ST. LOUIS - Now that the South Callaway Bulldogs have had the experience, head coach Tim Rulo wants it to become a familiar sight.
South Callaway's first-ever appearance in a state football championship didn't bring about the end result the Bulldogs desired, as they fell 30-15 to Lamar in the Class 2 title game Saturday at the Edward Jones Dome.
The loss was South Callaway's only one of the season, ending a remarkable ride as the Bulldogs finished at 14-1.
Rulo, though, was hooked on the feeling of being involved in a state championship - something he wants for his Bulldogs on a regular basis.
"A new level has been raised, a new horizon has been set for us that we need to aim for in all that we do and say," Rulo said. "... To me, and I hope the vibe that the rest of our team got, this is an awesome environment to play a football game in.
"Going back and playing a Friday-night game, even at South Callaway on our turf, is just not going to be the same. Now you have to be hungry for this environment every time."
Rulo would like the Bulldogs to be fixtures in the state title game, just like Lamar. With Saturday's victory, the Tigers (14-1) became just the third team in state history - joining Webb City and Valle Catholic - to capture four consecutive championships.
"This isn't something you want to wait 10, 20, 30 years to come back to; this is something you want to come back to every year," Rulo said. "You can see the great teams do that - Valle (Catholic), Webb City, Lamar, they keep coming back perpetually.
"I think that's what we want to have, too. Somebody kind of commented, "Hey, it's good to see a new face here.' One of my coaches said, "We hope to be an old face.' That's true. It's not something that we just desire to be here one year and you won't see us for many years."
Lamar used a gimmick play near the end of the first half and a methodical 14-play, 67-yard scoring drive to open the second half to tally 14 points to tilt the game in its favor. South Callaway also committed turnovers on all three of its possessions in the third quarter.
"You cannot win a game and be minus-two in the turnover-takeaway margin, so that really hurt us," Rulo said. "That's the deciding factor; that's not good football math.
"You cannot be minus-two against a team like this."
Lamar turned to some trickery just before halftime to go in front 14-7. Tripp Tucker tossed a 2-yard pass out in the flat to senior wide receiver William Kluhsman, who then flipped the ball to senior running back Johnny Brooks. Brooks did the rest of the work, darting 49 yards down the South Callaway sideline and into the end zone to complete the hook-and-ladder for the score with 55 seconds left before halftime.
The Bulldogs quickly tried to answer, as Hentges completed four passes for 47 yards to take South Callaway down to the Tigers' 24-yard line. But South Callaway had used its final timeout with :43 left, so after spiking the ball to stop the clock with 5 seconds remaining, Hentges threw an incompletion as time ran out.
Lamar then started the second half with its second 14-play scoring series of the game. Junior running back Rocky Embry topped off the possession with his second score of the game, a 5-yard touchdown run with 5:41 to go in the third quarter.
The Tigers increased their lead to 24-7 with 36 seconds left in the quarter when junior kicker Todd Morrow set a Show-Me Bowl record by connecting on a 49-yard field goal.
Lamar's final score came on senior running back Johnny Brooks' second touchdown of the game, a 5-yard run with 9:25 left in the contest.
South Callaway's final score came on a 10-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Troy Hentges to senior wide receiver Luke Horstman with 5:32 to go. Hentges finished 18-of-34 for 228 yards and an interception, while Horstman had a team-high seven catches for 87 yards.
The Bulldogs were able to drive into Lamar territory on both of their possessions in the first quarter but turned the ball over on downs at the Tigers' 35 and 18, respectively. After South Callaway's first series stalled, Lamar responded with a 14-play, 65-yard scoring drive that took 6:21 off the clock.
Junior running back Rocky Embry put the Tigers on top when he got to the edge and scored on an 11-yard touchdown run with 3:27 to play in the quarter.
The Bulldogs pulled even at 7 on a pivotal possession early in the second quarter. Senior slot receiver Cory Hanger extended the drive on third-and-10 when he made a leaping grab while falling to the ground for 24 yards down to Lamar's 6. Two plays later, Hanger bounced around the end for a 4-yard touchdown run at the 7:41 mark.