By Rob Patrick
Back before their long series was interrupted in 2003, no matter the records, every time the Bryant Hornets visited Sheridan, it was a dogfight, the proverbial donnybrook.
As Bryant head coach Paul Calley said, “There just always seems to be some kind of mystical power that they have over us when we go in. We tend to turn the ball over. We don’t play well. That’s what I remember. Some of the worst and toughest games that we’ve had have come at Sheridan. It’s not the same when they come here. It’s scares me. We’re going to have to be focused.”
Indeed, in 2003 when the Hornets were on the way to a 6-5-1 season that included a State playoff win, they had to fight to escape Sheridan with a 24-14 win in a year the Yellowjackets struggled to finish 2-7-1.
In 2000, the Jackets were on their way to an 8-2 season, their best in years but it was a 14-13 win at home over a 2-1 Bryant team that really launched that season. It was part of a 6-0 start for Sheridan.[more]
In 1998, Daryl Patton’s first Hornets team lost at Sheridan 7-3, one of only two conference wins for the Yellowjackets that season.
The 2009 Jackets are coming off three straight playoff appearances though, granted they were the No. 6 seed in the first two of those trips, they nearly notched a playoff victory last year against Jacksonville.
Head coach Benji White who, incidentally, grew up down the street from Calley in Gurdon, is trying to build the program into a perennial Class 6A contender.
“He’s a few years older than me,” White quipped regarding Calley. “He’s probably got a few more gray hairs than I do.”
That’s not the only thing Bryant and Sheridan have in common, either. A pair of BHS alums Michael McClellan, one of the standouts on the unbeaten 1999 Hornets team, and Jason Gentry, a 1998 grad, are assistants of White’s staff.
“There’s a lot of connections there,” White acknowledged. “For us, it’s a big challenge but it’s a fun challenge.
“The main thing with Bryant is, it is a bigger school, an established program,” he said. “You know, there was a lot of talk last year about them being a little bit down and they finished 8-4. They’re well coached.
"It’s not so much a David-and-Goliath story, but it’s a big challenge for us,” he reiterated. “They’ve got more depth and they should naturally be bigger, faster and stronger than a 6A school. But, for the Sheridan Yellowjackets, it’s a challenge that we’re ready for.”
Sheridan has actually been competing with Bryant and Benton on the gridiron longer than the Hornets and Panthers have against each other.
But, asked if it was a rivalry, White said, “Somewhat. For Bryant, there’s the Salt Bowl, the Benton-Bryant rivalry. I coached in that series a few years (as an assistant at Benton) and I know how intense it is. For Sheridan, Bryant and Benton could both be considered a rival, there’s kind of that little triangle there. Of course, we’d like to be on top of both of them.”
So, it's not the Salt Bowl. How about the Buzz Bowl?
The Hornets come into the game off a convincing 38-7 win in the Salt Bowl. As Calley mentioned, “It’s really hard coming off an emotional victory like that, an emotional month in preparation for it and be at your best the following week. We had a real lackluster practice on Tuesday but we stepped it up Wednesday.”
The Jackets won a thriller against Arkadelphia. After leading 16-6, they fell victim to some big plays by the Badgers who came back to tie the game 28-28 before Sheridan made a late drive for a game-winning field goal with :05 left.
White said the focus of his team’s practices this week has been, “Protecting the football. That’s the number one thing last week and this week. We’ve got to protect the football. We did well controlling the clock (against Arkadelphia), keeping drives alive but three turnovers was three too many.
“Our special teams have really come along great,” he added. “We’ve done a much better job this week on our kicking game; and not just the kicking part but covering the field, picking up our blocks on returns. Special teams have really gotten a lot better.”
Asked what he expected from Bryant, White said, “I expect a hard-nosed defensive line and linebacking corps and the same thing out of their offensive line. They’ve got a great running back with Chris Rycraw and their offensive line is big and strong, so battling on the line of scrimmage is probably going to be the biggest challenge for us.
“We’re kind of banged up on the offensive line and defensive line right now and, from what I understand, Bryant’s not,” he mentioned, “so that’s going to be a big challenge for our kids. Our depth and rotations that we’ve had won’t be there. We’re going to be asking a lot out of those young men but they’re up for the challenge. That’s what they’ve been preparing for all year.”
“Sheridan runs the spread offense,” Calley mentioned. “They’ve got an athletic quarterback (Eric Eggburn). He throws the ball well and runs well. They run a zone scheme in the running game. The pass game is very similar to ours.
“They’ve shown a lot of multiple looks on defense,” he added. “We really don’t know what we’re going to get. We’ve tried to prepare for everything like we usually do. We’ll need to execute.”
