Expectations rise as Pirates enter fall ranked among Missouri’s top 25 soccer teams

HANNIBAL, Mo. — The most celebrated player in the history of the Hannibal High School football program will begin his first collegiate football season in three days as the University of Notre Dame kicks off fall camp with Aneyas Williams in the backfield.

What does this mean for the Pirates?

There are plenty of possibilities.

There is an opportunity for playmakers to emerge. There is an opportunity for new leadership to take the reins. And there is the possibility that the Pirates can catapult themselves into state championship contention, if they haven’t already.

On Sunday, SBLive Sports, a division of Sports Illustrated Media Group, released its Missouri prep football top 25 rankings, which span all classes and all corners of the state. Hannibal cracked the list, coming in at No. 22 and ranking fourth among Class 4 programs.

Kearney is No. 7, Lutheran North is No. 8 and Hillsboro is No. 10.

The Pirates’ season-opening opponent is also ranked. Jefferson City Helias, which reached the Class 5 state quarterfinals last season, is ranked No. 17.

Expectations have been raised even higher for the Pirates, who were 11-2 last season and lost an epic quarterfinal to Lutheran North 70-68, with the return of veteran quarterback Waylon Anders and veteran running back Mike Ferreira.

The 5-foot-10, 165-pound Anders is listed as one of the top 30 returning quarterbacks in the Show Me State, according to SBLive Sports. A year ago, Anders threw for 1,436 yards with 25 touchdowns against just four interceptions, while also running for 476 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Ferreira, a 6-foot-1, 195-pound physical runner, is listed as one of Missouri’s top 50 running backs by SBLive Sports and put up numbers last season that rivaled those of any big back, rushing for 1,817 yards and 18 touchdowns while playing alongside Williams.

Ferreira is now the attacking focal point, but he will have playmakers alongside him to carry the load. That kind of depth and ability to reload is why the Pirates remain one of the best teams in the state and should remain in that conversation going forward.

Hannibal begins training on August 12, with the season opener scheduled for 7 p.m. on August 30 against Helias at Porter Stadium.