Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Bruins relish chance in Texas
Kevin Kelley always wants to show pride for his home state.
The Pulaski Academy head coach has taken his football team throughout the country, picking up victories in Texas, Louisiana, Tennessee and Kentucky.
Tonight represents another opportunity for the Bruins, who play at Tyler ( Texas) Legacy. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p. m. Central at Rose Stadium.
The Bruins will be in Texas for the first time since September 2015, when they ended Dallas Highland Park’s 84game home winning streak with Layne Hatcher, then a sophomore, starting at quarterback.
Kelley, an eight-time state championship coach, said he takes playing teams outside of Arkansas seriously.
“It’s a big deal,” Kelley said. “We want to represent our state well. Our kids represent our state off the field and on the field.”
Tonight’s game between Pulaski Academy and Tyler Legacy — which was renamed in the summer from Robert E. Lee High School because of Lee’s status as a Confederate general in the Civil War — was agreed to because of the coronavirus.
Pulaski Academy was to have hosted Maumelle tonight, but the Hornets were forced to cancel because of the school’s covid-19 situation.
Tyler Legacy had its game canceled by Allen High School — the largest high
school in Texas — because of covid-19. Allen was the home team in the game and it was to be the school’s homecoming game.
However, Kelley and Tyler Legacy Coach Joe Willis talked on Saturday and the matchup was made that night. The coaches wanted to look at each other’s game film first before setting up the game. Once Kelley and Willis saw film, they were wanting to play.
Kelley, who coached at Carrollton-Farmers Branch in Carrollton, Texas, before arriving at Pulaski Academy as an offensive coordinator in 1997, said Texas high school football is special for everyone involved.
“There’s something different
about Texas high school football,” Kelley said. “They say everything’s bigger in Texas. The football definitely is.
“The stadiums are all bigger down there. We’ve had people fly in from New York to Dallas to get here [to Little Rock] and they said there are so many colleges in Dallas. I said, ‘No, those are high schools.’ ”
Rose Stadium, which opened in 1942, seats 12,500. Pro Football Hall of Famer Earl Campbell, who starred for the University of Texas and the Houston Oilers, played high school football for John Tyler High School (now Tyler High School) at Rose Stadium. The field at Rose Stadium is named after
Campbell, 65.
Kelley said that part of his team’s preparation for Tyler Legacy included watching YouTube clips of Campbell’s career both in college and in the NFL.
“They were like, ‘Oh my gosh, he was so big!’” Kelley said. “It was a good educational lesson.”
Pulaski Academy ( 6- 0) is averaging 45.3 points per game. Junior running back Joe Himon has rushed for 954 yards and 9 touchdowns. Classmate Charlie Fiser has passed for 1,251 yards and 15 touchdowns as he’s been in a rotation with senior Nolen Bruffett at quarterback.
Kelley said he’s been pleased with how the Bruins have fared in a year where there was no spring football, team camps or 7-on-7 events because of covid-19.
“These guys have bought into what we’re doing,” Kelley said. “I love the attitude of this team. We’ve had guys step in and wanting to keep the tradition alive.”
The Bruins have a chance to win their third game against an out-of-state opponent this season tonight. They won at Ravenwood in Brentwood, Tenn., on Sept. 11 37-29 and defeated Life Christian Academy from Chester, Va., on Sept. 18 31-20.
Kelley said that a victory at Tyler Legacy (2-1) would be important to have as the Bruins go forward with the 2020 season.
“We want to win,” Kelley said. “They will make us better. Even if we lose, we want to be better for playing this game.”