Collins dominant vs. his former team
Charleston Collins has been nearly unblockable this season.
The University of Arkansas defensive line commit has been on a tear for the Mills Comets (6-1, 3-1 5A-Central) this season, racking up 8 sacks, 25 tackles for loss and 71 tackles in six games.
Against Pine Bluff last week, Collins had a career night as Mills won 24-21 in double overtime with four sacks against his former team.
Collins played for Pine Bluff as a sophomore in 2021 before transferring to Mills last season. In two games against the Zebras since transferring, Collins has 20 tackles, 8 tackles for loss and 6 sacks.
“It was a big night for him,” Mills Coach Cortez Lee said. “He had a lot of personal situations that were built up into that night, you know, his hometown, his family, former team, just a lot of different emotions, but man, it seemed like he had another jolt Friday night.”
Collins has made at least seven tackles in each game this season, moving from defensive end to tackle throughout each. He has had at least two tackles for loss and one sack in all six games.
An All-State selection a year ago, Collins made the All-Arkansas Preps Second Team as he totaled 124 tackles, 46 tackles for loss and 12 sacks before committing to play for the Razorbacks this summer.
“He’s a grade better,” Lee said. “He’s a little bit more intentional this year. I think he understands his level of combination this year. His moves are a lot crisper, and even his effort has up-ticked a little bit. I was kinda afraid that he would just try to stay consistent to where he was last year because he did well, but for some reason, man, he’s really sharpened up a lot of his skill set and his intensity level is higher.”
His big night against the Zebras was crucial as the Comets came in off of their first loss this season, a 34-28 defeat to the Maumelle Hornets.
“We came out, we played hard, we executed,” Lee said. “I thought the guys realized that this was important because of the let down we had last week. [We had] efforts from all over. We bent a little bit, but we didn’t break. When it was time for us to make the plays, that’s what we did.”