Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Conway gets NLR after a long layoff
Conway is scheduled to play its first football game in three weeks Friday against North Little Rock.
The Wampus Cats were to begin 7A-Central Conference play at Little Rock Southwest last Friday, but Southwest had to cancel the game because of covid-19 reasons.
The last time the Wampus Cats played a game was Sept. 11 at Jonesboro. They had an open date Sept. 18 after playing during the first three weeks of the season.
Conway Coach Keith Fimple compared the Wampus Cats’ layoff to what a college football team would face between the end of the regular season and a bowl game.
“It’s not your ideal blueprint,” he said.
The Wampus Cats are 2-1 with victories over Fayetteville and Jonesboro. Friday will mark their first 7A-Central game of the season.
“You could see us get better,” Fimple said. “Our team was missing spring football and team camps. So, it’s huge to have that game experience and being in a physical game.”
Fimple said that since the Jonesboro game, the Wampus Cats have practiced and tried to stay in football shape even without an opponent to prepare for last week.
“We’ve worked on ourselves,” Fimple said. “But we want to play somebody. We tried to make some deals here and there for last week. It just didn’t work out.
“There are some things I can’t control. I wish it would have happened [the game at Little Rock Southwest].”
North Little Rock (4-0, 1-0 7A-Central) has played a conference game, defeating Little Rock Central 48-7 on Friday night. The Charging Wildcats have outscored their opponents 159-52, including a 35-0 shutout of West Memphis on Sept. 18.
Coach J.R. Eldridge hopes
his team’s strong defensive performance endures against Conway.
“Our defense is playing really, really good,” Eldridge said. “Our defensive coaches, Coach [Chris] Kizer, Coach [Randy] Sandefur, Coach [Ray] Sessions, have done a great job. We’ve had a great plan, and we’ve been able to execute it.”
Fimple hopes the Wampus Cats will be ready for North Little Rock despite not facing another opponent in a threeweek span.
“You can practice,” Fimple said. “But it’s hard to simulate the speed and physicality they have. You do your best. I hope we can accomplish that [Friday].”
Conway has been led by junior running back Jamaal Bethune, who is at 339 yards and 5 touchdowns on 52 carries. He scored four touchdowns in the Wampus Cats’ 49-28 victory at Jonesboro.
“He’s a great leader on and off the field,” Fimple said. “He’s made himself into a bigger, physical player. He loves football. He doesn’t like football, he loves football.”
There were 17 games that were affected by covid-19 last week, including Conway at Little Rock Southwest. Eldridge said the Charging Wildcats are fortunate they haven’t had an alteration to their schedule.
“We’re thankful that we’ve got to play,” Eldridge said. “Hopefully, we can continue to be safe while we’re here and continue to play.”