Hot Springs Trojans to face Camden Fairview Cardinals tonight

Hot Springs currently stands tied for the lead in the 5A South with cross-town rival Lakeside, but before the two team prepare for their Week 10 matchup, the Trojans have to face off against the Camden Fairview Cardinals tonight.

The Trojans (5-3, 4-1) are coming off a defensive battle against Texarkana last week that they won 9-6.

“Defense played really good,” said Hot Springs head coach Darrell Burnett. “And I knew going in that both defenses were really good, really talented. The biggest thing was our kids did a great job preparing for them. It boiled down to the team with the less penalties, the team that created the most turnovers, and that was how we managed to get a win. But to have a defensive performance against that talent — that’s a well-coached ballclub, man. They do a good job coaching. It was big. It was big for our kids.”

Burnett said that the Cardinals (4-4, 3-2) are similar to Magnolia and Texarkana.

“They put you in a mind of that type of athleticism,” he said. “Their running back, he’s probably one of the best ones in the conference, already has over 1,000 yards rushing. They have plenty of good receivers, and one of their strong points is their defense, too. So it’s going to boil down to the same thing — who has the least mental errors, creates the most turnovers, and can play a clean football game.”

No matter who Hot Springs has on the schedule, their focus remains the same.

“Our kids, they practice hard,” Burnett said. “Our coaches, coach hard. It can be a team that you can expect to win, and I’m still stressed out just because, you know, it means a lot.”

The Trojans have definitely come a long way from their 1-9 season a year ago, and Burnett said that starts in the weight room.

“Kids see their body changing,” he said. “They’re bigger, faster, stronger and they can see that on the field. They get to see how, for instance, McClellan was just a whole lot stronger than us. The Magnolia [team] was just a whole lot stronger and faster than us last year.”

Hot Springs is back at full strength, despite losing kicker David Carter for part of the second half last week due to a head injury.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Cardinals Stadium.