By JASON KING
Leader sportswriter
It’s been close to a decade since Sylvan Hills won its season opener, until Friday’s 31-16 defeat of Vilonia, that is. The Bears were in control most of the way, with all of Vilonia’s points coming from simple, yet correctable mistakes. The Eagles had dominated the series between the two teams up that point, signifying a colossal shift in talent pools.
This week, the Bears face Hot Springs Lakeside, a series in which they have traditionally had more success. The Rams lost their season opener to Little Rock Christian in a close 39-35 heartbreaker. Lakeside will make the long drive to Bill Blackwood Field on Friday for a 7 p.m. kickoff time.
There were few surprises for the Bears in their victory over Vilonia. Junior quarterback Trajan Doss carried his weight and then some with 224 passing yards and 95 rushing yards, combining those talents to account for three touchdowns. Marlon Clemmons, Matt Thompson, Chris Daily and Kylan Wade also gave dominant performances on the defensive side. One pleasant surprise for Sylvan Hills, however, was junior running back Tyler Davis (5-11, 170) who rushed for 131 yards after seeing limited time at that position in the scrimmage game at Joe T. Robinson two weeks ago.
“Tyler was one of those guys we were trying to find a place for,” Bears coach Jim Withrow said. “He’s still got a long way to go, but he gets better every single day.”
Clemmons was projected to be the strongest of Sylvan Hills’ fleet of tailbacks, but with the junior standout carrying such a vital role on the defensive side, the emergence of Davis could have huge implications for the Bears in the depth department.
“You take a little off his plate, and it definitely helps,” Withrow said. “It gives us a lot of options.”
For all of the good the Bears experienced against Vilonia, the 17 penalty flags they collected were decidedly bad. There were a few other hiccups, such as a fumbled ball in the end zone that gave the Eagles two points, one interception, and a bad punt that gave Vilonia a short field. But for Withrow, it was mostly the penalties that stung the hardest.
“If we can clean up the penalties, we’ve got a chance to play well at times. Those were disappointing. The defense was outstanding. We couldn’t have played much better on defense.”
Rams’ third-year head coach and former Arkansas Razorback quarterback Jared McBride has touted this year as time for rebuilding since the summer, though he does have experience returning in key positions, such as senior quarterback Garrett Carson. Carson is coming off a highly successful junior campaign in which he threw for over 2,000 yards out of the Spread formation. His primary target once again this year is junior Clint Smedley, who earned All-Conference honors last year with 50 receptions. Smedley also takes snaps in Lakeside’s version of the Wildcat offense.
“They’re well coached, and the concepts they do are really good,” Withrow said. “Coach McBride is a good coach, and they always give their opponents a tough game. Defense, they go with a 3-3-5, just tons of blitzing.”
This week is big for Sylvan Hills not only for the home opener. The classes of 1993 and 2003 will also be in attendance for their class reunions.
