HUNTSVILLE -- In a battle of Wing-T teams Friday, Prairie Grove's passing game ignited a second-half offensive explosion as the Tigers beat Huntsville, 48-21.
Prairie Grove scored first on Solomon Walker's 4-yard run. Blake Faulk ran in a 2-point conversion but Huntsville answered with Levi Elsey's 19-yard sprint to the house on fourth and 10. J.D. Vaughn's 2-point run tied the contest at 8-all in the second quarter and then came Greek lightning.
Prairie Grove quarterback Sam Dodd sprinted to his left, then stopped on a dime with the attention of the defense focused on him and threw back across the field to a wide-open Gavin Heltemes near the right sideline 30 yards downfield. The pass arrived before Huntsville defenders could react and Heltemes sailed into the end zone scoring a 41-yard touchdown. A pass failed on a conversion and Huntsville again tied the game, this time at 14-14 on the next play from scrimmage. Jaron Evans broke a 64-yard touchdown run and the Eagles attempted to kick their way into a lead but the P.A.T. was wide by the slimmest of margins.
Seven minutes and two seconds remained in the first half after the back-to-back touchdowns and Prairie Grove went to work. Isaac Disney returned the kickoff to the Tiger 41 and after four straight running plays, caught consecutive passes including a fourth down conversion on a slant right. From the 17, Dodd threw to 6-feet-7, 275 pound tight end Dylan Soehner, who bowled over a would-be tackler at the one as he scored. A conversion run failed but Prairie Grove led 20-14 at halftime.
The irony of all this was earlier in the week, Prairie Grove head coach Danny Abshier admitted a reluctance to put the ball in the air as much as some of his assistants would like him to.
"To me, that's almost speaking Greek cause what I want to do is run the ball," Abshier said last Wednesday.
The first play of the third quarter left Huntsville's defense feeling like they, too, were having difficulty interpreting Greek. Prairie Grove scored on a 73-yard double pass with Soehner, a former quarterback, taking a throw behind the line of scrimmage, then chucking the pigskin downfield to a wide-open Disney running unhindered for a touchdown. Dodd rolled out and waited until the last second before firing a 2-point conversion pass to Disney pushing Prairie Grove's advantage to 28-14.
Huntsville tried to answer by going to the air only to discover the Tigers understand the Greek of pass defense with Zeke Laird picking off a pass giving Prairie Grove premium field position at the Eagle 23. Three running plays later Faulk danced his way for a 15-yard touchdown. A pass failed but the game had changed with Prairie Grove owning a 34-14 lead at the 9:36 mark of the third period.
Huntsville scored their third and final touchdown on Elsey's quarterback sneak from the two 5:11 later. Manuel Aldaco's kick made the margin, 34-21, yet the Eagles couldn't stymie Prairie Grove's momentum. Cole McClellan's 20-yard kick return put the Tigers at their own 45. Reed Orr's 24-yard run was followed by Faulk's 30-yard gallop for his third rushing touchdown. Although a conversion pass failed Prairie Grove was back up by three touchdowns, at 40-21, with 3:10 to go in the third.
On the next series defensive end Jack Stone smothered a run and linebacker Dakota Hutchinson did likewise setting up a Huntsville punt from their own 33. The Huntsville punter out-kicked his coverage and Disney returned the football 68 yards for a touchdown. Orr added a 2-point carry and Prairie Grove went on to victory, 48-21, to open 4A-1 Conference play 1-0. The Tigers are 3-1 overall and will play Gravette on Friday in their first home game of the season.
After the game Abshier talked about the emotional week leading up to the contest saying his staff prepared for the contest just like any other game. The Tigers wore Pray4Jarren emblems on their helmets in support of Prairie Grove freshman Jarren Sorters, who is facing a leg amputation since a recent cancer diagnosis. The Eagles wore "S.D." on their helmets in memory of sophomore Shelby Dotson, a water girl for the football team, who was killed in an automobile accident on Monday before the game. Still, the conference game was on schedule with both teams chasing a state playoff berth.
"The world is full of hurting and pain. You have to learn how to move on," Abshier said. "They [Huntsville] are wearing gold for Jarren. We're wearing maroon for Shelby and her family."
Abshier also honored Tice, who hired him as an assistant when Tice was head coach at Harrison 26 years ago.
"There is no classier guy than Tommy Tice. He's the best," Abshier said. "I think he's winningest active football coach in Arkansas. He's my mentor. I have the utmost respect for him. He taught me everything I know around the football field."
Sports on 09/30/2015