Ravens ready for opener
Football fans who have missed the sport since the end of the high school season last year can have their appetites whetted today with the ArkLa Ravens opening the 2021 season.
The Ravens host the Tulsa Gators, who won the USA Bowl, today in Junction City.
Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. with the gates opening at 3.
There is no admission charge for today's game.
Fans must wear a mask and COVID-19 social distancing protocols will be in place.
The Ravens and Gators are members of the Four States Football League, which is in its third year of play.
The league plays its games in the spring before teams move on to national competition, culminating with the USA Bowl that is played in Daytona Beach, Fla.
“We're a national team,” Ravens head coach Charles Meadows said. “We've got players that went to small colleges, we've got kids that came straight out of high school. We try to give the kids an opportunity to go on to another level. We pretty much use Hudl film and reach out to other organizations and junior colleges. We recruit the kids that still love the sport and want to keep going with it.”
The team competed last year in Kansas city before Meadows, who is also the owner, moved the team to Arkansas.
“I played for a team called the Sugar Creek Shockers that was in Kansas City, Missouri,” Meadows said of how the Ravens came to be. “The team was going through some hardships, so a couple of players came to a head and we're like, ‘What if we just start our own team with our brand and build it from the ground up?'
“I talked with a couple of coaches that I knew over the years, and I gave them the idea. We started doing food drives and things like that. We became a brotherhood and we started adding people and became a football team.”
The Ravens have a local fervor with players from area schools dotting the roster, including former Junction City quarterback Shuvasceiaye Frazier, who led the Dragons to the 3A finals back in 2017.
“They were more excited than I was,” Meadows said of how fast the roster got put together. “It happened in the blink of an eye.”
Meadows said he has around 45 players on the roster, but is looking to add to it.
“We can use more,” Meadows said. “The roster is going to be open for three more weeks and we can carry up to 65. Right now, we're looking pretty good, but we can use a little bit more size, but speed is going to make up for that.”
Meadows, who has had players move on to play in professional leagues in Mexico and Australia, is hoping that more of his players will follow suit.
“We want to get these guys seen. We want to get them more chances.” Meadows said.
The team is a non-profit that does plenty of work in the community. “We clean up the community, we donate to schools, we do toy drives, we do food drives,” Meadows said. “If kids need help with homework, we become big brother mentors. For me personally, I'll take kids in the neighborhood fishing and things like that. We're just trying to stay involved or active in our neighborhood.”
As far as expectations are concerned, Meadows said he likes what he has seen.
“I have a pretty good idea of what to expect,” Meadows said. “They're going to be a nice team. They're very quick and physical. They're athletic. They're going to do their job and I believe they're going to put in the work that needs to be done to get to the national level. I'm excited for this weekend. I'm ecstatic. It's going to be something good to see.”