KSHB 41 reporter Tod Palmer covers sports business and eastern Jackson County. Share your story idea with Tod.
—
Senior safety Mogie Walkingstick enjoyed a dream end to his high school career Friday as Platte County won the Missouri Class 5 state championship.
Now, he’ll live out another gridiron dream this week in Minneapolis, where Walkingstick is set to take part in the annual Native All-American Game and Camp. The Minnesota Vikings are hosting the event at US Bank Stadium in conjunction with the Native American Athletic Foundation.
Walkingstick, a member of the Cherokee Nation, made nine tackles in helping the Pirates top Carthage in overtime to become back-to-back unbeaten state champs, but he’s had precious few opportunities to share the field with other Native American football players.
“There’s going to be some great athletes there, the best that Indian country has to offer,” Walkingstick said. “I’m going to be able to bond with them over our heritage, but also at the same time breed competition between us. I just feel like it’s going to be a really fun experience.”
Players from across North America, including Canada and as far away as Hawaii, have been invited to participate in the game.
Walkingstick described himself as a “JV warrior” as a sophomore at Platte County football. He progressed to a reserve and special-teams role last season before locking down a starting spot as a senior.
He said the nine tackles he had Friday at Missouri Western State’s Spratt Stadium in St. Joseph might have been a career-best.
“I knew that this was going to be my last game playing with these guys, and I just wanted to just give it my best,” Walkingstick said. “... We had to go out with a win.”
The Pirates’ defense returned only one starter from the 2024 title-winning team, but Walkingstick stepped into a leadership role with the secondary.
“The seniors above us, they were really good,” he said. “They kind of took us under their wing and showed us what a really good leader was supposed to be like. I wanted to carry that into the next year, just trying to mimic what they did as much as possible.”
Platte County didn’t miss a beat.
“As a senior, he stepped in and played a very important role at safety — took the spot, owned the spot and never gave it up,” Pirates coach Bill Utz said.
He couldn’t say whether the state title game was Walkingstick’s best performance in a Platte County uniform.
“Mainly because he was so consistent,” Utz said. “... He was good all year, so I don’t want to just pinpoint one game to say, ‘Oh, this was your greatest game.’ He had a great season, and I’m very proud for all the accolades he was able to get.”
Utz also understands that Walkingstick can feel as if he’s “on an island” as the lone Native American player for Platte County, so all those accolades certainly include being one of 70 players chosen for the 2025 Native All-American Game.
“It’s one of those things that, he’s Mogie,” Utz said. “So, it’s not something that defines him, by any means, but it's not something that he shies away from either. He’s very proud of it, very proud of the heritage, as he should be.”
Earning a spot in the game was a senior-year mission for Walkingstick.
“Going into my senior year, I knew that there were going to be college coaches there at this bowl,” he said. “I was really betting on this being my main way to connect with college coaches and try to get recruited.”
Native Americans are severely underrepresented in college sports.
“There’s a statistic that less than 1% of college athletes are actually Native American,” Walkingstick said. “Being a part of that minority gives us, I feel like, a chip on our shoulder. We want to show that Native Americans can really play football as well.”
So far, he has one scholarship offer — to NCAA Division III Minnesota Morris — but he hopes to earn a few more after Sunday’s game.
—
