September 9, 2022 - Marked Time

IMG_9705_(2) — Heber Springs running back **Parker Brown** looks for running room against Southside Batesville Friday night at Panther Stadium. **PHILIP SEATON PHOTO**

By LARRY “SCOOP” McCARTY

Turnovers and Southside Batesville’s punishing run game proved too big of an obstacle for the Heber Springs Panthers to overcome at Panther Stadium on Friday.

Southside converted 3-of-5 Heber Springs turnovers into touchdowns and gained 509 yards of offense in a 44-6 nonconference win against the Panthers. The Southerners (2-1) won by their largest margin in the series (38 points), which started in 2006, and back-to-back games against Heber Springs (0-2) for the first time.

“When you give another team five turnovers, no matter the team, you are probably going to lose,” Panther coach Todd Wood said. “That is what happened in this game. I told the team at halftime the turnovers gave Southside 21 points. That’s an example you have to score when you have an opportunity.”

Even though Heber Springs only reached the end zone once, Wood said the offense showed more production than in last week’s game at Clinton.

The Panthers gained 270 yards, sparked by quarterback Xander Lindley, and receivers Dalton Yancey and Easton Cusick. Lindley completed 20-of-28 passes for 182 yards and one touchdown pass. Yancey caught seven passes for 75 yards, while Cusick had six catches for 53 yards.

Running back Parker Brown, who gained 165 all-purpose yards, rushed for 88 yards, caught four passes for 35 yards and one touchdown, plus 21 yards on punt returns and 46 yards on kickoff returns.

“We moved the ball on offense well at times,” Wood said. “But we need to find a way to not turn it over. Lindley threw better and had good preparation for this game. He looked more comfortable at quarterback.”

Seth Case rushed for 238 yards on 15 carries and scored two touchdowns for the Southerners. Colby Harris and Louis Calhoun ran for 84 and 83 yards and scored one touchdown, respectively. Southside averaged 11 yards per attempt.

Southerner quarterback Chase Duncan completed 2-of-2 passes for 49 yards.

“We didn’t execute well on defense and were out of position on a lot of plays,” Wood said. “We were getting smashed down the field. We can’t let that happen.”

Heber Springs received the opening kickoff and had one first down before a bad snap on the next series of plays led to a punt.

Southside took the initial lead on a three-play, 73-yard series. Harris broke loose on a 64-yard touchdown with 7:55 left in the first quarter. Brandon Lopez kicked the extra point.

The Southerners regained possession when Blayne Warren recovered a Brown fumble at the Southerner 31. Calhoun finished a nine-play, 69-yard drive by scoring on a 3-yard carry with 2:01 to go in the first quarter. Lopez kicked the conversion for the 14-0 lead.

A fourth-down stop near midfield put the Southerners in scoring position for their third touchdown during the first half. Duncan scored on a 6-yard run with 10:08 left in the second quarter. Lopez kicked the conversion for the 21-0 lead.

An Adam Denison’s interception of a Lindley pass at the Southerner 15-yard line set up the next Southside touchdown. Case scored on an 85-yard touchdown run with 4:29 remaining until halftime. Lopez converted the conversion kick for a 28-0 lead.

The fourth Heber Springs turnover during the first half set up Southside’s next score. Case dashed 63 yards for the score with 2:24 left until halftime. Lopez’ kick for the extra point was unsuccessful.

After the kickoff, Heber Springs drove 60 yards on five plays for its touchdown. Cusick caught a 23-yard pass from Lindley to put the Panthers in scoring position. On the next play, Lindley connected on a short throw to Brown for a 29-yard touchdown on the final play of the first half. The Panthers were unsuccessful on the 2-point conversion try and trailed 34-6 at halftime.

“If we don’t turn the ball over so much during the first half, it might have been a different game in the second half,” Wood told the Panthers at halftime. “We moved the ball on our opening series consistently until the bad snap. It put us behind the chains. Those are the kind of things that we can’t let happen.”

Southside struck quickly following the second half kickoff by driving 82 yards on 12 plays. Pierce Duncan scored on a 7-yard keeper with 6:36 left in the third quarter. Lopez kicked the extra point for the 41-6 lead.

A Tyler Jones interception set up Lopez’ 37-yard field goal with 8:19 left in the game.

Heber Springs will conclude the nonconference schedule by hosting Jonesboro Westside (1-1), which had an open date, at 7 p.m. Friday.

“I told the team after the game we played well on defense at Clinton and this week we played better on offense,” Wood said. “We need to learn how to click on both sides of the ball during the same game. We will learn from our mistakes and look to play a complete game against Westside.”

The Panthers will open the 2-4A Conference schedule and celebrate homecoming against Cave City on Sept. 23.

“That is what these games are for,” said Wood when referring to non-conference games. “I challenged them to finish strong against Westside with a great effort on offense and defense, and then see what kind of team we can be.”

IMG_9351_(2) — Heber Springs senior linebacker **Kenan Sneed** celebrates after making a fourth-down stop last week at Clinton. Heber Springs will play host to Southside Batesville tonight at Panther Stadium. **PHILIP SEATON PHOTO**

By LARRY “SCOOP” McCARTY

Changes from the original schedule will give the Heber Springs Panthers a rare opportunity beginning Friday night — three consecutive home football games.

The Panthers, who will play only nine games this season after Mountain View declared for 8-Man, look for that extra boost from playing at home and rebound from the season-opening loss at Clinton by hosting Southside Batesville in a nonconference game. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

Heber Springs will finish its nonconference schedule against Jonesboro Westside on Sept. 16. The 2-4A Conference opener and homecoming game against Cave City will be played on Sept. 23.

“The schedule worked out that way when Mountain View dropped out,” Panther coach Todd Wood said. “The players like playing at home. We had a fantastic crowd at Clinton, but playing at home will give them a boost to play at a higher level.”

Southside, which moved to Class 5A at alignment, is a former long-time conference opponent.

Kenny Simpson, who was the program’s first coach before leaving for Searcy High School two years, has returned to take the reigns of the program. The running game remains the main focus, but the Southerners will utilize the pass.

“Southside added a few wrinkles with RPOs (Run or Pass Options) and play-action passes,” Wood said. “The running game still is the staple. We must stop the run and forced them into doing things that they don’t want to do.”

Isaac Gregory of the Southerners had a breakout game in last week’s 28-0 win at Bald Knob by catching 18 passes for 202 yards and scoring three touchdowns.

“When a defense gears up to stop the run, it can open up the pass,” Wood said. “That always benefits a receiver. It will give us another phase of the game to work on. We have to stop the run, but we must be ready to stop the pass, too.”

Southside’s defense will play a similar scheme, as Bald Knob operates out of a spread offense like the Panthers.

“We expect a 3-man front with two linebackers walking up occasionally to a five-man front,” Wood said. “The safeties will play up close. It’s a defense that is aggressive against the run. Southside executes at a high level and plays with discipline.”

Heber Springs relied on its defense to stay close against Clinton in the 30-14 loss. Linebackers Kenan Sneed had 10 tackles, but he received support from Chris Edwards, who also had 10 tackles. Edwards was a starting cornerback last season.

“We had multiple players who played well on defense,” Wood said. “Two other guys that pleased me with their play were safety Chris Roberts and Zachary Parker at cornerback. Clinton passed to its big receivers multiple times, and he (Parker) made the plays. (Linebacker) Weston Warden also had a fantastic game.”

Four other defensive players also caught the coach’s attention with their performances.

“Jacob McMullin played well at inside linebacker,” Wood said. “Corbin Jones played both ways (offensive and defensive lines) and made a big difference. Luke Elliott came through, and Jordan Tidwell made an impact. I liked see that many players involved with the defense.”

Work on the offense became one of the dominant areas at practice throughout the week. Heber Springs had 225 yards of total offense (121 rushing yards, 104 passing yards).

Wood said few personnel changes are planned, but more emphasis will be on the running game.

“We need more guys to get active with the offense,” Wood said. “We need to put in a receiver like Bauer Pruitt more, who can catch the ball and also is a good blocker. We need Chris Edwards more involved, along with Chandler Webber.”

One of the concerns in the passing game was dropped balls, but Wood expects that will be an improvement against the Southerners.

“We had around nine drops in the Clinton game,” Wood said. “Other passes were not thrown well. We are working to correct that. We need to stop the turnovers and have longer drives than three downs and a punt.”

Wood said the offensive line, which has one returning starter, played admirely, and he expects steady improvement.

“After talking with (offensive line) coach Richard Clevenger, freshman Cade James had the highest grade among the linemen,” Wood said. “We had some breakdowns, but I was pleased with our pass blocking. Our run blocking did well most of the time, except for not sustaining our blocks long enough.”

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