By todd traub
Leader sports editor
Injuries are an unfortunate part of football and the timing of the injuries is unfortunate for Cabot.
The Panthers have several key players banged up or worse as they prepare for their first-round 7A playoff game with Rogers Heritage at Panther Stadium on Friday.
Some injuries, like the abdominal injury to kicker/defensive back Logan Spry, have been nagging and long lasting.
Others, like the knee injury that knocked out quarterback Zach Craig against Russellville on Thursday night, were sustained a little more recently.
Either way, Cabot is going to have some positions to fill Friday.
“If we had to play today we’ve got five starters that wouldn’t be playing,” Cabot coach Mike Malham said Monday afternoon.
It is certain Craig, who was knocked out of bounds and injured his knee after a gain against Russellville and requires surgery, won’t be able to go against Heritage.
But the Panthers also lost running back Jeremy Berry against Russellville and he was on crutches Monday. Tight end Jesse Roberts, who was also hurt against the Cyclones, was listed as questionable while running back Spencer Smith (shoulder) and Spry are also looking like longshots to play.
Smith has been dealing with a bad shoulder for the past few weeks and Spry has been unable to kick, playing only defense, for most of the season and sat out Thursday’s game altogether.
In total, the Panthers began the week with four players missing on offense and one on defense.
“There will be a couple kids that might have to do some double duty,” Malham said.
Bryson Morris, a defensive back most of the season, was a contender with Craig for the quarterback job in the preseason and took over when Craig was lost in the Russellville game.
Morris, fortunately, has some experience taking snaps for the Panthers, plus it runs in his family. His father Brian was Malham’s quarterback in 1984.
Ian Thompson and Andre Ausejo have done a solid job filling in for Smith at fullback. Malham is looking to Mason James, James Haley and Austin Alley to make up for Berry’s absence.
“We’ve had a little depth at running back,” Malham said. “We’re playing five or six kids in those three positions all year long. So that hasn’t really hurt us.”
Ethan Brown, who filled in at times for Rod Quinn early in the year, is expected to play if Roberts is unable to go at the other tight end spot.
“We’ve been pretty resilient all year,” Malham said. “All of a sudden boom, boom, boom at the end. But that’s football. You can’t worry about it. Some kids have to step in and step up.
“If we don’t, we’ll be turning the pads in on Monday. If they do then maybe we can play another week.”
Cabot did its part to force a three-way tie with Conway and Bryant for first and earned a share of the 7A/6A-Central Conference championship.
But 7A West Memphis, playing a 6A schedule in the 7A/6A-East, rolled to the 7A’s No. 1 seed from the Central.
Conway had the tiebreaker over Cabot and Bryant and took the No. 2 seed and Cabot, by virtue of its victory over Bryant, is No. 3.
That cost the Panthers a first-round bye but gave them the opening-round home game against Heritage, the No. 6 seed from the West.
“This group has done a great job,” Malham said. “I know we’re banged up right now but a lot of other teams can say the same thing.”
Malham said Heritage has been one of those teams, but it is beginning to welcome back some injured players.
Like many teams from the 7A/6A-West, Heritage runs a Spread offense, but the only team from the region that really throws the ball on just about every down is Fayetteville, Malham said.
“Most of them try to be balanced. You’ve got to cover the whole field, run and pass,” Malham said.
