SPRINGDALE -- Texarkana made a long bus ride Friday. The drive back was a victory celebration.
The Class 5A Razorbacks rolled into Champions Stadium and rolled over Class 4A Shiloh Christian 54-38.
"This was the longest game I was ever a part of in my life," Texarkana Coach Barry Norton said. "There was a lot of rust, just getting in and out of huddles. But the great thing was good conditioning."
The game covered nearly four hours due to a number of injuries and more than 40 penalties. Razorbacks senior running back Jordan Hall racked up 215 yards and 5 touchdowns on 21 carries. He also had a reception in the second quarter that went for 59 yards.
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"[I give credit to] my teammates, my offensive line, and my receivers blocking downfield," Hall said. "I can't thank them enough. They did a really good job."
A memorable touchdown for Hall came at the 29-second mark in the first quarter. After receiving the ball from quarterback Sean Foreback, Hall fumbled the ball several feet in the air before catching it with his back to the end zone. He back-pedaled and caught his footing before scoring.
The Saints started the game with junior quarterback Eli Reece, but Shiloh Christian Coach Jeff Conaway elected to stick with backup Jaiden Henry for much of the contest. The sophomore threw three touchdown passes, but he was errant on many of his deep passes and missed several opportunities when receivers found separation.
Shiloh scored on a double-pass touchdown at the 5:31 mark of the second quarter. Reece passed the ball to Henry, who was lined up on the right side of the field. He avoided a tackler before throwing the ball to junior receiver Truitt Tollett, who was one of three open receivers behind the defense.
Sports on 08/25/2018