Another overwhelming victory allows Pirates to put finishing touches on NCMC championship

HANNIBAL, Mo. — The football script was quite familiar.

Hannibal scored early, often and in the second half there was a running clock.

The Pirates’ 56-7 North Central Missouri Conference blowout of Marshall was the latest in a lengthening line of one-sided victories.

This particular win, played before a crowd of about 1,200 at Porter Stadium on a Friday night that provided the first hint of cooler, breezy fall temperatures, was Hannibal’s seventh straight and served up three notable accomplishments:

• Junior running back Mike Ferreira achieved his season-long goal of surpassing 1,000 yards rushing.

• Hannibal coach Jeff Gschwender earned his 50th career victory. The last 29 have come at Hannibal in less than three seasons.

• The Pirates, now 7-1 overall, finished their NCMC schedule with another perfect 5-0 record. Hannibal has won three straight NCMC titles, 17 straight conference games and 30 of its last 31.

Ferreira rumbled for 173 yards on 18 carries, plus scoring two touchdowns on bursts of 18 and 5 yards. His 1,105 yards marks the 21st time in the last 23 seasons Hannibal has produced a 1,000-yard back.

“That was my goal going into the season — 1,000 yards,” Ferreira said. “It feels good.”

Gschwender is Ferreira’s biggest fan.

“We just tell Mike to do what he does. He’s a great downhill runner,” the third-year Pirates coach said.

Ferreira has rushed for more than 100 yards in all but one game. His season high of 177 yards came in the second game of the year, a 42-21 victory over Jefferson City.

Hannibal junior quarterback Waylon Anders, who completed 12 of 18 throws for 157 yards and three touchdowns, said the entire Pirates roster was rooting for Ferreira to reach the milestone.

“We all wanted Mike to get 1,000 yards,” Anders said. “There’s great chemistry on this team.”

In recent weeks, Ferreira has emerged as Hannibal’s go-to-back, with University of Notre Dame commit Aneyas Williams, the former workhorse in the backfield, now serving most of his time as a wideout/flanker. Williams caught three passes for 87 yards and two touchdowns against Marshall (2-6, 1-4 NCMC), which has lost 16 straight against Hannibal and is on the short end of a 40-9-1 series record.

Williams said he enjoys both roles — running back and wide receiver — and feels his talents and those of Ferreira’s work hand-in-hand in making the Pirates’ offense so explosive. 

Williams, who caught touchdown strikes of 66 and 15 yards, has a team-leading 25 receptions this season, including 10 for touchdowns. Williams’ presence on the perimeter demands attention from opposing defenses, which can open up lanes for the likes of Ferreira, Cody Culp, Landyn Essig, Austin Closser and other Hannibal ball carriers.

“We’ve got a pretty good running back room,” Williams said.

Williams rushed 40 times for 233 yards and four touchdowns in the third game of the season, but has carried the ball just 21 times since. Over that same span, Ferreira has carried the ball 85 times for 602 yards.

Ferreira was quick to point out how offensive balance is a must for overall success. He looked right at Anders while offering his praise.

“Having a strong passing game like we do just makes our running game that much better,” Ferriera said.

Anders’ passing numbers have been on the uptick in recent weeks. Already the most accurate passer in Pirates history with a .679 career completion percentage, Anders has now thrown 16 touchdown passes (and just two interceptions) while accumulating 998 yards through the first eight weeks of the season. Most of those numbers have materialized over the second half of the schedule.

Gschwender feels the Hannibal offense is coming together at the right time. He’s a firm believer in not only an effective passing attack, but a “solid, one-two punch” in the backfield and likes how Ferriera and Williams can feed off one another’s success in their current roles.

“Aneyas is always 100 percent with whatever is going to help the team,” Gschwender said. 

No matter what the equation is, the end result needs to be the same.

“You still have to be productive when it comes to running the ball,” Gschwender said.

For the season, Hannibal is averaging 242 yards per game on the ground and surrendering 74.

Hannibal rolled to a 49-7 lead against Marshall by halftime, which meant a running clock to open the second half. Four of Hannibal’s last five wins have been running-clock efforts. The Pirates have outscored their opponents 295-70 during the seven-game win streak.

Hannibal’s other touchdowns against Marshall came via 1-yard runs from Culp and Essig and a 24-yard reception by Kane Wilson. Wilson, also a defensive lineman, led the Pirates in tackles with eight. Tre Hoskins, Kaisen McAfee and Dorian Turner recovered fumbles.

Hannibal closes its regular season next Friday at Columbia Battle (3-5), which defeated Jefferson City 29-14 on Friday.