It was the legs of senior quarterback Liam Buffalo and not his arm Friday night at Panther Stadium that was making history.
Buffalo became the first quarterback in recorded school history to rush for more than 200 yards in game in helping lead the Panthers to a 40-28 victory over Lamar.
Buffalo’s 213 yards on the ground was the 24th best performance in school history, but the best ever by a Heber Springs quarterback. Markeyvus Mays rushed for 332 yards against Harding Academy in 2010 to set the standard for all backs, but Buffalo bettered the previous best mark by a quarterback of 180 yards set by Jerry Todd in a 1964 game against Clinton.
The senior quarterback also had the seventh-best performance by a back rushing for 14.2 yards on 15 carries. Mays holds the overall mark rushing yards per attempt (minimum 10 attempts) at 29.5 set against Cave City in 2010. Buffalo did set the rushing average mark by a quarterback bettering the previous mark of 13.4 set by Birch Grisso in a 1983 game against Clinton.
Buffalo finished the night with four rushing touchdowns tying him for 4th all-time in a game with 15 others. Jerry Pilkington set the school record with eight against Ola in 1949. Mays finished with seven against Cave City in 2010 and five against Newport in 2010 for second and third on the list. Buffalo however was the first quarterback in recorded history to rush for four touchdowns. The previous record of three was held by 10 other Panther quarterbacks.
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
The Heber Springs defense, from left, Lucas Langster (50), Payton Owens (68), Thad Bray (55) and Jackson West (23), hits the road tonight at Bald Knob. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
By LARRY “SCOOP” McCARTY
Heber Springs will play the second of an important 4-game stretch with the same approach — focus on the next opponent.
The Panthers (1-2 in 2-4A Conference, 2-3) will play the winless Bald Knob Bulldogs (0-3 in 2-4A Conference, 0-6) at Bulldog Stadium in Bald Knob at 7 p.m. Friday.
Hooten’s Magazine made the Bulldogs an 1-point favorite against Heber Springs in its weekly Class 4A predictions.
It also will be homecoming for Bald Knob, which lost to conference leader Stuttgart 42-19 last week. The Panthers are coming off a 47-26 win against Central Arkansas Christian.
“Win or lose, we always only look at the next game,” Heber Springs coach Todd Wood said. “We have a group of good guys, who aren’t looking past Bald Knob. We played our most complete game of the season against CAC. I liked what I’ve seen during practice this week.”
Running back Parker Brown and quarterback Xander Lindley were responsible for 470 yards for the Panthers against CAC. Brown rushed 16 times for 223 yards and four touchdowns, and he caught three passes for 44 yards and one touchdown.
Lindley completed 11-of-13 passes for 113 yards and one touchdown against the Mustangs. He ran for 134 yards on 13 carries and scored two touchdowns.
“Parker did what he was capable of, and Xander continues to mature at quarterback,” Wood said. “I’m proud of the number of players — receivers Chris Edwards, Austin Winchester, Easton Cusick, Dalton Yancey and Jackson West — touching the ball. When you can spread the ball around to that many receivers, that helps an offense quite a bit.”
Brown didn’t set a school or stadium single-game record with his five total touchdowns. However, he did become the first Panther to have a 200-yard rushing and a 200-yard receiving games during the same season. Markeyvus Mays rushed for seven touchdowns on 11 carries in a win over Cave City on Nov. 4, 2010. Jerry Pilkington holds the school record with eight rushing touchdowns against Ola on Oct. 14, 1949.
Wood also was elated with the Panthers not having a turnover. Heber Springs had eight turnovers in the first four games.
“We spent more time this year stressing the importance of protecting the ball,” he said. “We didn’t do that much last year because of limited practice time because of Covid-19.”
Brown is the leading rusher for the Panthers with 537 yards on 63 carries and seven touchdowns. He has caught eight passes for 264 yards and four touchdowns.
Lindley has completed 35-of-61 passes for 516 yards and five touchdowns. He is the team’s second-leading rusher with 185 yards on 54 attempts and two touchdowns.
Wood said credit for the offense’s success against CAC came from the performance of the offensive line — Lucas Langster (left guard), Payton Owens (left tackle), Zach Thomas (center), Tristan Thissen (right guard) and Thad Bray (right tackle).
“I really enjoyed watching them on film after the game,” he said. “It was good seeing them come off the ball strong, and they executed well. They are showing improvement, and we need it to continue.”
Wood recalled the six turnovers — four interceptions and two fumbles — against Bald Knob in last year’s 35-15 loss.
Quarterback Leason Pierce, who completed 13-of-23 passes for 156 yards and three touchdowns in 2020, returns for the Bulldogs. Pierce connected on 11-of-17 passes for 132 yards during the second half. Bald Knob converted 5-of-7 third-down plays, and 2-of-8 plays on fourth down.
Wood is confident that his defense with a year of experience, plus playing three of the conference’s best quarterbacks this season, will play well.
“I told the players and defensive coaches we faced a talented mobile quarterback for the past three weeks,” he said. “They had speed and were able to go outside the pocket and make plays. We are looking at a quarterback (Pierce) who doesn’t have that kind of speed, but he has the ability to make things happens. We must contain him in the pocket.”
Linebackers Kenan Sneed, Hayden Johnson and West continue to lead the Heber Springs defense. Sneed had 21 tackles against CAC, while Johnson recorded 13 tackles and West was credited with 12 tackles.
“I’m pleased with our defense,” Wood said. “They did a good job of containing (CAC quarterback) Tyler Williams. He got a couple of big plays, but we kept him contained most of the game. Sneed puts up the numbers, and Johnson is playing well and making big plays.”
Wood said the play of the defensive line is improving.
“We changed our tactics and our strength is beginning to show,” he said. “Owens has been a surprise. Langster has the speed, and Bray has the size. The line can cause trouble for other teams.”
Wood said the formula is simple for a win.
“On offense, we must control and protect ball and execute well,” he said. “On defense, we must pressure the quarterback.”
Kickoff: 7 p.m. at Bald Knob
Radio/Streaming: Billy Morgan with handle the play-by-play with Lance Hamilton providing color on KSUG 101.9 The Lake. Panther Pregame begins at 6:30 p.m. followed by the game. Streaming is available on The Lake’s YouTube page.
THE SERIES: Bald Knob leads 38-23-2
SERIES HISTORY: This will be the 64th time these two schools have meet on the football field. Heber Springs and Bald Knob first played during the 1929 season, a 26-2, Panther victory. It would be 11 more seasons before the two teams played again, a 1940 12-0 victory by Heber Springs. Heber Springs would win the first three games in the series before Bald Knob would win 18 out of 20 games played (a 1950 34-13 win by the Panthers broke a five-game losing streak in the series while a 1964 12-7 win broke a 10-game losing streak). The series would be fairly even before Heber Springs won eight straight from 1976 through 1983 before the Bulldogs closed out the 1980s winning six-in-a-row. In the 1990s, the teams would meet seven times with the Panthers getting wins during the 1990 and 1999 seasons. Since the 2005 season, Heber Springs and Bald Knob have played 10 times with the Panthers winning seven of those contests, but the Bulldogs did spoil the Heber Springs’ homecoming last season with a 35-15 victory.
2A-4 CONFERENCE STANDINGSW L CP W L PS PA
Stuttgart 3 0 29 5 1 208 112
Little Rock Mills 2 1 26 5 1 276 151
Lonoke 2 1 26 5 1 197 105
Southside Batesville 2 1 15 4 2 197 118
Clinton 2 1 23 3 3 168 179
Heber Springs 1 2 13 2 3 112 146
Bald Knob 0 3 0 0 6 74 195
Central Arkansas Christian 0 3 0 2 4 159 278
Friday, October 9
Heber Springs 47, Central Arkansas Christian 26
Stuttgart 42, Bald Knob 19
Southside Batesville 38, Lonoke 36 (OT)
Clinton 38, Little Rock Mills 28
Friday, October 16
Heber Springs at Bald Knob
Southside Batesville at Central Arkansas Christian
Lonoke at Little Rock Mills
Clinton at Stuttgart
Heber Springs’ Kenan Sneed comes in to help finish off a tackle of CAC receiver Vance Strange Friday night at Panther Stadium. Also pictured for Heber Springs is Chris Edwards (at Strange’s knee) and Lucas Langster. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
HEBER SPRINGS – Parker Brown’s youth football coach, Jack Cook, had a nickname for Brown as he ran over opposing defenses for the “Pee Wee” Panthers — “Downtown Parker Brown.”
Flash forward to Friday night at Panther Stadium and a 47-26 victory by the senior high Panthers over Central Arkansas Christian, that moniker could have easily been “Touchdown Parker Brown” as the sophomore rushed for 223 yards on 16 carries and four touchdowns, and also had three receptions for 44 yards and another score, to finish with five touchdowns on the night.
Parker Brown
His five total touchdowns is the most by Panther since Nov. 4, 2010, when Markeyvus Mays rushed for seven touchdowns on 11 carries in a win over Cave City. Jerry Pilkington has the most in school history with eight rushing touchdowns against Ola on Oct. 14, 1949.
While Brown didn’t set a school or stadium record Friday night, he did make history by becoming the first Heber Springs football player in 100 seasons to have a 200-yard rushing game and a 200-yard receiving game (at Dover on Sept. 17) in the same season.
Through five games, Brown has 11 touchdowns (seven on the ground and four receiving) and 910 all-purpose yards (182 per game). He has rushed 63 times for 537 yards (107.4 yards per game and 8.5 yards per attempt) and is tied with Easton Cusick with a team-high eight receptions for 264 yards.
PROFESSOR X: Sophomore quarterback Xander Lindley scored his first two touchdowns of his senior high career Friday night on runs of 1- and 35-yards. He rushed for 134 yards on 13 carries for an average of 10.3 yards per carry. Lindley also passed for 113 yards (on 11 of 13 passing) to finish with 247 yards of total offense on the night.
For the season, Lindley (who last played quarterback as eighth-grader until this season) has completed 35 passes on 61 attempts for a 57.4 completion percentage. He also passed for 515 yards and five touchdowns.
Lindley leads the team with 700 yards of total offense.
X-MEN: Though CAC finished with 347 yards of total offense, 320 of that coming from Mustang senior Tyler Williams, the Panthers limited CAC 4.3 yards per carry (take out Williams’ rushing totals and the Panthers held the Mustangs to 1.7 yards per attempt for the rest of the CAC backs) and had a second-quarter, goal-line stand as they stopped Williams inches short of end zone on fourth down.
That goal-line stand led to a 99-yard touchdown drive by the offense and a commanding 28-6 lead with 1:17 left in the first half.
The Mustangs would pull to within 14 in the third quarter and reach the Panther 30 before another four-down stop on pass play. Heber Springs would go on to score on its next possession and take control of the game.
MUSTANG STOPPER: Kenan Sneed led the Panthers with 21 tackles and a fumble recovery. His 21 tackles are the first time that a Heber Springs player has hit the 20 tackle mark since Dillon Spivey had 20 at Gravette in a 4A playoff game on Nov. 10, 2017.
Sneed leads the team with 57 tackles, including 10 for a loss and two fumble recoveries. The junior had more than 100 tackles as a sophomore.
MORE MUSTANG STOPPERS: Sophomore Hayden Johnson finished with 13 tackles against the Mustangs and is second on the team with 38 stops, including eight for an loss. Senior Jackson West finished with 12 tackles and has 31 total tackles on the year while senior Tristan Thissen had 11 stops on the night and 26 on the season.
SENIOR VICTORY: Gus Hannah was injured during the conference opener with Lonoke and missed the Stuttgart game, but he did get a chance to get into the game late as coach Todd Wood put Hannah in on the victory formation. Prior to that injury, the senior was the team’s leading receiver with seven receptions.
CONFERENCE SHAKE-UP: Both Lonoke and Little Rock Mills entered Friday night both unbeaten in the 2-4A and overall, but ended the night with losses. Clinton defeated Little Rock Mills, 38-28, while Southside Batesville dropped Lonoke in overtime, 38-36. Stuttgart (3-0 in the 2-4A) defeated Bald Knob, 42-19, and now has a one game lead over four teams (Clinton, Southside Batesville, Lonoke and Little Rock Mills). The Panthers set at 1-2 while CAC and Bald Knob are both 0-3. The top five teams make the playoffs.
UP NEXT: Heber Springs travels to Bald Knob Friday night.
The 2010s era of Heber Springs football was the most successful decade in school history with one perfect regular season, an outright conference title and two more that were shared. The decade also saw the Panthers reach the playoffs nine out of 10 seasons.
The 2010 season saw Steve Janski’s Panthers open with wins over Mountain View and Harding Academy before falling to Bald Knob and, in the conference opener, to Lonoke. A win over Stuttgart would follow with a setback at Marianna-Lee, before the Panthers would win four straight to close the regular season. A loss at Joe T. Robinson ended Heber Springs’ season with a 7-5 mark.
History would be made in 2011 as the Panthers opened the season by dominating defending 4A state champion Shiloh Christian, 36-17, in the opener at Reynolds’ Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville. Heber Springs would put 49 on Harding Academy, 55 on Bald Knob and 63 on Lonoke, before winning at Stuttgart 28-21. No team in the regular season would get to less than two touchdowns the rest of the way as the Panthers completed a perfect regular season and the school’s first outright conference title sine 1979. The second-ranked Panthers would defeat Shiloh Christian again in a first-round playoff match-up at Panther Stadium before falling to Farmington to finish at 11-1 on the year. The 11 wins are the most in school history.
The 2012 team, opened with a loss to Pottsville and had a week 2 game at Harding Academy canceled after weather delays in the first half. A win over Gentry would make the Panthers 1-1 heading into conference play. Heber Springs would not repeat as conference champions finishing 2-4A play at 4-3, closing the regular season with a loss to new conference member Pine Bluff Dollarway. The Panthers would rebound in the playoffs downing Star City and Pea Ridge to reach the quarterfinals of the playoffs. Highland ended the Panthers season leaving Heber Springs with a 7-5 mark.
Janski’s last season at Heber Springs, 2013, would see the Panthers claim wins over Marianna-Lee and Southside Batesville but finish with a 2-8 mark.
Assistant coach David Farr was promoted to head coach for the 2014 campaign. The Panthers would down Clinton and Harding Academy in nonconference play before finishing 5-2 in conference play. The Panthers would drop Crossett in first-round playoff contest before seeing their season at Warren the following week to finish 8-4.
The offseason would see Farr take a job at Maumelle and long-time assistant coach Darren Gowen promoted to head coach. Heber Springs would open the 2015 season with a win over Clinton before falling to Greenbrier and Harding Academy in nonconference play. The Panthers would finish conference play at 4-3 to earn a playoff spot, but Star City would end Heber Springs’ season at 5-6.
The 2016 season saw Heber Springs start 0-3 in nonconference play before bouncing back to finish 6-1 in the 2-4A and earning a share of the conference title and the number 1 seed. After a first-round playoff bye, Shiloh Christian would end the Panthers season at 6-5.
In 2017, Heber Springs would open at 1-2 before earning another share of the 2-4A crown with a 6-1 conference mark. The three-way tie left the Panthers as the No. 3 seed where they would win a thrilling playoff contest at Gravette before falling at Gosnell to finish at 8-4. With the Panthers earning a share of the conference title, it was the first time since the 1979-1980 seasons that the Panthers had won at least a share of the conference title in back-to-back seasons. Those two teams joined the 1975-1976 teams as the only ones to accomplish that feat in school history.
The 2018 team attempted to be the first to win at least of share of a conference title in three consecutive seasons. After starting the season 0-3, Heber Springs would finish conference play at 6-1 but Stuttgart would win the crown with a 7-0 conference mark. The Panthers dominated former conference foe Pocahontas in first-round playoff match-up before losing at Rivercrest to finish 7-5.
Gowen would step down as head coach in the spring of 2019 to take a position in northwest Arkansas and Will Cox was promoted for the upcoming season. Heber Springs would fall to Clinton and Harding Academy in the final seconds in nonconference play, as well to Greenbrier, to start 0-3. The Panthers would finish conference play at 4-3 and get the No. 5 seed in the playoffs, after a four-way tie at the top. Shiloh Christian would end the Panthers season in the playoffs.
(Editor’s Note: The teams were selected based upon a vote by former players and coaches. They were asked to fill a ballot based upon positions. Players were allowed to a put a player in multiple positions (i.e. WR/DB). Votes were recorded based upon on the number of ballots a particular player was listed on. If a player was listed a multiple positions, they were still counted as being on one ballot. As with past decades, positions were kept fluid in order to ensure those that were on the most ballots would make the team. In several cases, there were players that received more votes for one position than the person selected for the all-decade team, but were on fewer ballots, and therefore did not make the team. In the previous decades, I was able to create a limit amount of all-purpose positions to cover those that may have been squeezed out of one position but were on more ballots than those who did make it (though not all-purpose positions do not mean those players were on fewer ballots, in many cases it was because a player exceled at so many positions that their votes were scattered). When it came time to do the 2010s, there were more votes cast by former players than any other decade. The votes were more varied than other decade. It created a situation were I was going to have to create a larger number of “all-purpose” positions to get everyone on the team that was going to get squeezed out because of the position that they played. So for this decade only, I created a second team. There are several players on the second team that were on more ballots than those on the first team, but I could not put them at position that did not play (an example would be if someone played WR/DB, I could not put them on the offensive line even though they were on more ballots than someone on first-team offensive line). That is just an example. Also, there is no punter on the second team, because all of those who received votes were already on the team so an extra “all-purpose” position was created in its place. And with ALL of the all-decade teams, there are some very, very good football players that didn’t make it and this decade was no exception. The hardest part of doing this was leaving out those who have contributed so much to the Panther program over the years. Coming in October, all those on any all-decade will be eligible to be voted on the all-time team that will be selected by a vote by the public).
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