Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
All off the table when Tigers, Rebs meet
There hasn’t been much of a drop-off so far at Bentonville as it heads into 7A-West Conference play tonight against Fort Smith Southside.
The Tigers are 3-0 under Coach Jody Grant, who took over for one of the winningest coaches in Arkansas high school football, Barry Lunney Sr.
“It says a lot about our program to have our kids step up,” said Grant, who served as an assistant to Lunney from 2005-2014 and was the Tigers’ defensive coordinator the past two seasons.
Lunney retired in January, a month after leading Bentonville to its second consecutive Class 7A state championship. He finished with 248 victories and eight state championships, guiding the Tigers to four state titles in 10 seasons (2008, 2010, 20132014). Lunney guided Southside to four titles as well.
When Grant was promoted in March, one of his goals was for his players not to notice a significant change.
“The only difference is that it’s me standing in front of them instead of Coach Lunney,” Grant said.
Bentonville, which has defeated Kansas City (Mo.) Rockhurst 24-13, Hilands Ranch (Colo.) Valor Christian 41-22 and Tallahassee (Fla.) Rickards 37-8, plays host to Southside in a matchup of the top two teams from a year ago in the 7A-West. Southside beat Bentonville 10-7, which dropped the Tigers to 0-4 before they reeled off nine consecutive victories to win the 7A title.
“It’s your typical Bentonville-Southside matchup,” Grant said. “Their coaching staff does a great job. I fully anticipate it’s going to be a great matchup.”
Southside (2-1) beat Lake Hamilton 38-6 last week behind a 21-point second quarter that included a 91yard interception return for a touchdown by junior defensive back Jaylin Brewer. The Rebels also beat Alma 35-19 on Sept. 1, but lost to Greenwood 38-31.
Rebels Coach Jeff Williams said in order for his team to beat Bentonville, it has to start fast.
“We’ve started slow the past three weeks,” Williams said. “It’s a long game, so you’ll have to weather some storms, but this team seems like it gets better as the game goes on.
“Any time you go on the road in the 7A-West, you have to start fast.”
Williams, who replaced Lunney at Southside in 2005, knows that while the Tigers are led by a new voice, not much else has changed.
“They’ve got a good program. Their history speaks for itself,” said Williams, who has spent 11 seasons at Southside and is the second-longest-tenured coach in the 7A-West behind Fayetteville’s Daryl Patton. “They’ve beaten three really good teams. You watch the film, they still fly to the ball well.”
Senior quarterback Kasey Ford is in his third season as the Tigers’ starter and has accounted for six touchdowns, including four passing.
“Kasey is phenomenal,” Grant said. “He’s a guy who’s started 30 games of high school football already. The experience is so beneficial for our young receivers and offensive linemen.”