SPRINGDALE -- Evan Burris hurdled a Springdale High defender while scrambling for a first down near the sideline early in the third quarter Friday night.
It was one of numerous highlights for the Alma senior quarterback on a rainy evening at Bulldog Stadium. Burris threw four touchdown passes and accounted for 266 total yards to lead the Airedales to a 28-10 road win over the Bulldogs.
How They Scored
Alma 28, Springdale High 10
Alma^7^7^14^0^—^28
Springdale^3^7^0^0^—^10
First Quarter
Alma — Burris 22 pass to Friddle (Linker kick), 4:03
Spring — Bautista 28 FG, 1:10
Second Quarter
Spring — Chandler 1 run (Bautista kick), 4:08
Alma — Burris 21 pass to Hall (Linker kick), 1:24
Third Quarter
Alma — Burris 22 pass to Dotson (Linker kick), 4:10
Alma — Burris 18 pass to Hall (Linker kick), 0:24
"Evan is just a heads-up quarterback," Alma coach Doug Loughridge said. "He's smart enough to where if it's not open he'll tuck it and run. Lot of yards with his legs today. Very proud to have a veteran quarterback out there."
Burris ran for 62 yards on 12 carries, but was even more effective throwing the ball. He completed 16 of 19 passes for 204 yards and the four touchdowns as Alma (2-0) took advantage of a Springdale secondary playing without injured starting free safety Gavin Schmidt (shoulder).
"He's not big guy, but he's a big tackle guy," Patrick said of Schmidt. "He makes a lot of tackles for us. He's a guy who's been practicing down there and knows the reads and stuff. So (Zach) Burton has to split time on both sides of the ball and that takes it's toll a little bit. But it is what it is. We're playing the best guys we've got and we're going to continue to get better and go to work."
Springdale led in the second quarter for the the second straight week, but couldn't keep pace once Burris found Thomas Hall for a 21-yard touchdown just before halftime to put Alma ahead 17-14, a lead the Airedales wouldn't relinquish.
Springdale (0-2) had its moments offensively, but struggled to finish drives, particularly in the second half. The Bulldogs turned the ball over on downs four times total, including three times after halftime, two of which came with Springdale inside the Alma 30-yard line.
"Mental mistakes killed us," Patrick said. "Mentally, we don't make plays when we have opportunities, which puts us in a real bind. We've got to mentally be prepared to play and we've got to carry out our assignments and execute."
Extra Points
• Alma finished with 346 yards of offense, a better effort for a Springdale defense which gave up 568 yards in a 56-26 season-opening loss to Greenwood.
• Springdale junior running back Malcolm Neal had the first 100-yard game of his career, finishing with 104 yards on 19 carries. He had 92 yards on 14 carries in the first half.
• Springdale completed less than 50 percent of its pass attempts for the second straight week, completing 11 of 24 on Friday after going 13 of 27 last week.
• Springdale unveiled a 3-4 look on defense at times during the game.
Up Next: Springdale will try for its first win in another state when it travels to face Bixby, Okla. The Spartans (1-1) have beaten Springdale the last two years. Alma will try to remain perfect when it wraps up nonconference play at Harrison.
Sports on 09/13/2014