AAA clears Mills to play for Eagles
Cutter Morning Star received some exciting news Wednesday.
Sophomore quarterback Peyton Mills has been cleared by the Arkansas Activities Association to play sports for the school.
“We requested probation to be dropped to a warning based on some stipulations and those are I will be suspended for the first five conference games for basketball and our athletics department and administration is required to go through mandated AAA training that they will provide for us,” Cutter Morning Star Athletic Director Beau Brickell said. “We took the penalty. Basketball team will be on a warning for 365 days.”
Ahmod Davis, a basketball player who did school choice, will still have to sit for one year from athletics based on school choice guidelines because he transferred after the completion of his sophomore year.
The only way around that is if his family relocates to the Cutter Morning Star School District. Then he would be immediately eligible for athletic activities.
Mills has been able to practice with the football team while his eligibility was under review.
“I am ecstatic for him,” Brickell said. “Obviously personally and I am ecstatic for his family. This has been a draining fivemonth process that probably could have been expedited much quicker. I am thrilled.”
Cutter Morning Star head football coach Nick Finley said it is great news about Mills.
“We are just excited,” Finley said. “He has been kind of down and when I told him there was a big smile on his face and just a sigh of relief. He is switching gears now and the kid’s going to get to play the sport he loves. I am happy for that and I am happy he is going to be happy. We will see how good he is (tonight).”
The process for eligibility new for the administration.
“We had to go through all the rules, the stipulations and the exact protocols to making the requests to get probation dropped to a warning,” Brickell said. “Waiting on the mail to run is why it drug out another month.”
Brickell emphasized the type of person Mills is on and off the field.
“At the end of the day he is just an outstanding kid,” he said. “He has obviously grown up and trained with an older brother who plays college football and watched his work ethic and how he handled his business. He is right there with him through their crossfit training at five in the morning, throwing routes. But at the end of the day he is just a great kid who is competitive and looking for an opportunity.”
For the first time in Eagle red and black, Mills will suit up for Cutter Morning Star tonight against Genoa Central.
The Eagles dropped their first game of the season to Marshall on the road last week 32-16.
The game against Genoa Central will be at Fountain Lake High School. The Eagles are waiting for the finishing touches on their stadium to be completed.
“I learned we are going to continue to fight through a game,” Finley said. “We had some mishaps on some mental busts. Not having a scrimmage or another game before we hit conference is always tough.”
Finley said his team battled through adversity.
“Going into the last quarter we are only down by a touchdown,” he said. “We had some cramping issues and some of our players were not able to play in the game. That affected us depth wise. It is tough to overcome sometimes when you are in that position.”
Cutter Morning Star tallied 317 yards of total offense against Marshall. Finley highlighted that the first quarter was full of penalties for the Eagles.
The Eagles had a 16-8 lead at halftime after some good defensive plays.
“We made some adjustments,” Finley said. “Then cramping started happening. A couple of our players were not in and we tried to manage the best we could. We were kind of limited offensively with our quarterback situation. (Jeremiah) Smith was out with cramps and it happens.”
Genoa Central won its first two games and has not allowed a point yet this season. The Dragons took down defending state champions strong 14-0.
“They are a well disciplined team,” Finley said. “They have had some penalties but nothing that’s like what we had our first game. They have very good skill players. The quarterback can throw good. He is fast. He can run it a little bit if he needs to. He is a throw first run second guy and their line is good.”
The Dragons do several good things on offense.
“This is going to be a good matchup for us with them being a 4A school,” Finley said. “We will be level numbers wise and talent wise we are along the same lines.”
Genoa Central shutout Cedar Ridge 36-0 last week.
“Cedar Ridge was kind of struggling,” Finley said. “Genoa was able to capitalize. They are going to do what they do. They are going to run the football and do play action off it and try to put everybody in a bind. They are not afraid to take deep shots or to put it in their playmaker’s hands.”
Finley highlighted his offensive line had a great week of practice.
Strong and Cedar Ridge are both running teams, and Genoa Central held them to zero points.
“They faced two running teams,” Finley said. “We bring a balance with what we are going to do this week. Defensively they get into some situations we can take advantage of. They play more of a zone look.”
Smith’s first high school start at quarterback came at Marshall. However, Mills will get the nod for the Eagles tonight in his debut.
“They are riding a two-game winning streak,” Finely said. “I talked to their coach last night, and he said that’s the best start they have had in their program’s history. They are riding high.”
The Eagles look to exploit Genoa Central’s outside linebackers to make them miss.
“Their running back is good and their quarterback,” Finley said. “Those two guys, they can go, and they have a wide receiver that can catch the deep ball. Their quarterback is their leader and he is the one that makes them tick and go.”
Cutter Morning Star will bring pressure to the quarterback and isolate him to stop his speed.
On the offensive side, Jock Simpson is a key to the Eagles’ success after carrying the load and playing the whole game against Marshall.
“Getting the ball in Smith and (Clayton) Weldon’s hands makes us go and they are the leaders of the team,” Finley said. “We look forward to them being able to do some good things for us.”