NWADG Prep Rally Football Preview

PREP RALLY: CLASS 7A | 8.21.2022 16 CLASS 7A ROGERS MOUNTIES 2021 RECORD 9-3, 5-2 7A-West COACH Chad Harbison RETURNING STARTERS 3 offense, 4 defense KEY PLAYERS QB Dane Williams (Jr., 6-0, 170), RB Jacob Jenkins (Jr., 6-0, 185), WR Graycen Cash (Jr., 6-1, 150), TE Jansen Garner (Jr., 6-3, 170), DB Mabry Verser (Jr., 6-4, 200), LB Isaac Chapman (Jr., 5-11, 185), DB Tye Cunningham (Sr., 6-0, 170), THE SKINNY The Mounties will move some players around and even have some be two-way players as they want to build on their winningest season since the run to the state championship game in 2006. … Williams, the son of Mounties' defensive coordinator Dale Williams, moves to quarterback after starting every game at safety last season. Williams led Rogers to the Southwest Elite 7-on-7 championship game last month. … Jenkins moves from outside linebacker to running back this fall, but he is expected to continue seeing some time on defense when necessary. … Cash is one of the few offensive starters returning after the 7A-West coaches voted him the offensive newcomer of the year. … Garner saw a lot of snaps last year as he rotated in at tight end and played some at fullback. … Chapman moves from outside linebacker to inside linebacker this fall and will be joined by Alston. … Verser was an all-conference player at safety last year and provided some big plays — a fumble recovery for a score in the playoffs against Little Rock Catholic, an interception return for a TD against Muskogee, Okla., and a forced fumble to keep a Springdale Har-Ber player from scoring. … Sophomore Marcus Mounts has been impressive enough to be given a chance to replace Williams at safety. THAT'S WHAT HE SAID "It's part of being a high school football coach — you have to adapt to the team you have coming this year. The good thing for us is that we have a lot of experience coming back. There is a lot of younger guys that played a lot of football last year, so it's not like we are putting guys out there that have never played or never experienced a Friday night. The leadership aspect of it — the continuity, the chemistry, all that stuff — we're still getting that into place and figuring out what guys will rise up and stand out." — Chad Harbison SCHEDULE Aug. 26 ......at LR Southwest Oct. 7 at Bentonville West* Sept. 2 .......at Tulsa Bishop Kelley Oct. 14 .......... Springdale* Sept. 9 .......at Farmington Oct. 21 ......at Bentonville* Sept. 23 .....FS Southside* Oct. 28 ..Springdale Har-Ber* Sept. 30 .....Fayetteville* Nov. 4 at Rogers Heritage* * — Denotes 7A-West Conference game All kickoffs 7 p.m. unless noted ROGERS HERITAGE WAR EAGLES 2021 RECORD 1-9, 0-7 7A-West COACH Eric Munoz RETURNING STARTERS 7 offense, 4 defense KEY PLAYERS QB Carter Hensley (Sr., 6-3, 200), WR Tillman McNair (Sr., 5-11, 165), OL Hunter Seals (Sr., 6-6, 330), TE-DE Knox Weindorf (Sr., 6-6, 235), TE Christopher Incao (Sr., 6-1, 240); WR-DB J.J. Lockett (Sr., 6-0, 175), DB Alexander Saelzler (Sr., 5-8, 140). THE SKINNY Munoz was hired during the spring to replace Steve Hoofkin, whose teams managed only one win in four years. … Munoz then added Kegan McDaniel as the team's offensive coordinator in July during the athletic dead period. … The War Eagles enter the season with a 39-game losing streak against conference foes, and the last time they defeated a current league opponent was a 28-18 decision over Bentonville West in 2016. … Hensley hopes to improve on a junior season where he threw for almost 1,500 yards and 10 TDs and ran for 245 yards and another score. … McNair had a season-high 4 TD receptions while finishing the season with 462 yards on 38 receptions. … Lockett, a returning starter in the secondary, could also see time at receiver. … Seals returns for a third season at right tackle and anchors the War Eagles' offensive line. … Incao moves into the tight end role after seeing limited time last fall in the offensive backfield. THAT'S WHAT HE SAID "I think change is good. It's good for these kids. They have bought in again to what we are doing. They know our standard, and they know what our standard is. They're trying to exceed that standard. It's going to start with our seniors. You can go across the board, and it doesn't matter if they start or not. It's the leadership they bring to the table and getting the guys around them to do things right." — Eric Munoz SCHEDULE Aug. 26 ......Siloam Springs Oct. 7 ............Bentonville* Sept. 9 .......at LR Southwest Oct. 14 .. at FS Southside* Sept. 16 .....Louisberg, Kan. Oct. 21 .Bentonville West* Sept. 23 .....at Springdale* Oct. 28 ......at Fayetteville* Sept. 30 .....at Springdale Har-Ber* Nov. 4 .................Rogers* * — Denotes 7A-West Conference game All kickoffs 7 p.m. unless noted SCHEDULE Aug. 26 ......Harrison Oct. 7 Springdale Har-Ber* Sept. 2 .......at Farmington Oct. 14 ............at Rogers* Sept. 9 .......Conway Oct. 21 ......at Fayetteville* Sept. 23 .....Rogers Heritage* Oct. 28 ..........Bentonville* Sept. 30 .....at Bentonville West* Nov. 4 ... at FS Southside* * — Denotes 7A-West Conference game All kickoffs 7 p.m. unless noted SPRINGDALE BULLDOGS 2021 RECORD 1-9, 1-6 7A-West COACH Brett Hobbs RETURNING STARTERS 6 offense, 7 defense KEY PLAYERS WR Chris Cortez (Sr., 5-10, 170), RB Zamarion Manuel (Sr., 6-0, 160), WR Junior Reyna (Sr., 5-10, 160), WR-DB Tajon Sparks (Sr., 5-8, 150), OL Giovanni Alamarez (Sr., 6-1, 310), OL Gustavo Perez (Sr, 6-1, 280), DL Kaden Spencer (Jr., 6-1, 240), LB Daytrion Woodfork (Sr., 6-2, 200), LB Kain Pinto (Sr., 5-10, 175). THE SKINNY Two moments may have kept the Bulldogs out of the playoffs last year — a last-second field goal by Springdale Har-Ber and a missed two-point conversion pass against Fort Smith Southside. … Junior Cayden Aaserude and sophomore Jack Pounders provide the Bulldogs with a two-man weapon at quarterback. Aaserude, the runner, missed last season with a broken collarbone, while Pounders is the passer … Manuel earns a spot in the offensive backfield after focusing mainly on defense last season, but could see time at one of the corners. … Reyna can not only haul in passes, but he is liked for his blocking ability. … Almaraz, one of four returning starters in the offensive line, started every game at left tackle and started all season as a sophomore at left guard. He is joined by Perez, Maurice Olvera and Arthur Clark. … Sparks, a slot receiver as a sophomore, will see action as a receiver again after turning his attention to defense last fall. He is a three-year starter at cornerback and averages 25 yards per kickoff return. … Spencer was voted defensive newcomer of the year by the 7A-West coaches last year after he had 40 tackles, 3 sacks and 2 fumble recoveries. … Woodfork, who added 20 pounds to his frame in the offseason, is a returning all-conference performer at linebacker and has 56 tackles last year, as well as 8.5 tackles for loss. THAT'S WHAT HE SAID "I think we're going to have a mental toughness this year. I think we'll be a physical football team. That's kind of been our mentality, what we're trying to preach, what we're trying to get to. The guys are really bought in. We had our first day of practice in pads, and it was a very physical practice, so we're excited about it. It's all going to start with our offensive line." — Brett Hobbs SPRINGDALE HAR-BER WILDCATS 2021 RECORD 3-8, 3-4 7A-West COACH Chris Wood RETURNING STARTERS 7 offense, 6 defense KEY PLAYERS QB Luke Buchanan (Sr., 6-1, 190), RB Hudson Brewer (Sr., 6-2, 190), RB Cole Carlton (Sr., 5-10, 200), OL Jake Fotenopulos (Sr., 6-4, 230), OL Nathan Hopkins (Sr., 6-1, 245), DE Lattimer Wilmoth (Sr., 6-0, 245), LB Ross Haney (Sr., 5-9, 175), DL Amare Tareo (Sr., 6-0, 200), FS Britt Wittschen (Sr., 5-9, 150), LB Chris McGehee (Sr., 5-10, 160). THE SKINNY The Wildcats must regroup after suffering back-to-back losing seasons for the first time in school history. … Three of Har-Ber's close losses came in the closing minutes against McKinney, Texas; Fort Smith Northside and Bentonville West, and the Wildcats suffered a critical fumble in the end zone in the fourth quarter of their loss to Rogers. … Buchanan returns after he threw for 2,827 yards and ran for almost 800 yards and 9 TDs last season, but he suffered a broken collarbone in a playoff loss to Cabot. … Brewer, the state's leading ground-gainer in 2020, struggled with injuries last year and had only 525 yards rushing and 10 TDs. … Carlton filled in for Brewer at tailback and compiled 484 yards and 7 TDs on the ground. … Fotenopulos returns at left tackles and has bulked up, adding 20 pounds to his frame in the offseason. … Tareo moves to the defensive line after playing last year as a linebacker, where had recorded 53 tackles and recovered a pair of fumbles. … Haney had double- digit tackles in eight games last season and finished with 129 tackles, as well as 4 sacks. … McGehee also returns at a linebacker position, where he finished with 98 tackles last season, including 9 tackles for loss and 2 sacks. THAT'S WHAT HE SAID "I think we have a good senior class that embodies the whole and doesn't isolate itself as one group. I think, more than anything, we have a bunch of young men that want to do right — they want to win, have success and enjoy the game together. That spreads throughout the building. Those seniors have a great DNA. The family has done a great job raising them, teaching them to be servant-leaders and put others before themselves. You don't see it that much in today's society." — Chris Wood SCHEDULE Aug. 25 ......at LR Parkview Oct. 7 ........ at Springdale* Sept. 2 .......Bixby, Okla. Oct. 14 .Bentonville West* Sept. 16 .....at Mustang, Okla. Oct. 21 ...... FS Southside* Sept. 23 .....at Bentonville* Oct. 28 ............at Rogers* Sept. 30 .....Rogers Heritage* Nov. 4 ...........Fayetteville* * — Denotes 7A-West Conference game All kickoffs 7 p.m. unless noted Johnetheon Lockett Christopher Incao Carter Hensle Chris Cortez Britt Wittschen Ashton Alston It's a New era! Williams Tractor is now WT EQUIPMENT Visit our new state-of-the-art campus in Springdale! Spanning 20 acres with a 45,000-square foot building facing I-49, we are now located just south of Don Tyson Parkway at 4190 S. 48th St. formerly Williams Tractor

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