Brady Belcher, a defensive and offensive lineman for the Webb City High School football team, has big aspirations for his senior season, “The ultimate goal is to win a state championship, but I’ve always dreamed of having an undefeated season and that’s what we would like to do.”

            Those may be lofty goals, but they are marks that appear to be attainable for the Cardinals, who compiled a 10-3 record last season, eventually losing to conference rival Republic in a heartbreaking 21-20 loss in the State Semifinals

The Cardinals return a strong host of seniors for the 2024 campaign, many of whom have played or started since their freshman season. Belcher, although he saw limited action, joined the varsity team during his freshman season, when the Cardinals brought home a championship trophy.  Belcher remembers the experience fondly for several reasons, “That was really cool, especially because my older brother was on the team. I’ve always wanted an opportunity to do something like that with him, and it’s an amazing memory and accomplishment.”

Despite his veteran status, Brady is still working through some challenges, like learning a relatively new position, “I played a little bit of defense as a sophomore but was primarily on offense. This season the plan is for me to be primarily on defense.” 

As a senior, Belcher embraces his role as a leader for the Cardinals and says, “I’m looking forward to playing with my friends for the last time as teammates.”

That feeling of family and team is important over the course of a demanding season, but it is equally as important to motivate players during the dog days of summer, “Our coaches have done an amazing job during our offseason workouts focusing on things like power clean and a few other exercises. We have lost twice to Republic in the playoffs.  Redemption would feel amazing.” Belcher hopes to continue to play football at the collegiate level.  His current plan is to major in marketing, with an end goal of becoming a real estate agent,