Hank the Hawk wins 1st
The Blackhawks football team used a sterling defense to shut down one of the top offensive teams in the state, but could not put points on the board as they eventually lost 8-0 to the 10thranked West Helena Cougars last week.
The loss ended the 2018 football season with 16th-ranked Pea Ridge finishing with a 7-4 record with West Helena going on with a 9-2 mark.
The ’Hawks had their chances to win in regulation but mistakes and fumbles kept them from denting the scoreboard. Fighting windy, sub-freezing temperatures, neither team could mount a scoring challenge until the ’Hawks put something together late in the first half.
A fumble ended that threat and the when ’Hawks had another chance to score early in the fourth it went by the wayside when a penalty wiped out that opportunity.
The Blackhawks were very aware of All-State quarterback running back-kicker-receiver Armonie Calhoun who came into the game averaging well over 200 yards per game total offense. Though averaging 160 rushing yards per game, Calhoun’s first six rushes netted -7 yards.
The Cougars took the opening kickoff and drove to the ’Hawk 28, resorting to a couple of pass plays for the yardage. Facing a third and 4 from the 28, Calhoun was buried under a wave of ’Hawk defenders, causing a loss of 10 yards, and a fourth down passing attempt was on the mark but batted away by Carson Rhine.
Rhine started the ’Hawks’ offense with a couple of runs for 12 yards to get Pea Ridge near midfield. However, a penalty pushed the ’Hawks behind the chains, and they could not make up the difference and had to punt.
Thought the Cougars employed a massive offensive line, averaging over 300 pounds, the visitors could not get their run game established, rushing five times for 15 yards, eventually leading to a punt.
The ’Hawks’ second possession started out more promising when Samuel Beard broke loose on second down for a 22-yard scamper. The run got the ’Hawks out of a hole after they were pinned back to their 4 on a great Cougar punt. Two plays later, Beard broke loose again on a 10-yard gainer with Tate Busey following that with a 11-yard run to the Cougar 49. A short run, an incompletion, then a broken play which lost 6 yards forced the ’Hawks to punt early in the second quarter.
West Helena was three and out on their possession, and when they punted, the ’Hawks got a break when the Cougar cover man ignored the fair catch signal by Trevor Blair, plowing into the freshman receiver and drawing a 15-yard penalty on a personal foul. The ball was then put into play at the West Helena 41 but the good fortune quickly evaporated when a ’Hawk fumble gave the ball right back to the Cougars.
West Helena used the momentum shift to gain a first down on two plays to the ’Hawk 41. However, a ferocious pursuit by the Blackhawk defenders jarred the ball loose and the home boys covered it at the Pea Ridge 39.
The Cougars decided to stack the middle, and on first down, the tactic served to force a yard loss on the ’Hawks. However, on second down, Busey ran wide of the trenches and rambled 37 yards down to the Cougar 25. A penalty pushed the ’Hawks back 5, then an incompletion placed the ’Hawks into a second and
15. Busey then connected with Brayden Ralph on a sensational pass and catch which took the ’Hawks to the Cougar 16, one yard shy of a first down. Well within range of the ’Hawks’ exceptional place kicker Luis Reyes, the ’Hawks had a chance to gain a first down or settle for a field goal. Neither happened after the ball was fumbled away to end the threat.
Mike Mahoney was a big reason the Cougars’ star quarterback was ineffective. He blasted through the offensive line twice towards Calhoun, the second time hanging a 3-yard loss on the star back. The loss forced the visitors to go to the air and Justin Koon was ready, as the senior defender intercepted the pass to give Pea Ridge the ball on the guests’ 42-yard line.
However, neither team could make headway against the other for the remainder of the half as the score at intermission remained 0-0.
Pea Ridge started on offense in the second half but could not generate enough yards for a first down. The ’Hawks’ stout defense held West Helena to a 3 and out as well on their first try, so the home boys got the ball back in less than two minutes.
The Cougars soon got another golden opportunity when the ’Hawks fumbled the ball away for the third time, handing West Helena possession on the Pea Ridge 33. Rising to the occasion, the ’Hawk defenders allowed the Cougars just 2 yards on three plays and a fourth down passing play came up short.
The ’Hawks then set out in a possession that proved to be their longest, lasting five minutes late in the third quarter. Tristen Brewer entered the game as a running back and had a couple of good runs and the ’Hawks soon had a first down on their 37.
A lost yardage play, an incompletion, and a 5=yard penalty set the ’Hawks back into a third and 16 from the ’Hawk 31. Busey threaded a pass to Ralph again, the completion produced 19 yards and a first down on the mid-field stripe.
A lost yardage play, a penalty, and an incompletion, and a short
yardage run forced another ’Hawk punt, this time into the swirling cold wind late in the third. The wind caught the attempt, and it bounced backwards with the punt netting by 7 yards to the Cougar 44.
The fired up ’Hawk defense, batted away a pass and dropped West Helena ball carriers for losses twice forcing a punt. The mishandled attempt wound up traveling only 2 yards past the line of scrimmage, giving the ball back to Pea Ridge when they left off.
A 7 yard run by Brewer, followed by an offsides by West Helena gave the ’Hawks’ a first down on the Cougar 33. However, three runs by the ’Hawks netted but 4 yards and a fourth down pass went awry, giving the Cougars the ball back on their own 29.
Frustrated by their ground game, the Cougars went to the air and were aided greatly on a pass interference call against the ’Hawks, moving the ball upfield to the West Helena 45. Going deep early in the fourth quarter, West Helena saw speedy defensive back Rhine snatch the pass and return it 65 yards to the West Helena 5-yard line. The home fans’ elation soon turned to grief when a penalty was called on a Blackhawk player at mid-field.
Rhine proved he was still hot, bolting through for 14 yards on two runs to the Cougar 40. An incompletion, lost yardage play, and a penalty served to douse the threat and the Cougars took over on downs with 7:51 left in the game.
The Cougars’ Calhoun, who had been held to negative yards up to the fourth quarter, was about to be buried under a wall of ’Hawk tacklers at the West Helena 30-yard line, but the speedy field general slipped their grasp and ran upfield to gain 16 yards and a first down at the ’Hawk 44. A Calhoun pass to Ahmaud Jones netted 8 yards, and then a keeper by Calhoun netted 14 more to give West Helena a first down on the ’Hawk 20. Though Calhoun broke through for 9 on first down, the ’Hawk defense threw the Cougars back on the next three plays to get the ball back for the hosts.
The rest of the game saw no more offensive threats with the clock winding down to 0:00 which matched the 0-0 scoreboard.
Arkansas rule books call for each team to get the ball on the 10-yard line and try to score to break the tie.
Held in check nearly all night, Calhoun produced when in counted, going 4, then 6 yards to score the game’s only touchdown. Robinson ran in the extra point to increase the lead to 8-0, taking away the ’Hawks chance to win outright.
The first ’Hawk play in their turn at the 10 resulted in a fumble that lost 3 yards. A Busey pass to Rhine netted 8 yards, but fourth down desperation pass was knocked away, ensuring the victory for Cougars.
The ’Hawks had outgained the Cougars 169 yards to 95 until midway in the fourth quarter. From then on, the visitors would outgain the ’Hawks 95 yards to 16 through the overtime period and win the contest.
Busey led the ground game with 56 yards on eight carried with Beard garnering 34 yards on eight tries. Rhine gained 33 on nine attempts with Brewer rounding out the ground game with 17 yards on seven runs.
The passing attack in the cold, swirling windy conditions was six of 16 for 51 yards. Ralph (33 yards), Rains (10 yards) and Rhine (yards) each had two catches.
While the ’Hawks final outcome did not match the three previous banner seasons, they nevertheless had a season in keeping with “their school’s athletic motto, “Good to Great.”