Bentonville, Nye manhandle Broken Arrow

BENTONVILLE 41, BROKEN ARROW, OKLA. 0

BROKEN ARROW, Okla. — Almost everywhere Carter Nye threw a pass Friday night, a Bentonville receiver was there to welcome the ball with open hands.

The senior quarterback almost matched what he did in last year’s meeting in the first half alone, and Bentonville opened the season with a 41-0 blowout victory over Broken Arrow, Okla., at Broken Arrow Memorial Stadium.

Nye completed his first 12 passes before the string ended as he tried to shovel a pass to Jason Gilmore and flipped the ball over the running back’s head. Nye finished the first half with 267 yards on 13-of-14 passing and hit C.J. Brown and Luke Coon with two touchdown passes apiece.

“The offense came out, and we were clicking off the bat,” Nye said. “It felt really good. It’s going to be exciting how well we can progress each week. That line was blocking, and I don’t think anybody got pressure to me, so big things to them. Without them, it doesn’t happen.”

Brown, a University of Arkansas commit, made his touchdowns look easy as he broke behind Broken Arrow’s secondary twice in the first quarter. He scored on a 57-yard reception on the Bentonville’s second offensive play, then he added a 68-yard score to give Bentonville (1-0) a 20-0 lead with 7 seconds left in the first quarter..

Coon had to work much harder for his scores. He had to break three tackles and carried a defender in the end zone on his 17-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter. He added a 19yard touchdown catch on a fourth-down play after he outleaped a Broken Arrow defensive back and made it a 27-0 game at halftime.

“That stick over here, I saw that DB over there and had one hand on me,” Coon said. “I just knew I had to get into that end zone. With the big boys blocking and Carter throwing good balls, it happens. Just trust the process and it will work.”

Broken Arrow had its chances to score throughout the game, only to be denied each time. It missed two field-goal attempts, while Bentonville’s defense came up with two interceptions — one of them by Noah Nunnelee in the end zone with a receiver on his back.

“I was very, very pleased with the way we played on both sides of the ball,” Bentonville Coach Jody Grant said. “Offensively, we came out of the gate and operated really clean. Carter was making the throws, and our guys were making some catches. The protection was also very good.

“I was really proud of our defense of shutting out a good team. People may not know it, but they have a very dangerous running back, a really good running quarterback and one of the most talented receivers we will see in No. 3 [Kayleb Barnett]. We’re excited about shutting them out.”

Bentonville wasted no time adding to its lead as Brown threw a 62-yard reverse pass to Eli Brooks on the first play of the second half. Bentonville’s final score came on special teams as Rivers Wiseman blocked a punt and Braylon Hardrick fell on the ball in the end zone with 10:17 left in the third quarter.

“A lot of people don’t know I can throw the football,” Brown said. “It was really fun to do that. I think it was a good play by [offensive coordinator Aaron] Danenhauer, and we scored a touchdown. I just had to get him the ball and let him run the rest.”

Bentonville returns to action next week with its home opener against Conway.