Platte County advances in Missouri playoffs with win over Smithville
Platte County was hoping for another big win over Smithville after having defeated Smithville in a Missouri Class 4 District 8 semifinal last season.
It turned out to be more than a hope. Using its up-tempo offense to control the pace the Pirates imposed their will on Smithville for a 42-13 win at Platte County
It started with senior quarterback Tanner Clarkson finding his receivers. Devin Richardson was the leading wideout with 111 yards, while Dylan Gilbert ended up with 86 receiving yards. Each receiver finished with two touchdowns.
Smithville did shut down Pirates star receiver Jon Watts with a double team the entire night, but Platte Country (9-2) did just fine finding the open player.
“They (the receivers) did an excellent job of making plays when they had an opportunity to, and the great thing about it is Jon would be the first one to tell you that he’s good with it,” Platte County coach Bill Utz said.
“As long as we get the win, he doesn’t care. We’re worried about results.”
Clarkson continued to show why he’s one of the best quarterbacks in the metro. He completed 14 of 22 passes for 221 yards and four touchdowns.
“We’ve been practicing the types of throws, that you saw me making out there, all week,” Clarkson said. “We were preparing for this coverage. That connection has grown all season.”
Platte County had a few missteps, including two interceptions, but the Pirates overcame those mistakes.
“When I ended up throwing a pick I just go onto to the next play, because I can’t change it,” Clarkson said.
Smithville (9-2) tried to stay within striking distance with its running game. But the Warriors’ offense struggled to find a rhythm, and the only highlight was a halfback touchdown pass from Isaac Miller to Jake Fisher.
“Our defense battled pretty hard, but our offense just couldn’t get on track and put our defense on the field too long,” Smithville coach Jason Ambrosian said. “In the second half, we came out with a little bit of fire, but we didn’t get ourselves where we needed to go.”
Platte County’s defense was relentless attacking the line of scrimmage. Led by seniors Dakota Schmidt and Sage Smart, the Pirates showed some fight and were in the backfield much of the evening.
“Defense had a great week,” Utz said. “We knew coming in that they were going to play well. They were well prepared.”
Platte County will have an opportunity to take home the district title next Friday. With Kearney having lost to St. Joseph Lafayette on Friday, the Pirates will now play host to the District 8 title game against Lafayette.
This story was originally published October 27, 2017 at 10:49 PM with the headline "Platte County advances in Missouri playoffs with win over Smithville."