PRAIRIE GROVE - Prairie Grove's next opponent is Vian, Oklahoma. The Vian Wolverines have 12 seniors on their roster. They defeated Eufaula, 20-14, last week and beat Muldrow, 41-27, Aug. 26. In both games, Vian gave up more passing yardage than they gained. Muldrow quarterback Braden Gleason was 14 of 26 for 225 yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception compared to an 11-17, 88 yards, 1 touchdown performance by Vian senior quarterback Rayne Cloud (6-2, 195). The difference was on the ground with Vian limiting Muldrow to 112 yards on 30 rushing attempts for an average of 3.7-yards-per-attempt; while the Wolverines piled up a whopping 388 yards on 40 running plays led by senior runningback Terron Moses (5-8, 160) with 255 yards on 16 attempts. Cloud gained 81 yards on 13 rushes and sophomore runningback Bodhi Vann (5-7, 160) had 57 yards on 10 carries.
Vian found the going tougher on the ground against Eufaula, banging out 72 yards on 32 rushes. Eufaula out-gained Vian on the ground with 27 rushes netting 108 yards. At first glance, Eufaula was also better statistically in the air, gaining 178 passing yards to Vian's 97. A closer look reveals Eufaula's completion percentage was below 50 percent (16-of-38) with one costly interception that was returned for a score; while Vian was a respectable 10-of-21 with no interceptions. Despite their offensive production that generated more first downs (25 to 23), Eufaula couldn't find the end zone for the first three quarters against Vian, which led 20-0 after three periods of play. Eufaula recorded a safety and a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter to make the game close. Vian would not have won without a score on defense. Sophomore middle linebacker River Simon (5-10, 180) picked off a Eufaula pass and returned the ball 64 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter. With the extra-point that turnover accounted for 7 of Vian's 20 points.
Players to watch
No. Name Year Position Hgt. Wgt.
11 Rayne Cloud senior quarterback 6-2 195
20 Terron Moses senior runningback 5-8 160
15 River Simon sophomore middle linebacker 5-10 180
69 Zak Griffin senior noseguard 5-10 250
5 Bodhi Vann sophomore runningback 5-7 160
Sports on 09/07/2016