Gravette’s defense scores a lot

Gravette’s defense spent a lot of time on the field during last week’s game at Inola, Okla., and that normally spells trouble for a football team.

The Lions, however, made the most of the situation. Three players returned interceptions for touchdowns as Gravette rolled to a 37-0 romp.

“The coaching staff, our team trainer and I were on the sidelines, trying to think when was the last time we saw something like this happen,” coach Kelby Bohannon said. “No one could come up with an answer. It was definitely a special night for us.”

Ethan Ellis gave the Lions (1-1) a quick 6-0 lead when a tipped pass went right into his hands and he raced 62 yards for a touchdown. Ian Leonard made a perfect read on a screen pass attempt, then stepped in front of the receiver for the first of his two interceptions and ran 53 yards for a score.

Shad Nelson took his turn on an interception return in the third quarter and went 25 yards for the Lions’ third defensive score. Those scores, however, meant Gravette’s defense would have to get right back on the field and play some more.

“Our offense didn’t get the ball a lot,” Bohannon said. “That’s usually not a good thing. But if they’re going to come up with points, then we’ll take it.”

Gravette’s offense did manage to compile 330 yards in the short time it spent with the ball. Kyler Austin had a 1-yard touchdown run, then Rhett Hilger and Gabe Holmes connected on touchdown passes of 9 and 19 yards.

The Lions, who have spent the first two weeks on the road, now get a chance to play at home on their new turf surface as they host former 4A-1 Conference foe Prairie Grove in the final nonconference game.

“We’re looking forward to being on our field,” Bohannon said.

SILOAM SPRINGS 6A-West test

Siloam Springs coach Brandon Craig told his team this was the week the Panthers needed to make a big jump in their play.

That’s because Siloam Springs (0-2) begins 6A-West Conference play Friday night against Class 6A newcomer Greenbrier, which won 12 games last year.

“It doesn’t feel like it should be time to start conference play,” Craig said. “It’s the first time in 30 years that I’ve been part of a nine-team conference, so it’s a new experience for me, as well as the kids.

“And it’s going to be a pretty rough stretch for us. After Greenbrier, we have Greenwood and Lake Hamilton, then we have Russellville for our homecoming. After that, it’s Pulaski Academy and Little Rock Christian, so we have to make some progress.”

Craig said he has seen some good things from his team defensively, particularly in Siloam Springs’ linebackers, but said there are some things to iron out in the secondary. Offensively, the Panthers have struggled with inconsistency, largely in part of being so young on that side of the ball.

“We have five new starters on the offensive line,” Craig said. “We have a sophomore quarterback and three sophomore running backs with one junior. We’re just sustaining drives so we can put points on the scoreboard, and we have to be able to do a better job of that to be successful.”

GREENLAND Pouring on points

Greenland’s offense has done its job of keeping scoreboard operators busy through the first two weeks of action.

The Pirates (1-1) put up 38 points in a seasonopening loss to Lincoln, then surpassed that total last week when they enjoyed a 51-6 rout at home over Green Forest. The key has been the marked improvement in Greenland’s offensive line.

“I knew this group could put points on the scoreboard,” Greenland coach Lee Larkan said. “I thought we could have scored even more against Lincoln, but we didn’t play that well. I think we have some good skill people, and they have definitely improved from last year.

“There was about a 6-minute span where the offensive line did well against Lincoln. There was more of it against Green Forest, and that group is still a work in progress. We still have miles to go right now.”

Meanwhile, the Pirates’ defense stiffened greatly against Green Forest, where Larkan said he placed a lot of the blame in the loss to Lincoln on his shoulders.

“Most of it was my fault,” he said. “We were just too passive in the first game, and we played more aggressively last week. The coaches did a better job of getting the defense in position.”

Greenland will head to Berryville for its final nonconference game Friday night, then take its open date next week before 3A-1 Conference play begins.

“We will end nonconference play going up against three Class 4A opponents, and hopefully that will get us ready,” Larkan said. “Our conference is going to be solid this year. The top two teams in the conference, Booneville and Charleston, have already beaten two of the best teams in Class 4A. Hopefully this will get us prepared for it a bit.”

GENTRY Long trip

Gentry coach Justin Bigham was forced to give his team’s nonconference schedule a complete overhaul this season when last year’s opponents elected to drop the Pioneers, and he said he was still scrambling to find games in the spring.

As a result, Gentry (1-0) will be headed to Quitman for a game Friday. The oneway 221-mile trip will be longer than the distance the Pioneers will travel to their other three road games (Berryville, Ozark and Gravette) combined.

“I saw that Quitman had an opening, so I reached out,” Bigham said. “It’s in another part of the state, and we’ll make the most of the trip. We’ll get out early, drive to Russellville for our team meal and have a walkthrough at Arkansas Tech and expose our kids to that environment.

“I coached at Mountain Home, and there were no close trips since it was in the 6A-East at the time. We traveled to Marion, West Memphis and Pine Bluff. It’s no big deal traveling for me, as long as we get what we need out of the trip.”

Gentry had its open date last week, which gave Bigham the opportunity to see Quitman play its game at Hector. The game had a lightning delay, but it didn’t have a winner as the officials left the field after the game ended regulation in a 28-28 tie.

The Pioneers also used the extra time to work on their game and not totally focus on Quitman.

“I know they say a team’s biggest improvement is between Game 1 and Game 2,” Bigham said. “I thought the team did good with it. It allowed us to focus on some film time and not totally focus on our opponents. It also allowed us to fine-tune some things and work with our personnel.

“We have a lot of skill kids. So they know if they if they aren’t doing what they need to do, they can be replaced.”