CHERRY TWP — To a man, the members of the Moniteau football team sat silent, watching the game film of their disappointing 12-7 loss to Riverside.

Not a word was spoken. No one even coughed.

"It was kind of scary," said Moniteau coach Jeff Campbell. "Really. I was wondering what they were thinking."

If there had been thought bubbles suspended over the players' heads as if in a cartoon, they would have read, "We blew it."

"They know they blew a golden opportunity," Campbell said.

Instead of finishing the regular season 10-0 for the first time, the Warriors are 9-1 as they prepare for their first-round District 9 Class AA playoff game against Brookville at 7 p.m. Friday at Karns City.

Brookville might wish Moniteau was 10-0.

"A whole lot of kids were very upset (at practice Monday afternoon)," Campbell said. "It was not a good night to be on the scout team defense.

"The kids are focused."

That doesn't bode well for the Raiders, who lost a 42-7 decision to the Warriors a month ago.

Moniteau rolled up 515 yards of offense in that game, led 28-7 at halftime and had quarterback Tyler Armagost slinging the football all over the field.

This time, though, someone else may be slinging it for the Warriors.

Armagost took a knee in the back last week against Riverside and left the game.

The muscle tightened into a knot and, as of Monday, still hadn't loosened enough for him to function.

The big question now is, will Armagost play?

"Probably not," Campbell said. "Right now, he is day-to-day. Regardless, he will dress Friday night."

Doctors told Campbell and Armagost that the injury could keep him out "one day, three days, one week or two weeks," Campbell said.

What didn't happen to Armagost's back was the bigger story, however.

As soon as the senior quarterback was hurt, rumors about his status began flying.

"It was a muscle. No vertebrae were involved," Campbell said. "There were rumors that he was everything from paralyzed to in a wheelchair. He took a knee to the back. That's what happened."

Even with the prospect of playing without Armagost, who is getting college looks from several schools in the Mid-American Conference, Moniteau possesses other dangerous weapons.

Perhaps no one is as potent these days as running back James Shope — make that quarterback James Shope.

Campbell said Shope will start under center against Brookville, giving the Warriors an added dimension at the position.

Zach Wheeler and Mitch Czech also will see time at quarterback, Campbell said.

No matter who is under center — and there appears to be plenty of choices for the Warriors — Brookville coach Chris Dworek said his team had better be ready for anything.

"They have proven week in and week out they can do anything they want on offense," Dworek said. "They can throw it and they can run it with Shope and (Justin) Sanderson. That forces us to be real basic and try to defend the big plays and be aggressive. It's tough."

Brookville is no picnic to defend, either.

The Raiders have some solid offensive weapons themselves, led by running back Kyle Galbraith, who has gained 702 yards while averaging 5.6 yards per carry this season.

But what truly makes Brookville difficult to game plan for is its multiple formations and penchant for running trick plays.

"I always make a highlight film of trick plays the opponent will run to show the guys and they are usually only one to three minutes long," Campbell said. "With Brookville, it was 17 minutes long."

Dworek has made the trick play a part of his offense. Brookville has run several variations of the halfback pass, have called double passes and reverse passes Last week in a win over Punxsutawney, the Raiders attempted two onside kicks and recovered them both.

Trick plays or not, Armagost or not, both teams realize there is a lot on the line in this one.

"I didn't know if I was going to have to play psychologist this week," Campbell said. "I didn't. These guys are a pretty smart group. They know they let one get away last week and I don't think they will let that happen again."