Heber Springs junior quarterback Liam Buffalo fights for yards against Cave City in the Panthers 2-4A opener on Sept. 22. Heber Springs won that contest 42-0. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
HEBER SPRINGS PANTHERSOVERALL RECORD: 3-2
2-4A CONFERENCE: 2-0
SCHEDULE (Click on game result for link to game story)AUG 15 at Beebe (Scrimmage)SEP 01 Clinton 42, Heber Springs 29SEP 08 Southside Batesville 49, Heber Springs 10SEP 15 Heber Springs 42, Jonesboro Westside 8SEP 22 Heber Springs 42, Cave City 0SEP 29 Heber Springs 48, Bald Knob 0
OCT 13 Lonoke at Heber Springs
OCT 20 Heber Springs at Stuttgart
OCT 27 Heber Springs at Harding Academy
NOV 04 Riverview at Heber Springs
NOV 11 4A State Playoffs (TBD)
SENIOR HIGH TEAM STATS
After Week 5
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS: Heber Springs 48, Opponent 77
BY RUSH: Heber Springs 42, Opponent 63
BY PASS: Heber Springs 5, Opponent 11
BY PENALTY: Heber Springs 1, Opponent 6
3RD CONVERSION: Heber Springs 12/27 (44.4), Opponent 21/53 (39.6)
4TH CONVERSION: Heber Springs 3/4, Opponent 9/17 (52.9)
RED-ZONE CONVERSION: Heber Springs 8/10, Opponent 11/14
RED-ZONE TOUCHDOWN PERCENTAGE: Heber Springs 8/10, Opponent 11/14
PENALTIES: Heber Springs 38/293, Opponent 26/245
PENALTIES PER GAME: Heber Springs 7.6/58.6, Opponent 5.2/49
SACKS: Heber Springs 8/69, Opponent 3/22
TACKLES FOR LOSS: Heber Springs 40/153, Opponent 31/103
POINTS
TOTAL POINTS: Heber Springs 171 (34.2), Opponent 99 (19.8)
POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 49, Opponent 43
FIRST QUARTER: Heber Springs 69, Opponent 35
SECOND QUARTER: Heber Springs 52, Opponent 23
THIRD QUARTER: Heber Springs 21, Opponent 20
FOURTH QUARTER: Heber Springs 29, Opponent 14
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING (Att/Yards/Avg/TDs/100/200)
TEAM 150 1170 7.8 16 5 0
Parker Brown 17 315 18.5 6 2 0
Brodie Basford 19 65 3.4 0 0 0
Liam Buffalo 32 184 5.8 3 1 0
Weston Warden 19 252 13.3 3 1 0
Nate Eaton 9 28 1 0 0
Bryce Seigrist 30 185 6.2 1 1 0
Emmett Dwyer 3 48 1 0 0
Elijah Jones 1 21 0 0 0
Logan Rutledge 1 (-6) 0 0 0
Eli Buffalo 8 59 1 0 0
Gideon Tate 1 31 0 0 0
Xander Lindley 1 0 0 0 0
Team 5 (-14) 0 0 0
OPPONENT 227 796 3.5 10 1 0
PASSING (COMP/ATT - YDS - TD/INT - 200 - RATING)
TEAM 7/11 223 5/0 383.9
Liam Buffalo 6/10 194 4/0 355.0
Xander Lindley 1/1 29 1/0
OPPONENT: 30/48 397 4/6 134.5
TOTAL OFFENSE (PLAYS - YARDS - PER PLAY)
TEAM 161 1392 8.7
Liam Buffalo 42 368 8.8
Parker Brown 17 315 18.5
Brodie Basford 19 65 3.4
Weston Warden 19 252 13.3
Nate Eaton 9 28
Bryce Seigrist 30 185 6.2
Emmett Dwyer 3 48
Elijah Jones 1 21
Logan Rutledge 1 (-6)
Eli Buffalo 8 59
Gideon Tate 1 31
Xander Lindley 2 29
Team 5 (-14)
OPPONENT 269 1156 4.3
RECEIVING (REC/YARDS/TDS/100)
Parker Brown 3 137 3 1
Seth Dudeck 1 7 0 0
Weston Warden 1 20 0 0
Xander Lindley 1 30 1 0
Elijah Jones 1 29 1 0
OPPPONENT 30 397 4 0
XP (XP/XPA - Blocked)
Gideon Tate 18/19 1
Chase Dill 3/3 0
Paul Krause 1/1 0
OPPONENT: 7/7 0
HS BLOCKS:
FGA (F/FGA - BLOCKED)
Gideon Tate 1/2 0
MADE: 30
MISSED: 51
OPPONENT 0/0 0
HS BLOCKS:
2PTS:
Team 1/1
Brodie Basford 1
OPPONENT 4/7
TOUCHDOWNS:
Parker Brown 11
Nate Eaton 1
Liam Buffalo 3
Weston Warden 3
Eli Buffalo 2
Bryce Seigrist 1
Emmett Dwyer 1
Xander Lindley 1
Elijah Jones 1
OPPONENT 15
POINTS:
Parker Brown 66
Gideon Tate 21
Brodie Basford 2
Nate Eaton 6
Chase Dill 3
Liam Buffalo 18
Weston Warden 18
Bryce Seigrist 6
Emmett Dwyer 6
Xander Lindley 6
Eli Buffalo 12
Elijah Jones 6
Paul Krause 1
INT RETURN (No/Yds/TDs)
Bryce Seigrist 1 3 0
Liam Buffalo 1 2 0
Eli Buffalo 1 42 1
Weston Warden 1 17 0
OPPONENT: 0 0 0
KICKOFF RETURNS (No/Yds/Avg/TDs)
TEAM 11 100 9.1 0
Parker Brown 3 40 13.3 0
Xander Lindley 1 0 0 0
Logan Rutledge 5 51 6.3 0
Weston Warden 1 6 0
Bryce Seigrist 1 3 0
OPPONENT 16 208 13.0 0
PUNT RETURNS (No/Yds/Avg/TDs)
TEAM 4 159 39.8 2
Parker Brown 4 159 39.8 2
Opponent 2 8 0 0
FUMBLE RETURNS (No/Yds/TD)
TEAM 1 25 0
Carter Julian 1 25 0
Opponent 2 25 0
ALL-PURPOSE (YARDS - 100 - 200)
Parker Brown 651 3 2 5
Brodie Basford 65 0 0 2
Liam Buffalo 186 1 0 5
Weston Warden 295 1 0 5
Seth Dudeck 7 0 0 1
Xander Lindley 30 0 0 3
Logan Rutledge 45 0 0 3
Nate Eaton 28 0 0 4
Bryce Seigrist 193 1 0 4
Emmett Dwyer 48 0 0 2
Elijah Jones 50 0 0 2
Eli Buffalo 101 0 0 2
Gideo Tate 31 0 0 1
Carter Julian 25 0 0 1
OPPONENT (100 -200 games) 1 0
300-YARD: Parker Brown 1.
PUNTS (No./Yds/Avg/I20/Blk):
Gideon Tate 8 295 36.9 3 0
OPPONENT 10 256 25.6 0 1
HS BLOCKED PUNTS:
Brodie Basford 1
INTERCEPTIONS (INTS - PBU)
Weston Warden 2 1
Eli Buffalo 0 1
Bryce Seigrist 1 0
Liam Buffalo 2 0
Logan Rutledge 0 1
Eli Buffalo 1 1
Corbin Jones 0 1
OPPONENT 0 0
FUMBLES (RECOVERIES/FORCED)
TEAM 7 5
Jacob McMullin 1 0
Jordan Tidwell 2 1
Brodie Basford 1 2
Parker Brown 0 1
Weston Warden 0 1
Nate Eaton 1 0
Carter Julian 2 0
OPPONENT (RECOVERIES) 9
TOTAL TURNOVERS
HS 9
OPPONENT 13
SACKS
TEAM 8
Xander Lindley 1
Jacob McMullin 1
Corbin Jones 3
Nate Eaton 2
Jordan Tidwell 1
Luke Elliot 1
Brodie Basford 1
Carter Julian 1
OPPONENT 3
QB HURRIES
TEAM 15
Bryce Seigrist 1
Dyce Young 3
Jacob McMullin 1
Jordan Tidwell 3
Brodie Basford 1
Corbin Jones 5
Xander Lindley 1
TACKLES FOR LOSS (No./Yards Lost)
TEAM 40 153
OPPONENT 31 103
TACKLES (U/A/TFL - TOTAL)
Carter Julian 16 12 2 28
Parker Brown 12 6 1 18
Logan Lozeau 3 2 0 5
Bryce Seigrist 8 2 1 10
Eli Buffalo 12 5 0 17
Weston Warden 17 9 2 26
Jacob McMullin 12 12 2 24
Luke Elliott 10 16 3 26
Zachary Parker 5 2 0 7
Nash Farmer 0 1 0 1
Jordan Tidwell 10 4 4 14
Logan Rutledge 2 2 1 4
Nate Eaton 9 6 5 15
Corbin Jones 13 11 7 24
Emmett Dwyer 9 2 0 11
Greg Williams 2 1 0 3
Elijah Jones 5 3 0 8
Gauge Owens 1 0 0 1
Joenah Cordell 2 3 0 5
Xander Lindley 12 2 2 14
Liam Buffalo 11 4 2 15
Brodie Basford 20 15 10 35
Dyce Young 2 5 1 7
Axley Davis 1 0 0 1
Gavin Mize 2 4 0 6
Cade James 0 1 0 1
Caleb Carr 1 0 0 1
COACHING ASSISTS
Dalton Yancey 5
(NOTE: On sacks and tackles for loss, for historical purposes, individual totals may be higher than team totals. Halves are counted as whole for individuals.)
Heber Springs sophomore Eli Buffalo runs for a 17-yard gain the second quarter in the Panthers, 42-8, win at Jonesboro Westside. Buffalo would score on the next play. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
By PHILIP SEATON MarkedTime.com Publisher
JONESBORO – The Heber Springs Panthers used a big second quarter and a historic night running the football to crush Jonesboro Westside, 42-8.
The win by the Panthers was their first of the season in three attempts and the first by coach Van Paschal at Heber Springs.
“To me, it’s big for the kids,” Paschal said. “The community, knowing what I have seen since I have come to Heber, the people want a good football program, and they’ve expressed that me. The kids have been doing the things that we have asked, going from 22 kids to 41 to 42 now, it’s a work in progress, but it’s exciting to win.”
The win also broke a seven-game losing streak by the Panthers dating back to last season, the longest such streak since 2004, and dropped the Warriors to 0-3 on the year.
After a Gideon Tate touchback on the opening kickoff for the Panthers, Westside picked up a pair of first downs, thanks in part to three Heber Springs penalties, to move the ball to the Panther 44. But three consecutive tackles by linebacker Brodie Basford, including the last two for a loss, stopped the Warriors on fourth down.
Heber Springs rushed only 20 times on the night but picked up 347 yards and averaged 17.4 yards per carry. That 17.4 yards is the highest average in school history, surpassing the previous best of 14 yards per rushing attempt set on Nov. 4, 2010, at Cave City.
Juniors Weston Warden and quarterback Liam Buffalo rushed for career bests, each topping the century mark and each scoring two touchdowns, as the Heber Springs scored six rushing touchdowns on the night.
The first of those six came on the Panthers first possession. Warden ripped off a 35-yard run followed by an 8-yard run by Eli Buffalo, before Parker Brown scored from the 9 with 6:54 left in the first quarter. Tate added the kick to make it 7-0.
Westside then killed the rest of the first-quarter clock moving the ball from their own 29 on a 14-play drive that was stopped on the Panther 2. Sophomore Emmett Dwyer brought down Warrior halfback Weston Watlington on fourth down with 10:01 remaining in the half.
Heber Springs would make the most of those 10 minutes scoring 28 points thanks in part to two Warrior turnovers (a Jordan Tidwell fumble recovery and a Bryce Siegrist interception).
“I told coach (Kevin) Youngblood, if you can’t stop ’em it don’t matter,” Paschal said. “It’s all about defense, getting better on defense and hopefully, we are, we can and we’ll get better.”
Eli Buffalo carried the ball twice for 13 yards, before Liam Buffalo raced 85-yards to make it 14-0 at the 8:26 mark.
After the Tidwell recovery at the Warrior 21, sophomore Eli Buffalo used two carries to score his first career touchdown. Tate’s kick made it 21-0 with 7:38 showing on the clock.
Siegrist’s interception put Heber Springs at the Panther 48. Warden ripped off a 46-yard run and two plays later, Liam Buffalo scored from the 2 with 3:49 left before the half.
After a three-and-out forced by the Heber Springs defense, the Panthers used less than minute to drive 71 yards as Warden burst down the sidelines for a 65-yard scoring run with 31 seconds remaining in the first half.
Coming out of the break with a 35-0 lead, and a continuous running clock due to the Arkansas Activities Association’s Mercy Rule, Heber Springs added one more score as Warden scored on a 19-yard run to make it 42-0 on its first possession of the second half. Back-up kicker Chase Dill added the PAT kick.
Paschal was able to empty the bench the remainder of the game as Gavin Mets avoided the shutout for the Warriors by scoring on a three-yard run with three minutes left. Colton Carter passed to Riley Carter for the 2-point conversion.
“That’s a big deal,” Paschal said of being able to play the reserves for most of the second half. “They work hard. They are scout team guys doing what they do and it’s always good to get them on the field.”
After making the move from fullback to linebacker for the game, Basford led the Panther defense with 10 tackles, including six solo tackles. Warden finished with 165 yards rushing while Liam Buffalo had 113.
“We got a lot better tonight,” Paschal said.
HEBER SPRINGS AT JONESBORO WESTSIDE
SENIOR HIGH
September 15, 2023
TEAM STATS
TIME OF POSSESSION: Heber Springs 12:05, Westside 35:55
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS: Heber Springs 11, Westside 13
BY RUSH: Heber Springs 10, Westside 10
BY PASS: Heber Springs 0, Westside 1
BY PENALTY: Heber Springs 1, Westside 2
TEAM RUSHING: Heber Springs 20/347/17.4, Westside 41/139/3.4
TEAM PASSING: Heber Springs 0/1-0-0/0, Westside 1/3-50-0/1
TOTAL OFFENSE: Heber Springs 21/347/16.5, Westside 44/189/4.3
3RD CONVERSION: Heber Springs 0/1, Westside 4/8
4TH CONVERSION: Heber Springs 0/0, Westside 0/2
RED-ZONE: Heber Springs 4/4, Westside 1/2
TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 0, Westside 2
POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 14, Westside 0
FUMBLES/LOST: Heber Springs 0/0, Westside 1/1
PENALTIES: Heber Springs 8/55, Westside 5/70
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs 1/26, Westside 3/77/25.7
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs 1/0, Westside 0
PUNTS: Heber Springs 1/28, Westside 2/58
PUNTS INSIDE 20: Heber Springs 1, Westside 0
SACKS: Heber Springs 0/0, Westside 0
TACKLES FOR LOSS: Heber Springs 5/16, Westside 1/1
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING: Heber Springs, Eli Buffalo 8/59/7.4/1, Weston Warden 4/165/2, Liam Buffalo 4/113/2, Nate Eaton 2/(-1), Parker Brown 1/9/1, Bryce Siegrist 1/2. Westside, Gavin Mets 19/65/1, Hunter Drummonds 5/26, Clay McMellon 5/7, Colton Carter 5/0, Gavin Dodson 3/21, Jacob Crawford 1/9, Weston Watlington 3/11.
PASSING: Heber Springs, Liam Buffalo 0/1-0-0/0. Westside, Colton Carter 1/3-50-0/1,
RECEIVING: Heber Springs, none. Westside, Jordan Hall 1/50
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs, Logan Rutledge 1/26
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs, Parker Brown 1/0
INTERCEPTION RETURNS: Heber Springs, Bryce Siegrist 1/3
ALL-PURPOSE YARDS: Heber Springs, Weston Warden 165, Liam Buffalo 113
PUNTING: Heber Springs, Gideon Tate 1/28. Westside, Gavin Dodson 2/58
SCORING
PAT KICKS: Gideon Tate 5/5, Chase Dill 1/1
FIELD GOALS: None.
POINTS: Liam Buffalo 12, Weston Warden 12, Liam Buffalo 6, Parker Brown 6, Gideon Tate 5, Chase Dill 1.
DEFENSIVE STATS
SACKS: None
FUMBLE RECOVERIES: Jordan Tidwell
FORCED FUMBLES: None
INTERCEPTIONS: Bryce Siegrist
PBU: None
QB HURRIES: Bryce Siegrist, Dyce Young
TACKLES (U/A/TFL - TOTAL)
Parker Brown 1 1 1 2
Jacob McMullin 1 1 0 2
Brodie Basford 6 4 2 10
Weston Warden 5 0 0 5
Corbin Jones 2 4 0 6
Bryce Siegrist 2 0 0 2
Logan Lozeau 0 1 0 1
Luke Elliott 2 4 0 6
Dyce Young 1 2 0 3
Axley Davis 1 0 0 1
Emmett Dwyer 2 0 0 2
Liam Buffalo 2 0 0 2
Gavin Mize 0 2 0 2
Nate Eaton 1 1 0 2
Logan Rutledge 0 1 0 1
Zachary Parker 1 0 0 1
Cade James 0 1 0 1
Jordan Tidwell 1 0 0 1
Elijah Jones 1 0 0 1
While most eyes may be on the top running back for each offense, the winner of the battle on the line of scrimmage may determine the winner of Friday’s football game at Jim Tumlinson Field in Clinton.
Heber Springs will open its season against the Yellowjackets at 7 p.m. tonight.
“The players are at the point of being tired of hitting each other in practice and want to play a game,” Panther coach Todd Wood said. “We had two weeks to prepare for Clinton, correct our mistakes from the Beebe scrimmage and put in new plays for this game. We feel comfortable going into the game.
Yellowjacket junior running back Zane Widner and his counterpart from Heber Springs, will receive plenty of attention. Widner highlighted Clinton’s 35-20 win at Cave City last Friday by rushing for 168 yards and scored one touchdown. Widner also caught one pass for 22 yards.
Brown, who rushed for 834 yards and 11 touchdowns last season, will attract plenty of attention from the Clinton defense. Brown also caught 17 passes for 314 yards and five touchdowns.
But the battle on the line of scrimmage will influence the outcome more.
The Panthers have only one returning offensive starting lineman — junior Corbin Jones at left tackle. The other four starters will be limited or no high school game playing experience.
Junior Eli Presnull (5-11, 270), a transfer from Vilonia, will start at center. Sophomore Axley Davis (6-2, 270) and Junior Dustin Stone (6-0, 256) are the expected starters at right guard and right tackle, respectively. Freshman Cade James (6-0, 200) and sophomore Gauge Owens (5-9, 200) will split time at left guard.
“We made adjustments on the offensive line after the scrimmage at Beebe,” Wood said. “We need the offensive line to play well, secure their lanes and have a tight circle around our quarterback. We got to get our running game going, along with the passing game.”
The Yellowjackets scored five touchdowns on its seven possessions against Cave City. The Yellowjackets, who remain in the Wing-T, rushed for 334 yards and passed for 89 yards and one touchdown.
“Clinton is discipline at every position and knows how to play,” Wood said. “I was impressed with their offense that took advantage of what Cave City gave them. Clinton moved the ball when it mattered. I thought they made great adjustments at halftime for the second half.”
While Widner had the big stats, Wood said he was impressed with quarterback Jobe Chalk (4-of-6 passes for 89 yards and one touchdown), running back Spencer Bannister (7-46 rushing for one touchdown) and receiver Brody Emberton caught three passes for 67 yards and scored one touchdown.
“They are very good players,” Wood said. “I was impressed with their quarterback. He has a good arm and plays behind a very good offensive line. No. 7 (Bannister) impressed me. He ran hard in the open field and has good speed.”
Wood believes the Panthers can match Clinton’s firepower. Junior Xander Lindley returns at quarterback with three-year starter Easton Cusick leading the receivers. Junior Dalton Yancey started last season. Sophomore Logan Rutledge, and seniors Chris Edwards, Bauer Pruitt and Chandler Webber will provide options.
“Easton knows the ins and outs at receiver,” Wood said. “(Sophomore) Weston Warden will be a threat with (junior) Gideon Tate and (senior) Kenan Sneed.”
Wood liked the play by his defense at the scrimmage and expects steady improvement during the season.
“We had a lot of players getting to the ball carrier against Beebe and had few missed assignments,” he said. “Overall, we feel good about our starters and backups. We need to create turnovers, and the players went through drills during practices to do that better.”
Special-team play also count affect the outcome.
“I feel good about our kicking game,” Wood said. “Tate’s leg is getting stronger. We need more consistency kicking off into the end zone. But Clinton also has a good kicker.”
Finally, the Panthers have looked forward to this game since last year’s loss to the Yellowjackets at Panther Stadium. Wood challenged his team to stop the streak in the battle for the Battle of the Little Red Trophy.
Heber Springs has a long rivalry against Clinton through the years. The Yellowjackets have won their first six games for the trophy, as the Panthers seek to end that streak.
“I stressed the importance of the game and stopping the streak following the scrimmage,” he said. “We want to bring the trophy home. I know it has been in back of players’ minds. We want to be the team that stops the streak.”
Heber Springs junior defensive lineman Corbin Jones tangles with a Harding Academy lineman in nonconference action last season. The Wildcats will be a conference beginning this season. PHILIP SEATON FILE PHOTO
By LARRY “SCOOP” McCARTY
An injury will force reshuffling of the backfield for the Heber Springs Panthers football team.
Sophomore Liam Buffalo, who was projected to become the starting quarterback at the conclusion of spring practice, recently suffered a knee injury while playing baseball and underwent surgery Friday. Buffalo, who participated for the junior high school football, basketball and track and field, plus he was a starter on the high school baseball team last year. is expected to miss the 2022 football season.
Buffalo led the Panther Cubs to a 13-5 record during the past two football seasons. He completed 82-of147 passes for 1,160 yards and 15 touchdowns with only one interception last season. He rushed 101 times for 931 yards and scored 15 touchdowns.
“We are disappointed in losing Liam,” Heber Springs coach Todd Wood said when asked about the team’s reaction. “Liam was looking forward to moving up to high school. He has a bright a future ahead and good things are coming.”
Junior Xander Lindley, last year’s starter before breaking his collarbone against Bald Knob, will assume the quarterback duties fulltime. Lindley had moved to wide receiver during spring practice.
Senior Easton Cusick, a two-year starter at receiver, will be Lindley’s backup. Cusick replaced Lindley when he was injured during the second series of the Bald Knob game.
In 2021, Lindley completed 35-of-62 passes for 515 yards and five touchdowns. He also rushed 58 times for 180 yards and scored two touchdowns. Cusick connected on 51-of-104 passes for 389 yards and two touchdowns.
“If there is a good part to this, we still have two guys coming back with experience,” Wood said. “I talked with Xander and told him that it was going back on his shoulders again.”
Lindley had his best game of last season against Central Arkansas Christian when he completed 11-of-13 passes for 113 yards and ran for 134 yards and two touchdowns.
“Xander was getting to his peak before the injury,” Wood said. “He had a great game against CAC. He and Parker Brown were becoming a dual threat in the backfield. This situation is an opportunity for Xander to rise up and do well.”
Wood said Lindley may play occasionally at receiver and in the defensive secondary.
Meanwhile, building an efficient offensive and defensive lines also will be focal points going into the new season. The Panthers return one experienced offensive lineman (Corbin Jones), but Wood liked the progress going into summer workouts.
“Corbin started last year as a sophomore and will be our left tackle,” Wood said. We have two players who were on last year’s junior high school team — Axley Davis (6-2, 270 pounds) and Gauge Owens (5-9, 200 pounds), who are battling for starting roles.”
Tripp Young (6-1, 260 pounds), who will be a senior, was on the team last year, and Wood expects Young to make an impact on the offensive and defensive lines.
“The coaching staff is excited about him (Young) coming back,” Wood said. “We expect good things from him as one of our guards. He also will be a strong player on the defensive line. We don’t have much depth on the offensive and defensive lines. Our main focus during the spring was getting the offensive and defensive lines ready.”
On a brighter side, most of last year’s skilled position players return.
“I’ve been pleased with the performance of the returning players,” Wood said. “They jumped right in there because they already knew what to do. We are ahead of last year on both sides of the ball. The returning players have positive attitudes and provided leadership, both from seniors and some of our younger players.”
Brown led the Panthers in rushing (113-834 yards, 11 touchdowns) and receiving (17-314 yards, five TDs). He also became the first player in school history with a 200-yard rushing and receiving games during the same season. Brown also rushed for 100 yards or more in four games. Brown excelled in the return game by returning 10 kickoffs for 195 yards and four punts for 65 yards.
Junior Dalton Yancey emerged as one of the team’s primary targets during the second half of last season by catching 15 passes for 122 yards.
“We have players with experience at receiver,” Wood said.
Warden rushed 48 times for 247 yards and scored two touchdowns for the junior high team last season. He caught 30 passes for 655 yards and seven touchdowns.
“Weston played running back for the junior high team last season, but he has worked at receiver,” Wood said. “Weston has speed and good hands.”
Gideon Tate, who made 17-of-18 points after touchdowns last season, returns at placekicker and ranks among the best in the state.
“I like the onside kickoff, but challenged Tate if he can kick it into the end zone consistently, we will do that more,” Wood said. “He is a good kicker.”
Linebacker Kenan Sneed will lead the defensive charge for the third straight season. Sneed led the Panthers with 115 tackles, including 17 for losses last season — it was the second straight season for Sneed to record more than 100 tackles. He had two quarterback sacks. Sneed also turned in one of the top plays of the season, a 48-yard interception return for a touchdown to switch the momentum in the win at Bald Knob.
Chris Edwards will move from cornerback to outside linebacker. Edwards ranked second among tacklers with a total of 66 stops, including seven for losses. He also had a 71-yard interception return for a touchdown against Dover.
“It’s good to have your leading tackler back coming back,” Wood said. “We will try and put guys around him, like Jacob McMullin, to build a stronger defense. Jacob is coming up from the junior high team and will be a solid inside linebacker. He will be in a good situation playing next to Kenan.”
Edwards and Zack Parker are the projected starters at outside linebackers. Parker started at safety for most of last season.
“Chris Roberts played safety and outside linebacker last year,” Wood said. “(Sophomore) Kaden Terrell has speed and plays aggressively. Warden played at cornerback in junior high. We are trying to put the right pieces in the right places.”
Wood said candidates are available to step in and play at safety.
“Colton Turley didn’t play last year, but he came back and can become a solid safety,” Wood said. “We have a lot of guys to look at.”
The Class 4A state football playoffs will start for the Heber Springs Panthers on Friday.
Heber Springs (2-4 in 2-4A Conference, 3-5 overall) will finish the regular season against Little Rock Mills (2-4 in 2-4A Conference, 5-4 overall) in a 2-4A Conference game at Comet Stadium in Little Rock. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. The Panthers and Comets are tied for fifth place with Friday’s winner advancing to play at Joe T. Robinson in the opening round of the playoffs next week.
“We are going into the game with the mindset this is the beginning of a playoff run,” Heber Springs coach Todd Wood said. “Playing Mills will be a big challenge. We are 48 minutes from the playoffs. All I asked the players is to give it their all. If we do that, everything will be OK. The players know the task at hand.”
Turnovers doomed the Panther offense in last week’s 34-7 loss to Clinton. A lost fumble was one of the game’s biggest plays early in the third quarter. A misconnection on the handoff gave the ball to the Yellowjackets at the Heber Springs 27.
Clinton held the Panthers to 207 yards of offense. Running back Parker Brown rushed six times for 69 yards and caught seven passes for 36 yards and scored one touchdown. Quarterback Easton Cusick completed 16-0f-33 passes for 99 yards with three interceptions.
“The key to the game on offense is not turning the ball over,” Wood said. “We moved the ball against Clinton, but we would have one or two plays that took us out of rhythm or led to a turnover.”
Heber Springs will welcome back sophomore outside linebacker Hayden Johnson, the team’s second-leading tackler on the season. Johnson missed the Clinton game because of a concussion suffered against Southside Batesville.
“Hayden is ready to go,” Wood said. “We’re as healthy as we can be. Our defense played well most of the year. We started well against Southside before we got wore down. After playing two running-dominated teams (Southside and Clinton), we must adjust because Mills will throw the ball more. The big key on defense is to get more three-and-outs.”
The Comets started the season with five consecutive wins, including two conferences games, before the current four-game losing streak.
Sophomore quarterback Achilles Ringo makes the Mills’ offense goes. Ringo has completed 134-of-195 passes for 1,049 yards and 17 touchdowns. He connected on 20-of-24 passes for 295 yards and two touchdowns in last week’s 64-20 loss to Southside.
Ringo triggered the Comets’ second half comeback last year against the Panthers when he completed 8-of-10 passes for 105 yards. Mills trailed 24-12 early in the third quarter as the Comets rallied for a 34-24 win.
Juniors Jabrae Shaw and Daniel Brown are the major weapons in the running game. Shaw leads Mills with 61 carries for 785 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also has caught 29 passes for 486 yards and five touchdowns. Brown has ran for 587 yards on 50 attempts with five touchdowns. Senior fullback Boyce Mitchell has rushed for 417 yards on 55 carries and scored one touchdown.
Junior Anton Pierce is the Comets leading receiver with 32 catches for 649 yards and eight touchdowns. Pierce caught three passes for 80 yards against Southside. O.J. King, who started at quarterback last year against Heber Springs, caught 11 passes for 165 yards and one touchdown in last week’s game.
“He (Ringo) throws well,” Wood said. “Mills has speed and size, and it doesn’t hide what they do. He gets the ball to the playmakers. Mills also will line up and try and run from the wishbone.
Wood said Mills plays a 4-3 defense with an aggressive front seven. The Comets have yielded 35 points per game.
“They rely on the guys up front and the linebackers,” he said. “They are capable of putting a lot of pressure on an offense.”
Ten freshmen moved to the high school team last week after completion of the junior high school season. Wood said the group helped to close some of the gap with the team’s depth concern, especially on defense.
“Axley Davis (6-1, 260 pounds) is a big lineman that can play on the offensive and defensive lines,” he said. “Carter Julian will play at defensive back. Other freshmen also could see action.”
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2A-4 CONFERENCE STANDINGSW L CP W L PS PA
Stuttgart 6 0 68 8 1 359 182
Lonoke 4 2 52 7 2 302 169
Southside Batesville 5 1 54 7 2 355 164
Clinton 4 2 49 5 4 272 257
Little Rock Mills 2 4 26 5 4 320 313
Heber Springs 2 4 20 3 5 140 222
Bald Knob 1 5 13 1 8 148 285
Central Arkansas Christian 0 6 0 2 7 211 418
Friday, October 29
Clinton 34, Heber Springs 7
Southside Batesville 64, Little Rock Mills 20
Stuttgart 45, Lonoke 28
Bald Knob 39, Central Arkansas Christian 20
Friday, November 5
Heber Springs at Little Rock Mills
Southside Batesville at Bald Knob
Lonoke at Clinton
Central Arkansas Christian at Stuttgart
Kickoff: 7 p.m. at Mills
Radio/Streaming: Billy Morgan will handle the play-by-play while Lance Hamilton with handle the color on KSUG 101.9 The Lake. Panther Pregame begins at 6:45 p.m. followed by the game. Listen Live Link
GAME NOTES
THE SERIES: Heber Springs leads the series 2-1.
SERIES HISTORY: Though this is the third time the Panthers have faced Little Rock Mills, Heber Springs did play the two of the schools that consolidated to form Mills University Studies. The Panthers went 0-4 from 1955 through 1959 against Little Rock Fuller, and 0-3-1 against Mabelvale from 1955 through 1958. Heber Springs won the first two in the series, 47-6 at Panther Stadium in 2018 and 28-14 at Mills in 2019, while the Comets won last season, 34-24.
MOVING UP: Mills will move back up to Class 5A for the next cycle so tonight’s contest will be the last time the two teams meet for at least two years.
CONFERENCE SEEDING: Stuttgart has clinched the No. 1 seed and can clinch the outright 2-4A title with a win tonight against CAC. Southside Batesville will be the No. 2 seed and could earn a share of a conference title with a win and a Stuttgart loss. Clinton and Lonoke will meet tonight for the No. 3 seed with the loser getting the No. 4 seed. Heber Springs and Mills winner will be the No. 5 seed at play at Joe T. Robinson next week.
Heber Springs ninth-grader Liam Buffalo looks for an open receiver in the junior Panthers, 34-32, win over Clinton Thursday night. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
HEBER SPRINGS – Heber Springs Liam Buffalo rushed for 143 and a pair of touchdowns, and passed for another, as the junior Panthers opened their season with a 32-28 nonconference victory over Clinton.
The two teams will meet again on Oct. 28 in Clinton in a conference contest.
On Thursday, the Panthers were limited to eight offensive possessions and 23 plays from scrimmage, but made the most of them. Heber Springs scored four times, punted once, had a drive stall at midfield and had drives ended by the half and game.
On the Panthers first play from scrimmage, Weston Warden took a pitch from Buffalo and raced 68 yards to put Heber Springs on top with less than 15 seconds gone in the game. Buffalo ran in the 2-point conversion.
The two teams traded punts before the Panther defense forced another Yellowjacket punt as Warden returned the Brodie Dufrene punt 19 yards to the Clinton 33 with 1:41 left in the first quarter.
On the next play, Buffalo kept the ball and rambled 33 yards for the score. Buffalo connected with Carter Julian for the 2-point conversion and the Panthers led 16-0 with 1:31 to play in the quarter.
After another Clinton punt, Heber Springs took over on their own 39, but a penalty pushed the Panthers back 15 yards and killed the drive at the 41.
From there, Clinton moved the ball 41 yards on a six-play drive that Dufrene capped off with a 1-yard run. Dufrene connected Sam Standridge for the 2-point conversion with 4:24 to play in the half.
The Yellowjackets onside-kick failed and Heber Springs took over at the Clinton 49. After an 11-yard run by Buffalo, the ninth-grader connected with Julian for a 38-yard touchdown pass. Buffalo ran in the 2-point conversion and Heber Springs led 24-8 with 4:03 left in the half.
Clinton then killed all but 10 seconds of the second quarter with a 13-play, 60-yard drive that Rope Williams capped with a 1-yard touchdown run. The 2-point conversion failed as Heber Springs led 24-14 at the break.
The Yellowjackets took the second-half kickoff and then proceeded with an 18-play, 70-yard drive that ate all of the third-quarter clock and two minutes of the fourth quarter as Zack Hunt-Gonzalez scored from seven yards. Joshua Fultz scored the 2-point conversion on a pass from Dufrene.
Just over 30 seconds later, Heber Springs answered as Buffalo hit Seth Dudeck for a 42-yard completion and then ran the ball in from the 16 on the next play. Buffalo connected with Warden for the 2-point conversion and Heber Springs led 32-22 with 5:20 to play.
Clinton would not go quietly scoring another touchdown less than three minutes when Hunt-Gonzalez scored on a 2-yard run. The 2-point conversion failed.
Buffalo ran for 18 yards and connected with Warden for another 18 yards as the Panthers were able to kill the clock and earn the win.
Heber Springs finished the night with almost 300 yards of total offense despite missing several starters due to Covid protocols.
Heber Springs will return to action on Sept. 9 at Harding Academy in a nonconference contest.
HEBER SPRINGS/CLINTON GAME STATS
FIRST DOWNS: HS 10, C 15
PENALITIES: HS 3/35, C 5/25
RUSHING: HS 14/194/13.9, C 42/90/2.1
FUMBLES: HS 0, C 0
PASSING (C/A-YARDS) HS 4/9-92, C 9/15-87
INTERCEPTIONS: HS 0, C 0
SACKED-YARDS LOST: HS 0, C 1-8
TOTAL OFFENSE: HS 292, C 177
TURNOVERS: HS 0, C 0
ONSIDE KICKS: HS 0/0, C 0/3
2-PT CONVERSIONS: HS 4/4, C 2/4
PUNTS/AVG: HS 1/48, C 3/29.3
RUSHING (ATT/YARDS/TDS): HS, Liam Buffalo 8/143/2, Weston Warden 3/65/1, Logan Rutledge 1/(-2), Team 2/(-12). Clinton, Rope Williams 12/37/1, Rylan Jones 11/40, Zack Hunt-Gonzalez 10/45/2, Brodie Dufrene 5/3/1, Sam Standridge 3/4, Brayson Littell 1/1.
PASSING (COMP/ATT-YARDS-TDS/INTS): HS, Buffalo 4/9-92-1/0. Clinton, Dufrene 9/14-87-0/0, Littell 0/1-0-0/0
RECEIVING: HS, Seth Dudeck 1/42, Carter Julian 1/38/1, Warden 1/12, Rutledge 1/10. Clinton, Standridge 3/29, Jones 3/20, Liam Hudson 2/25, Williams 1/13.
Heber Springs’ Xander Lindley, Parker Brown and Dalton Yancey as the team gets ready to run on to the field Thursday at Bald Knob. The “paw boys” scored all four touchdowns in the Panthers 29-7 win. The trio also combined for 14 receptions for 222 yards. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
By PHILIP SEATON
BALD KNOB – Heber Springs overcame a sluggish start to improve to 5-1 on the season with a 29-8 victory over Bald Knob in junior high football action Thursday night.
The Panthers, 3-1 in 2-4A play, trailed 8-7 late in the first half before scoring 22 unanswered to pull away from the Bulldogs. Liam Buffalo, who was 19 of 27 passing for 288 yards and four touchdowns, hit Parker Brown over the middle for a 57-yard scoring strike with 35.4 seconds left in the half. Buffalo connected with Xander Lindley for the 2-point pass to give Heber Springs a 15-7 advantage at the break.
From that point on, the Panther defense took control.
Heber Springs’ Hud Haggard reacts after a first-down stop by the Panther defense in the second half.
Bald Knob finished the night with 192 yards of total offense on the night, with the majority of that came in the first half, but Heber Springs limited the Bulldogs to 22 yards in the second half and forced three Bald Knob turnovers over that span (fumble recoveries by Axley Davis and Hayden Johnson, and an interception by Dalton Yancey).
Yancey’s interception set up the first score of the second half for the Panthers. Taking over on their own 32, Heber Springs used an 11-play, 68-yard drive to go up 22-8 when Buffalo connected with Yancey for a 3-yard touchdown pass with 42.6 seconds left in the quarter. Gideon Tate, who was three-for-three on PAT kicks on the night, kicked the extra point to make it 22-8. Buffalo was nine of 10 passing on the drive using five different receivers (Tate, Hud Haggard, Brown, Lindley and Yancey – who also had a first-half fumble recovery).
Heber Springs Parker Brown forces a fumble. Maddox Reed (66) helps on the play.
Another turnover set up the next score for Heber Springs in the fourth quarter, Brown sacked Bald Knob quarterback James Holder forcing the fumble. Johnson picked up the ball but was tripped up after a seven-yard return to put the ball on the Bulldog 34.
Heber Springs showed a different look on the next drive with Brown lined up in the “Wildcat” formation. A 12- and 8-yard run by Brown moved the ball to the Bulldog 14. A backwards pass attempt to Buffalo was mishandled on third down forcing a fourth-and-14 from the Bald Knob. But on fourth down, Buffalo took the snap connected with Lindley for the 26-yard touchdown pass.
Heber Springs’ Weston Warden.
Lindley finished the night six receptions for 104 yards and two touchdowns, including a 13-yard reception with 2:02 left in the first quarter that put Heber Springs up 7-0.
Bald Knob’s score came with 1:26 left in the first half as Holder connected with Garrett Swindle for an 8-yard touchdown pass. Javen Smith ran in the 2-point conversion.
The Panthers finished with 300 yards of total offense on the night. Brown led Heber Springs with 127 all-purpose yards (79 receiving, 21 rushing and 27 returns).
Bald Knob’s Jameson Hillis led all rushers with 75 yards on 20 carries. But as a team, the Bulldogs finished the night with 67 yards on the ground on 28 attempts.
Heber Springs will host Southside Batesville on Thursday at Panther Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
A bloody-knee doesn’t stop Heber Springs’ Liam Buffalo as he gets ready to hand the ball off to teammate Gideon Tate. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
Heber Springs quarterback Liam Buffalo looks for running room as coaches Drew Lawrence and Jay Bishop look on during seventh-grade football action in Searcy. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
September 12, 2019
By PHILIP SEATON
SEARCY – Heber Springs scored a touchdown in the final minute to pull out an 18-14 victory over Harding Academy Thursday night in Searcy.
The Panthers improved to 2-0 with the win and will be off next week before returning to action on September 27 at Lonoke.
On Thursday, it was last-minute heroics that got the win for the Panthers.
Heber Springs Ty West running up field against Harding Academy on Thursday. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
After Harding went up 14-12 with 4:36 to play, Heber Springs marched the ball downfield mainly on the legs of quarterback Laim Buffalo, but the drive appeared to stall with the Panthers facing a fourth-and-5 from the Wildcat 17. Instead of going with the legs of Buffalo, it was his arm as he connected with Weston Warden who caught the short pass and did the rest racing 17 yards for the score with 53.7 seconds left. The two-point conversion failed.
The Panther defense held Harding Academy and Heber Springs came away with the win.
Heber Springs’ Axley Davis takes the hand-off from Panther quarterback Liam Buffalo Thursday night in Searcy. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
Heber Springs struck first as Buffalo connected with Warden with a 77-yard touchdown pass to put the Panthers up 6-0 with 11:21 to play in the first half.
After Harding Academy tied things up at 6-all with 5:41, Heber Springs struck right before halftime as Buffalo found Bryce Seigrest on a 60-yard touchdown pass.
Turnovers plagued Heber Springs in the second half leading to Harding Academy to taking the lead. After a turnover and the ensuing drive reached inside the Panther 25, Heber Springs’ defense stiffened and stopped the Wildcats on fourth down. But another turnover gave Harding Academy the ball back which led to Wildcat score.
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