New story arc emerging?
Des Arc eyes first championship since 1976
Des Arc football Coach B.J. Paschal isn’t fretting over any naysayers of the Eagles in 2021.
There’s a different vibe circulating through and around the largest city in Prairie County these days.
“We’ve talked to our guys because we normally have some doubters,” Paschal, who is entering his second year on the job, said. “As a team, we’ve always wanted to prove the doubters wrong. This year, it’s about fulfilling expectations. We don’t really want to let anybody down, especially the people of Des Arc.
“You know, there are always high expectations here, but they’re at an extreme high this year.”
There’s a reason why hope is elevated for the Eagles.
Des Arc, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette’s preseason No. 1 team in Class 2A, has 15 of the 22 starters back from last year’s team that nearly captured the school’s first state championship in 45 years. More importantly, the Eagles have Paschal, a straight shooter who knows what makes this particular group tick after spending three years as their defensive coordinator before assuming head coaching duties in summer 2020.
It may take pushing the right buttons and a little luck for Paschal to get Des Arc its first title since 1976 because the parity level in Class 2A has been strong in recent years.
There have been five different state champions since 2015, with Fordyce winning the past two. Prior to that, there were three teams that won the championship from 2009-14.
“I don’t think there’s anyone that’s really head and shoulders above anyone else,” said Junction City Coach Brad Smith, whose No. 2-ranked Dragons are trying to win a second title in four years.
“Now, there may be one that emerges, but as we say, there are always the usual suspects. You can just go through the quarterfinals and semifinals and pick out the five or six names that you see every year regardless.
“We do think we’re going to be in the mix, and I’m sure the other three who were in the semifinals last season believe they’ll be in the mix, too. To be honest with you, McCrory has the most talent coming back that I know of, and we had a dogfight with them in the playoffs.”
Both Junction City, led by all-state running back A.J. Ivory, and McCrory, powered by its dynamic duo of quarterback Cason Campbell and running back Reid Kennon, figure to be factors come postseason time, as will Clarendon and Bigelow, among others.
The one team that could maneuver under the radar is the same one that’s hoisted state hardware the past two seasons.
Fordyce lost a ton of pivotal contributors, such as Purdue signee Ja’Quez Cross, from the group that beat Des Arc 35-32 in last year’s title game. The Redbugs return only a few starters and will be breaking in a new quarterback in senior Trey Merritt, who spent time at four other skill positions as a junior. According to Coach Tim Rodgers, there aren’t many who believe his team will have enough to make another run at a championship.
“Last year, we went in as champs, and everyone thought we’d repeat again,” he said. “This year, we haven’t even had much mentioned about us. There are a lot of things that people are doing for other teams and talking to other schools because I guess they’re thinking we’re through. But our kids are working hard, and they want to try and threepeat.
“We had a great group of seniors the last couple of years that did a lot. We’ve got a lot of question marks right now and a lot of kids that haven’t played on Friday nights when it counted. I can see where people think we’re going to be down. We’re going to struggle a little bit at times, but we’re going to be all right.”
Des Arc, on the other hand, has several who’ve played in big moments.
Junior running backs Jack Kearby and Trevion Reed combined to rush for 2,036 yards and 25 touchdowns last season out of the Eagles’ Flexbone offense, including 144 yards and two scores total in last season’s title game. Four of the team’s five offensive linemen return, a luxury Paschal said is “huge.” Des Arc will have a new quarterback in senior Jake Reidhar, who is stepping in for the since-graduated Luke Morton.
Defensively, the Eagles are stacked with guys who earned all-conference honors the previous season, particularly senior tackle Dalton Sears and end Chance Eldridge. Kearby registered nearly 100 tackles as a sophomore at linebacker while senior Devonte Holmes manned the secondary with five interceptions.
With that collection of talent on board, Paschal is feeling good about his Eagles.
“Fall camp was good, and the kids worked hard,” he said. “This is my fifth year here so I know these kids pretty well. I know what they’re capable of, the dedication they put into everything. We’ve got 25 kids, so our numbers are on the lower end of what they typically are, but I’ve really been pleased with what I’ve seen.
“They’re ready to go.”