Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Arkansas High hammers Shiloh Christian.
Arkansas High hammers Shiloh Christian to earn 54-38 victory
SPRINGDALE — Arkansas High made a long bus ride from Texarkana on Friday. The drive back was a victory celebration.
The Class 5A Razorbacks rolled into Champions Stadium and rolled over Class 4A Shiloh Christian 54-38 in the season opener for both teams.
“This was the longest game I was ever a part of in my life,” said Arkansas High coach Barry Norton. “There was a lot of rust, just getting in and out of huddles. But the great thing was good conditioning.”
The mercy- rule game went on for nearly four hours due to a number of injuries on the field and over 40 penalties. The highlight of the night came from Razorback senior running back Jordan Hall, who racked up 215 yards and five touchdowns on 21 carries. He also had a reception in the second quarter that went for 59 yards.
“[ I give credit to] my teammates, my offensive line, and my receivers blocking downfield,” Hall said. “I can’t thank them enough. They did a really good job.”
Hall’s most- memorable touchdown came at the 29-second mark in the first quarter on a play that nearly resulted in a huge momentum shift. After receiving the ball from quarterback Sean Foreback, the back fumbled the ball several feet in the air before catching it with his back to the end zone. He then backpedaled and caught his footing before waltzing into the end zone.
Hall cramped up at the end of the third quarter after a 39-yard run in which the back crossed from the left side of the field to the right sideline. He stayed on the field for a couple minutes before bouncing up and jogging to the bench.
“I feel like I didn’t do a great job hydrating myself throughout the week, but next week I’ll do better,” Hall said.
The Saints started the game with junior quarterback Eli Reece, but Shiloh Christian coach Jeff Conaway elected to stick with backup Jaiden Henry for much of the contest. The sophomore threw three touchdown passes on the day, but he was errant on many of his deep passes and missed several opportunities when receivers found separation.
There were, however, several plays that showed glimpses of Shiloh’s wideopen playbook, including a double-pass touchdown at the 5:31 mark of the second quarter. On the play, Reece passed the ball to Henry, who was lined up on the right side of the field. He avoided a tackler before throwing the ball to junior receiver Truitt Tollett, who was one of three open receivers behind the defense.
“There were a couple miscues, but we’ve got a really solid defense,” Norton said. “We’re athletic and fast, and we saw some of that tonight. They’ll continue to play well.”