Parkview proud but not satisfied following statement victory over Bryant
Turning the page back to Week 10 of 2018, all of Bryant's Arkansas-based opponents from that point were defeated one right after the other for 54 games.
Parkview (2-0) was the 43rd in line to fall last September but made sure it was not going to be No. 55 as the defending Class 5A champion Patriots stunned the five-time defending 7A champion Hornets 28-27 before a standing room only packed house at Hornet Stadium on Friday night.
“I want to say this first, and I mean it, we have a tremendous amount of respect for Bryant,” Patriots head coach Brad Bolding said. “They earned that streak and they deserved it.
“The magnitude of it is huge. For us to be a 5A team and be able to stay with a team like them that has so many more kids than we do and we had multiple two-way guys, it is just a huge win for our program.”
Parkview played Bryant as tough as anyone in 2022 and trailed just 14-10 at halftime before Bryant’s defense preserved the 20-10 victory.
After the Patriots recently took down Har-Ber 52-21 in Week 0, they had an extra week with last Friday’s bye to prepare. Bolding and his staff made sure to get plenty of work in and utilize the extra time, but they were also smart about it.
“We mainly did a lot of individual stuff because we did not want to overwork them,” Bolding said. “That is usually what we do during a bye week or the playoffs, but I think the big thing for us was we just wanted them to be fresh.
"Also we focused a lot on special teams because I think that is important, especially in a big game like this."
Bryant (2-1) was down 21-14 with just over a minute to go in the first half, but Shawn Rycraw scored from 15 yards on a reverse and the Hornets were presumably going to tie the score on the extra point attempt. However, the snap was fumbled and play blown dead as Parkview held a narrow 21-20 lead.
Moments later, the special teams Bolding referred to came through.
With speedsters Omarion Robinson and Monterrio Elston back waiting to bust a big return, Bryant went with sky kickoffs to keep the ball out of their hands. However, they did not account for Jermaine Penny. Standing on the 13-yard line, Penny watched as the ball dropped into his hands and he took off toward the end zone for an 87-yard touchdown return that gave the Patriots an additional boost, now leading 28-20.
“We try to set up our kick return to where we have our best players from the 30 on back,” Bolding said. “You really do not have a lot of places to kick the football without one of them (Elston, Robinson or Penny) touching it. Jermaine runs a 10.7 100, and when he is on kickoff return, he is going to get close to that speed because he is running the entire distance of the field.”
Though he only recored one tackle at cornerback, Penny’s production expanded well beyond the stat sheet. He was able to consistently go toe-to-toe with wide receiver Shawn Rycraw, one of the Hornets’ fastest players, in man coverage.
“He has tremendous hips and his feet are really, really good, so I think that is what kind of sets him apart at cornerback, and of course with his speed he can run with anybody,” Bolding said. “As long as he has eye discipline, which is very important in our defense, then he will be fine.”
Bryant scored shortly after halftime with 9:24 remaining in the third quarter on a 29-yard pass from Jordan Walker to Cason Trickey. The Hornets also threatened late, but Walker was not able to convert on a fourth down run with no receivers open, which put the Patriots in victory formation. The loss for Bryant also ended their overall 24-game win streak.
Early signs pointed to the matchup turning into a shootout with a 14-14 tie at the end of the first quarter. While they do spread the ball out, Parkview is known for being a run-first team.
It might not have been to perfection at times, but the game plan was highly effective as the Patriots outgained the Hornets on the ground 270-192 while Parkview also averaged 6.3 yards per carry. Parkview senior quarterback and Central Arkansas commit Eric McGehee only attempted eight passes on the night, completing three of them for 23 yards.
McGehee was utilized more in the aforementioned rushing attack, finishing with 64 yards along with a score. He was the Patriots' second-leading rusher behind Elston, who carried 13 times for 135 yards and a score.
“We team camped with Bryant five times this summer and felt like we were effectively able to run the ball on them, so that is how we game planned,” Bolding said. “We have not really given many teams a look with Eric running the ball, though he is a super fast kid (4.48 forty-yard dash). That is mainly just to protect him, but we felt like if we had a chance of winning that we were going to have to run the football.”
Between McGehee, Elston, Robinson, as well as Jaden Ashford and Cam Settles, who also plays in the defensive secondary, any coach would be thrilled to have those kinds of weapons in the arsenal when deciding which offensive play to call. Sometimes, though, that can lead to players getting disgruntled for not getting the amount of snaps they feel they deserve, but Bolding mentioned that his guys all thrive off of each other’s successes.
“Last year really concerned me a lot because we really felt like we had a team we could win it all with,” Bolding said. “But I was concerned with them, then about getting touches, especially because there are so many skill guys, plus you have kids leaving to go to different schools.
“It was a concern of mine in the offseason, it really was, but our kids really want each other to do well, so they do not get jealous about it. We just try to utilize the entire field sideline to sideline, and if we do that, then we have an advantage.”
While the victory will go down as one of the best moments in Parkview football history, the Patriots know they must have a short memory. They host North Little Rock, Bolding's former team, on Friday at War Memorial Stadium. The Charging Wildcats survived 28-27 in two overtimes last year and the Patriots are hoping for redemption before beginning their quest for back-to-back 5A-South championships, as well as a second consecutive state title.
“We will move on,” Bolding said. “I promise you, the page will turn tomorrow and this will be past history.”
--Kyle Sutherland | @k_sutherlandAR
