Missouri high school football: Top standouts, best performances in Week 4

Summit's Elijah Stevens scores career-high five TDs in Thursday win

We're taking a look at some of the top standouts and best performances from Missouri high school football games in Week 4.

See: Missouri Week 1 standouts | Week 2 standouts | Week 3 standouts

Check out our SBLive Missouri football scoreboard for updates and results

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Brady Carlton, QB, Carthage

The Tigers earned their first win of the season with a 41-28 victory over Carl Junction. Carlton had a pair of touchdown runs and also threw a touchdown pass.

Caden Carter, QB, Lee’s Summit West

Carter helped the Titans move to 4-0 for the first time since 2018 with a four-touchdown effort. The Missouri Southern baseball signee threw for three touchdowns — two to Jackson Torry — and ran in another in a 28-7 win over Staley.

Quinn Conley, WR, Warrensburg

The senior provided a recurring target for quarterback Kobe Westphal in a showdown with Harrisonville. He hauled in 14 catches for 187 yards and scored twice in a 54-48 loss.

Ryder Dampf, WR, Mount Vernon

The one-time Springfield Glendale receiver made a big play for the Mountaineers in the final minute. He hauled in a 26-yard touchdown on 4th-and-9 from quarterback Gavin Johnston with 1:32 left in what was a 21-14 win over Logan-Rogersville.

Jayden Donnelly, WR, Battle

Coach Matt Herman secured his first win as the Spartans’ head coach and Donnelly played a big role. He hauled in two touchdown catches and also grabbed an interception in a 26-12 win over Hickman.

Austin ‘A.J.’ Evans, QB, Southern Boone

The signal-caller accounted for five touchdowns in a 44-26 win over visiting Boonville. He passed for four touchdowns — two of them to Chase Morris — and ran for another. 

See: Vote for the Athlete of the Week

Joseph Federer, QB, Parkway West

A senior, Federer completed 21 of 42 passes for a career-high 326 yards and four touchdowns (against one interception) and ran for 119 yards on 18 carries in a 30-14 win at McCluer on Thursday.

Mike Ford, WR/DB, Hannibal

An out-of-state transfer from New Jersey, Ford made his debut for the Pirates and scored three touchdowns – on two receptions and a kickoff return – in a 77-6 win over Fulton. 

Briggs Hughston, TE, West Plains

The 6-foot-6 target had touchdown catches of 54, 43 and 39 yards against Rolla in an Ozark Conference showdown.

Justin Jackson, RB, Marquette

The senior had a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to help the Mustangs pull away for a 28-14 win over Eureka. Jackson finished with three scores

Gabe Johnson, RB, Webb City

The sophomore returned a kickoff 97 yards and added two touchdown runs as the Cardinals knocked off Joplin 38-21 in a battle of state-ranked foes from southwest Missouri. He finished with 91 yards rushing on 11 carries.

Darius ‘DJ’ Jones, RB, Fort Zumwalt West

The senior accounted for four rushing touchdowns in a 38-7 win over Timberland. Jones ran for two scores in the first half and then added 40- and 15-yard touchdowns in the third quarter.

Ryan Kassebaum, QB, Washington

The junior threw for 147 yards and two scores and ran for 101 yards, but his touchdown pass to Dylan Bartlett was the difference in a 24-21 win over Fort Zumwalt North — the first win for the Blue Jays in the series since 2012.

Nathan Kell, RB, St. Francis Borgia

The senior accounted for three scores in the first half – touchdown runs of 10 and 6 and then a 10-yard catch – to help the Knights roll to a 69-18 win over Duchesne. The win moved Borgia to 4-0 on the year.

Logan Kuechler, K, Rockhurst

The senior booted a 41-yard field goal as the clock expired to help the Hawklets pick up a 24-21 win against Bentonville (Ark.).

Dylan Macon, RB, John Burroughs

Macon, a junior, rushed 17 times for 147 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Bombers to a 41-14 win at Lutheran South on Thursday. 

Lee-Michael McDonald, RB, Dexter

The junior had a pair of touchdown runs and also returned a punt 85 yards for a score to help Dexter rattle off 29 points in a row in a 56-18 victory over East Prairie. He finished with 91 yards rushing. 

Richard McIntosh, QB, Ladue

McIntosh, a senior, stepped in at QB for the Rams' injured starter and accounted for five touchdowns – four passing, one rushing – as Ladue rallied for a 40-33 victory over visiting Oakville. The Rams trailed 33-7 in the first half.

Tyler New, QB, Worth County

The senior did a little bit of everything in the Panthers’ 66-12 win over Albany. He threw for five touchdowns, ran for two scores and also returned a punt for a score in the 8-man clash.

Jacobi Oliphant, DB, St. Louis University High

Oliphant led the Junior Billikens defense in a 33-0 road win over Vashon. He intercepted two passes, returned one for a touchdown, recorded a sack and a fumble recovery.

Brodie Probert, DB, Seneca

The Indians knocked off Lamar, the No. 1-ranked team in Class 2, on the road. He picked off a pass and ran it back 62 yards for a score to break a tie game and Seneca never trailed after that.

Thomas Pulliam, RB, St. Dominic

A senior, Pulliam caught two touchdown passes from quarterback Brennan Czeschin and ran for another score as the Crusaders rallied from an early 13-0 deficit to beat host Althoff (Ill.) 34-19 on Friday. 

Derek Quinlin, QB, Maryville

In a shootout with St. Pius X (KC), the Spoofhounds passer threw for what is believed to be a school-record 395 yards in a 46-42 victory in a Midland Empire Conference game. He had four touchdown passes and added 75 yards rushing. 

Messiah Smith, QB/RB, Parkway North

Smith took over at quarterback for Thursday's game at Summit after the Vikings' starter suffered an injury earlier in the week. The senior, who scored four TDs in Week 3, ran 24 times for 170 yards and a touchdown and completed eight of 17 passes for 142 yards and two scores. 

See: Missouri high school football rankings

Elijah Stevens, RB, Rockwood Summit

Stevens set career highs for rushing yards and touchdowns in a 39-27 win over visiting Parkway North on Thursday night. The senior running back carried 35 times for 245 yards and five touchdowns, including three TDs in the second half. He now has 53 career touchdowns. 

Skylar Still, QB/DB, Kelly

A two-way starter, Still made an impact on both sides of the ball on Friday. He had an interception in the end zone to stop a drive by Charleston. On offense, Still threw for two touchdowns — and 148 yards — and ran for another score in a 34-14 win.

Will Travers, QB, Webster Groves

Travers led the way in the Statesmen 37-0 victory at Parkway South on Thursday. He completed 14 of 19 passes for 222 yards and three touchdowns – to three different receivers (Jabari Booth, Qwalan Miller and Jackson Torbit). A sophomore, Travers has thrown for 800 yards and eight TDs the past three games.

Marvel Vails, RB, Parkway Central

Vails scored the first two touchdowns as the Colts defeated host Clayton 35-0 on Thursday. He returned a punt 90 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter and then caught a 35-yard touchdown pass from Sam Sailors in the second quarter. 

Rylan Wagner, WR/LB, Father Tolton

The junior had a touchdown catch from Jake Ryan and also intercepted a pass in a 49-0 win over Principia, helping the Trailblazers start 4-0 for the first time in the program’s 12-year history.

Kobe Westphal, QB, Warrensburg

Warrensburg came up short against Harrisonville, 54-48, but the junior had a career day with 331 yards and five touchdowns passing and 130 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.

Ty Williams, RB, Grain Valley

The senior scored six touchdowns in a 45-21 win over Platte County in a battle of state-ranked foes. He ran 28 times for 335 yards and added 63 receiving yards.

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NOTE: To nominate a player for the top performances list, please email SBLive Regional Editor Nate Latsch at latsch@scorebooklive.com or via Twitter/X at @natelatsch.

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