Improving Wildcats

Defense and improved quarterback play have been two reasons why El Dorado is 3-0 in the 6A-South.

Senior quarterback Kawon Love completed 11 of 19 passes for 283 yards and 3 touchdowns to lead the Wildcats in a 30-13 victory at Texarkana last Friday.

Love, 6-1, 220 pounds, has been splitting time with junior John Sixbey.

“He’s been improving every week,” El Dorado Coach Scott Reed said.

Love threw touchdown passes of 20 yards to Aaron Faul, 58 yards to Darriake Rogers and 24 yards to Make trion Shelton, all in the first half.

“We want people to account for him,” Reed said. “We need him to have the ball.”

Defensively, El Dorado has been led by defensive tackles Earnest Reed and Martez Modica. Reed had 4 tackles, 1 quarterback hurry, 1 forced fumble and 1 pass breakup while Modica had 7 tackles and 1 quarterback hurry.

“That’s where it starts,” Reed said.

El Dorado (5-1) hosts Lake Hamilton (4-2, 2-1) today. The Wolves are coming off a 20-0 weather-shortened loss at Pine Bluff last Friday.

Stopping the run will be key for the Wildcats, Reed said.

“They do a good job of attacking you all over the field,” Reed said. “It comes down to our defensive front against their running game.

“If our defense doesn’t let them run the ball, we’ll be in good shape.”

The Wildcats started 1-1 before winning four consecutive, including 6A-South victories against Little Rock Hall, Sheridan and Texarkana.

Reed, who has led the Wildcats to four of the past five Class 6A state championships, including last year’s, said he believes his team is in position to make another run for Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium in December.

“I told our kids after the third week, there may be one team in 6A that is good enough to compete for a state title, but the rest of us, if we don’t get better, we won’t win a state title,” Reed said.

“We made a big step last week as far as the passing game goes.”