess
Defensive MVP: Jake Hill
Team MVP: Keith Roderick
​2015 Lift-A-Thon
The 2015 Lift-A-Thon was a great success. It was the first Lift-A-Thon Central has had in a few years and we had quite a turnout. Seventy-five high schoolers packed out the weightroom to better their weight lifting records. The pound-for-pound strongest athlete at Central High School is now Chase Miller! The athlete who lifted the most combined weight in the Lift-A-Thon was Jacob Olson. Both of these young men deserve much praise.
Noah Day lifting
A packed house at the 2015 CHS Lift-A-Thon in the Tony Dudik Weightroom
Kadrien Misner lifting