A football stadium isn't all that's new Springdale Har-Ber.
The Wildcats will break in several new starters after losing a two-year starter at quarterback, a record-setting running back, most of its offensive line and receivers, and two defensive linemen who signed with SEC schools.
Springdale Har-Ber Wildcats
Date^Opponent^Time
Sept. 5^At Webb City, Mo.^7 p.m.
Sept. 12^At Kansas City (Mo.) Rockhurst^7:30 p.m.
Sept. 19^Conway^7 p.m.
Sept. 26^At Rogers*^7:30 p.m.
Oct. 3^Springdale*^7:30 p.m.
Oct. 10^Bentonville*^7:30 p.m.
Oct. 17^At Fayetteville*7:30 p.m.
Oct. 24^Fort Smith Southside*7:30 p.m.
Oct. 31^At Fort Smith Northside*7:30 p.m.
Nov. 7^At Rogers Heritage*7:30 p.m.
*7A-West Conference game
Oh, and the Wildcats have new offensive and defensive coordinators to help direct a process that begins today with the start of spring football practice.
"I'm exited about it," said Har-Ber coach Chris Wood, who must replace 46 seniors from a team that finished 8-4. "You're always going to have turnover and part of the fun is trying to put the puzzle back together. Eventually, we expect to find athletes who will rise to the occasion and represent Har-Ber High School."
Har-Ber must be ready for another challenging schedule that begins with non-conference road games at Webb City, Mo. and Kansas City (Mo.) Rockhurst. The Wildcats will then open their new stadium Sept. 19th against Conway before jumping into conference play at Rogers. The 7A-West promises to be tougher this season with the return of Fort Smith Southside and Fort Smith Northside into the league.
"We like to play high-level teams to get us ready for conference play," Wood said. "You're not doing yourself justice by playing easy teams in non-conference. If you do that, you're going to be shocked and awed by the level of talent once you get into conference play. We want a reality test right from the start."
Caleb Daniels and Brandon Still are the top candidates to replace Kyle Pianalto, a two-year starter at quarterback. Luke Hannon and Nick Verucchi will compete to fill the vacancy left by sprinter Sain Mathew, who set a school single-season rushing record with 1,926 yards on 276 carries. Noseguard Josh Frazier signed with Alabama and defensive end Jake Hall accepted an offer from Arkansas after a standout senior season.
Har-Ber will return five starters on defense, including cornerback Justin Setser and tackle Rickey Dobbins, who recently received scholarship offers from Tulsa and Central Arkansas. Austin Henderson and Chase Anderson showed promise last fall as sophomores for the Wildcats.
"Ricky, he's lost some weight and he's really blossomed," Wood said. "He knows the system better after spending a year with us and we expect him to keep getting better and better."
Har-Ber's coaching staff will look different with the addition of Keith Fimple as offensive coordinator and receivers coach and Michael Johnson as defensive coordinator. Fimple replaces Don Struebing, who went into private business, and Johnson replaces Gary Wear, who'll coach running backs this season.
"We had a unique situation where our new coaches were able to join us in January, and that was a big help," Wood said. "We're ready to get on the field and get after it."
Sports on 05/12/2014