SPRINGDALE — Russellville coach Jeff Holt blamed himself for the way his team played in the first half last week against Springdale High.
During the half, the Cyclones couldn’t complete passes, couldn’t run the ball effectively and failed to convert first downs on more than four different possessions.
Holt said the reason for his team’s slow start was because it wasn’t prepared for the kind of physicality that Springdale started with.
“We just weren’t prepared offensively, but we got that worked out at halftime,” Holt said. “It’s just a mental thing; we should have had a better start, but it was my fault we didn’t. We’re going to make sure that doesn’t happen this week.”
In the second half against Springdale, senior quarterback Barrett Hughes completed 19 passes, including the go-ahead touchdown with 1 minute, 23 seconds left in the game to give Russellville a one-point victory in the first round of the Class 7A playoffs.
The Cyclones were also able to utilize running back Jacob Sparks, who totaled 40 yards and one touchdown on 14 carries.
“We’ve got to keep our running game going. We’ve got to make sure we keep getting Jacob the ball when we can,” Holt said. “He was effective for us in some spots against Springdale and we need him to be that way against Har-Ber.”
Holt said the Cyclones will also have left tackle Logan Purtle back this week, who missed last week’s game with an undisclosed injury. Purtle is one of Russellville’s best players on offense, Holt said.
In regards to Har-Ber, Holt said the Cyclones will be challenged in a big way in trying to contain what the Wildcats do best on offense and defense.
The biggest thing, Holt said, is not giving up any big plays and finding a way to make tackles on Har-Ber’s running backs.
The Wildcats got positive news this week when they found out they’d have receiver Josh McKinney and running back Tre Tyler back. Both players have been out most of the season with injuries.
“Russellville is really talented in a lot of positions,” Har-Ber coach Chris Wood said. “They do a lot of misdirection on offense and we’re going to have to be on top of that. Their quarterback has an arm and he can run, so we’re going to have our hands full.”
Regardless, Holt said a key for the Cyclones to win the game will be having a good start.
“We can afford to wait until the third or fourth quarter before we start playing well,” Holt said. “If we keep trying to play the catch-up game, we’ll get beat. It’s that simple. I think we’ll be ready to go.”
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