Heber Springs junior Seth Dudeck ties his dad with record-setting punts
Heber Springs junior Seth Dudeck punts the ball during third-quarter action in Friday loss to the Pottsville. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
It was a cold and windy November night when Heber Springs traveled to Mountain View to close out the 1987 season.
The Panthers were concluding a disappointing 3-7 campaign while the Yellowjackets were looking to wrap up a playoff bid.
It would also be the final game for the winningest coach in school history, Heber Springs High School graduate Dennis DeBusk.
The Panthers battled, and thanks to a stingy defense and field position, Heber Springs and Mountain View ended regulation all tied at 0-0. The Yellowjackets would go on to win in overtime 7-0 and claim a playoff a spot (they would lose to Greenbrier in the playoffs the next week).
One of the keys of the field position battle was the leg of junior Pat Dudeck.
Dudeck, who passed away in 2016, would punt the ball five times against Mountain View, including a school record 73-yard punt and a 65-yarder that ranks in the top 10 of longest punts in school history. He also became the first Panther in recorded school history to have two punts of 60-yards plus in the same game.
Though there have been five 60-yard plus punts since that cold November night in 1987, no one else has managed to have two in the same game like Dudeck.
That is until Friday night.
Pat’s son, Seth, moved right next to his dad in the record book with two 60-yard plus punts in the same game. The junior punted the ball five times and hit a 67- and 62-yarder in a 17-14 setback to Pottsville.
It was the first game of Heber Springs High School graduate Caleb Carmikle’s Panther coaching career.
“Man, he can bomb that thing,” Carmikle said. “Not many high school kids can turn a ball over like he can.
“That’s a weapon and that really does help you when you’re struggling offensively if you get somebody that can flip the field every time. It helps our defense out a ton.”
Besides the Dudeck’s, other Panthers to have punts of 60-plus yards in recorded school history include Dennis Astin, Gideon Tate, Ben Caston and father and son, Danny Martin and Adam Martin.
Pat averaged 42 yards per punt against Mountain View in 1987, but Seth one-upped his dad with 251 yards punting for a school-record 50.2 average (Adam Martin had held the school record with his 50 average on three punts against Greenbrier in 2018).
Seth also tied Jerry Todd (1963), Brock Bertrand (1995) and Edward Rouse (2004) with a school-record four points downed inside the 20.
Dudeck’s final punt of 62 yards rolled into the end zone or he would have broken the record.
Regardless, that punt flipped the field and kept the Panthers in the game.
“That last punt was incredible,” Carmikle said. “I think Seth has the potential to be a really, really, really good one. Obviously, you look at his frame and he’s a good-looking kid. He put a lot of weight on this offseason with strength and conditioning, and he can run.”
While Pat was a quarterback for the Panthers during the 1986 through 1988 campaigns, the younger Dudeck plays wide receiver.
Seth finished the night with two receptions for 37 yards and a touchdown in the loss to Pottsville.
“He’s got great hands,” Carmikle said. “We just got to get our timing down in the passing game. I hate it that we haven’t been able to show it yet with the preseason scrimmage and in the week zero game, but we showed some things this summer at camps that I’m waiting to see on a Friday night that are really going to impress people.”
One of the three wins during the 1987 campaign for the Panthers was thrilling 19-12 homecoming victory over Clinton in which Dudeck threw the game-winning pass to Shane Nelson in overtime.
Seth will look to accomplish the same thing tonight except be on the receiving end as the Panthers travel to Clinton to battle the Yellowjackets.
Heber Springs’ Aiden Isom picks up some yards late in the Panther’s 41-0 victory over Riverview Friday at Panther Stadium. Isom was one of several ninth graders to see action against the Raiders. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
By PHILIP SEATON MarkedTime.com Publisher
Parker Brown was electric on a night when the Heber Springs Panthers needed some, literally.
Brown staked the Panthers to an early 14-0 lead against Riverview Friday night on the strength of two punts returned for a touchdown and would finish the night scoring five touchdowns and 322 all-purpose yards in a 41-0 victory over the Raiders.
Heber Springs (6-3, 5-1 in the 2-4A conference) was celebrating “senior night” with the players donning black jerseys for the first time in several years and added black pants for an all-black look.
After the first play from scrimmage, the field conditions almost mirrored the Panthers uniform look. A five-yard run by Xander Lindley opened the game but due to problems with an electrical box under the home bleachers, the game was paused, and the home bleachers were emptied as a precaution and one bank of lights on the home sideline on the north end went out.
A short pause resulted but play resumed after both teams agreed to play with only three out of the four banks of lights creating a surreal experience with the home fans spread across the track and the north endzone.
On the first play, Lindley connected with Weston Warden for a 37-yard completion, but a turnover on the next snap gave the ball to Riverview at the Raider 22. But the Panther defense forced a three-and-out, Ryder Conway lofted a punt that Brown fielded at the Panther 46. The senior sprinted almost untouched weaving through defenders not stopping until he high-fived injured teammate Liam Buffalo who was in the back of the end zone. Buffalo had knee surgery last Friday and was at the game in support of his teammates.
Senior Gideon Tate connected on the PAT to make it 7-0 with 8:19 left in the opening quarter.
With the game clock being kept on the field by the officials after the game clock was turned off when the press box was emptied, Riverview put together an almost three-minute drive before Eli Buffalo threw Trevion Greer for a seven-yard loss forcing another Conway punt from the Panther 45.
Brown took the punt at the 19 and sprinted for another score with 4:58 to play in the first quarter. Tate’s kick made it 14-0.
With the two punt returns for a score, Brown tied the single game record that he had set earlier this season against Bald Knob. His four punt returns for a score set the school record for most in a season and also set the career mark as well.
The score would remain that way as neither team threatened until late in the first half.
After Jacob McMullin recovered a Raider fumble at the Riverview 21, Lindley would connect with Brown in the end zone with 31 seconds left in the first half. Tate’s PAT made it 21-0.
At halftime, the lights were restored, and fans were able to return to the bleachers.
On the Panthers first possession of the half, Brown would add his third score of the night this time taking a pitch out from Lindley and racing 49 yards for the touchdown with 8:58 remaining in the third quarter.
Josiah Riggs interception gave Heber Springs possession of the ball on its own 15. Riggs saw significant playing time with starter Elijah Jones out of the games. The freshman finished with five total tackles including one for a loss.
Riggs was one of several ninth graders to see playing time.
“It gives us some depth,” Heber Springs coach Van Paschal said. “When Elijah went down with a concussion, that’s why Josiah was getting to play there. It’s big for a ninth grader to get in there and get some reps.”
On second down, Brown ran 55 yards to put the ball the Raider 30. On third-and-11 from the 31, Warden would take a pitch from Lindley and sprinted for another score with 1:49 to play in the third quarter. Tate’s PAT kick was blocked leaving the score 34-0.
Heber Springs was penalized 13 times for 105 yards on the night, and four of those helped the Raiders move to the ball to the Panther 19 on their next drive.
Senior Zachary Parker would make sure that Riverview wouldn’t reach the endzone stepping in front of the Conway pass at the 4 returning the ball back to the 50. “I talk about senior leadership all of the time,” Paschal said. “They do what we ask them to do all of the time. They believe in what we are preaching.
“Even when we struggled against Batesville Southside, ‘coach we are bought in.’ Then Harding, ‘we are bought in’, so they get it, and they are doing a great job.”
After a holding penalty knocked the Heber Springs back six yards, Brown would cap off the score sprinting 56 yards for the score. Tate’s PAT made it 41-0 with 10:29 left in the contest.
It was the second time in his career that Brown has scored five touchdowns. As a sophomore Brown had five touchdowns against Central Arkansas Christian in 2021. It was the third most touchdowns in game in school history. Jerry Pilkington has the record with eight touchdowns against Ola in 1949 while Markeyvus Mays had 7 touchdowns against Cave City in 2010. Brown, Mays and Pilkington are the only players in school history to have five or more touchdowns, and all three have done it twice.
The Heber Springs defense recorded its third shutout of the season, its most shutouts since 2009.
Brodie Basford and Warden each finished with 11 tackles to pace the Panthers.
Heber Springs finished the regular season as the No. 2 seed out of the 2-4A conference. The Panthers will face Lincoln, the No. 4 seed out of the 1-4A, Friday night at Panther Stadium. It will be the first meeting between the two schools.
“New round for these guys I know, but you have to buy in and tune in right now or every game is your last from here on out,” Paschal said. “That’s why everything has to be done correctly. You have to do the little things right.”
GAME 9RIVERVIEW AT HEBER SPRINGSSENIOR HIGHNOVEMBER 3, 2023 TEAM STATSTIME OF POSSESSION: N/A
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS: Heber Springs 10, Riverview 9
BY RUSH: Heber Springs 9, Riverview 6
BY PASS: Heber Springs 1, Riverview 1
BY PENALTY: Heber Springs 0, Riverview 2
TEAM RUSHING: Heber Springs 36/281/3/7.8, Riverview 30/91/0/3.3
TEAM PASSING: Heber Springs 2/4-52-1/0, Riverview 9/22-43-0/4
TOTAL OFFENSE: Heber Springs 40/333/8.3, Riverview 52/134/2.6
3RD CONVERSION: Heber Springs 4/8, Riverview 1/9
4TH CONVERSION: Heber Springs 1/1, Riverview 1/1
RED-ZONE: Heber Springs 1/1, Riverview 0/0
TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 2, Riverview 6
POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 20, Riverview 0
FUMBLES/LOST: Heber Springs 4/2, Riverview 2/2
PENALTIES: Heber Springs 13/105, Riverview 2/10
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs 0, Riverview 4/13
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs 2/135/2, Riverview 2/11
PUNTS: Heber Springs 3/109/36.3, Riverview 4/114/28.5
PUNTS INSIDE 20: Heber Springs 0, Riverview 1
SACKS: Heber Springs 0, Harding 1/6
TACKLES FOR LOSS: Heber Springs 7/28, Riverview 5/17
INDIVIDUAL STATSRUSHING: Heber Springs, Bryce Seigrist 17/62/3.7, Xander Lindley 8/(-1), Parker Brown 4/163/2, Aiden Isom 3/18, Lachlan Tubbs 2/10, Weston Warden 1/31/1, Team 1/(-2). Riverview, Trevion Greer 15/52/3.5, Nik Franklin 8/22, Ryder Conway 5/(-2), Josiah Cypert 1/16, Robert Mohr 1/3.
PASSING: Heber Springs, Xander Lindley 2/4-52-1/0. Riverview, Ryder Conway 8/20-37-0/3, Dredyn Hulsey 1/2-6-0/1.
RECEIVING: Heber Springs, Weston Warden 1/38, Parker Brown 1/14/1. Riverview, K.K. Williams 4/6, Nik Franklin 3/16, Trevion Greer 2/21.
KICKOFF RETURNS: Riverview, Trevion Greer 3/10, Chandler Beard 1/3
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs, Parker Brown 2/135/2. Riverview 2/11.
INTERCEPTION RETURN: Zachary Parker 1/46, Parker Brown 1/6
FUMBLE RETURN: Parker Brown 1/4
ALL-PURPOSE YARDS: Heber Springs, Parker Brown 322
PUNTING: Heber Springs, Gideon Tate 3/109/36.3. Riverview, Ryder Conway 4/114/1/28.5
SCORINGPAT KICKS: Gideon Tate 5/6 (Blocked)
FIELD GOALS: Paul Krause (missed 43)
POINTS: Parker Brown 30, Weston Warden 6, Gideon Tate 5
DEFENSIVE STATSSACKS: None
INDIVIDUAL SACK TOTAL: None
FUMBLE RECOVERIES: Jacob McMullin, Parker Brown
FORCED FUMBLES: None
INTERCEPTIONS: Parker Brown, Josiah Riggs, Zachary Parker, Weston Warden
PBU: Carter Julian, Eli Buffalo, Corbin Jones
QB HURRIES: Brodie Basford, Carter Julian, Jordan Tidwell
TACKLES (U/A/TFL - TOTAL)
Weston Warden 4 7 0 11
Eli Buffalo 1 4 1 5
Nate Eaton 0 2 0 2
Parker Brown 1 1 0 2
Brodie Basford 4 7 2 11
Zachary Parker 1 6 0 7
Jordan Tidwell 0 1 0 1
Jacob McMullin 1 4 0 5
Josiah Riggs 2 3 1 5
Logan Rutledge 2 3 0 5
Corbin Jones 2 2 2 4
Dyce Young 0 1 0 1
Emmett Dwyer 1 0 0 1
Carter Julian 0 3 0 3
Bryce Seigrist 0 1 0 1
Luke Elliott 0 1 0 1
Greg Williams 0 1 0 1
Logan Lozeau 0 1 0 1
Dustin Stone 1 0 1 1
Heber Springs sophomore Emmett Dwyer runs for a 13-yard gain in the second half Friday night in Searcy. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
By LARRY “SCOOP” McCARTY
SEARCY – It’s not back to the drawing board, but a time to refresh before starting the postseason run for the Heber Springs Panthers.
Harding Academy converted two fumble recoveries into touchdowns and drove 49 yards during the first quarter and claimed at least a share of the 2-4A Conference championship and a top seed for the playoffs by defeating the Panthers 41-14 at First Security Stadium on Friday.
The loss ended a 5-game win streak for Heber Springs.
The Panthers (5-3 overall, 4-1 in 2-4A Conference) will be the conference’s No. 2 seed and host either Lincoln or Gentry in the first round on Nov. 10.
The Wildcats (9-0 overall, 5-0 in 2-4A Conference), who won the 2020 and 2021 Class 3A state championships and lost to Malvern in the 2022 Class 4A title game, will host the No. 5 seed from 1-4A.
One game remains in the regular season. The Panthers will host Riverview at 7 p.m. Friday, while the Wildcats will play at Cave City.
“Good teams make you do things that you don’t want to do,” Heber Springs first-year head coach Van Paschal said. “We knew they were a good team, but it’s hard to tell for sure until you play them. They have everything going in the right direction.”
Paschal continued and said Harding Academy players and coaches were very complimentary of how the Panthers played.
“They were very complimentary of our players after the game about how they are playing and accomplished this season,” he said. “I expect play well against Riverview. These players have we will respond and answered the bell every time after losses this season.”
Heber Springs held the Wildcats to 84 yards rushing, but Wildcat quarterback Owen Miller completed 16 of 19 passes for 235 and two touchdowns. Miller also rushed for 90 yards and two more scores.
Isaac Baker became Miller’s favorite receiver with Jack Citty, one of the team’s leading receivers, was unable to play because of injury. Baker caught seven passes for 154 yards and one touchdown.
Harding Academy held a 373-125 yards advantage in total offense.
Parker Brown rushed five times for 81 yards for the Panthers. Weston Warden returned a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown during the first half. The Panthers were 0-of-4 passing.
“We had spurts of good plays,” said Paschal, referring to Brown’s runs of 15 and 58 runs and Warden’s kickoff return during the first half. “We would have a great play here and then a bad play. This game was a measuring stick for us. We just got to move forward and keep improving.”
Harding Academy took the lead after recovering a fumble at the Heber Springs 35-yard line early in the first quarter.
Two penalties moved the Wildcats backwards before Miller scrambled for 12 yards on second down and University of Arkansas commit Wyatt Simmons, who lined up in the Wildcat formation, gained seven yards for a first down.
Simmons finished the drive by running 11 yards to the Panther 1 and scored on the next play with 7:13 left in the first quarter. Griffin Thomas kicked the extra point for the 7-0 lead.
Later in the quarter, Kyler Hoover’s 21-yard punt return put Harding in scoring position at the Heber Springs 45-yard line. Miller received the snap, ran right and scored on a 45-yard run with 2:30 to go in the quarter. Thomas booted the extra point, increasing the lead to 14-0.
Harding Academy cashed in again on a fumble recovery and drove 75 yards for its next score. Simmons scored from the 1-yard line with 22 seconds remaining in the first quarter. Thomas kicked the extra point for a 21-0 lead going into the second quarter.
Issac Baker caught a short pass from Miller and ran 68 yards, giving Harding Academy a first down at the Heber Springs 18. Two plays later, Miller connected on a 14-yard touchdown pass to Endy McGalliard. The Wildcats failed on a two-point conversion try and led 27-0 with 8:52 left in the first half.
After the ensuing kickoff went out of bounds, the Panthers decided to accept the penalty, and it paid dividends. The ball hit on the 20 and bounced backwards 10 yards where Warden retrieved and scored on a 90-yard kickoff return.
Gideon Tate’s kick for the extra point was blocked as the Panthers trailed, 27-6.
Hoover nearly duplicated Warden’s return on the ensuing kickoff, returning it 59 yards to the Heber Springs 24. Three plays later, Miller passed to Hoover for a 22-yard touchdown with 7:25 left. Thomas’ successful kick increased Harding Academy’s lead to 34-6.
The Wildcats drove 67 yards for its final score of the first half as Miller scored on a 14-yard run with 1:18 left in the first half. Thomas kicked the extra point for a 41-6 halftime lead.
Backup quarterback Zack Parker put the Panthers on the board in the fourth quarter by scoring on a 2-yard keeper with 7:48 to play. Parker also ran for a 2-point conversion.
Paschal said the team will turn its attention to Riverview.
“We responded positively after the two earlier losses (Clinton and Southside Batesville),” he said. “I expect them to be ready for Riverview, which has a good team. We will fix the things that we didn’t do well. It’s important to win against Riverview and build momentum going into the playoffs.”
HEBER SPRINGS AT HARDING ACADEMYOctober 27, 2023 TEAM STATSTIME OF POSSESSION: Heber Springs 23:42, Harding 24:18
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS: Heber Springs 7, Harding 18
BY RUSH: Heber Springs 7, Harding 6
BY PASS: Heber Springs 0, Harding 11
BY PENALTY: Heber Springs 0, Harding 1
TEAM RUSHING: Heber Springs 35/125/1/3.6, Harding 23/84/4/3.7
TEAM PASSING: Heber Springs 0/4-0-0/0, Harding 21/27-289-2/0
TOTAL OFFENSE: Heber Springs 39/125/3.2, Harding 50/373/7.5
3RD CONVERSION: Heber Springs 2/7, Harding 3/5
4TH CONVERSION: Heber Springs 0/1, Harding 0/1
RED-ZONE: Heber Springs 1/1, Harding 4/4
TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 3, Harding 1
POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 8, Harding 14
FUMBLES/LOST: Heber Springs 4/3, Harding 2/1
PENALTIES: Heber Springs 3/15, Harding 5/30
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs 1/90/1, Harding 1/59
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs 0/0, Harding 1/22
PUNTS: Heber Springs 4/176/44.0, Harding 1/34
PUNTS INSIDE 20: Heber Springs 1, Harding 0
SACKS: Heber Springs 0, Harding 1/7
TACKLES FOR LOSS: Heber Springs 8/32, Harding 12/54
INDIVIDUAL STATSRUSHING: Heber Springs, Bryce Seigrist 5/4, Weston Warden 3/1, Parker Brown 5/81, Xander Lindley 10/(-20), Logan Rutledge 3/9, Dyce Young 3/8, Nate Eaton 3/33, Emmett Dwyer 1/13, Zachary Parker 2/(-4)/1. Harding Academy, Wyatt Simmons 5/28/2, Owen Miller 4/90/2, Isaac Baker 6/16, Christian Bubbus 2/0, Sam Beehn 2/0, Team 4/(-50).
PASSING: Heber Springs, Xander Lindley 0/4-0-0/0. Harding Academy, Owen Miller 16/19-235-2/0, Cam Pryor 5/8-54-0/0.
RECEIVING: Harding Academy, Isaac Baker 7/154/1/22.0, Kyler Hoover 5/40/1, Endy McGalliard 4/41/1, Cole Sivia 1/30, Joseph Myles 1/9, Christian Bubbus 1/8, Trenton Hall 1/8, Samuel Swindle 1/(-1)
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs, Weston Warden 1/90/1. Harding Academy, Kyler Hoover 1/59.
PUNT RETURNS: Harding Academy, Kyler Hoover 1/22
ALL-PURPOSE YARDS: Heber Springs, Weston Warden 91. Harding Academy, Isaac Baker 170, Kyler Hoover 121.
TOTAL OFFENSE: Harding Academy, Owen Miller 325
PUNTING: Heber Springs, Gideon Tate 4/176/44.0/1 (Long 51). Harding Academy, Griffin Thomas 1/34.
SCORINGPAT KICKS: Gideon Tate 0/1 (Blocked)
FIELD GOALS: None
POINTS: Weston Warden 6, Zachary Parker 8
DEFENSIVE STATSSACKS: None
INDIVIDUAL SACK TOTAL: None
FUMBLE RECOVERIES: Logan Lozeau
FORCED FUMBLES: None
INTERCEPTIONS: None
PBU: Emmett Dwyer
QB HURRIES: Jordan Tidwell, Nate Eaton
TACKLES (U/A/TFL - TOTAL)
Brodie Basford 2 4 0 6
Weston Warden 6 1 1 7
Logan Rutledge 4 0 0 4
Elijah Jones 0 2 1 2
Nate Eaton 0 1 1 1
Jordan Tidwell 1 1 0 2
Emmett Dwyer 1 1 0 2
Carter Julian 0 3 1 3
Parker Brown 2 1 0 3
Corbin Jones 3 1 0 4
Xander Lindley 1 0 0 1
Jacob McMullin 1 0 0 1
Team 2 0 2 2
Greg Williams 0 1 0 1
Caleb Carr 0 2 0 2
Gavin Mize 2 3 2 5
Zachary Parker 1 0 1 1
Seth Dudeck 0 1 0 1
Dyce Young 1 1 1 2
Logan Lozeau 0 1 1 1
Heber Springs’ Britt Grice and Joenah Cordell (52) hold off Stuttgart’s Nykeal Bradley on an extra-point attempt Friday night at Stuttgart. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
HEBER SPRINGS AT STUTTGART SENIOR HIGH October 20, 2023 TEAM STATS TIME OF POSSESSION: Heber Springs 24:46, Stuttgart 23:14 TOTAL FIRST DOWNS: Heber Springs 13, Stuttgart 18 BY RUSH: Heber Springs 12, Stuttgart 9 BY PASS: Heber Springs 1, Stuttgart 8 BY PENALTY: Heber Springs 0, Stuttgart 1 TEAM RUSHING: Heber Springs 42/216/3/5.1, Stuttgart 35/92/2/2.6 TEAM PASSING: Heber Springs 1/5-23-0/0, Stuttgart 20/28-290-2/1 TOTAL OFFENSE: Heber Springs 47/216/4.6, Stuttgart 63/382/6.1 3RD CONVERSION: Heber Springs 3/9, Stuttgart 7/14 4TH CONVERSION: Heber Springs 0/1, Stuttgart 1/2 RED-ZONE: Heber Springs 1/1, Stuttgart 3/4 TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 0, Stuttgart 2 POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 7, Stuttgart 0 FUMBLES/LOST: Heber Springs 1/0, Stuttgart 4/1 PENALTIES: Heber Springs 12/120, Stuttgart 7/40 KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs 4/48, Stuttgart 5/40 PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs 2/25, Stuttgart 2/19 PUNTS: Heber Springs 5/194/38.8, Stuttgart 3/101/33.7 PUNTS INSIDE 20: Heber Springs 1, Stuttgart 0 SACKS: Heber Springs 2/21, Stuttgart 0 TACKLES FOR LOSS: Heber Springs 9/48, Stuttgart 11/49 INDIVIDUAL STATS RUSHING: Heber Springs, Bryce Seigrist 18/82/4.6, Weston Warden 9/43/1, Parker Brown 6/110/2, Xander Lindley 6/13, Logan Rutledge 1/(-10), Team 2/(-27). Stuttgart Cain Price 9/11, Matthew Luster 8/39/1, Deontae Clark 7/30, Jeremiah Thomas 7/25, Kemarion Pickett 3/4/1, Kevon Conway 1/(-1), Team 1/(-16). PASSING: Heber Springs, Xander Lindley 1/5-23-0/0, Lonoke, Cain Price 20/28-290-2/1 RECEIVING: Heber Springs, Weston Warden 1/23. Stuttgart Deontae Clark 9/167/1, Ross Atkinson 5/28, Quarterion Johnson 3/70/1, Matthew Luster 1/12. KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs, Weston Warden 2/30, Parker Brown 1/14, Logan Rutledge 1/4. PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs, Parker Brown 2/25 INTERCEPTION RETURNS: Heber Springs, Emmett Dwyer 1/32 FUMBLE RETURNS: Heber Springs, Weston Warden 1/60/1 ALL-PURPOSE YARDS: Heber Springs, Parker Brown 149, Weston Warden 116. Stuttgart, Deontae Clark 214 TOTAL OFFENSE: Stuttgart, Cain Price 301 PUNTING: Heber Springs, Gideon Tate 5/194/38.8/1 (Long 63). Stuttgart Hayden Prine 3/101/33.7/0 (Long 38) SCORING PAT KICKS: Gideon Tate 3/3 FIELD GOALS: None POINTS: Parker Brown 14, Weston Warden 12, Gideon Tate 3 DEFENSIVE STATS SACKS: Team Total (2). INDIVIDUAL SACK TOTAL: Luke Elliott, Jordan Tidwell FUMBLE RECOVERIES: Weston Warden FORCED FUMBLES: Weston Warden, Logan Rutledge INTERCEPTIONS: Emmett Dwyer PBU: Emmett Dwyer 2, Brodie Basford, Eli Buffalo, Carter Julian QB HURRIES: Luke Elliott, Jordan Tidwell, Brodie Basford
Heber Springs’ Bryce Seigrist looks for first-half running room against Lonoke Friday night at Panther Stadium. The Panther sophomore rushed for 209 yards and two touchdowns in the 45-13 victory by Heber Springs. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
By PHILIP SEATON MarkedTime.com Publisher
Lonoke struck early, but Heber Springs finished it off late with 21 fourth-quarter points in claiming a 45-13 2-4A victory at Panther Stadium.
The win improved the Panthers to 4-2 on the season, their most wins since 2019, and more importantly 3-0 in the conference. Heber Springs is tied with Harding Academy atop of the conference standings. The Wildcats defeated Ouachita Christian (La.), 31-14, in a nonconference contest played in Monticello on Friday.
“I am proud for our kids,” Heber Springs coach Van Paschal said. “I am proud for this community. It’s fun listening to people talk, ‘Coach you don’t understand, it hadn’t been there and it’s just fun to go through this again’.”
Lonoke fell to 3-4 overall and 2-2 in the conference.
Bryce Seigrist led the way for the Panthers on the ground. The sophomore fullback finished with 205 yards rushing on 22 carries, with one of his two touchdowns coming at time when the game was still in doubt early in the third quarter.
With Heber Springs leading 17-13 at the break, the Panthers fumbled the ball near midfield on their opening possession of the second half, but the defense rose to the occasion. Sophomore Emmett Dwyer tackled Lonoke quarterback Bradon Allen for a short gain on second down and then broke up a pass attempt on third down forcing punt.
On the first play from scrimmage, Seigrist ripped off a 40-yard run to move the ball to the Lonoke 15. Three plays later, Seigrist punched it from the 7. After the Gideon Tate PAT kick, Heber Springs led 24-13 with 7:37 to play in the quarter.
The Jackrabbits threatened on their next possession after Allen connected with Denham Gooden on a 47-yard pass play to move the ball to the Panther 17. But on a fourth-and-2 at the Panther 9, Brodie Basford and Elijah Jones stopped Allen one-yard short.
Seigrist then took over carrying the ball eight times, including runs of 21- and 30-yards, as quarterback Xander Lindley scored on a 1-yard sneak to make it 31-13 with 11:11 left in the game. Seigrist accounted for 75 yards on the drive.
“He hit it hard,” Paschal said of Seigrist. “Boy I was proud of our offensive line, that is the key to our success is the guys up front getting it done, and he (Seigrist) is riding that wave. He is beginning to figure it out, and they all are beginning to figure it out.”
Last season, Allen torched the Heber Springs for more than 300 yards of total offense, including more than 100 yards rushing, and early on it appeared that the Lonoke senior might have a similar type of performance this season.
On the game’s first possession, Allen scrambled for 33 yards on a third-and-15 to move the ball to the Panther 35. Two Heber Springs penalties would move the ball 20 yards closer before Allen would score from the 13. The Tom Boatright extra-point kick would make it 7-0 in favor of the Jackrabbits with 9:07 to play in the first quarter.
“Lonoke traditionally is a pretty good squad,” Paschal said. “The quarterback (Allen) is just as impressive live as he is on film. He can play.”
Heber Springs senior Parker Brown showed he can play too on the ensuing possession by the Panther taking a pitch from his slotback position on the Panther 36. Brown took the pitch, and using both sides of the field, managed to avoid a pair of Lonoke defenders inside the 10 before crossing the goal line facing those same defenders. The 64-yard run and Tate PAT tied it up at 7-all with 8:01 left in the opening quarter.
The score would remain that way until early in the second quarter. After Allen intercepted a Liam Buffalo pass and returned it 31 yards to the Panther 26. From there Allen would connect with Gooden twice on the drive. The first time for 21 yards and the second time for a 14-yard touchdown with 11:21 left before the half. Weston Warden blocked Boatright’s kick attempt to make it 13-6 in favor of the visitors.
Heber Springs would respond with a scoring drive but would lose its quarterback due to an injury.
Taking over at the Panther 41, after an 11-yard kickoff return for Brown, Liam Buffalo would pick up a first down with a 16-yard run. A pair of two-yard carries by Buffalo and Seigrist moved the ball to the Lonoke 39 before Warden picked up nine yards for another first down. Buffalo would carry for 11 more but would be forced to come out after injuring his knee attempting to make a cut.
Though Buffalo attempted to re-enter on the Panthers next possession, Lindley would come in and finish the night at quarterback. The senior picked up seven yards on two carries as Heber Springs reached the Lonoke 12 before the drive stalled. Tate would connect on the 29-yard field goal with 7:10 remaining in the second to cut the Panther deficit in half.
“Let me tell you about Xander, me being the new guy here, and before Liam came out to play football (this summer), he was the guy and he got a lot of reps,” Paschal said. “With Liam coming (Xander said), ‘Coach he’s got to play, let’s give them the opportunity, I can help in other places.’
“Which is what you are looking for, sacrificing self for the team. I am proud of that young man. He came in here and got it done.”
The Panther defense got the ball back for the offense after stopping Allen and Lonoke on fourth down. A pair of Panther sophomores, Nate Eaton and Jones, pressured the Jackrabbit senior signal-caller forcing an incompletion giving Heber Springs the ball on its own 44 with 5:23 remaining before the half.
Behind the running of Seigrist and Brown, who finished the night 121 yards on seven carries and 149 all-purpose yards, the Panthers methodically moved the ball deep into Lonoke territory before Brown would score on a 21-yard run. Tate’s PAT kick with 18 seconds remaining in the quarter made it 17-13, which carried over into the half.
Warden paced the Panther defense with 10 tackles, including seven unassisted, on the night, and early in the fourth quarter would score the game’s final points. The junior would pick off an Allen pass at the Panther 40, weaving through Jackrabbits on the near side of the field near the Heber Springs bench would race 60 yards for the score as Brown and Jones sealed off Allen in the corner preventing him from making the tackle. Chase Dill would come on to kick the extra point and set the final score with 10:05 to play.
Sophomore Caleb Carr had a big night for the Panthers on special teams with four total tackles, including three unassisted.
The win all but wraps up a three seed in the playoffs for Heber Springs, as the Panthers travel to Stuttgart Friday night. A win over the Ricebirds would give the Heber Springs a home playoff for the first time since 2018, but more importantly set up a showdown on Oct. 27 in Searcy with Harding Academy for the conference title.
“You just take them one at a time.” Paschal said. “Hoping right now they smell it, if they are hungry, we have a chance.”
PLAYOFF SCENARIOS: No. 1 seed from 2-4A at home vs. No. 5 from 1-4A (Projected: Lincoln) No. 2 seed from 2-4A at home vs. No. 4 from 1-4A (Projected: Gentry/Gravette loser) No. 3 seed from 2-4A on the road at No. 3 from 1-4A (Projected: Gentry/Gravette winner)
GAME 6
LONOKE AT HEBER SPRINGS
SENIOR HIGH
October 13, 2023
TEAM STATS
TIME OF POSSESSION: Heber Springs 24:14, Lonoke 23:46
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS: Heber Springs 17, Lonoke 11
BY RUSH: Heber Springs 17, Lonoke 6
BY PASS: Heber Springs 0, Lonoke 4
BY PENALTY: Heber Springs 0, Lonoke 1
TEAM RUSHING: Heber Springs 46/415/5/9.0, Lonoke 36/89/1/2.5
TEAM PASSING: Heber Springs 2/5-17-0/1, Lonoke 10/19-135-1/1
TOTAL OFFENSE: Heber Springs 51/432/8.5, Lonoke 55/224/4.1
3RD CONVERSION: Heber Springs 3/5, Lonoke 2/11
4TH CONVERSION: Heber Springs 0/1, Lonoke 1/6
RED-ZONE: Heber Springs 4/4, Lonoke 2/3
TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 2, Lonoke 3
POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 14, Lonoke 6
FUMBLES/LOST: Heber Springs 2/1, Lonoke 3/2
PENALTIES: Heber Springs 7/85, Lonoke 10/55
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs 1/11, Lonoke 7/25
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs 0/0, Lonoke 0/0
PUNTS: Heber Springs 0/0, Lonoke 2/62
PUNTS INSIDE 20: Heber Springs 0, Lonoke 1
SACKS: Heber Springs 1/12, Lonoke 0/0
TACKLES FOR LOSS: Heber Springs 11/57, Lonoke 2/3
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING: Heber Springs, Bryce Seigrist 22/209/2/9.5, Parker Brown 7/121/2, Xander Lindley 6/23/1, Liam Buffalo 3/29, Weston Warden 3/28, Nate Eaton 2/6, Emmett Dwyer 1/1, Elijah Jones 1/0, Team 1/(-2). Lonoke, Bradon Allen 16/50/1
PASSING: Heber Springs, Liam Buffalo 0/1-0-0/1, Xander Lindley 1/4-17-0/0, Lonoke, Bradon Allen 10/19-135-1/1.
RECEIVING: Heber Springs, Parker Brown 1/17. Lonoke, Denham Gooden 4/95/1
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs, Parker Brown 1/11.
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs, none
INTERCEPTION RETURNS: Heber Springs, Weston Warden 1/60/1
ALL-PURPOSE YARDS: Heber Springs, Bryce Seigrist 209, Parker Brown 149, Weston Warden 88
PUNTING: Heber Springs, none
SCORING
PAT KICKS: Gideon Tate 5/5, Chase Dill 1/1.
FIELD GOALS: Gideon Tate: 28 (made)
POINTS: Parker Brown 12, Bryce Seigrist 12, Gideon Tate 8, Xander Lindley 6, Weston Warden 6, Chase Dill 1.
DEFENSIVE STATS
SACKS: Team Total (1).
INDIVIDUAL SACK TOTAL: Carter Julian
FUMBLE RECOVERIES: Elijah Jones
FORCED FUMBLES: Parker Brown, Jordan Tidwell/Alan Moreno
INTERCEPTIONS: Weston Warden
PBU: Emmett Dwyer 3
QB HURRIES: Carter Julian 3, Elijah Jones 2.5, Nate Eaton .5
TACKLES (U/A/TFL - TOTAL)
Carter Julian 6 3 3 9
Emmett Dwyer 5 2 0 7
Corbin Jones 1 0 1 1
Eli Buffalo 1 3 0 4
Jacob McMullin 0 1 0 1
Brodie Basford 3 2 0 5
Liam Buffalo 2 1 0 3
Weston Warden 7 3 1 10
Luke Elliott 2 1 1 3
Logan Rutledge 1 1 0 2
Elijah Jones 4 1 2 5
Jordan Tidwell 2 1 1 3
Caleb Carr 3 1 0 4
Parker Brown 1 2 0 3
Zachary Parker 1 1 0 2
Alan Moreno 1 0 1 1
Logan Lozeau 0 1 1 1
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’ Parker Brown looks upfield after breaking the tackle attempt by Bald Knob’s Eric Williams Friday night at Panther Stadium. Brown would score four touchdowns in the win. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
By LARRY “SCOOP” McCARTY
The Heber Springs Panthers celebrated homecoming and kept rolling and moved in position to challenge for an opportunity at winning the 2-4A Conference championship.
The Panthers (3-2 overall, 2-0 in 2-4A) scored touchdowns on their first four possessions and steamrolled over the Bald Knob Bulldogs (2-4 overall, 0-2 in 2-4A) 48-0 at Panther Stadium Friday night.
Heber Springs won its third consecutive game, including back-to-back shutouts of conference opponents. The Panthers and Harding Academy (6-0 overall, 3-0 in 2-4A).
After the nonconference win at Jonesboro Westside, Heber Springs had consecutive shutouts of conference foes Cave City and the Bulldogs. The Panthers accomplished that for the first time since the 1990 season when they shout out Dover and Dardanelle. It also was the first shutout by Heber Springs against Bald Knob since 1981.
“Bald Knob played just the way that I thought it would,” Heber Springs coach Van Paschal said. “We didn’t want to lose going into the open date because a team tends to have its head down when that happens.
“We are learning how to play and not be satisfied. The players did a good job of playing well at homecoming and dealing with the heat.”
The Panthers utilized their ground attack and outgained Bald Knob 223-50 yards in total offense. Heber Springs had 194 yards rushing and held the Bulldogs to a minus 78 yards. Bald Knob had an advantage of 78-29 yards in passing.
Senior Parker Brown rushed for 115 yards on three carries, scoring two touchdowns for the Panthers. Brown also had two punt returns for scores, 65 and 45 yards.
Senior Corbin Jones had two of the Heber Springs defense’s four quarterback sacks, plus five quarterback hurries. Jordan Tidwell was credited with two quarterback hurries. The Panthers had six other lost-yardage tackles. Bald Knob committed five turnovers, leading to two Panther touchdowns. Eli Buffalo returned an interception 42 yards for a score. Liam Buffalo and Weston Warden also had interceptions. Carter Julian and Brodie Basford each recovered a fumble.
“The kids played hard throughout the game,” Paschal said when talking about the shutout. “We got out of the gate early. I would like to finish the game a little bit different than we did. But I’m very proud of how we played and expect more improvement in future games.”
Heber Springs, which won the opening toss and elected to receive, dominated the first quarter. The Panthers had 137 yards, all rushing, on 12 plays, while the defense held Bald Knob to a minus three yards on 11 plays. Brown rushed for 115 of the 137 yards and scored three of the four touchdowns.
Heber Springs drove 65 yards on seven plays, with Brown putting the first points on the scoreboard by scoring on a 28-yard run with 9:39 left in the first quarter. Gideon Tate kicked the extra point for the 7-0 lead.
After a three-and-out and a Bulldog punt, the Panthers turned to Brown again. Brown broke free and ran for a 53-yard touchdown with 7:27 to go. Tate’s conversion kick increased the lead to 14-0.
Special teams set up the next score when Basford blocked Micah Story’s punt and Julian recovered at the Bald Knob 8-yard line. Liam Buffalo scored on a 3-yard keeper, plus Tate’s successful kick, increased Heber Springs’ lead to 21-0 with 4:45 remaining.
Brown capped the offensive explosion by returning a punt 65 yards for the touchdown with 2:50 left. The Panthers took a 27-0 lead into the second quarter.
“It helps when you have a cushion (scoring on first four possessions) and the players continue to do everything we ask them to do,” Paschal said. “Parker had a heck of a night.”
Defense controlled the next quarter as Eli Buffalo’s 42-yard interception return and Tate’s conversion kick with 4:34 remaining gave Heber Springs a 34-0 halftime lead.
The sportsmanship rule went into effect when Brown returned a second punt 45 yards for a touchdown with 5:58 left in the third quarter. Chase Dill kicked the extra point for a 41-0 lead.
Xander Lindley threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Jones for the final touchdown with 4:55 to play. Paul Krause kicked the extra point.
Heber Springs will have two weeks in preparing for Lonoke (3-3 overall, 2-1 in 2-4A) at home on Oct. 13, the first of three games against teams in the top half of the standings.
The Panthers will play back-to-back road games at Stuttgart (Oct. 20) and Harding Academy (Oct. 27) before finishing the regular season at home against Riverview on Nov. 3.
“We will start focusing on Lonoke beginning Tuesday,” Paschal said. “We will be adding a few new things on offense and defense.”
Paschal concluded by saying the Panthers will focus on only one game at a time during the three-game stretch.
GAME NOTES
STOPPING THE DOG: Second fewest rushing yards allowed to a Bald Knob team with 29. The fewest is a school record minus 31 set on Sept. 16, 2011.
CATCHING A BONE: The three interceptions by the defense were the most since Oct. 5, 2018, when the Panthers recorded three at Central Arkansas Christian. The Panthers now have picked off three or more passes in game 40 times in school history. The school record for most interceptions in a game is 5 set at Harding Academy on Oct. 5, 1962.
BIG DOG: On Friday against Bald Knob, Parker Brown set a school record with most punts returned for a touchdown in game with two. His two punt returns for a score also tied him with Rickey Pilkington with most punts returned for a touchdown in a season at two. Pilkington scored his in 1968 games against DeValls Bluff and Vilonia. Pilkington has also had a punt return for a touchdown against England in 1967 which gives him a school record three career punt returns for scores. Pierce Mitchum is the only Panther in school history to have more than one punt returned for a touchdown. Mitchum recorded his against Stuttgart in 2016 and at Newport in 2015. Of note, Brown would have tied the career mark Friday night but he a punt return for a score called back against Jonesboro Westside last season because of a penalty.
Brown’s 65-yarder for a score Friday is tied for the 13th longest in school history and the longest punt return since Mitchum’s 66-yarder against Stuttgart in 2016. Jerry Todd holds the score record with a 93-yarder set against Batesville “B” in 1963.
Brown also set the single game record for most punt return yards in a game with 115. Mark Hoffman previously held the mark with 112 yards set at Mountain View in 1980. Parker finished with 225 all-purpose yards which places him in the top 50 all-time in recorded school history. Jacob Bremmon holds the all-purpose yards in game record with 421 set in a playoff game at Gravette in 2017.
GAME 5
BALD KNOB AT HEBER SPRINGS
SENIOR HIGH
September 29, 2023
TEAM STATS TIME OF POSSESSION: Heber Springs 21:26, Bald Knob 26:34
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS: Heber Springs 7, Bald Knob 9
BY RUSH: Heber Springs 6, Bald Knob 7
BY PASS: Heber Springs 1, Bald Knob 1
BY PENALTY: Heber Springs 0, Bald Knob 1
TEAM RUSHING: Heber Springs 34/194/5.7, Bald Knob 28/29/1.0
TEAM PASSING: Heber Springs 1/3-29-1/0, Bald Knob 12/22-78-0/3
TOTAL OFFENSE: Heber Springs 37/223/6.0, Bald Knob 50/107/2.1
3RD CONVERSION: Heber Springs 2/6, Bald Knob 3/13
4TH CONVERSION: Heber Springs 2/3, Bald Knob 1/3
RED-ZONE: Heber Springs 1/2, Bald Knob 0/0
TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 1, Bald Knob 5
POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 14, Bald Knob 0
FUMBLES/LOST: Heber Springs 1/1, Bald Knob 2/2
PENALTIES: Heber Springs 9/60, Bald Knob 6/51
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs 0/0, Cave City 5/44/8.8
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs 2/110, Bald Knob 0/0
PUNTS: Heber Springs 2/88, Bald Knob 5/101/20.2/1
PUNTS INSIDE 20: Heber Springs 1, Bald Knob 0
SACKS: Heber Springs 4/27, Bald Knob 0
TACKLES FOR LOSS: Heber Springs 11/42, Bald Knob 8/25
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING: Heber Springs, Bryce Seigrist 11/30/2.7, Liam Buffalo 7/28/1, Parker Brown 3/115/2, Team 3/(-5), Weston Warden 2/(-8), Nate Eaton 2/3, Gideon Tate 1/31, Xander Lindley 1/0. Bald Knob, Bohn Hickmon 13/20, James Holder 13/7, Hunter Burleson 1/2, Dakota Shoebottom 1/0.
PASSING: Heber Springs, Liam Buffalo 0/2-0-0/0, Xander Lindley 1/1-29-1/0. Bald Knob, James Holder 12/22-78-0/3
RECEIVING: Heber Springs, Elijah Jones 1/29/1. Bald Knob, Brady Johnston 5/44, Bohn Hickmon 4/12, Eric Williams 2/22, Micah Story 1/0.
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs, none. Bald Knob, Brady Johnston 2/33, Eric Williams 2/10, Micah Story 1/1.
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs, Parker Brown 2/110/2
INTERCEPTION RETURNS: Heber Springs, Eli Buffalo 1/42/1, Weston Warden 1/17
FUMBLE RETURNS: Carter Julian 1/25, Bald Knob, Adrian Williams 1/12
ALL-PURPOSE YARDS: Heber Springs, Parker Brown 225
PUNTING: Heber Springs, Gideon Tate 2/88. Bald Knob, Garrett Swindle 4/101, Team 1/0/1 blk
SCORING
PAT KICKS: Gideon Tate 4/5, Chase Dill 1/1, Paul Krause 1/1
FIELD GOALS: None
POINTS: Parker Brown 24, Liam Buffalo 6, Elijah Jones 6, Eli Buffalo 6, Gideon Tate 4, Chase Dill 1, Paul Krause 1
DEFENSIVE STATS
SACKS: Team Total (4).
INDIVIDUAL SACK TOTAL: Corbin Jones 2, Brodie Basford 1, Carter Julian 1, Luke Elliot 1, Jordan Tidwell 1, Nate Eaton 1.
FUMBLE RECOVERIES: Carter Julian, Brodie Basford
FORCED FUMBLES: Brodie Basford, Jordan Tidwell
INTERCEPTIONS: Liam Buffalo, Eli Buffalo, Weston Warden
PBU: Corbin Jones, Eli Buffalo, Weston Warden
QB HURRIES: Corbin Jones 5, Jordan Tidwell 2, Xander Lindley
BLOCKED PUNTS: Brodie Basford
TACKLES (U/A/TFL - TOTAL)
Liam Buffalo 3 2 0 5
Weston Warden 5 1 0 6
Brodie Basford 3 6 2 9
Luke Elliott 1 2 2 3
Emmett Dwyer 4 0 0 4
Corbin Jones 3 4 4 7
Carter Julian 1 2 2 3
Eli Buffalo 2 2 0 4
Jordan Tidwell 4 0 3 4
Xander Lindley 2 0 0 2
Elijah Jones 1 1 0 2
Nate Eaton 2 1 2 3
Gavin Mize 2 0 0 2
Jacob McMullin 0 1 0 1
Parker Brown 1 1 0 2
Greg Williams 1 0 0 1
Sophomore Bryce Seigrist fights for some his 131 yards rushing on the night in Heber Springs’ 42-0 victory at Cave City. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
By PHILIP SEATON MarkedTime.com Publisher
CAVE CITY – Senior Parker Brown touched the ball four times and scored twice, but it was a sophomore that did most of the work on the ground as Heber Springs mercy-ruled Cave City, 42-0, in the 2-4A opener for both schools.
In coach Van Paschal’s flexbone system, the fullback is an important part of making the offense move and sophomore Bryce Siegrist stepped into that role and rushed for 131 yards on 16 carries. The former junior high quarterback replaced another sophomore, Eli Buffalo, who had been out most of the week due to an illness.
Seigrist averaged 8.2 yards per attempt and scored once. He also had an 80-yard touchdown called back due to a holding penalty.
“He took a while to figure it out, Eli had been sick most of the week, so we were like, ‘Hey who wants to play fullback?’,” Paschal said. “Here he comes all 99 pounds of him or whatever, but he is tough.”
After rushing for a school-record yards per attempt the previous week against Jonesboro Westside, the Panthers rushed for 297 yards on 27 attempts with four touchdowns. They averaged 11 yards per carry, which tied for the fifth-best all time in school history.
Heber Springs (2-2, 1-0) forced a season-high four turnovers including recovering the onside kick attempt to start the game, as senior Logan Lozeau pounced on the football at the Panther 46.
A 23-yard run by quarterback Liam Buffalo highlighted the short drive, but Panthers committed their only turnover of the night as junior Weston Warden, who appeared to have crossed the goal line, fumbled the ball that went out of the back of the endzone.
Heber Springs’ defense allowed a first down on the ensuing drive but buckled up forcing a punt from the Caveman 41. Brown returned that punt 39 yards to the Cave City 19. Two penalties almost stalled the drive, but Liam Buffalo connected with Brown for the 17-yard touchdown pass. Gideon Tate’s kick made it 7-0 with 5:34 left in the opening quarter. Tate was a perfect five-for-five on PATs on the night.
Liam Buffalo got the ball back for the Panthers just over two minutes later picking off a Levi Jones pass after the Cave City junior was pressured from lineman Jacob McMullin.
On the first play after the turnover, Heber Springs took at 14-0 lead as Brown raced 32 yards for the score at the 3:26 mark of the first quarter.
The Panthers weren’t finished in the first quarter as sophomore Nate Eaton recovered a Cave City fumble at the Caveman 38 with 2:12 to play in the opening stanza.
After a seven-yard run by Liam Buffalo, Siegrist darted up the middle for a 31-yard touchdown with 1:29 left in the first for a 21-0 advantage for the Panthers.
Cave City (0-4, 0-1) picked up its second first down of the game as the first quarter came to close, but the Panthers forced a turnover on downs to get the ball back for the offense. Of the seven plays of the Cavemen drive, junior transfer Brodie Basford had two solo stops and assisted on three more. Basford finished the night with a team-high 16 total tackles.
“He plays hard,” Pascal said. “Coming from day one, he was, ‘I want to play linebacker’ and now he is playing it well.”
Liam Buffalo connected with senior Xander Lindley three plays later to make it 28-0 with 9:06 left in the half.
Cave City picked up another first down but was forced to punt from its own 34. The Cavemen attempted a trick play as punter Millie Beller attempted to run with the ball, but Eaton had her and the play figured out, tackling the Cave City senior for an eight-yard loss. Warden would score from there, taking the ball 26 yards for the touchdown giving the Panthers a 35-0 lead and the Arkansas Activities Association’s Mercy-Rule in effect with 5:38 left in the first half.
Brown forced a fumble on Cave City’s first play after the ensuing kickoff with Carter Julian recovering the ball at the Caveman 39.
The drive stalled and Tate attempted a 51-yard field goal, which would have been yard short of the school record 52-yarder by Nick James set back in 1998. The kick was on target but fell about five yards short.
Cave City took possession on its own 20 with 3:34 to play in the second quarter. The Cavemen reached the Panther 47, but Eaton put the exclamation point on the first half by sacking Jones to end the half.
The only thing left to decide in the second half was to see if Heber Springs’ defense could record the shutout.
Cave City almost took that off table early taking the second-half kickoff and reaching the Panther 4. But Warden punched the ball free on third-and-goal and Jordan Tidwell landed on the ball in the endzone with 1:13 remaining in the third, putting the ball on the Panther 20.
Seigrist took the fullback dive and raced 80 yards for the score, but a holding penalty negated the long score. However, that penalty only temporarily slowed down Heber Springs. The Panthers would use a 10-play drive that sophomore Emmett Dwyer capped off with a 38-yard touchdown run. Chase Dill came on to hit the extra point kick to make it 42-0 with 4:12 remaining in the contest.
Heber Springs picked up its first shutout in conference play since 2018, when they did the trick at Southside Batesville, 21-0.
Defensive coordinator Kevin Youngbloods’ defense held Cave City to 124 yards of total offense, including limiting the Cavemen to 87 yards rushing on 43 attempts.
“From day one that I got here, I told coach Youngblood if we can’t stop ’em, it doesn’t matter how many points that we score,” Paschal said. “It’s a priority. It’s going to continue to be a priority.
“We are still trying to get everybody where we want, and it’s not 100 percent, but it’s getting closer. I am proud of them.”
Heber Springs will face Bald Knob next week in a homecoming contest at Panther Stadium.
“We have to watch film, evaluate and see what we did right and what we have to fix to get better on every given play, and have the kind of effort,” Paschal aid. “You can tell they are excited right now and I hope that we can ride that wave, but Bald Knob is going to better football team than ones we played the last two weeks.
“They (his team) are smart enough to know that. We are going to have to play hard, get some breaks and make some things happen.”
GAME 4
HEBER SPRINGS AT CAVE CITY
SENIOR HIGH
September 22, 2023
TEAM STATS
TIME OF POSSESSION: Heber Springs 16:34, Cave City 31:26
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS: Heber Springs 13, Cave City 13
BY RUSH: Heber Springs 12, Cave City 9
BY PASS: Heber Springs 1, Cave City 2
BY PENALTY: Heber Springs 0, Cave City 2
TEAM RUSHING: Heber Springs 27/297/11.0, Cave City 43/87/2.0
TEAM PASSING: Heber Springs 2/2-47-2/0, Cave City 3/6-47-0/1
TOTAL OFFENSE: Heber Springs 29/343/11.8, Cave City 49/124/2.5
3RD CONVERSION: Heber Springs 4/5, Cave City 2/9
4TH CONVERSION: Heber Springs 0/0, Cave City 1/4
RED-ZONE: Heber Springs 1/2, Cave City 0/1
TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 1, Cave City 4
POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 21, Cave City 0
FUMBLES/LOST: Heber Springs 1/1, Cave City 5/3
PENALTIES: Heber Springs 6/67, Cave City 3/24
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs 0/0, Cave City 5/55/11.0
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs 1/39, Cave City 0
PUNTS: Heber Springs 0/0, Cave City 1/27
PUNTS INSIDE 20: Heber Springs 0, Cave City 0
SACKS: Heber Springs 1/14, Cave City 0
TACKLES FOR LOSS: Heber Springs 13/50, Cave City 4/9
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING: Heber Springs, Bryce Seigrist 16/131/1/8.2, Liam Buffalo 3/29, Parker Brown 2/55/1, Weston Warden 2/42/1, Nate Eaton 2/8, Emmett Dwyer 1/38/1, Team 1/(-6). Cave City, Shawn Walling 16/31, Matthew King 12/45, Kenny Stephens 4/10, Levi Jones 5/5, Devonyeah Berry 4/10, Miller Beller 1/(-8), Team 1/(-6).
PASSING: Heber Springs, Liam Buffalo 2/2-47-2/0. Cave City, Levi Jones 3/6-37-0/1.
RECEIVING: Heber Springs, Xander Lindley 1/30/1, Parker Brown 1/17/1. Cave City, Shawn Walling 2/28, Christopher Robinson 1/9.
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs, none. Cave City, Devonyeah Berry 2/3, Shawn Walling 1/29, Kenny Stephens 1/22, Matthew King 1/(-3).
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs, Parker Brown 1/39
INTERCEPTION RETURNS: Heber Springs, Liam Buffalo 1/2
ALL-PURPOSE YARDS: Heber Springs, Bryce Seigrist 131, Parker Brown 111
PUNTING: Heber Springs, none. Cave City, Millie Beller 1/27.
SCORING
PAT KICKS: Gideon Tate 5/5, Chase Dill 1/1
FIELD GOALS: Gideon Tate 0/1 (51 NG)
POINTS: Parker Brown 12, Bryce Seigrist 6, Weston Warden 6, Emmet Dwyer 6, Xander Lindley 6, Gideon Tate 5, Chase Dill 1.
DEFENSIVE STATS
SACKS: Nate Eaton
FUMBLE RECOVERIES: Nate Eaton, Carter Julian, Jordan Tidwell
FORCED FUMBLES: Weston Warden, Parker Brown, Brodie Basford
INTERCEPTIONS: Liam Buffalo
PBU: Logan Rutledge
QB HURRIES: Dyce Young (2), Jacob McMullin, Jordan Tidwell, Brodie Basford
TACKLES (U/A/TFL - TOTAL)
Liam Buffalo 6 1 2 7
Brodie Basford 11 5 6 16
Emmett Dwyer 2 2 0 4
Carter Julian 6 1 0 7
Luke Elliott 1 2 0 3
Jordan Tidwell 2 0 0 2
Nate Eaton 4 3 1 7
Gavin Mize 0 2 0 2
Jacob McMullin 0 3 0 3
Elijah Jones 1 0 0 1
Weston Warden 1 3 1 4
Dyce Young 1 3 0 4
Parker Brown 2 1 0 3
Logan Lozeau 1 0 0 1
Logan Rutledge 1 1 1 2
Caleb Carr 1 0 0 1
Xander Lindley 2 0 0 2
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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
Heber Springs defenders Zachary Parker (12), Jacob McMullin (25), Weston Warden (bottom of pile) and Jordan Tidwell (arm pictured) bring down Southside Batesville’s Gabe Witt. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
By PHILIP SEATON MarkedTime.com Publisher
SOUTHSIDE BATESVILLE – Heber Springs traveled to one of the favorites of the 5A-East conference and were handed a 49-10 setback by Southside Batesville in nonconference play.
The Southerners (3-0) led 28-3 at the half and held the Panthers (0-2) to 11 first-half yards of total offense and minus nine yards rushing.
“I told coach (Southside Batesville coach Kenny) Simpson that they have a good chance to win that conference,” Heber Springs coach Van Paschal, who coached at 5A-East member Wynne last season, said after the game. “They are a good football team. Ain’t no doubt about it.”
The Southerners dominated from the start.
Heber Springs took the opening kickoff on its own 29 and moved the ball for a first down on a fourth-and-2 play, but a penalty pushed the Panthers back forcing a punt.
Gideon Tate’s 42-yard punt switched the field for the Panthers, but Southside Batesville used their senior-laden line to march 74 yards in nine plays to take a 7-0 lead after Louis Calhoun ran 19 yards for the score. Joel Busby added the PAT kick at the 6:02 mark of the first quarter.
A sack stalled the Panthers on their next possession, and the Southerners struck quickly as Savion Hall connected with Seth Case for a 47-yard touchdown pass with 2:30 to play in the opening quarter. Busby’s PAT made it 14-0.
Heber Springs fumbled the ball five times on the night and lost three of them, including on its next possession as Brady Wood recovered the ball for Southside Batesville at the Panther 35.
Three plays later, Calhoun would score from the 1 to push the Southerner lead to 21-0 with 1:36 to play in the opening quarter.
The Panthers went backwards on their next possession. A 45-yard punt by Tate that pinned Southside Batesville inside their own 20-yard line, but the Southerners used a 12-play, 81-yard drive that used 4:39 of the second quarter to a 28-0 advantage. Gabe Witt scored from the 5-yard line with 7:08 left before the half.
Heber Springs put together its best drive on their next possession. Starting on the Southerner 48 after a failed onside-kick attempt, the Panthers marched to the Southside Batesville 8. Junior Weston Warden rushed for 33 yards on five carries and caught a 20-yard pass from junior Liam Buffalo to highlight the drive. The drive stalled after five-yard loss and senior Gideon Tate came on the field and kicked his first career field goal drilling the 30-yarder to make it 28-3 with 1:45 to play in the half.
Despite the good end to first half by the Panthers, Southside would dominate the third quarter using a 12-play drive to make it 35-3 after Isaac Wallis scored from the 4. A Heber Springs fumble gave the Southerners a short field to push the score to 42-3. Witt scored from the 4 for Southside Batesville.
Another Panther fumble with 1:44 left in the third quarter gave Southside Batesville the ball on the Panther 25 and Trey Allen connected with Tyler Myers on an 11-yard touchdown pass on the fourth quarter with a continuous running clock.
With the second-teamers on the field, Heber Springs used a 65-yard drive to set the final score. Nate Eaton (13 yards), Emmett Dwyer (12 yards), Elijah Jones (21 yards) and Bryce Siegrist (16 yards) each had first-down carrying runs to move the ball to the Southerner 3. Eaton would get the touchdown from there with 4:47 showing on third-quarter clock. Tate added the PAT to set the final score.
“Would have liked to have played better tonight,” Paschal said. “We have to watch film, fix things. I told the kids if we were 2-0 in nonconference that’s great, but really doesn’t affect the conference race so we are 0-2, and we have got to work.”
Heber Springs travels to Jonesboro Westside Friday night to close out nonconference action.
HEBER SPRINGS AT SOUTHSIDE BATESVILLE
SENIOR HIGH
September 8, 2023
TEAM STATS
TIME OF POSSESSION: Heber Springs 21:19, Southside 26:41
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS: Heber Springs 7, Southside 23
BY RUSH: Heber Springs 6, Southside 18
BY PASS: Heber Springs 1, Southside 4
BY PENALTY: Heber Springs 0, Southside 1
TEAM RUSHING: Heber Springs 34/78/2.3, Southside 54/298/5.5
TEAM PASSING: Heber Springs 1/1-20-0/0, Southside 7/9-105-2/1
TOTAL OFFENSE: Heber Springs 35/98/2.8, Southside 63/403/6.4
3RD CONVERSION: Heber Springs 1/7, Southside 6/10
4TH CONVERSION: Heber Springs 1/1, Southside 3/3
RED-ZONE: Heber Springs 2/2, Southside 6/6
TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 3, Southside 1
POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: Heber Springs 0, Southside 21
FUMBLES/LOST: Heber Springs 5/3, Southside 2/0
PENALTIES: Heber Springs7/51, Southside 7/50
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs 6/37/6.2, Southside 2/32
PUNT RETURNS: Heber Springs 0, Southside 1/4
PUNTS: Heber Springs 3/120/40, Southside 0
PUNTS INSIDE 20: Heber Springs 1, Southside 0
SACKS: Heber Springs 0/0, Southside 2/15
TACKLES FOR LOSS: Heber Springs 3/7, Southside 11/47
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING: Heber Springs, Liam Buffalo 8/(-10), Brodie Basford 7/8, Weston Warden 6/28, Nate Eaton 3/18/1, Parker Brown 3/(-12), Bryce Siegrist 2/24, Emmett Dwyer 2/10, Elijah Jones 1/21, Logan Rutledge 1/(-6), Team 1/(-3). Southside Batesville, Gabe Witt 11/53/2, Louis Calhoun 10/74/2, Seth Case 7/41, Savion Hall 9/78, Isaac Wallis 5/40/1, Braden Simpson 3/14, Nick Lopez 3/4, Zach Johnston 1/(-2), Trey Allen 1/(-4).
PASSING: Heber Springs, Liam Buffalo 1/1-20-0/0. Southside Batesville, Savion Hall 6/8-94-1/1, Trey Allen 1/1-11-1/0
RECEIVING: Heber Springs, Weston Warden 1/20. Southside Batesville, Jaylon Jennings 1/1, Braden Simpson 2/34, Seth Case 1/47/1, Louis Calhoun 1/1, Isaac Wallis 1/11, Tyler Myers 1/11/1.
KICKOFF RETURNS: Heber Springs, Logan Rutledge 3/28, Weston Warden 1/6, Bryce Siegrist 1/3
ALL-PURPOSE YARDS: Heber Springs, Weston Warden 54
PUNTING: Heber Springs, Gideon Tate 3/120/40.0/1. LONG: 45
SCORING
PAT KICKS: Gideon Tate 1/1, Southside 7/7
FIELD GOALS: Gideon Tate 1/1. MADE: 30
POINTS: Nate Eaton 6, Gideon Tate 4
DEFENSIVE STATSSACKS: Southside 2/15
FUMBLE RECOVERIES: None
FORCED FUMBLES: None
PBU: Eli Buffalo
QB HURRIES: None
TACKLES (U/A/TFL - TOTAL)
Carter Julian 5 5 0 10
Parker Brown 4 2 0 6
Logan Lozeau 1 0 0 1
Bryce Siegrist 3 2 1 5
Eli Buffalo 6 2 0 8
Weston Warden 2 3 0 5
Jacob McMullin 4 3 0 7
Luke Elliott 2 0 0 2
Zachary Parker 2 2 0 4
Nash Farmer 0 1 0 1
Jordan Tidwell 3 0 0 3
Logan Rutledge 1 0 0 1
Nate Eaton 2 1 2 3
Corbin Jones 1 1 0 2
Emmett Dwyer 1 0 0 1
Greg Williams 1 1 0 2
Elijah Jones 2 2 0 4
Gauge Owens 1 0 0 1
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