A school record 14 members of the two-time defending State champion Bryant Hornets football team signed National letters of intent on Wednesday to continue their gridiron careers and educations at the next level on scholarships.
Along with linebacker Catrell Wallace, running back/linebacker Ahmad Adams, and safety Tamaurion “T-Bird” Wilson who signed during the early signing period in December, defensive tackle Austin Bailey, defensive end Kyle Green, offensive lineman Ty Johnson, linebacker Daylon Land, wide receiver Jake Meaders, defensive linemen Kennedy and Kendrick Miller, center Devin Pitts, cornertback Darrick Rose, Jr., linebacker Cameron Scarlett and offensive lineman Tanner Wilson signed in a group ceremony on Wednesday.
The group helped the Hornets set records for wins in a season (13) and the longest winning streak in program history (17 and counting) as the winningest class in program history (34).
Rose, Johnson and Tanner Wilson signed with Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, while Tamaurion Wilson and Meaders signed with the University of Central Arkansas in Conway. The Miller twins are both going to Missouri Southern State University in Joplin. Green signed with Arkansas Tech in Russellville, Scarlett with Lyon College in Batesville and Bailey with Harding University in Searcy. Land is headed to Morehouse State in Atlanta, Ga., and Pitts is headed to the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Adams had signed with Arkansas State University in Jonesboro and Wallace with the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.
“It doesn’t happen every day where you have 14 guys sign,” said Hornets head coach Buck James. “It doesn’t happy everywhere. And it happens because we have great administration that allow us to coach the kids, great parents who allow us to coach their kids then we have players who work their tails off. They played on a team that could be one of the best teams that ever played in the state of Arkansas. They won championships as juniors and as seniors. They were great teammates especially when they weren’t stars. A lot of these guys hardly started or even played a down in junior high.
“It’s a process,” he emphasized. “Being a high school football player is not just a thing you do. And the thing is, they’re about to start that process over. They’re fixing to be eighth-graders again and they’re going to be playing with seniors. If you’re their friend or loved one, if you care about them, they’re going to have to have some help because they’ve been the dudes for a while. Now, they can’t be the dudes. They’re going to have to learn. That’s just the way it is. College football is tough.
“There’s a lot of things that go into these guys being successful,” the coach added. “There’s a lot of things that go into being a good high school football team. It’s not cheap. It’s not easy. And there’s no way to cheat it. You’ve got to go through the grind it takes to go 13-0 and win a State championship after you won one the year before.
“We couldn’t have done it without each other,” James concluded. “It takes all of us to get this done and I can’t say enough how much I appreciate it.”
The Hornets won 10 of their 13 games by mercy rule (35-point lead in the fourth quarter results in a running clock). They set a school record for total offense in a season (5,644 yards) including the most passing yards in a season (3,621 yards). They scored the most points in a season (560, a record 43.1 points per game average) and allowed the fewest points in a season of 12 games or more (107). By scoring 79 touchdowns, it shattered the program record for TDs in the season of 58 set in 2018. The defense recorded a record 45 sacks, breaking a mark set in 2018 of 41, and allowed the fewest yards rushing per game for a season of 12 games or more (91.8 yards).
Over the last two years, the Hornets have had 29 players sign to play in college. Over three seasons, it’s been 36 players.
2019 BRYANT HORNETS STATS
Final, unofficial, through 13 games
Score by quarters
BRYANT 189 207 84 80 — 560
Opponent 28 30 35 21 — 114
Team stats
Bryant Opponent
First downs 243 142
Total offense 5646 2456
Rushes-yds 374-2023 397-1194
Passing 226-371-12 129-299-19
Passing yds 3623 1262
Fumbles-lost 14-6 26-12
Penalties-yds 85-821 58-486
INDIVIDUAL STATS
Rushing: Adams 137-1032, Anderson 91-594, Foote 37-172, Ledbetter 51-99, Jones 32-76, Herron 4-23, Nichols 4-22, Davis 4-10, Burnett 2-(-12)
Passing (C-A-I-Y): Ledbetter 202-326-9-3,322 (43 TDs), Meaders 23-40-2-245 (1 TD), Schroeder 0-2-1-0, Burnett 1-2-0-34 (1 TD), Nichols 0-1-0-0.
Receiving: Schrader 61-915, Meaders 58-960, Herron 28-545, Young 23-541, Adams 15-114, Aldridge 10-177, Curtis 8-72, Gregory 5-96, Everett 3-45, Anderson 3-41, Blevins 2-40, Barber 2-25, Findley 2-13, Foote 1-19, Jones 1-13, Stark 1-6.
Scoring: Meaders 108 (18 td-rec), Adams 97 (15 td-r, 1 td-rec), Funk 81 (2 of 3 fg-43, 25/miss 24; 75 of 76 PATs), Anderson 60 (10 td-r), Schrader 56 (9 td-rec, 1 conv.), Young 36 (6 td-rec), Herron 36 (5 td-rec, 1 fum. Rec.), Foote 24 (3 td-r, 1 td-rec), Ledbetter 12 (2 td-r), Aldridge 12 (2 td-rec), Gregory 12 (2 td-rec), Rose 6 (1 int.ret), Jones 6 (1 td-r), Green 6 (1 int.ret), Barber 6 (1 td-rec), Wallace 2 (1 punt-block for safety)
DEFENSIVE STATS (through 13 games, includes solo, assists, sacks, TFLs)
Tackles: Daylon Land 85, Cameron Scarlett 80, Catrell Wallace 60, Austin Bailey 49, Kyle Green 45, Tristan Sehika 43, Tamaurion Wilson 41, Hart Penfield 38, Rodricho Martin 31, Austin Schroeder 30, Kennedy Miller 27.5, David Shifflet 24.5, Kaleb Knox 24, Darrick Rose 19, Koby Melton 19, Jordan Hunter 17, Kyle Knox 15, Andy Scott 12, Brayden Godwin 11, Damien Constantino 8, Gavin Burton 8, Avery Montoya 7, Christian Cain 6, Taylor Martin 6, LaQuav Brumfield 6, Hunter Stallman 4, Ty Jones 4, Kendrick Miller 4, Jimyle Harris 3, Connor Coleman 3, Brandon Jones 2, Braden Robinson 2, Christian Motes 2, Eli Rickert 1, Pierce Kinley 1, T.J. Flemister 1, Taylor Daniels 1, Cristian Del Castillo 1, Kyle Meachum 1.
Solo tackles: Land 44, Scarlett 44, Wallace 27, Wilson 24, Schroeder 23, Bailey 20, Penfield 18, Sehika 16, Green 14, Kal.Knox 13, Martin 12, Kyle Knox 12, Hunter 11, Rose 11, Shifflet 11, Godwin 10, Melton 9, Kennedy Miller 9, Brumfield 6, Scott 5, Cain 5, Burton 4, Stallman 3, T.Jones 3, Constantino 3, Montoya 3, Martin 2, Harris 2, Coleman 2, Robinson 2, Kendrick Miller 1, Jones 1, Rickert 1, Kinley 1, Daniels 1.
Assists: Land 31, Scarlett 31, Wallace 26, Sehika 23, Penfield 18, Bailey 13, Kaleb Knox 11, Green 11, Melton 10, Martin 8, Schroeder 7, Shifflet 7, Wilson 6, Hunter 6, Rose 5, Constantino 5, Scott 4, Montoya 4, Martin 4, Kennedy Miller 4, Burton 3, Kendrick Miller 3, Motes 2, Cain 1, Stallman 1, B.Jones 1, Harris 1, Coleman 1, T.Jones 1, Flemister 1, Del Castillo 1, Meachum 1.
Sacks (45): Green 11, Kennedy Miller 8.5, Bailey 7, Martin 5, Sehika 4, Wilson 3, Land 3, Wallace 1, Godwin 1, B.Jones 1, Shifflet 0.5.
TFL (78): Green 9, Bailey 9, Land 8, Wilson 8, Scarlett 6, Martin 6, Shifflet 6, Kennedy Miller 6, Wallace 6, Kyle Knox 5, Rose 3, Scott 3, Penfield 2, Burton 1.
PBU (45): Rose 13, Wilson 8, Schroeder 8, Brumfield 5, Kyle Knox 4, Wallace 4, Jones 3
Interceptions: Rose 5, Schroeder 5, Scarlett 2, Kyle Knox 2, Kal.Knox 1, Wilson 1, Green 1, Land 1, Godwin 1.
QB Hurry: Bailey 14, Green 13, R.Martin 9, Kenn.Miller 8, Ky.Knox 7, Land 2, Scott 2, Godwin 2, Shifflet 1, Constantino 1, Wallace 1, Melton 1, Scott 1, Scarlett 1.
Forced fumbles: Penfield 3, Hunter 2, Scarlett 2, Montoya 1, Robinson 1, Scott 1, Land 1, Bailey 1.
Fumble recovery: Wilson 2, Penfield 1, Stallman 1, Jones 1, Sehika 1, Robinson 1, Scott 1, Schroeder 1, Melton 1.
Blocked punts: Wallace 4
